Michter's
Type: Distillery and brand
A collapsed staircase, missing floors and a wall out of line by about 58 centimetres: the Louisville building that became Michter's Fort Nelson Distillery needed more than a polish. Its restoration gave a new home to stills and fermenters from the brand's Pennsylvania predecessor, a tangible link between two distinct chapters.[2][9][10]
Michter's is a Louisville-based maker of bourbon, rye and American whiskey, carrying a name inherited from a Pennsylvania distillery whose history reaches back to 1753. The modern Kentucky business began with a revival: Pennsylvania production ended in 1989, and Joseph J. Magliocco and Richard “Dick” Newman revived the abandoned trademark in the 1990s. Where individual expressions are distilled today is not reliably established in the supplied record.[1][6][11]
| At a glance | Detail |
|---|---|
| Base | Louisville, Kentucky, United States.[11] |
| Parent company | Chatham Imports, according to the producer, checked November 2026.[2] |
| Exact legal owner and effective date | Not reliably established in the supplied record. |
| Distilled at | Before Shively opened in 2015, an undisclosed distillery. Current provenance by expression is not reliably established in the supplied record.[8] |
| Kentucky distilleries | Shively and Fort Nelson, both in Louisville.[1][10] |
| Core range | US*1 Kentucky Straight Bourbon, Kentucky Straight Rye, Sour Mash Whiskey and American Whiskey.[4] |
| Own Kentucky distillery opened | Shively, 2015, according to contemporary trade reporting.[8] |
| Official website | michters.com.[1] |
What Michter's is known for
Michter's joins an old Pennsylvania distilling story to a revived Kentucky brand and a modern production operation. Equipment from the Pennsylvania operation now forms part of its Kentucky home.[1][2][6][8]
The core US*1 range gives bourbon and rye company in the form of Sour Mash and American Whiskey. Trade reporting also identifies 10, 20 and 25 year old whiskeys as part of Michter's reputation.[4][9]
Read the full expression name: Kentucky Straight Bourbon and Kentucky Straight Rye identify different products, with Sour Mash and American Whiskey completing the core range.[4]
The Pennsylvania story
Story box: From Snitzel Creek to a Kentucky revival
In the producer's account, Swiss Mennonite farmer John Shenk founded a whiskey company in Schaefferstown, Pennsylvania, in 1753. The National Register nomination records John and Michael Shenk building a gristmill and distillery beside Snitzel Creek that year.[1][5][6]
Claim: John Shenk founded the Pennsylvania operation alone.
Verdict: Disputed.
The producer names John alone; the nomination and Penn State history name John and Michael. The disagreement concerns who founded the operation, and the earliest source of the founding account is not reliably established.
Sources: Michter's producer account; National Register nomination, 1975; Penn State history.
Last checked: November 2026.
The modern turning point came in the 1990s, when Magliocco and Newman filed for the abandoned Michter's trademark and chose Kentucky for its revival, according to the producer.[1]
The Pennsylvania business had become Michter's Distillery, Inc. in a 1975 reorganisation, with Louis Forman as president. Michter's combines parts of his sons' names, Michael and Peter.[1][5][6]
Before that name came successive owners, other names and the interruption of Prohibition. The long history belongs to the distillery site; the Michter's name came later.[1][5][6]
| Date | Recorded development |
|---|---|
| Early 1780s | Rudolph Meyer, Michael Shenk's son-in-law, took charge; two stills operated by 1782 and a third by 1790.[5] |
| 1827 to 1860 | John Kratzer ran the distillery and is credited with the Still House and Warehouse built around 1840.[5] |
| 1861 | Abe Bomberger bought the property, which became known as Bomberger's.[1][5] |
| 1919 | Horst Bomberger's operation ended with the beginning of Prohibition.[5] |
| 1933 and 1934 | Ephraim Sechrist built a bottling plant, then reopened the distillery the following year.[5] |
| Early 1980 | The distillery was named a National Historic Landmark.[6] |
| May 1983 | Penn State's history records a bankruptcy filing.[6] |
| 1989 | Production ceased at the Pennsylvania operation.[1][6] |
Continuity and closure verdicts
Claim: Today's Michter's is a continuous operation dating from 1753.
