Massive construction underway; rickhouse in Lewisport

A construction crew from Buzick Construction, out of the Bardstown Group, has been working for weeks now on a new barrel warehouse space (rickhouse) in Lewisport, on the old Dal-Tile site.

Green River Distilleries, in Owensboro, made the proposal in late 2022 to build rickhouses in Hancock County, and a conditional use permit was approved for the expansion of their facilities.

Gary Nugent, owner of GN Excavating & Trucking in Lewisport, had purchased the Dal-Tile Plant and surrounding 60-70 acres of property after the plant’s shut-down, and was using it for warehousing for some of the local industry, as well as preparing and recycling metal.

The Owensboro Distillery was still in the process of purchasing the property from Nugent when the Clarion last spoke to Green River’s Operations Director, David Carroll, a Hancock County native and resident.

In January, Carroll had stated that the purchase of the property was “really close” to completion, and that an official press release with full details would be provided upon finalization. “We were able to get everything started with Gary Nugent owning the property, and also doing the dirt work,” Carroll said.

There is, as previously reported in the Hancock Clarion, a possibility of 5-7 total rickhouses being constructed on the land, with operational use potential for the Dal-Tile building as well.

The rickhouse currently being built, Carroll had said, is going to hold 58,000 barrels of aging whiskey that will set for anywhere from 4 to 6 years. Then, they will be removed, dumped, processed and new barrels will be added for another round of aging.

By Jennifer Wimmer