J. Mattingly 1845 Distillery

Amazing experience. When the rest of the bourbon world feels like they are just pushing tourists through, J Mattingly gives you a personal touch. Highly recommend the Bourbon Blending experience. Learn about your taste buds, get to have a one of a kind experience you will not get anywhere else.

A must visit!! Dan is an amazing person and did a wonderful job helping us make the perfect blend for us. The whole experience was real and personable, unlike some of the other bigger places that bring you in to sell T-shirts and merch. Our best experience of our trip for sure! Big shout out to Dan and the others in the gift shop for making this so memorable!

Fantastic. First stop on our bourbon tour!

We were guided through the process by Aaron and Dakota for a truly hands on approach that allowed us to understand the art and science of blending. Including taking home some of our personal blend complete with a private label.

It was the perfect “blend” of education, fun and craftsmanship! Haha

Thank you all!

Excellent experience! Cam the VP and Senn our host for the tasting was a very welcoming crew! They went above and beyond what they needed to for our experience. Bev in the gift shop was so helpful and inviting she keeps everyone on their toes. Not only did we get excellent bourbon and whiskey but their passion for the craft and customer service is second to none. This is a must do when in Kentucky or even close . Thanks for our Kentucky hug, it will not be forgotten!

This was an outstanding customized experience. The master blender Aaron was phenomenal and found exactly what we wanted. Got to meet the CEO Jeff as well who spent a lot of time with us during our experience. Thank you so much for such a great time.

We had a lovely afternoon. Here. Our hostess, Senn, was wonderful! Our brand ambassador Tee Tee was fabulous! Good hospitality and education blended with fun!

TeTe and Rick were both great. My buddy and I did the single barrel private tasting and being able to use the whiskey thief and taste straight from some incredible barrels was wonderful! 10/10 experience! Can't recommend this team of people enough!

Hands down the BEST distillery visit we've ever experienced and we've been to a lot. When they say Welcome to the Family they mean it. Took my friend Justin Mattingly on a tasting visit for his birthday because the distillery had his name. Senn and Tete were so awesome and down to earth and took the time to talk to us one on one, explain everything about how they craft their bourbon, showed us the whole distillery, let us take as many pictures and as much time as we wanted and really made us feel at home and welcomed, even hooked my friend up with some free swag. Being such a small craft distillery they can actually take the time to talk to you one on one and show you everything instead of just herding you through like the big distilleries. The people here are AMAZING. If you're in the area hitting distilleries don't sleep on J. Mattingly 1845, stop and get a personalized experience and learn about their products. Shop local and support small business.

Best distillery experience we’ve had on our trip. And the blending your own bottle experience is definitely worth the money. Ask for Dan, he was amazing!

This is hands down my favorite bourbon experience in Kentucky. We only had time to visit one distillery and i made sure it was J. Mattingly. These guys always treat us like family and getting to blend and bottle your own bourbon is absolutely amazing.

Dakota and Dan were absolutely fantastic and this experience from start to finish was incredible! Both Dakota and Dan were extremely knowledgeable, informative and helpful! We could not have asked for a better experience. 10/10 would definitely recommend. We WILL be back! Such an incredible opportunity and we’re extremely grateful for a first class experience!

Neat place. Just found out about this place recently. Visited today and the staff was very welcoming and knowledgeable. Difference between a small operation and a large one. Had a bottle blending experience today with Dakota. He was awesome. Highly recommend visiting.

We had a wonderful experience at our tasting and tour. Senn our guide was so much fun, friendly and knowledgeable. She is an exceptional ambassador for J. Mattingly.
Can’t wait to return, highly recommend! Cheers

It was an amazing experience!!! Even though I had the wrong day everyone was very friendly, courteous, and helpful. We loved blending our own bourbon!!! Already planning a return trip and I can't say that about other distilleries we visited. Fun, exciting, different!!

An excellent tasting experience! Senn was a joy to do a tasting with! Her love for the product shines through - she never stops smiling! We enjoyed all the samples and went home with several bottles. Beautiful tasting room. We enjoyed our visit here far more than Buffalo Trace. Just do it!

While the distillery across the street may get all the publicity, if you’re interested in sampling some truly unbelievable barrels, bottles or even blending your own, this is the place to go. The staff on site is extremely talented and can assist you in your blending mastery. You will not be disappointed!

A thank you shout to J. Mattingly 1845 for the fun tasting experience. Low key, authentic, intimate setting. We got the 1-on-1 curated lesson from one of their co-founders, the story behind "Bourbon 30" and a taste of their top end offerings too. 👍👍

Family feel for the family distillery. Across the street from Buffalo Trace but 100% different feel. Felt like the tasting with Dakota was chilling with friends/family, he explained the different products but made it a conversation as opposed to a memorized speech. Able to meet the family who founded and run the company (not something you get with most of the Bourbon Trail). Love the family story and their support for Veterans. Well worth the stop.

I have visited the new J Mattingly facility twice and thoroughly enjoyed both trips. My first visit was shortly after they opened in November 2023 and the second was a Sunday in April 2024. Both times, the staff was welcoming, friendly, and enthusiastic about their brand and their offerings. Their spacious tasting room and gift shop is comfortable to spend time in, with a seating area at tables and benches.
The whiskey is really good! They do custom blends of sourced whiskey that are all VERY Small Batch. If you taste a blend you like, buy it now, it'll never be reproduced. You can do your own Custom Blend experience or buy from their shelf selections. They offer bourbons, ryes, and light whiskey. All delicious.
Check them out when you're visiting a nearby distillery. They're conveniently located across the street from BT. Look for all the semi-trailers.
I took a couple of bottles home from my last visit!

Outstanding experience at this Veteran-friendly distillery in Frankfort, KY. I’ve found that the smaller distilleries provide visitors with more personalized attention. My brother and I felt like VIPs after a fun, memorable and educational one-hour tasting with “Senna” which included a surprise tour, barrel signing and a sampling of extra bottles since I asked to try the limited edition POW/MIA Small Batch (a portion is donated to Gold Star families). We met owner, Jeff Mattingly, who made us feel at home. He believes that visitors come in as friends and leave as family - a philosophy he embodied warmly. Next time, I’ll craft my own bottle. We left from there to the airport with smiles on our faces. Highly recommend.