Three Days on the Kentucky Bourbon Trail

 Once upon a time, eight people decided to go an a Grand Adventure to see the fjords of Norway. They did some research and used a travel agent to book a cruise. This cruise included stops in the West coast of Norway and cruising down two of the endless Norwegian fjords. Then a pandemic happened which sideswiped the world's population and closed down traveling. So after waiting for what seemed a very long time they decided to go on a trip that they could actually go on and planned for a get together on that most famous of trails - The Kentucky Bourbon Trail. This is the story of their three days on that trail and the other things that they did there.

About the Kentucky Bourbon Trail

Known as the birthplace of Bourbon, Kentucky features a "trail" of over 41 distilleries - 18 regular distilleries and 23 craft distilleries - that you can visit, tour, taste and enjoy. From Bardstown to Louisville to Northern Kentucky you can drink your way through the trail. Though Kentucky's distillers have been crafting bourbon for over 200 years, the Kentucky Distillers Association formed the Kentucky Bourbon Trail in 1999 to give visitors a look at the "art and science of crafting bourbon." 

Visiting Distilleries on the Kentucky Bourbon Trail

Each distillery is different and though it's a "trail" some are up to 70 miles apart. So pre-planning is key. We all arrived at our Air BnB by Saturday night and started our 3 days of touring on Sunday. Each of us took responsibility for pre planning including finding the Air BnB, booking distillery tours and tastings and other fun things that we did.

Distilleries we visited -

Angels Envy-

Angels Envy is located in downtown Louisville. It's description says it's "an industrial-chic venue with a hip vibe". Tours are by reservation only and conclude with a tasting. (It is distilled by Louisville Distilling Company which is owned by Bacardi) Started by a father and son in 2006 and built in 2013, I feel that this distillery appeals to a younger crowd. It's very polished, urban and "instagram worthy". Their product is finished in port or Caribbean rum casks and you can even pay $149 to bottle your own. 

Barton 1792 - Established in 1879 and the oldest fully operating distillery in Bardstown, Barton 1792 was named after the year Kentucky joined the United States. Boasting 29 barrel aging warehouses on 196 acres, Barton 1792 is huge. And very much a working distillery. We were hosted on a tour through the industrial complex and then a tasting in the gift shop. (Starting June 30, Barton 1792 is no longer offering public tours.)

Makers Mark- Makers Mark was one of my favorite distilleries that we visited. Known for the classic dip-your-bottle-in-wax experience (which you can pay extra to do), I liked Makers Mark for their art installations. Started in 1953 by Bill and Margie Samuels and located in Loretto, Kentucky on the 1000 acre Star Hill Farm, this distillery still hand dips every bottle they produce.

 Bill was known for creating the whisky recipe but Margie was the artist that created their signature square bottle. And she wanted every dollar that went into the whisky to be matched by another dollar to keep up the grounds. Hence, her love of art shows on the grounds. There are six Chihuly Art Installations on the grounds at Makers Mark - including the Persian Ceiling which is permanent and was commissioned in 2014.

Buffalo Trace-

Buffalo Trace Distillery, located in Frankfort, Kentucky, was my favorite of the distilleries that we visited. Not included as part of the official Kentucky Bourbon Trail because they are not on the board of the distillers, visits to this extremely popular distillery are free. But I would highly recommend that you reserve a spot beforehand. (Kudos to our friends, Marcia and David, who made our reservations after waiting online for an incredibly long time - like 3 hours!) 

Buffalo Trace has been making bourbon for over 200 years and is considered the oldest continuously operating distillery in the US. They produce over 2.5 million gallons of whisky per year including the Pappy Van Winkle brand- the most highly acclaimed throughout the industry.

We took the classic Trace Tour, where we learned the history and science of Buffalo Trace bourbon and walked amongst the whisky barrels. Our tour ran like a well oiled machine - you can tell they've been doing this awhile - and I absolutely loved our tour guide. Some people just have the personality to be a tour guide and our guy was the best.( I also liked that we didn't just taste alcohol at our tasting but truffles as well.) I would highly recommend visiting here, if you can get a reservation, if you're doing the Kentucky Bourbon Trail.

