spotlight || journey
Trail of Cheers Kentucky is home to the bourbon boom. | BY DAVID MAHONEY
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ourbon pilgrims from every corner of the country — along with a couple who traveled all the way from Australia — belly up to the tasting-room bar after their tour of the Evan Williams Bourbon Experience in downtown Louisville, Kentucky. Vicky, a high-spirited tour guide with an infectious laugh, coaches the group through a tasting of a single-barrel bourbon: first, smell the whiskey with parted lips to get the full effect of the aroma, then take a sip. “Are you feeling the finish? Are you feeling it go down?” she asks. “I like to call that a ‘Kentucky hug.’” That expression just as easily describes the warm embrace the Bluegrass State has extended to whiskey enthusiasts making the Bourbon Trail circuit. Having bounced back with a vengeance from a decades-long lull, bourbon is the comeback kid of the spirits world, and 95 percent of it is made in Kentucky. The Commonwealth has responded with a boom of bourbon-related attractions that encourage fans of the corn-based whiskey to delve deeper into this uniquely American spirit. Distilleries scattered around the central part of the state have thrown open their doors, enticing bourbon buffs with new visitor centers and an expanded array of tour and tasting options. For some folks, hitting two or three distilleries before heading off to the races in Louisville or Lexington might be plenty, while hardcore whiskey hounds could spend a week on the trail, soaking up all the nuances of mash bills, yeast strains and charred barrels.
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ouisville is the gateway to bourbon country for most, and it’s a fitting place to start. The bourbon business got its start here when Evan Williams founded Kentucky’s first commercial distillery on the banks of the Ohio. In late 2013, Heaven Hill — the distilling company whose flagship bourbon bears the name of the pioneering distiller — opened the Evan Williams Bourbon Experience on Louisville’s Whiskey Row, the historic stretch of Main Street that was once the nerve center of the city’s whiskey industry. It’s easy to find: Just look for the five-story-tall bourbon bottle pouring into a four-foot-tall glass behind a wall of windows. On the tours, immersive multimedia presentations tell the story of Evan Williams and the birth of Kentucky distilling. A giant flow chart illustrates the production process. Among the particulars: Bourbon must be made from at least 51 percent corn, it must be distilled to
194 Artful Living
| Winter 2015