Larry Kass

Kass, one man’s whiskey story

In his 20 years at Heaven Hill Distillery, Larry Kass did it all. He handled public relations, legal, brand management, and many other tasks. The funny part about that is that when Larry got hired at Heaven Hill, he didn’t know a lot about whiskey. Said Larry, “My experience with bourbon was drinking it warm from a Styrofoam cup outside a Charlie Daniels concert.”

That worked out okay because in 1998, when Larry started at Heaven Hill, bourbon was not the most loved member of the whiskey family. So, a man who did not know a lot about whiskey was hired to market a product that needed some attention. One could say that it was a match made in Heaven (Hill)!

Larry quoted “lifestyle” reasons for his move from New York to Louisville. He was working for an ad agency that was chosen to do the marketing for Heaven Hill, and Larry was selected to manage the account. After 3 years of marketing whiskey, he left the ad agency and moved directly to Heaven Hill. When he came on board in 1998, he first managed the brown and aged goods. Then, the marketing and brand management were not comparable to what it is today. For instance, Evan Williams was then, and continues to be, the company’s flagship brand. These days, Evan Williams is a major sponsor of Major League Baseball, but in 1998, its marketing was limited to black and white ads in regional editions of Golf Digest and Newsweek.

Fortunately for Larry, he loves to talk, and Heaven Hill gave him products he believed in and enjoyed talking about. When Larry speaks, it is evident that not only does he love the products, but he also loves the owners of this family-owned business, as well as the entire distilling process.

In his time at Heaven Hill, Larry helped grow a few family-owned brands into hundreds of brands. He also represented Heaven Hill with Legislators—when the distillery needed a representative in Kentucky’s capital or on Capitol Hill in Washington, Larry shared his industry’s needs with legislators.

As American Whiskey continued growing, Larry convinced Max and Heaven Hill to start a corporate communications department. There was suddenly a need for the company to be involved in the community, to take on a larger role in trade associations, and in government affairs at the state and national levels. The company, which is family-owned and privately held, needed a public persona. Larry had spent a lot of time building up relationships with people in West Louisville, where the actual distillery is, and in Bardstown, where the whiskey is stored and bottled, as well as across the industry. It wasn’t what Larry came to Kentucky to do, but the fit was natural.

The Kentucky Distillers’ Association inducted Heaven Hill’s former Director of Trade Relations, Larry Kass, into the Kentucky Bourbon Hall of Fame in September of 2020. The award is known as the highest honor in the bourbon industry and recognizes individuals who have left a significant impact on bourbon’s stature, growth, and awareness. Larry, well known as a “treasure trove” of company history, retired from Heaven Hill in November 2019 after twenty years with the family-owned Bardstown company. He served in several capacities during his time with the company, acting as a spokesperson to the media, a champion for innovation, a helping hand in the community, and a voice for the future.

Heaven Hill President Max Shapira boasted of Larry, “(He) has an innate ability to find a connection with any journalist, colleague, or consumer he meets, which was a draw for many to our company. His booming voice makes any story interesting, and he had many stories to tell as he shared bourbon’s history and culture with the world. And it was through these tight-knit relationships that he was able to strengthen the integrity of our timeless craft and be a force for the spirit’s resurgence. Larry set the course for our award-winning whiskeys to thrive in the Bourbon Renaissance and laid the foundation for brands built on stories of authenticity and legacy.”

“His sense of humor, intellectual curiosity, and candor are renowned throughout the industry,” Shapira continued. “His deep loyalty to Heaven Hill and the Shapira family left a distinctive mark in our company’s history.”

Contributed By: Ann Thomason, Columbia South Carolina

with support from Kate Byrne, Bourbon Capital Region Section Editor, Bardstown, Kentucky