Kentucky Bourbon Trail
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The Kentucky Bourbon Trail (sometimes informally shortened to "the Bourbon Trail") is the name of a program sponsored by the Kentucky Distillers' Association (KDA) to promote the
Bourbon whiskey Bourbon () is a type of barrel-aged American whiskey made primarily from corn. The name derives from the French Bourbon dynasty, although the precise source of inspiration is uncertain; contenders include Bourbon County in Kentucky and Bourbo ...
industry in
Kentucky Kentucky ( , ), officially the Commonwealth of Kentucky, is a state in the Southeastern region of the United States and one of the states of the Upper South. It borders Illinois, Indiana, and Ohio to the north; West Virginia and Virginia to ...
. The KDA has registered the phrase "Kentucky Bourbon Trail" as a protected trademark.


History

The KDA launched the Kentucky Bourbon Trail program in 1999. At the time, it included seven of the eight distilleries in the region. In 2008, an eighth distillery, the Barton 1792 Distillery, joined the Trail program. However, the distillery was purchased by the
Sazerac Company Sazerac Company, Inc is a privately held American alcoholic beverage company headquartered in Metairie in the metropolitan area of New Orleans, Louisiana, but with its principal office in Louisville, Kentucky. The company is owned by billionair ...
the following year, and Sazerac withdrew both the Barton 1792 Distillery and the
Buffalo Trace Distillery Buffalo Trace Distillery is a distillery in Frankfort, Kentucky, owned by the Sazerac Company. It has historically been known by several names, including the George T. Stagg Distillery and the Old Fashioned Copper (O.F.C.) Distillery. Its namesak ...
from the KDA at the beginning of 2010. The two Sazerac distilleries continue to host public tours, and a Sazerac spokesperson stated they still feel they are "very much a part of the Bourbon Trail", but Sazerac wishes to promote its distilleries independent of the KDA. In August 2012, the Town Branch Distillery was added to the trail, bringing the number of distilleries back to seven. The
Heaven Hill Heaven Hill Distilleries, Inc. is a private, American family-owned and operated distillery founded in 1935 and headquartered in Bardstown, Kentucky, that produces and markets the Heaven Hill brand of Kentucky Straight Bourbon Whiskey and a varie ...
Evan Williams distillery in
Louisville Louisville ( , , ) is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Kentucky and the 28th most-populous city in the United States. Louisville is the historical seat and, since 2003, the nominal seat of Jefferson County, on the Indiana border. ...
was added in May 2013, expanding the primary tour program to include eight destinations. In 2014, The Bulleit Experience at Stitzel-Weller Distillery joined the Kentucky Bourbon Trail, raising the number to nine destinations. In June 2018, Old Forester opened an urban distillery in downtown Louisville and became a member of the Bourbon Trail. O.Z. Tyler Distillery in Owensboro joined the same month. In July 2018, the KDA announced that Lux Row Distillers would be added to the Kentucky Bourbon Trail. In October 2012, the KDA announced that it would expand the Kentucky Bourbon Trail program to include a new "Craft Tour" of seven artisan distilleries. 2012 had the highest-ever rate of completion for participation in the trail. In December 2013, the Craft Tour added Danville's Wilderness Trail Distillery, thereby expanding to eight destinations. Several other distilleries have been added and the Bowling Green branch of Corsair Artisan Distillery closed on August 30, 2018, bringing the current number to 13 destinations on the Craft Tour. The KDA opened an official welcome center for the Bourbon Trail in August 2018 at the
Frazier History Museum The Frazier History Museum, previously known as the Frazier Historical Arms Museum and the Frazier International History Museum, is a history museum located on Museum Row in the West Main District of downtown Louisville, Kentucky. An affiliate of t ...
in
downtown Louisville Downtown Louisville is the largest central business district in the Commonwealth of Kentucky and the urban hub of the Louisville, Kentucky Metropolitan Area. Its boundaries are the Ohio River to the north, Hancock Street to the east, York and Jaco ...
.


