About
Copper & Kings is a Louisville distillery in the Butchertown neighborhood that puts American brandy front and center in a city famous for bourbon. The experience feels urban, creative, and unmistakably Louisville, built around gleaming copper pot stills, a working production space, and a visitor atmosphere that blends distilling craft with cocktail culture. What makes Copper & Kings stand out is how naturally it bridges two worlds, producing fruit-forward brandies while embracing Kentucky’s barrel tradition through aging and finishing programs that lean into bourbon-country wood influence. For travelers, it’s a refreshing change of pace from the classic bourbon campus format, offering a different spirit category, a different style of storytelling, and a distinctly modern take on what a Kentucky distillery visit can be.
History
Copper & Kings was founded in 2014 by Joe and Lesley Heron, entrepreneurs who built their reputation in American beverage startups before bringing their next idea to Louisville. Choosing Butchertown as home was intentional, placing a brandy-focused distillery inside bourbon’s backyard and inviting visitors to see how an American brandy house could thrive in Kentucky. From the beginning, Copper & Kings emphasized small-batch copper pot distillation and a house style shaped by barrel character, positioning the brand as both traditional in method and unconventional in approach. The company entered a new chapter in 2020, when it was acquired by Constellation Brands, a shift that expanded corporate backing while keeping the distillery rooted in Louisville. In August 2025, ownership changed again when Copper & Kings was sold to Bourdon Spirits Company, a Louisville-based, family-owned spirits group, returning the brand’s next era of leadership to a local Kentucky home.
Notoriety
Copper & Kings is best known for making brandy feel exciting and relevant, especially for visitors who expect Kentucky spirits to mean bourbon only. The distillery has earned attention for a bold, experimental streak that shows up in both production and maturation, including its well-known use of music-driven aging in its barrel spaces to keep the brand’s identity tied to sound, motion, and atmosphere. It is also recognized for a barrel philosophy that speaks Kentucky’s language, using wood influence to create brandies with structure and depth, and occasionally stepping into bourbon-adjacent territory through barrel-finished concepts that connect fruit spirits to whiskey culture. For many Louisville travelers, Copper & Kings has become a must-stop because it delivers something genuinely different, a working distillery experience with a modern edge, a strong sense of place, and a story that expands what Kentucky spirits tourism can be.
experiences
Cocktail Classes
Duration:
N/A
Price:
N/A
At this time, the distillery does not offer any cocktail classes.
Tours & Tastings
Duration:
1 Hr
Price:
$35 - $38
Copper & Kings blends a tour-and-tasting experience with rooftop cocktails and Louisville's skyline views.
amenities
Cocktail Bar
Event Spaces
Food Options
Gift Shop
Scenic Location
Special Events
nearby
Distilleries
Rabbit Hole Distillery
Angel’s Envy Distillery
Evan Williams Bourbon Experience
Things To Do
Frazier History Museum
Louisville Slugger Museum
Waterfront Park & Big Four Bridge
Food & Drink
CASK Southern Kitchen & Bar
Doc Crow’s
Garage Bar
Stay
Hotel Distil
Omni Hotel Louisville
21c Museum Hotel