Major Bourbon Maker Shutters for 2026

Jim Beam, the largest bourbon producer in the U.S., announced this week that it plans to close its flagship Kentucky facility for all of 2026. It will reopen after it has the “opportunity to invest in site enhancements,” according to a statement.

The move is striking, though not uncommon to the spirits industry as of late. The country’s distillers have faced headwinds and uncertainty due to Trump’s trade tariffs and a shrinking number of people drinking alcohol. 

In the past year alone the sector has reported a fall in sales of roughly five percent, according to the New York Times. 

The Downward Spiral

Bourbon saw a spike in sales from $1.4 billion in 2004 to around $5.2 billion in 2024, based on data from the Distilled Spirits Council of the United States. A particular surge in demand during the pandemic drove distilleries to expand and overproduce.

Now, that response is catching up to them. The Kentucky Distillers’ Association trade body said in October that over 16 million barrels of bourbon were stored in warehouses in the state, which is a record high. According to The Guardian, the KDA said distillers would face a “crushing” $75 million in taxes on those barrels.

“It’s a sad day for bourbon, to be honest with you,” Fred Minnick, a whiskey expert and the author of Bottom Shelf: How a Forgotten Brand of Bourbon Saved One Man’s Life, told The NYT. “For this to happen is a real punch in the gut.”

Some Sites Remain Open 

Jim Beam said two of its other Kentucky distilleries will continue operations, one of which makes subsidiary brands like Knob Creek, Booker’s, and Basil Hayden. Production will also carry on at its Maker’s Mark distillery, and its bottling facility and visitor center at the flagship location in Clermont will remain open.