21c owners hope to save historic horse farm by luring bourbon tourists

Bailey Loosemore | Courier Journal

Show Caption Hide Caption How Hermitage Farm will become a tourist destination Steve Wilson and Laura Lee Brown - owners of the 21c Museum Hotel chain - are planning to support the historic horse farm through tourist opportunities, such as a farm-to-table restaurant and bourbon experience.

Horses and bourbon are what make Kentucky — Kentucky.

And by spring 2019, one farm plans to combine both under the ultimate tourism opportunity.

Land preservationist Steve Wilson recently invited media members to tour Hermitage Farm, where he and his wife Laura Lee Brown recently broke ground on a tourism project that will add a restaurant, visitors center and art walk to the historic Oldham County property.

The couple announced plans for the $15 million project in 2016 and has spent the past two years building infrastructure needed to make it happen.

Now, they're (finally) ready to embark on the renovation of several decades-old barns where they'll showcase the best of Kentucky's leading agriculture industries.

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"We call it a legacy project for my wife and me," Wilson said. "It's a gathering of our interests. Some people know us as the collectors of contemporary art at 21c, but we're also very much about farm preservation and farming and good, fresh food."

Wilson and Brown, the majority owners of 21c Museum Hotels, purchased Hermitage Farm in 2010 and announced in 2016 that they planned to turn the property into a tourist destination.

The goal of the project, Wilson said, is to put visitors back in touch with the land, teaching them where food comes from, how grains are used to make bourbon and how horses are bred to create the beasts they see pounding the dirt at Churchill Downs.

Another goal: to keep the century-old farm afloat.

Hermitage Farm was founded before the turn of the 20th century but became known for its prestigious horse breeding under owner Warner L. Jones Jr. Since the 1930s, the farm has bred winners of the Kentucky Derby, Kentucky Oaks and the Breeders' Cup — and in 1986, it even elicited a visit from Queen Elizabeth II.

But the business alone no longer brings in enough revenue to keep the farm open, which is why Wilson and Brown want to add tourism elements that can highlight and support it.

Background: In Kentucky, farming is a way of life - and also a tourist attraction

Agritourism, as the new industry is called, has increasingly been discussed as a way to save the family farms that have long made Kentucky — Kentucky.

According to the U.S. Census of Agriculture, the number of Kentucky farms with agritourism opportunities rose from 428 in 2007 to 651 in 2012, pulling in more than $7 million in profits in the latter year.

Wilson and Brown have already dabbled in the area of agritourism with a store at their first Oldham property, Woodland Farm. But the Hermitage project will be like no other agritourism opportunity found in the state.

Like other horse farms, Hermitage will offer guided tours of its stables. And like Kentucky's many distilleries, it will lead visitors through bourbon tastings.

But unlike other properties, Hermitage will combine the best of both industries to provide guests a full look at the state's history and significance.

"People come to Kentucky to see horses and to taste bourbon," Wilson said. "They can come here and do both and hopefully get an appreciation for the open spaces and the importance of land preservation to both of those industries."

Hermitage will not become the state's umpteenth distillery. But it will create something of a bourbon library, pulling bottles and barrels from distilleries east to west.

Project manager Haviland Argo said the farm plans to hire a bourbon expert, similar to a sommelier, who can stock the library and lead tastings.

Tastings will take place in Barn 8, the farm's restaurant, with classes for beginners, experts and those interested in mixology, Argo said.

At night, Barn 8 will serve dinner using ingredients pulled from an on-site garden and greenhouse. Guests will be able to enjoy a sit-down meal at the renovated barn or to grab picnic lunches to eat on the farm's grounds.

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Along a creek on the property, Wilson and Brown have hired an artist to create an art instillation that will incorporate visuals and music.

"It will be one of those 21c-type surprises," Wilson said.

In the former stud barn, Wilson has built a display for his horse driving trophies and equipment that he's gathered through 11 years of competing at events worldwide. One special piece in his collection: a coach used by Clark Gable in "Gone With the Wind" — (which he does not use in competition).

"I found it in a barn in Paris, Kentucky," Wilson said of the coach. "... It was a family near Paris that restores carriages. I don't know how they came to acquire it."

Like the coach, Hermitage Farm is a piece of history that Wilson can't wait to display.

If luck prevails, the wait won't be much longer.

Bailey Loosemore: 502-582-4646; bloosemore@courier-journal.com; Twitter: @bloosemore. Support strong local journalism by subscribing today: www.courier-journal.com/baileyl.

HERMITAGE FARM

What: The historic property, owned by Steve Wilson and Laura Lee Brown, will soon become an agritourism destination where visitors can learn about two of Kentucky's main farm-based industries: horse racing and bourbon. The tourism elements are currently under construction and will include a restaurant, three bourbon tasting rooms, stable tours and an art walk.

Where: 10500 W. Highway 42, Goshen

When: Expected to open spring 2019

More info: Visit hermitagefarm.com