From rebellion to retail: Espy House’s whiskey legend begins a new chapter
By George Berkheimer
In 1794, President George Washington spent at least one night at the Espy House in Bedford while commanding federal troops engaged in putting down a violent protest of the whiskey excise tax now known as the Whiskey Rebellion. Today, the house which dates to 1766 lends its name to a new business whose award-winning bourbon and other spirits continue the tradition of whiskey distilling in western Pennsylvania. Todd Eichelberger, who owns both the Espy House and the distillery of the same name, is also a commercial developer whose construction company is putting the finishing touches on the future Mile Level distillery operation. “We launched three years ago and started bottling in January 2023,” Eichelberger said, initially blending whiskeys sourced from Bardstown Bourbon and other suppliers with a reputation for quality. On-site distilling operations are expected to begin in the very near future, he confirmed, starting with a pot still. “Our Washington’s Reserve Barrel Strength Bourbon won gold at the San Francisco World Spirits Competition in 2023, the top competition in the world,” Eichelberger said. “David Bourne, the founder of Ignite Beverage Branding and one of the top designers in the United States, designed our logos, bottle and labels. We go to the nth degree to have a distinctive look and get the best bourbon we can.”
New venture
Eichelberger is a well-known serial entrepreneur whose career started with a Mile Level pizza shop in the 1980s. Over the years his construction company became the primary developer for Sheetz and was second only to the convenience store powerhouse in the number of Sheetz property holdings before Eichelberger sold his shares in 2008. Since then, he has expanded into Florida, where he oversees more than $25 million in building projects near Naples. Although he appreciates good bourbon, Eichelberger said he had no intention of establishing a distillery until he chanced on a Howard Stern interview with actor George Clooney, who affirmed that his Casamigos joint tequila venture had sold for $1 billion. “I thought if there’s that much money in spirits, maybe I should try to start my own company,” Eichelberger said. “Then it occurred to me that I owned the Espy House, which could be used for trademarks and would make for an eye-catching label.” The rest, as they say, is history in the making, much like Washington’s layover in Bedford.
Compelling story
Aside from Washington’s Reserve, Espy House also offers a Small Batch Rye Whiskey, a Wheaten Bourbon, and its flagship George 1794 Straight Bourbon. Espy House’s wheaten bourbon has been an unexpected big seller for Eichelberger. “We sold 600 cases in the last six weeks,” he said. “I ordered an additional 800 bottles and already have a fourth of that sold. Binny’s Beverage Depot in Chicago was reluctant to add it until we sent them two bottles and they ended up ordering 300 cases.” Ironically, Espy House still hasn’t hit the shelves in Pennsylvania, owing to the Commonwealth’s notoriously cumbersome approval process. “We’re already in 19 other states, though, so it has legs,” Eichelberger said. “The name helps to get us in front of big retailers, and it also gave us the clout to get an audience with the directors of Monticello to start talking about the possibility of doing a whiskey collaboration with the Thomas Jefferson Foundation.” Although Washington put down the first challenge to the fledgling nation’s Constitution, it was Jefferson who later repealed the whiskey excise tax. The Espy House was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1974 and declared a National Historic Landmark by President Ronald Reagan in 1983, and the house’s history has helped significantly with marketing. “Bourbon has always been a story telling business, with everybody trying to tell a story with their product and invent something that’s going to stick,” Eichelberger said. “We think we have the best story in the world, and beside that it’s true. Nobody else has that story.”