The Kentucky Bourbon Trail....with Family!!!!!

          

 

  The Kentucky Bourbon Trail...  with Family!

                        

This is a picture of all of us, all 9 of us (except my dear Rich, who took the picture.

                                

                                           

 An introduction to this trip! For many years now, I have wanted to travel to Kentucky and check out the Bourbon Trail.  I started when I once thought I wanted to enjoy a good whiskey, or Bourbon, as I'm American.  Through the years, Rich and I bought different Bourbons and Whiskeys, sipped them and drank them in mixed drinks.  For decades, a bourbon 7 was our main drink.  Traveling, we would check out local whiskey's, especially in Scotland and Ireland.  We even bought an Indian whiskey in duty free- who knew India made Whiskey!!!!! (it was quite good!!).  Rich's Japanese whiskey, a Christmas gift, is one of his most prized, and delicious, possessions!

This story would not be complete without telling you about Al and his adventures with whiskey and bourbon.  He often tells us about the whiskey festival he went to in San Francisco where he tasted may different whiskeys and bourbons from every price range.  Al has a love of craft cocktails, especially those made with whiskey and bourbon.  Him talking about his adventures helped plant the seed for this trip.

Leave it to my BFF Diana to set the planning ball rolling for this trip!!  Inspired by her son Brian's upcoming birthday, and mentioning he wanted to check out the Bourbon Trail, we decided the time was right!!  So, planning we did!

We decided to stay in the small and historic town of Bardstown  (https://visitbardstown.com/), voted one of America's cutest towns, as our home base.  Rich Cody and I stayed at the Old Talbot Inn (https://talbotttavern.com/), a beautiful old hotel, bar, and restaurant from 1779 that was as comfortable as we could ask for!  Diana and her crew rented an amazing house just down the street. And, it was large enough to be social central!!  

After choosing Bardstown, we decided on 5 nights for the trip, as 5 nights and 4 full days seem a comfortable vacation.  We flew into Cincinnati Int'l Airport  (CVG) as it is literally located in northern Kentucky- LOL.  We then had to decide on the distilleries we would visit.  It was far easier than we expected as we joined both a Facebook and Instagram group for ideas, plus our own preferred bourbons!  We chose 6 different distilleries and made reservations at 2 a day; 1 in the morning and 1 in the afternoon.  That way we could easily travel between them!  We chose a combination of small and large, new and old, some known to us, others not.  Each has a reservation system on-line and are quite affordable at $25-$40 each!

We rented a van to hold all of us, bought our airline tickets, and planned our trip!!!  Yes- 7 of us!  Diana and I, Rich and Cody, Al, Lindsay and Brian.  James and Stephanie were actually vacationing in Nashville at the time, so joined us for 2 days!!!!

This is our adventure!!!!  First, we’ll go through each of the distilleries we visited.  Then, the other amazing sites we encountered!!!!!  This small introduction to Kentucky just reinforced what we already knew:  America is an amazing country with beauty everywhere, great people, and sights to keep us occupied for multiple life times!!

Before we go on to explore each of the distilleries, we have to be clear on the difference between whiskey and bourbon.  Bourbon is only made in the US.  Historically, only in Kentucky and environs, but other areas of the US have petitioned to allow their whiskey be named a bourbon.  Bourbon must be 51% corn, aged in charred American oak barrels, and be no more that 80 proof.  Whiskey is made from fermented mashed grains.  Each distillery tour was  between 1 and 1 1/2 hrs, and always ended with a tasting of at least 4 whiskey's the guide talked about.

 Preservation Distillery (https://www.preservationdistillery.com/)

Preservation Distillery is a small distillery located on a ranch of long horn steers!!!!   Family owned, they are focused on sustainability!  Don, our tour guide, was hilarious!!!  And informative, explaining the history of this distillery and how they make their bourbons.  Each distillery makes their bourbon a bit different.  Even though the over-all process is the same, each tweeks the process just a bit for their own identity.

Makers Mark (https://www.makersmark.com/distillery)

Makers Mark is a large distillery that covers many many acres, and multiple buildings.  Makers Mark uses winter wheat to effect their tastings, and age in copper kettles!    Madison was our guide- friendly and informative, she was able to herd our large group through the buildings as she explained the process.  Makers Mark had these massive vats of mash and yeast bubbling in various stages of bourbonization (my word- LOL).  After the tasting, the gift shop allowed you to purchase a bottle of bourbon and hot-wax the cap, which is their signature look!