Verdict: Disputed.
The producer presents a legacy dating to 1753, but Pennsylvania production ceased in 1989. The Kentucky revival followed an abandoned trademark filing in the 1990s: an interruption and a new beginning, rather than continuous Pennsylvania production.[1][6]
Claim: The Pennsylvania distillery's bankruptcy and end can be assigned to one date.
Verdict: Disputed.
Michter's places bankruptcy in 1989. Penn State records a filing in May 1983 and production ending in 1989, while also saying the operation stopped in 1990. The accounts differ on both bankruptcy and the final operating chronology.[1][6]
The George Washington tradition
Claim: George Washington is said to have bought whiskey at the distillery for his men at Valley Forge.
Verdict: Legend.
The producer calls this Pennsylvania historical lore. The supplied sources do not establish the purchase or reliably establish whether Washington visited the distillery.[1][6]
The Kentucky revival
Dick Newman brought a substantial whiskey career to the revival. At National Distillers he had run Old Grand-Dad, Old Crow and Old Taylor. At Austin Nichols, the distiller of Wild Turkey, he became president and chief executive. The producer credits him and Magliocco with rebuilding Michter's in Kentucky.[1]
Before Shively opened, Michter's used its own mash bills, meaning grain recipes, and yeast at an undisclosed distillery, according to trade reporting. This was whiskey made to Michter's specifications, rather than whiskey distilled on its own premises.[8]
Michter's opened its own Shively distillery in Louisville in 2015. For the development of its Kentucky distilling operation, this is the pivotal date; 1753 belongs to the Pennsylvania predecessor. The opening does not establish when, or whether, all sourcing ended.[8]
Shively, Fort Nelson and the farm
Shively established Michter's own Kentucky distillery. Fort Nelson gave its Pennsylvania equipment a home in a restored Louisville building, bringing a physical piece of the earlier operation into the modern business.[2][8][10]
Fort Nelson Distillery opened on West Main Street on 1 February 2019, with public tours starting the next day. Inside are a pot-to-pot still system and cypress wood fermenters from the original Pennsylvania operation.[2][10]
Associated Press reporting described a building that had stood empty for decades, with a collapsed staircase, missing floors and a misaligned wall. These were the conditions reported, rather than an itemised account of the restoration work.[9]
Beyond Louisville, the producer records a farming connection in Springfield, Kentucky. Michter's acquired land there in 2017. Its account, checked November 2026, describes an estate of about 83 hectares (205 acres), growing corn, rye and barley that are not genetically modified. Those crops describe the farm, rather than a published mash bill for any particular whiskey.[3]
Understanding the US*1 range
US*1 is a family of distinct whiskey expressions, not simply a series of bourbon variations. The names separate bourbon, rye, Sour Mash and American Whiskey.[4]
| Expression | Useful distinction |
|---|---|
| Kentucky Straight Bourbon | The core US*1 bourbon.[4] |
| Kentucky Straight Rye | The core US*1 rye.[4] |
| Sour Mash Whiskey | Its grain selection prevents categorisation as rye or bourbon, according to the producer.[4] |
| American Whiskey | A separate core expression from US*1 Bourbon, Rye and Sour Mash.[4] |
Michter's Original Sour Mash left the market in 1989 and returned in the US*1 line in 2012, bottled at 43% ABV (86 US proof).[4]
The producer's 2026 release announcements included 10 Year Single Barrel Kentucky Straight Rye and, for the first time, US*1 Barrel Strength Sour Mash.[11]
The people behind the modern operation
Willie Pratt, a retired Brown-Forman distiller, became Michter's master distiller in 2007, according to trade reporting. Pamela Heilmann later took the role. The producer identifies her as the first woman since Prohibition to become master distiller at a Kentucky Distillers' Association distillery.[2][8]
On 1 May 2019, Heilmann retired from full-time work, Dan McKee became master distiller and Matt Bell became distiller. The producer continues to identify Heilmann as Master Distiller Emerita.[2][7][11]
The team listed in the producer's material, checked November 2026, includes McKee as master distiller; Andrea Wilson as Master of Maturation and chief operating officer; Bell as distiller and vice president of production; and Matt Magliocco as executive vice president.[2][7][11]
Common mistakes
Confusing heritage with continuity. The distinction between the Pennsylvania history and the Kentucky revival matters when reading the 1753 date.[1][6]
Looking to Pennsylvania for today's production. The business is based in Louisville, with Kentucky distilleries at Shively and Fort Nelson.[1][10][11]
Assuming the revived brand always had its own distillery. Before Shively opened in 2015, another distillery made whiskey to Michter's specifications.[8]
Using “Sour Mash” as another name for the bourbon. These are separate US*1 expressions.[4]
Where to go next
- Wild Turkey: follow the producer associated with Dick Newman's earlier career.
