Kentucky Bourbon Trail
JUNE 16 - 23, 2019
Blog Highlights
Distillery Tours
Josephine Sculpture Park
BOURBON, A HEALER OF MANY AILMENTS DURING PROHIBITION. WHO KNEW? WE DIDN’T.
At Buffalo Trace, our first stop on the Kentucky Bourbon Trail, we learned of the role that bourbon played in keeping the residents of Kentucky and surrounding areas “healthy” during the Prohibition. Prohibition in the United States was a nationwide constitutional ban on the production, importation, transportation, and sale of alcoholic beverages from 1920 to 1933. It did not prohibit consumption. Six companies, including Buffalo Trace (George T. Stagg / Schenley Distillers Corporation), had licenses to produce and sell “medicinal alcohol” (whiskey, brandy, or rum) during the Prohibition. Individuals could obtain a physicians’s prescription to legally purchase a pint of medicinal alcohol at a drug store / pharmacy every 10 days.
I suppose it only makes sense that over time each family member would require a medicinal bourbon prescription to address the illness spreading through their household. :-) Some believe that the sale of medicinal whiskey helped a number of pharmacies flourish and expand during the Prohibition. Eventually, when Prohibition ended, distilleries were able to return to normal operations and those that were lucky to have stayed open were well stocked with whiskey for sale (and had a number of aging bourbon barrels in waiting).
DISTILLERY TOURS
We had an opportunity to visit four distilleries on our adventure. Each distillery was unique, but all were fun and informative! Given the great number of websites and articles that explain the distilling process, we do not cover those details in this post. However, we’ve provided website links for each of the distilleries we visited in the Pit Stops & Encounters section at the end of this page (which can serve as a resource for more information). Below are a few highlights from each location.
Buffalo Trace
During the tasting at the end of the tour, we (mostly Traci) fell in love with the bourbon ball dessert and Bourbon Cream liqueur. Bourbon Cream mixed with root beer (and possibly poured over a bit of vanilla ice cream) makes for an impressive adult root beer float. So good! If you’ve never tried a bourbon ball (bourbon cream center covered in chocolate and topped with a pecan), you are missing out! The Rebecca Ruth candy factory makes a wide variety of bourbon balls, featuring whiskey from different distilleries.
Glenns Creek
This small operation is just down the street from Castle & Key and has a very unassuming approach in their process, tastings, and tours. They were generous with their time and had a number of fun stories to tell while touring through the facility. We even had an opportunity to help make a barrel of bourbon (okay…we just poured some white dog into a barrel). While some of their processes may appear less refined than other operations, the whiskey was just as tasty.
Woodford Reserve
The drive to Woodford Reserve is peaceful and pretty, passing a number of beautiful horse farms. We got to sample yet another bourbon ball during the tasting and the Double Oaked was our favorite bourbon.
Castle & Key
The landscape at Castle & Key was unique and beautiful. It has such an interesting history and the founders have done a great job of restoring the grounds that E.H. Taylor once used to host extravagant parties (bringing guests in via private train cars straight to the front door). The gardens and springhouse make a great setting for sipping on your favorite cocktail. Since the distillery has only been in operation for a couple of years, their bourbon is not yet ready for distribution. Therefore, we enjoyed a couple of cocktails using the gin and vodka they distill at the facility. We’re looking forward to returning when their bourbon is ready for consumption and distribution.
Below are a few pictures from our distillery visits.
Scotty considering taking a dive into the mash tank.
Beautiful landscape inside Castle & Key!
Bourbon Ball & Whiskey Samplings…yum!!
Collectible bottle toppers for Blanton’s Bourbon.
We had to get the tasty Bourbon Cream!
Whiskey Mold on the side of a building. Explanation below.
Although the bourbon making process is very cool, Scott’s primary fascination was with the “whiskey mold” on the side of the buildings. The dingy black shadow clinging to the side of various buildings is a common sighting in areas with distilleries. Whiskey mold (also known as angel’s share fungus, distillery fungus, distilleries’ shadow, etc.) occurs when alcohol vapor that has evaporated from the barrels (commonly referred to as “angel’s share”) meets moisture, providing a feeding ground for Baudoinia Compniacensis fungus. The fungus feeds on ethanol, making it prevalent in distilling areas. For this reason, law enforcement agencies sometimes locate illegal stills by following the fungus found on nearby trees (resulting in still owners having to frequently move their stills to keep from getting caught). Despite the sometimes unwelcome appearance (for both home owners and illegal still operators), the mold is not widely thought to cause any health or structural problems (according to some brief internet searching).
Josephine Sculpture Park
Our favorite stop outside of the distilleries was the Josephine Sculpture Park. We thoroughly enjoyed meandering through the fields, discovering unique art installations around every corner.
The park is free (donations accepted) and open from dawn to dusk each day. It is well worth a visit if you’re in the Frankfurt, KY area.
See our Travel Update: Pigeon Forge, TN - Frankfort, KY post for details and pictures related to our travel and our first experience with flooding concerns.
PIT STOPS & ENCOUNTERS
Restaurants & Bars
Campground
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