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BIG tapped to design a new $51 million whiskey distillery in Kentucky

2023-03-23T13:55:00-04:00

BIG has been announced to lead the design of a new whiskey distillery in Georgetown, Kentucky for a three-year-old local company called Blue Run Spirits.

The 35,000-square-foot distillery and adjacent 20,000-square-foot rick house structure dubbed ‘Meander’ will begin construction later this year at the Lanes Run Business Park located at the northeastern edge of the city, which is just 15 miles from Lexington.

Renderings appear to show a stream-like curved sequence of four interconnected pavilion-like forms with interiors framed by a glass curtain wall and landscaping on a site that is well integrated into the undulating hillside.

Image courtesy BIG

“For Blue Run, we have boiled the entire process of whiskey-making down to a single linear sequence - from distilling to maturing to bottling,” Ingles describes in a preview. “The half-mile-long process meanders through the gentle hillsides creating bends and banks, inlets, and outlooks. A single shingled roof of photovoltaic tiles twist...

Shigeru Ban unveils designs for Kentucky Owl Park whiskey distillery

2018-11-19T18:50:00-05:00

While Japanese whiskey distilleries are claiming top accolades for their finely crafted products these days, one decorated artisanal-minded Japanese master is bringing his craft to the heart of Bourbon country: Pritzker Prize-winning architect Shigeru Ban has been selected to oversee the planning and development of the "Kentucky Owl Park" experience in the Bluegrass State.

Image: Shigeru Ban Architects/Stoli Group

Global spirits enterprise Stoli Group, which had recently acquired the Kentucky Owl Bourbon brand, tasked Ban's firm to transform a 420-acre site at Cedar Creek Quarry into a must-see destination along the Kentucky Bourbon Trail—part tourist experience, part industrial facility complete with state-of-the-art distillery, bottling center, rickhouses for aging as well as office spaces for the corporation's American whiskey division.

Image: Shigeru Ban Architects/Stoli Group

"Shigeru Ban's vision for the site hearkens back to the 19th century with long-span steel structures that...

Czech studio KOGAA turns former distillery into a Social Reactor

2018-07-12T19:30:00-04:00

"During our architecture practice we felt the need to create a working space which could represent our work and way of thinking" says KOGAA Architectural Studio, a Czech firm based out of Brno, the country's second largest city.

Photography by Jakub Skokan and Martin Tůma / BoysPlayNice

As post-industrial cities are increasingly left with unused complexes, buildings and brownfields, adaptive reuse has become an increasingly popular approach to breath new life into these spaces. When the firm came across a former distillery, they saw the potential to turn it into their new studio and activate the area.

Photography by Jakub Skokan and Martin Tůma / BoysPlayNice

"We do adaptive reuse projects with a vision, and a flexible frame that allows the buildings to act as an alive organism. It is our solution to build up our cities in a sustainable manner" the firm says.

Photography by Jakub Skokan and Martin Tůma / BoysPlayNice

The distil...

Rogers Stirk Harbour + Partners recently completed The Macallan whisky distillery in Scotland

2018-05-25T12:46:00-04:00

London-based firm Rogers Stirk Harbour + Partners recently completed the Macallan Distillery and visitor experience in Speyside, Scotland. The design is set into the landscape of the The Macallan estate, a distillery established in 1824 producing one of the most sought after whiskys in the world.

Macallan Distillery by RSHP, located in Speyside, Scotland. Image: RSHP.

The firm's goals was to create a building that could reveal the production processes and welcome visitors while remaining sensitive to the beautiful surrounding countryside.

Macallan Distillery by RSHP, located in Speyside, Scotland. Image: RSHP.

The new distillery will enable production of The Macallan to increase by a third. Internally, a series of production cells are arranged in a linear format with an open-plan layout revealing all stages of the production process at once.

Macallan Distillery by RSHP, located in Speyside, Scotland. Image: RSHP.

Macallan Distillery by RSHP, located in Speyside, Scotland. Image: RSHP...