This massive pile of barrels will break your bourbon-loving heart
To the bourbon fans out there: I'm sorry for what you're about to witness.
I know it will pain you to see thousands of barrels piled up in a mess of broken wood and metal scraps rather than stacked neatly along the walls of your favorite distillery, but that's the unfortunate reality down in Bardstown, Ky. right now.
As the Courier-Journal reports, part of a warehouse at Barton 1792 Distillery collapsed on Friday, sending an estimated 9,000 barrels tumbling to the ground. No one was hurt.
In a statement provided to the newspaper, the company said it's in the process of assessing the damage and determining which barrels can be saved.
Still, there's concern that leaking bourbon could contaminate the ground water. As the New York Times reports, though initial testing "came back clean," state officials from the Division of Waste Management and from the Division of Water plan to continue testing.
Despite the collapse, the Courier-Journal reports that the distillery plans to stay open on Saturday for tours, as usual. The paper reports that the warehouse is just one of 29 warehouses on the distillery's property.
While we're thrilled no one was hurt in the collapse, we'll be busy mourning the loss of what could be a serious amount of nice liquor. I mean, just look at the aerial footage, courtesy of CBS DFW:
Pour one out for the barrels we've lost.
