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Road Trip in Bourbon Country With Dad
Everything you need to know about the ultimate U.S. liquor and where to learn more
The last time I traveled with my dad, he inadvertently over-drugged me with my first decongestant 20 minutes before a college admissions interview (rejected). We’ve not traveled alone together since, and many of our current conversations are simply one admonishingly amused sentiment: “Dad!” But we both enjoy a bit of exploration and drink, and the admissions mishap is more than a decade past, so we planned a bourbon expedition without sibling or spouse.
America’s Native Spirit can be made anywhere in the U.S. and still be called bourbon, but some 90 percent is Kentuckian. In the Bluegrass State, there are, as every tour guide says, more bourbon barrels aging (nearly 5 million) than residents (4.5 million).
In 2012, the Kentucky Distillers Association launched the Bourbon Trail Craft Tour. It’s essentially a map of seven micro-distilleries, to complement a similarly self-guided tour of seven larger ones. Each has its own passport. Fill with stamps for a free T-shirt.
That achievement briefly intrigued. Assessing geography and open hours, however, led me and my dad to four, plus one not on the sanctioned trail. We started our trip at Brown-Forman Cooperage in Louisville.
