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Set on 55 acres of Kentucky countryside, the newly rebranded Kentucky Castle features 13 guest rooms – including four deluxe rooms located in the turrets along the castle walls. Plans are in place to add an apiary, a lavender field, cattle, sheep and more to the land, to create a full farm-to-table experience. Photo furnished by VisitLex
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Set on 55 acres of Kentucky countryside, the newly rebranded Kentucky Castle features 13 guest rooms – including four deluxe rooms located in the turrets along the castle walls. Plans are in place to add an apiary, a lavender field, cattle, sheep and more to the land, to create a full farm-to-table experience. Photo by Ben C. Smith, MD
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Set on 55 acres of Kentucky countryside, the newly rebranded Kentucky Castle features 13 guest rooms – including four deluxe rooms located in the turrets along the castle walls. Plans are in place to add an apiary, a lavender field, cattle, sheep and more to the land, to create a full farm-to-table experience. Photo by Ben C. Smith, MD
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Set on 55 acres of Kentucky countryside, the newly rebranded Kentucky Castle features 13 guest rooms – including four deluxe rooms located in the turrets along the castle walls. Plans are in place to add an apiary, a lavender field, cattle, sheep and more to the land, to create a full farm-to-table experience. Photo by Dennis Wyrick
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Set on 55 acres of Kentucky countryside, the newly rebranded Kentucky Castle features 13 guest rooms – including four deluxe rooms located in the turrets along the castle walls. Plans are in place to add an apiary, a lavender field, cattle, sheep and more to the land, to create a full farm-to-table experience. Photo by Hattie Quik
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Set on 55 acres of Kentucky countryside, the newly rebranded Kentucky Castle features 13 guest rooms – including four deluxe rooms located in the turrets along the castle walls. Plans are in place to add an apiary, a lavender field, cattle, sheep and more to the land, to create a full farm-to-table experience. Photo furnished by VisitLex
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Set on 55 acres of Kentucky countryside, the newly rebranded Kentucky Castle features 13 guest rooms – including four deluxe rooms located in the turrets along the castle walls. Plans are in place to add an apiary, a lavender field, cattle, sheep and more to the land, to create a full farm-to-table experience. Photo furnished by VisitLex
The medieval-style stone castle off Versailles Road has long been one of central Kentucky’s most iconic landmarks. Situated on a 50-acre estate and surrounded by a stone wall flanked with turrets, it was little more than an odd roadside attraction for decades. But now – under new ownership and rebranded as The Kentucky Castle — the curious Woodford County property is finally accessible to the public, as a multi-faceted hotel, restaurant and event venue.
“We want to be the world’s best farm-to-table restaurant, boutique hotel and event space,” said co-owner Matthew Dawson. Dawson purchased the castle this summer along with his brother Ryan Dawson, whose background is in interior design and event management, Danny Bramer and Brian Adkins. Matthew Dawson and Bramer are both doctors who work for the University of Kentucky, as an emergency room physician and an anesthesiologist, respectively. It was through an annual medical conference, which they hosted for several years at the castle when it was under previous ownership, that they first began to see the estate’s potential as a fully functioning event space.
“We began to think, if we can deliver the level of hospitality that people expect at a place like this, we could create a great experience,” said Matt Dawson.
Originally, the castle was the vision of Rex Martin and his wife, Caroline Bogaert Martin. The couple was enthralled with Europe’s many medieval castles when they traveled there in the 1960s. Upon their return, they purchased 55 acres of Kentucky horse country and began construction in 1969. The build went slowly as plans continued to become increasingly grandiose, and the castle remained unfinished when the Martins divorced in 1979. After the divorce, Rex Martin considered various commercial opportunities but was thwarted by zoning and ordinance issues.
Eventually, Martin put the castle up for sale and moved out of state, where he reportedly became more difficult to get ahold of by potential interested buyers. The property sat vacant for another 30 years, and Martin died in 2003 without ever returning to the castle. That same year, Miami lawyer and real estate investor Tom Post bought the castle from Martin’s heirs and began renovations with the intention of creating a vacation home. In May 2004, an electrical fire destroyed most of that work, and Post had to start over. He abandoned his original plan and decided to make the castle a luxury bed-and-breakfast. By 2008 the 50-room “Castle Post” was complete.
It saw a moderate amount of success as a bed-and-breakfast and event space, but for most people, the castle remained largely inaccessible. Without investing in tickets to relatively niche events or a pricey overnight room — which were originally priced at $1,000-3,000 a night, though Post dropped those prices by more than half within the first two years of opening — most people didn’t get to see what was behind the stone walls.
