02/23/21 – FIRST SHIPMENT OF PEGASUS PINS ARRIVES

EVAN WILLIAMS CREATES SPECIAL GOLD PIN BOURBON BOTTLE

Tuesday, February 23, 2021. Louisville, KY. – The first shipment of 2021 Kentucky Derby Festival Pegasus Pins is here! The pins arrived at the Evan Williams Bourbon Experience on Main Street this morning. It’s the first place you can purchase this year’s pins starting today for $6 each. Heaven Hill Distillery has also produced a special Evan Williams Single Barrel Limited Edition Kentucky Derby Festival bourbon bottle to commemorate the 49th edition of the collectable pins. The bottle features a Gold Pegasus Pin sealed in hot pink wax on the neck of each bottle.

“Our partnership with Evan Williams celebrates two of Kentucky’s favorite things – the Derby Festival and bourbon,” said Matt Gibson, Kentucky Derby Festival President and CEO. “Although 2021 will be different, Pegasus Pins are still a great way to share the Derby Festival spirit and support your favorite events.”

Since 1973, the Pegasus Pin program has become one of the primary sources of funding for the not-for-profit Derby Festival. Considered an individual’s sponsorship, it’s a way fans can continue to support the Kentucky Derby Festival during these extraordinary times.

Evan Williams Bourbon Experience at 528 W. Main Street will be the only location in town selling Pegasus Pins through March 1st. This year’s unique design showcases the face and wings of the Pegasus in the Festival’s distinctive teal and magenta colors. The commemorative bottles are available for purchase at the Evan Williams Bourbon Experience beginning March 11 and while supplies last for $74.99.

“The Evan Williams Bourbon Experience is proud to partner again with the Kentucky Derby Festival to share the unique Kentucky spirit of hospitality, entertainment and resiliency,” said Evan Williams Bourbon Experience Artisanal Distiller, Jodie Filiatreau. “Join us as we raise a toast to all of those in the Bluegrass state who have supported our industries over the past year and look forward to a time of celebration during 2021 Kentucky Derby Festival.”

Starting March 1, the pins will be available at retail locations including grocery stores, gas stations and banks around Metro Louisville and Southern Indiana, and online at PegasusPins.com. They will sell for $6 each.

New for 2021, there’s a surprise pin in every envelope! As a way to honor the tradition of the Festival, some envelopes will have the new 2021 Pegasus Pin, and others will have a vintage Pin from 1973 to 2020. For those only looking for the 2021 Pin, they can be purchased online at PegasusPins.com (beginning March 1). A 2021 Pegasus Pin is also guaranteed with the Variety Fun Pack, which includes 5 Pegasus Pins for only $25.

Said Gibson, “Each pin holds memories and a piece of history, so we encourage Festival fans to try to collect them all.”

The Festival will give away 10 Grand Prizes over the course of eight weeks and any 2021 Pegasus Pin can win. The prizes will be given away on Fridays beginning Friday, March 12, through Friday, April 30 on WAVE 3 News.

This year’s Weekly Grand Prizes include an Evan Williams Bourbon Experience Speakeasy Bourbon Party, $2,500 Main Event Entertainment Gift Card, $2,500 Great Clips package with haircuts for a year and a travel package, $2,500 AAA Vacation Package, $2,500 Commonwealth Credit Union Visa Gift Card, $2,500 Cox’s Smoker’s Outlet and Spirit Shoppe The Cox’s and Maker’s Mark Bourbon Experience, $3,000 Meijer Shopping Spree, $2,500 Papa John’s Gift Card for FREE pizza for a year, $2,500 Kroger Fuel Card, and $2,500 Kroger Grocery Card. The drawings will be broadcast on WAVE 3 News.

Those who find and register a Gold Pegasus Pin also have a chance to win a new $15,000 cash prize to be given away Friday, May 7, on WAVE 3 News. With nearly 10,000 gold pins in circulation, the odds of finding a Gold Pegasus Pin are approximately 1 in 10.

Along with the chance to win Grand Prizes, each Pegasus Pin envelope also includes an offer from Great Clips, as well as 8 coupons provided by retail partners including Belle of Louisville Riverboats, Feeders Supply, the Kentucky State Fair, and Kern’s Kitchen Derby-Pie Chocolate nut pie just to name a few.

About Pegasus Pins: The Pegasus Pin Sponsorship program was started as an awareness campaign for the Derby Festival in 1973. At that time, only 10,000 of the plastic pins were produced. The 1973 version of the pin is valued at $800-$1,000 and it’s rare to find them. Since then, the pin sponsorships have become one of the primary sources of funding for Derby Festival events. A pin sponsorship investment is a way fans can support the Kentucky Derby Festival, a not-for-profit organization providing world-class entertainment.

About Kentucky Derby Festival
Since 1956, the Derby Festival has worked to bring the community together in celebration. The Festival is an independent community organization supported by 4,000 volunteers, 400 businesses and civic groups, Pegasus Pin sponsorships and event participation. This involvement has made the Festival the largest single attended event in Kentucky and one of the leading community celebrations in the world.

January 11 - April 20
March 28
April 6 - April 6
April 11 - April 21