CLERMONT, Ky. - A bourbon giant is boosting its production of craft whiskeys. Beam Suntory broke ground Thursday, July 25, on a new distillery at Jim Beam's Clermont campus. 

It's part of a $60 million investment by one of the world's largest bourbon markers. The investment includes raising Beam's profile by upgrading the "visitors' experience" at Clermont as bourbon tourism grows.

The Distillery will be home to production for small batch brands such as Bookers and Knob Creek. 

The new craft will be named after seventh generation master distiller and the great grandson of Jim Beam, Fred Noe.

“What we’re beginning here today reinforces our leadership in bourbon and sets us up for the future,” said 31-year-old Freddie Noe.

The ground breaking comes as Senator Mitch McConnell (R) and Senator Rand Paul (R) introduce a bill in Washington that can benefit the bourbon industry.

The bill will permanently provide tax relief to distillers, allowing them to deduct interest expenses for their inventories that same year, instead of waiting years down the road when the bourbon is bottled and sold.

It could also potentially save distilleries more money and add hundreds of jobs. 

Beam’s expansion comes as an overall $2.3 billion building boom among members of the Kentucky Distillers’ Association, according to the group.

The projects include new and expanded production facilities, more warehousing and bottling lines and new and expanded tourism centers. Kentucky produces about 95% of the world’s bourbon.

Beam’s investment also includes a recently announced $5 million donation to the University of Kentucky to establish the James B. Beam Institute for Kentucky Spirits to help teach the bourbon industry’s next generation of master distillers.

A recent storage warehouse fire in Kentucky that destroyed about 45,000 barrels of aging whiskey had minimal impact on the company’s upward trajectory.

Beam Suntory President and CEO Albert Baladi said, "Beam Suntory plans an “exhaustive review” of its warehouses to look for ways to reduce risks and minimize environmental damage if fires occur."

Its warehouses have lightning protection and sprinkler systems.

Officials reported that lightning sparked the recent fire.