 

Brian, on his birthday, applying wax to his bottle of Makers Mark!

 

James showing his waxed bottle!

James and I at our tasting!!

Throughout the grounds there are these artistic horses, symbol of Kentucky

 Buffalo Trace (https://www.buffalotracedistillery.com/visit-us.html)

Buffalo Trace is a bit of an anomaly!  It's not on the Bourbon Trail as they do not pay dues to the trail; however, it is a massive, well known, and beautifully landscaped distillery!  Tyree was our guide- balanced, funny, and informative, he also was able to herd us from building to building to building, explaining each step in the process.  Buffalo Trace has been making bourbon for over 200 years!

 

This building was packing orders for shipment

 Whiskey Thief (https://www.whiskeythief.com/)

Whiskey Thief is really small and intimate!  You literally get your tastings from the barrels!  Whiskey Thief is too small to have a tour as it is a large one-room barn-like building where everything is done.  But large grounds allow you to sip your  bourbon in the sun.

 

 Castle and Key (https://www.castleandkey.com/)

Castle and Key is massive, really beautiful and historic, and the oldest of the distilleries we toured.  Victoria was our guide.  Originally build in 1887, this distillery has gone through many changes, many owners, evolving into todays incredibly beautiful distillery!!  The grounds are magnificent!  The buildings historic.  During prohibition, several different types of companies purchased the grounds and buildings; one used it just for storage.  The current owner purchased the property and began distilling just 4 years ago.

 

These are the large vats of bubbling, fermenting, bourbonization!

Bulleit (https://www.bulleit.com/)

Bulleit Distillery was one I really wanted to visit, and it was so interestingly different than we expected!  Very high tech, computerized throughout.  Jeremy was our guide that walked us through their distilling process and explained each of the computer monitors and systems that control Bulleit distilling!

 

 The wonders of Kentucky! 

Bardstown has an incredible history that predates the civil war!!!  Wandering, we found so much history- grave sites, schools, and stocks!!!  And Abraham Lincoln’s birthplace is only half an hour away!  Fantastic sights.  The forests are just beautiful!  As it was early November, the leaves had changed color; luckily there were enough remaining to surround us with color!!!

It's easy to forget the history Kentucky has experienced!  We found amazing historical sights just in the Bardstown area!  I already mentioned out hotel was from 1779.  We also discovered a graveyard that predates the civil war, a one room school house, buildings that have withstood the test of time, and stocks!!!  Yes, stocks; they were fun!!!  There is an area of several acres where original, old dwellings and buildings have been moved near the Historical Museum.  Amazing site!!! (https://bardstownmuseumrow.org/)

 

 

The stocks were so fun!!!

There are several acres where original buildings and dwellings were moved near the history museum! 

The Talbot Inn from 1779! 

Check out the dates on this grave site!!  Predates the Civil War

This old one room school house, although having seen better days, still survives!

Dinner at Talbot Inn!

Abraham Lincoln Birthplace National Park (https://www.nps.gov/abli/index.htm) is a 30 minute drive from Bardstown!  Typical of the National Park Service, this park is an amazing mixture of artifacts, informative dioramas, merchandising, and beautifully kept grounds well marked with information to make the best of your trip!!!  This is the first national park to honor a president, and was first built in 1909 to preserve a replica of the cabin Abraham Lincold was born in!  The structure that surrounds this cabin is very reminiscent of the Abraham Memorial in Washinton DC, including the steps leading up to the memorial!!!!  In true National Park fashion, they had am amazing walkway through the forest to the back of the memorial that is fully accessible to all people!! 

 

 A few miles from this site is the site of Abraham Lincoln’s boyhood home.  Not open to the public, nevertheless, we could walk about the site. (https://www.nps.gov/articles/975192.htm#4/34.42/-98.53)

 

 To conclude this blog post of one of my favorite vacations, I have to tell you the things I learned.  I learned that a vacation can be stress free and run smoothly and wonderfully for all when there is a large group of people- some with strong personalities!  All it took was each of us saying we would all go with the flow; there was no pressure for everyone to do everything together!  It was amazing!!  I learned that I love my family more than I ever thought possible!!!  We are a merry band of loveable weirdos who care for each other immensely!!!  I learned that I love my niece and nephews even more!  I learned that our country is so vast and amazing and populated by the kindest and most amazing people!  Each trip I make throughout the US reminds me how lucky we are to be Americans!

And I learned that bourbon, like whiskey, burns the throat and I now know I never have to take shots again😊.