Trail member sites

The program sends free T-shirts to people who mail in a promotional "passport" that has been stamped by all the participating distilleries. As of 2019, the destinations on the main Bourbon Trail are: * Angel's Envy Distillery in
Louisville Louisville ( , , ) is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Kentucky and the 28th most-populous city in the United States. Louisville is the historical seat and, since 2003, the nominal seat of Jefferson County, on the Indiana border. ...
* Bardstown Bourbon Company in Bardstown * Bulleit Distilling Co. in Shelbyville * Bulleit Frontier Experience at the Stitzel–Weller Distillery in Louisville * Evan Williams Bourbon Experience in Louisville * Four Roses Distillery in Lawrenceburg * Green River Distilling Co. in
Owensboro Owensboro is a home rule-class city in and the county seat of Daviess County, Kentucky, United States. It is the fourth-largest city in the state by population. Owensboro is located on U.S. Route 60 and Interstate 165 about southwest of Lou ...
*
Heaven Hill Heaven Hill Distilleries, Inc. is a private, American family-owned and operated distillery founded in 1935 and headquartered in Bardstown, Kentucky, that produces and markets the Heaven Hill brand of Kentucky Straight Bourbon Whiskey and a varie ...
Visitor Center in Bardstown * Jim Beam American Stillhouse in Clermont * Lux Row Distillers in Bardstown *
Maker's Mark Distillery Maker's Mark is a small-batch bourbon whisky produced in Loretto, Kentucky, by Beam Suntory. It is bottled at 90 U.S. proof (45% alcohol by volume) and sold in squarish bottles sealed with red wax. The distillery offers tours, and is part o ...
in Loretto * Michter’s Fort Nelson Distillery in Louisville * Old Forester Distilling Co. in Louisville * O.Z. Tyler Distillery in
Owensboro Owensboro is a home rule-class city in and the county seat of Daviess County, Kentucky, United States. It is the fourth-largest city in the state by population. Owensboro is located on U.S. Route 60 and Interstate 165 about southwest of Lou ...
* Rabbit Hole Distillery in Louisville * Town Branch Distillery in Lexington * Wild Turkey Distillery in Lawrenceburg * Woodford Reserve Distillery near
Versailles The Palace of Versailles ( ; french: Château de Versailles ) is a former royal residence built by King Louis XIV located in Versailles, about west of Paris, France. The palace is owned by the French Republic and since 1995 has been managed, u ...
The members of the Bourbon Trail "Craft Tour" are: * Barrel House Distilling Co. in Lexington * Bluegrass Distillers in Lexington * Boone County Distilling Co. in Boone County * Boundary Oak in Radcliff * Casey Jones in
Hopkinsville Hopkinsville is a home rule-class city in and the county seat of Christian County, Kentucky, United States. The population at the 2010 census was 31,577. History Early years The area of present-day Hopkinsville was initially claimed in 1796 b ...
* Castle & Key in Frankfort * Dueling Grounds Distillery in
Franklin Franklin may refer to: People * Franklin (given name) * Franklin (surname) * Franklin (class), a member of a historical English social class Places Australia * Franklin, Tasmania, a township * Division of Franklin, federal electoral d ...
* Hartfield & Co. in
Paris Paris () is the capital and most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), making it the 30th most densely populated city in the world in 2020. S ...
*
James E. Pepper James E. Pepper is an American whiskey brand. The brand is named after a historic American whiskey maker with that name who built and operated a distillery in Lexington, Kentucky, and marketed his whiskey under his family's brand name "Old Peppe ...
in Lexington * Jeptha Creed Distillery in Shelbyville * Kentucky Artisan Distillery in Crestwood * Kentucky Peerless Distilling Company in Louisville * Limestone Branch Distillery in
Lebanon Lebanon ( , ar, لُبْنَان, translit=lubnān, ), officially the Republic of Lebanon () or the Lebanese Republic, is a country in Western Asia. It is located between Syria to the north and east and Israel to the south, while Cyprus li ...
* MB Roland Distillery, Pembroke (Christian County) * Neeley Family Distillery in
Sparta Sparta ( Doric Greek: Σπάρτα, ''Spártā''; Attic Greek: Σπάρτη, ''Spártē'') was a prominent city-state in Laconia, in ancient Greece. In antiquity, the city-state was known as Lacedaemon (, ), while the name Sparta referre ...
* New Riff Distillery in Newport * Old Pogue Distillery in Maysville * Preservation Distillery in Bardstown * Second Sight Spirits in
Ludlow Ludlow () is a market town in Shropshire, England. The town is significant in the history of the Welsh Marches and in relation to Wales. It is located south of Shrewsbury and north of Hereford, on the A49 road which bypasses the town. The t ...
* Wilderness Trail Distillery in Danville *
Willett Distillery Willett Distillery, also known as Kentucky Bourbon Distillers (KBD), Ltd., is a private family-owned and -operated company that produces bourbon and rye whiskey.
in Bardstown


See also

*
American Whiskey Trail The American Whiskey Trail is the name of a promotional program supported by the Distilled Spirits Council of the United States that promotes the distilled beverage industry in the U.S. The Trail was first promoted to the public on September 28, 2 ...


References


External links


Kentucky Bourbon Trail
official website from the Kentucky Distillers' Association {{KYBourbonTrail Bourbon whiskey Tourism in Kentucky 1999 establishments in Kentucky Heritage trails Whisky trails