Scott Wartman

swartman@nky.com

New Riff Distilling is still two years away from its first batch of bourbon, but the Newport distillery is already planning a major expansion.

Kentucky approved New Riff for $500,000 in payroll tax incentives for a $12.5 million expansion that would turn its storage facility on Newport's west side into a "whiskey campus."

New Riff currently is aging 4,000 barrels in brick warehouses near the Licking River. The expansion will add capacity for 28,000 barrels and build a restaurant and taproom adjacent to the storage facility, according to documents submitted to the Kentucky Economic Development Finance Authority.

This will allow New Riff to include the storage facility on its tour, said Hannah Lowen, general manager of New Riff.

"It's the first thing people ask us on the tour," Lowen said. "Where are the barrels?"

New Riff opened in 2014 and is on the Kentucky Bourbon Trail Craft Tour. The distillery is on Newport's east side by the Party Source on the border with Bellevue. New Riff was started by the former owner of the Party Source, Ken Lewis.

Bourbon takes at least four years to age, meaning the first batch of New Riff bourbon won't be for sale until late 2018.

The plan is to have the warehouse as an attraction in addition to the distillery. The distillery and event center already attracts 30,000 people a year, Lowen said.

"To show people the barrel warehouse is one of the best parts of the whiskey tour," Lowen said. "When you open the door, the way it smells, it's a fun experience."