Burk’s Spring Bourbon

Provided By Burks Spring Bourbon • Photos By Matt Johnson • Sponsored

In 1805, Charles Burks began milling grain on Hardin Creek, just outside Loretto, Kentucky. He also started making whiskey, which made him one of the earliest distillers in the state. He was the first Burks to make whiskey on the site, which would continue for 114 years as his descendants carried on the business until Prohibition closed the Burks Spring Distillery in 1919.

The last Burks to make whiskey there was George Richard Burks who lived in the house on the property. That house is now part of the Visitor's Center at Maker's Mark Distillery, which began in 1953 when Bill Samuels, Sr., bought the abandoned distillery. Even now, more than 107 years after Prohibition, some of the distillery that George built is still being used by Marker's Mark..

In 2016, George's grandson and namesake, Dick Burks, decided that it was time to bring back the Burks name to the bourbon industry. He would soon be retiring from a 54 year career as an insurance broker, and some of his friends and family encouraged him, even offering to help fund the project.

Dick had a cousin who had a full bottle of the bourbon his grandfather had made before 1919, so they took it to Pat Heist of Ferm Solutions in Danville who was able to determine the mash bill of the old bourbon, along with its proof and age. With that information, Dick traveled to distilleries across Kentucky looking for one that would make Burks Spring Bourbon to those exact specifications. They all told him it was a great idea to bring back the old bourbon, but they couldn't interrupt their production to make it for him. When he went to Jeptha Creed Distillery in Shelbyville, they said yes, and in 2018 the first barrels were produced.

In 2024, after 6 years of aging, 10 barrels of Burks Spring Bourbon were bottled and Southern Glazers Distributors began sending it around the state of Kentucky. Although not designated as "Small Batch, it truly was, as only 2,000 bottles were produced. The bourbon has gotten many good reviews and has become more difficult to find as the supply is small. Last year, a very limited amount of the "Select 7 Year Reserve" was released and most of it has been sold. Next, some of the 2020 production will start coming out this fall.

Dick says the whole project was supposed to be just a hobby, but he had no idea how difficult it was going to be. He had some knowledge of bourbon and his family history, but no information on how to get a liquor license, where to get bottles and labels, shipping cartons, bar codes, and the necessary legal matters. But after 10 long years, he is very happy and proud that Burks Spring Bourbon is living up to what his grandfather put on the labels of his bottles long ago, “this bourbon's mission in life was to heal the sick, produce mirth, laughter, and good fellowship.”