- Jim Beam: explore another Kentucky whiskey producer.
- Westland: continue to a different American distillery profile.
Sources
[1] Michter's. Legacy. Producer's account, undated webpage, edition supplied in the verified fact sheet, checked November 2026. https://michters.com/legacy/
[2] Michter's. Our Team. Producer's account, undated webpage, edition supplied in the verified fact sheet, checked November 2026. https://michters.com/our-team/
[3] Michter's. Michter's Springfield Farm. Producer's account, undated webpage, edition supplied in the verified fact sheet, checked November 2026. https://michters.com/springfield-farm/
[4] Michter's. US1 Sour Mash Whiskey*. Producer's account, undated webpage, edition supplied in the verified fact sheet, checked November 2026. https://michters.com/sour-mash/
[5] US National Park Service, National Register of Historic Places. Inventory Nomination Form, Bomberger's Distillery. 1975 nomination, as identified in the verified fact sheet. https://npgallery.nps.gov/NRHP/GetAsset/bbe55e82-6480-4c2e-873e-21d804c71e2d
[6] Penn State University Libraries, Zack Artz. Michter's Distillery: Whiskey that Warmed the Revolution. Historical account, undated webpage, edition supplied in the verified fact sheet, checked November 2026. https://pabook.libraries.psu.edu/literary-cultural-heritage-map-pa/feature-articles/michters-distillery-whiskey-warmed-revolution
[7] Kentucky Distillers' Association. Michter's Distiller Dan McKee To Succeed His Mentor Pamela Heilmann As Michter's Master Distiller. Industry announcement concerning the 2019 succession, checked November 2026. https://kybourbon.com/industry-news/michters-distiller-dan-mckee-to-succeed-his-mentor-pamela-heilmann-as-michters-master-distiller/
[8] The Whiskey Wash. Michter's Distillery Strives for Stylistically Unique Whiskies. Trade report, edition supplied in the verified fact sheet, checked November 2026. https://thewhiskeywash.com/american-whiskey/michters-distillery-strives-for/
[9] Associated Press, via The Seattle Times. Long wait for Michter's ending with new Kentucky distillery. Trade report, edition supplied in the verified fact sheet, checked November 2026. https://www.seattletimes.com/business/long-wait-for-michters-ending-with-new-kentucky-distillery
[10] WLKY. Michter's Fort Nelson Distillery opens to public. Report on the February 2019 opening, checked November 2026. https://www.wlky.com/article/michters-fort-nelson-distillery-opens-to-public/26116988
[11] Michter's, via PR Newswire. Michter's Named the #1 Most Admired Whiskey in the World by Drinks International in New 2026 Ranking. Producer's announcement, 2026, checked November 2026. https://www.prnewswire.co.uk/news-releases/michters-named-the-1-most-admired-whiskey-in-the-world-by-drinks-international-in-new-2026-ranking-302859724.html
This piece is desk research based on verified fact sheet TOP-A295, distinguishing the producer's accounts from the historical nomination, institutional history and trade reporting.
Last checked: November 2026