LORETTO, Ky. - The bourbon company Maker's Mark is opening a new $2.5 million visitor center.

The Maker's Mark distillery is a National Historic Landmark, and the company was careful to protect the appearance when it expanded the tourism facilities. The new tasting lounge and gift shop, for example, are tucked inside a century-old rack house that holds about 1,000 barrels of aging bourbon.

Inside the rack house, sofas and bar stools are scattered across a sunken lounge that was patterned after the Maker's Mark bar at 4th Street Live in Louisville.

Other spirits companies also promote their brands with tours. Heaven Hill Distilleries runs the Bourbon Heritage Center in Bardstown, and Louisville's Brown-Forman Corp. promotes Woodford Reserve at its distillery in Versailles.

The opening of the new Maker's Mark facility coincides with the Sept. 11-16 Kentucky Bourbon Fest in Bardstown.