here's a quick run down of the experience..
We only spent Saturday and part of Sunday on the trail.. so we only saw 4 distilleries.. this was IMO enough though to get a very good understanding of the whole history of KY bourbon, the distilling process, see some really neat/cool processes in action, get in some wonderful tastings, see the truly beautiful countryside that surrounds lexinton and louisville, etc.. I think the trail makes an outstanding weekend trip.. we never felt pressed for time or in a hurry to make the next stop.. we even managed to squeeze in another, unplanned attraction (more on that later)... had we spent more time there I think it might have gotten a little boring/repetitious and we wouldnt have enjoyed it as much..
as said before, each distillery offered a unique experience and featured/showcased different things... which was cool.. they told some of the same historical stories, and you heard the same answers to the same questions that seemed to get asked on every tour (where is the word "proof" come from?.. what makes "bourbon" different from other "whiskeys", etc..etc..).. but each place added a little bit different twist or had a little bit more information than previously offered, etc.. so it kept things interesting...
The coolest thing for me was the tastings.. Ive never really been a bourbon drinker.. I prefer single malts/scotch.. and have always steered clear of "common" brands of bourbon, and pretty much stuck with blantons or gentleman jack when looking for a "premium" US whiskey.. being able to taste several different things side by side was an excellent experience.. you really can see how vastly different each line is from each distillery... for example, I was amazed at how different Four Roses Small Batch is from Four Roses Single Barrel (I actually prefer the less expensive/exclusive small batch, as did most of the other people on the tour).. we also got a chance to taste some "exclusives" and experimental bourbons at a couple of distilleries that are not available anywhere else in the world..
Of the four places we went.. here's a quick run down of what each had to offer that the others didnt...
Buffalo Trace.. far and away the biggest facility we visited.. they took us into the blantons bottling room and showed us the process in very close detail, walking us through each step... I was amazed at how HUGE the rack houses were at BT as well.. thats a WHOLE LOT OF BOURBON!.. the history lesson given at BT was probably the best one received as well.. I was disappointed in the tasting though.. we just arrived at a bad time.. and they had almost nothing on hand to taste or to purchase.. Buffalo Cream, Buffalo Trace, and Eagle Rare was it.. and there was no Eagle Rare for sale..
Woodford Reserve.. WR gives you the feel of a wine tour more than the other places.. very small and exclusive, with everything decorated/done up in country club type fashion.. the tour guide there was excellent.. lots of information.. WR is going through a substantial expansion right now and is planning on having their production upped by almost 50% within the year (yea!)...so a lot of their facility was closed down due to construction.. but we were still able to see all the "important" stuff (fermenting, distilling, rack houses, etc..).. The WR tasting was also a little limited (they dont make a whole lot of stuff there).. but they did have bottles of their 2013 Master Collection on hand (both the classic malt and the straight malt).. which was pretty cool.. $109 a bottle though.. and we werent allowed to taste it prior.. so I passed on picking up a bottle..
Town Branch.. We didnt originally plan on going to TB.. but we had some spare time after eating lunch in Lexington, and when I looked at the map I realized it was literally walking distance from our restaurant (its right in the middle of downtown Lex).. so we thought "why not" and went.. I am really glad we didnt miss this one.. TB is located on the same grounds as the Kentucky Ale brewery.. so we got a double tour and double tasting.. first doing the brewery.. then moved on to the distillery.. Frankly, the beer tasting was OUTSTANDING.. I had never tried KY Ale's before.. being a new homebrewer myself.. this was a really cool experience to see how they do things, talk to their brewers for a second, and taste some seriously good craft beers.. I had never tried any TB products prior to the tour either, and was really impressed with their "scotch" (Pearse Lyons Reserve) as well as their Bluegrass Sundown (a coffee, bourbon concoction that is simply AWESOME.. we bought a bottle)..
Four Roses.. Probably my favorite tour.. Really well executed by the staff.. very informative.. and got to see more of their facility than the other places allowed for.. the tasting was really well done.. we started with the standard "yellow" label, worked our way up to small batch and then the single barrel.. and then tried a couple of their exclusive, available on site only "special bottles" (they do 10 single recipe, barrel strength bottles that are available at the distillery only.. these are all the different recipes that ultimately get blended together to form the yellow label and the small batch stuff).. I was amazed at how distinctive and different each of these barrel strength bottles were.. one was SUPER sweet/syrupy.. another was super spicy.. another was incredibly floral, etc.. etc...
At the end of it all, we picked up our favorite overall bottle of bourbon (Four Roses Small Batch blew everyone else away for me.. to include Eagle Rare, and the other more expensive single barrels we tried..).. a couple of excellent bottles of liqueur, got a couple of neat glasses.. and a few other pieces of swag (that will likely get bombed to the bourbon aficionados around here
)... and had an overall good time.. very much worth doing.. even if youre not a serious bourbon drinker (Im not one..)... just to see "how its made", get a cool history lesson, see some beautiful countryside, and experience how vastly different all the products are in a side by side type situation.. I highly recommend it... I dont know if I would travel 12 hours to get there or anything unless bourbon was really my thing or something... but if you live within a reasonable radius.. its well worth taking a weekend and hitting a good portion of the trail.. I thoroughly enjoyed it..
Now... about that earlier comment on the "unplanned attraction"...
Its time for a
CONTEST!
While on the trail, we happened to notice an event going on that is wholly unrelated to bourbon... but thought it would be fun.. so we bought tickets and went.. HAD A BLAST! Be the first to guess what event we attended.. win a SFR!...
let the guessing begin!
