FRANKFORT, Ky. -- The number of aging bourbon barrels in Kentucky has reached its highest level since 1972.
The Kentucky Distillers' Association says the state's bourbon inventory reached 7.5 million barrels. That's nearly two barrels for every person in the state.
KDA President Eric Gregory cautions the numbers were reported to the state months before several countries enacted retaliatory tariffs on bourbon. He says they're still working to understand the impact of those tariffs and hoping that it's a short-term issue.
The tax-assessed value of the state's inventory is $3 billion. Gregory notes that Kentucky is the only place in the world that taxes aging barrels of spirits.