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Kentucky Castle co-owners Ryan Dawson, Danny Bramer and Matthew Dawson (l-r) had worked together to host a medical conference at the castle for years under previous ownership, before purchasing it lastsummer. (Not pictured is co-owner Brian Adkins.) Photo by Hattie Quik
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Communal spaces inside the castle include the lofted second floor hallway with entrances to most guest rooms (pictured here), a sitting room adjacent to the restaurant’s main dining room, and a ballroom for events with 75-150. Photo furnished by VisitLex
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Communal spaces inside the castle include the lofted second floor hallway with entrances to most guest rooms, a sitting room adjacent to the restaurant’s main dining room (pictured here), and a ballroom for events with 75-150. Photo furnished by VisitLex
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Communal spaces inside the castle include the lofted second floor hallway with entrances to most guest rooms, a sitting room adjacent to the restaurant’s main dining room, and a ballroom for events with 75-150 (pictured here). Photo furnished by VisitLex
The new owners have every intention of changing that. Along with a 13-room boutique hotel, they are creating a complete farm-to-table experience, with plans to eventually grow as much food as possible onsite. An apiary on the castle grounds has been started, and by springtime, owners say to expect to see sheep, goats and chickens grazing in the pasture.
While waiting for the fruit and nut trees and truffle orchard to develop, the restaurant Castle Farms is already serving farm-to-table dinners five nights a week (Tues.-Sat.). Local chef and farmer Jason Walls was hired to head up the culinary and farming aspect of the business, with other plans including a pond for aquaculture and lavender gardens to be used for making soap, lip balm and other guest amenities.
The castle’s former billiards room is now the Bourbon Hall, a handsome bar that can accommodate about 30 guests for dinners and “Bourbon University” classes with the venue’s bourbon steward-in-residence, Tim Knittel.
Each of the 13 guest rooms has been renovated as well, complete with king beds, vaulted ceilings, new floor and wall coverings and granite countertops.
“It’s a little less ‘Beauty and the Beast’ anda little more modern estate,” said RyanDawson, adding that more interior renovations are planned for the near future. The deluxe king rooms are ideal for couples or singles, while the second-level corner suites come with a turret for extra lounging ordining space.
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Ranging from $195-635 per night, the Kentucky Castle guest rooms have been completely remodeled under new ownership. The highest end rooms are the two-story Chalets, located in each of the four turrets on the corners of the castle walls. Photo furnished by VisitLex
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Ranging from $195-635 per night, the Kentucky Castle guest rooms have been completely remodeled under new ownership. The highest end rooms are the two-story Chalets, located in each of the four turrets on the corners of the castle walls. Photo furnished by VisitLex
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Ranging from $195-635 per night, the Kentucky Castle guest rooms have been completely remodeled under new ownership. The highest end rooms are the two-story Chalets, located in each of the four turrets on the corners of the castle walls. Photo furnished by VisitLex
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Ranging from $195-635 per night, the Kentucky Castle guest rooms have been completely remodeled under new ownership. The highest end rooms are the two-story Chalets, located in each of the four turrets on the corners of the castle walls. Photo furnished by VisitLex
Guests who really wish to step it up can reserve an entire chalet: two-story suites located in each of the castle’s four exterior turrets, which include two private balconies with farm and courtyard views. One chalet is ADA-accessible, and the entire property is pet-friendly.
With several indoor event spaces as well as a spacious, breathtaking balcony with panoramic views, the castle has space for events with as few as 10 and as many as 1,000 guests. Many ticketed events hosted at the venue each week are open to the public, including murder-mystery dinners, medieval-themed trivia nights and improv shows. It has also become an increasingly popular wedding venue.
With accolades rolling in (Architectural Digest named it the “most beautiful hotel in Kentucky” in November) and over 10 marriage proposals in the past month — including Philadelphia Eagles quarterback Carson Wentz and his girlfriend, Maddie Oberg — The Kentucky Castle is well on its way to reinventing itself.
The new owners are proud of the work they’ve done and enjoy sharing the iconic landmark with locals and visitors alike.
“It’s a cool property, and it should be accessible to the public,” said Bramer. “If you want to do a black-tie event, we can do that, or if you want to take a tour and have lunch or attend one of our events like a trivia night or a bourbon class, you can do that, too. We wanted to create something special for Kentucky and something we can all be proud of.”
More on the Kentucky Castle can be found at www.thekentuckycastle.com. Castle tours are available on a weekly basis.
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New owners have placed a strong emphasis on creating a true farm-to-table dining experience at Castle Farms, the venue’s restaurant. Castle Farms is open to the public for dinner Tues.-Sat. Guided tours of the castle that include lunch or dinner are also available. Photo furnished by VisitLex
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New owners have placed a strong emphasis on creating a true farm-to-table dining experience at Castle Farms, the venue’s restaurant. Castle Farms is open to the public for dinner Tues.-Sat. Guided tours of the castle that include lunch or dinner are also available. Photo furnished by VisitLex
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New owners have placed a strong emphasis on creating a true farm-to-table dining experience at Castle Farms, the venue’s restaurant. Castle Farms is open to the public for dinner Tues.-Sat. Guided tours of the castle that include lunch or dinner are also available. Photo furnished by VisitLex