Glenn Creek - Glenn Creek Distillery is located in the former Old Crow Distillery property and was one of the most unique distilleries that we visited. Their slogan is "A Little Different, A Lot Better". The property was abandoned for 30 years when owner David Meier happened upon it.

There are no tour guides or tours - the property is to put it lightly, a bit decrepit - and the same people who cook the mash and distill the products will visit with you. One of two of them. So all 8 of us sat at the bar and received a personal tasting and history of Old Crow and Glenn Creek.

Other Things We Did

The Kentucky Derby Museum - I have a friend who worked at Churchill Downs for years and she recommended we visit The Kentucky Derby Museum. So we did. The Museum is located right next to Churchill Downs (about 10 minutes from downtown Louisville) General Admission includes: access to the Museum including exhibits of clothing, starting gates and history of the race, a historic walking tour of Churchill Downs with a tour guide and a viewing of The Greatest Race, a 360 degree film about The Kentucky Derby.

I'll have to admit I didn't know that much about The Kentucky Derby other than watching it on tv. So I enjoyed our visit here which gave us an overview of the history of the race, background in the horses, jockeys and owners and I really enjoyed stepping foot on to the hallowed ground of the racetrack. We probably spent 2 hours here total and I think it was worthwhile.

Renting a boat on Taylorsville Lake - Since we were staying at an Air BnB right at Taylorsville Lake, we decided to rent a boat and chill on the lake one morning instead of hitting the ground running. I do believe we passed about 3 boats and pretty much had the lake to ourselves. 

We took a ride to see the lake, stopped by the dam for a swim (note: it was a bit chilly since it was September) and headed back to the marina. A sunny and fun morning before more distillery touring. And we renamed our group the Kentucky Fjords group since we weren't in Norway yet.

Visiting the Seelbach Hilton - One of Louisville's most storied hotels is the Seelbach Hilton. Opened in 1905, with some 25,000 people in attendance, the Seelbach was conjured by two Bavarian brothers - Otto and Louis Seelbach - and was to resemble grand hotels from Europe. At the time it was built, it was considered so far out of downtown Louisville that the mayor said "no one will travel that far out of town for a hotel". But come they did and it is now a grand icon in the city.

We were stopping in for a drink at the Old Seelbach Bar. But it wasn't open yet so the hotel concierge said we should visit the downstairs event space, the Rathskeller. This unique venue was constructed of handmade Rookwood Pottery in 1907. Tiles represent the area of Germany where the Seelbach brothers were from and also signs of the Zodiac. We were the only people there and enjoyed hanging out until the bar opened.

 And once it did, we not only got a drink but also a Hot Brown - the famous dish from Louisville - for dinner. At one of the most historic places to get one. Fancy that. (A Hot Brown is a broiled open face turkey, bacon, cheese and tomato sandwich)

Old Talbott Tavern - Around since the 1700's with the world's oldest bourbon bar, the Old Talbott Tavern is located in the town square of Bardstown. We had heard that it was tough to get in - they don't accept reservations - so we called after visiting Makers Mark and they said there wasn't a wait. So we hightailed it over there for an early dinner and enjoyed a comfort food meal. When we exited, it was packed. So my advice is to go for an early dinner or late lunch.

Where We Stayed

We rented a house big enough for 8 people in the small town of Taylorsville, Kentucky right beside Taylorsville Lake. While it worked just fine for us, I wish I would have seen the layout of the house beforehand. There were four bedrooms - which is what we needed - and 3 bathrooms. Unfortunately, two of the bedrooms were in the basement with no bathroom so any bathroom visits were necessitated by a climbing of the stairs. The other two bedrooms had bathrooms attached but with one only having a bathtub - no shower - which was located right in the bedroom. For privacy reasons, that one could only be used when the bedroom occupants weren't there. 

As I said, it worked out fine - the living area was large enough -especially since we left in the morning and didn't return until after dinner everyday. I'm not sure I would rent there again due to the bedroom/bathroom configuration, though.

I really enjoyed our time on the Kentucky Bourbon Trail! Good times with good friends in a beautiful part of our country made for a great getaway - and I don't even like Bourbon!

Linking up with: My Corner of the World at Photographing New Zealand!