Bourbon’s Spirit Comes Alive – Louisville, Kentucky, USA

Kentucky is to bourbon what the Napa Valley is to wine. Savoring a number of bourbons and bourbon-inspired dishes created a special mystique for me. Up to this point, the most memorable

bourbon experiences was hot toddies made with Old Crow and that was when I was a sick

kid, and sometimes when I wasn’t!

I always enjoyed opening the bottle, taking in the strongly sweet

caramel-like scent of bourbon, of which the Kentucky kind is renowned

for because the state sits on a limestone shelf, which filters the iron out of the

water.

Just

like travelers seeking wine experiences in France or California, I

recommend a Kentucky bourbon experience; it offers not only a

chance to sample some unique tasting bourbons, but the added ambience will

leave life-long impressions.

The urban bourbon trail

Louisville is the

gateway of the Kentucky Bourbon Trail, a 1.5 hour drive south

and east from the city that has seven distilleries. It’s called The Urban

Bourbon Trail, made up of eight drinking establishments that are required to serve

between 50-150 different bourbons each.

You can’t just call any whiskey bourbon; it must meet certain

federally mandated standards:

Made of at least 51 per cent corn
Distilled at less than 160 proof from fermented grain mash
Must be matured in new charred, white oak barrels at 125 proof or less
Only pure water can be added to the final product
Has to be bottled at 80 proof or more, and aged for at least 2 years.

[IMAGE: image-001.jpg | alt: Atmosphere adds to a bourbon experience]

Atmosphere adds to a bourbon

experience

Bourbon of a time!

It was a

late Saturday afternoon when friends and I sauntered into the historic

Brown Hotel in downtown Louisville. I was immediately captivated by the interior

motif of English Renaissance Adams Style (from the 1920’s), as well as by some

cocktail style music gently emanating from a piano while natural light peered in

through the high windows. We were seated

in the Lobby Bar. Soon I’d be sampling Maker’s Mark bourbon that had some Godiva Dark, Frangelico and cream for a “Bourbon Ball”. The ingredients in this

cocktail really made the bourbon stand out.

You can order food from the bar, including Rabbit Rillettes, Lobster “Mac and Cheese”, even an Angus burger, with current prices

ranging from $8.00 to $16.00. The bar also serves

a number of white and red wines and cocktails. These range from $7.00 to 14.00 dollars. The service is fast and friendly.

Luckily for us, we were able to order menu items from the Brown’s exquisite

English Grill Restaurant in the next room (dinner entrees from

$18.00 to $34.00, appetizers $7.00 to $17.00). I had the

best-tasting Crab Cakes; they

resonated with a smoke-fired taste, thanks to the accompanying Corn Bourbon

Sauce (made with Elijah Craig bourbon).

[IMAGE: image-002.jpg | alt: Crab cake with bourbon]

Crab cake with bourbon

The atmosphere of gaiety added to my overall

experience. I saw some nicely dressed children from

a wedding party causing a bit of a joyful raucous, as some of the hotel staff

was leading them downstairs until they got their hyperactivity out of their

systems. I walked around the bar and

noticed menus from the 1930’s: a Christmas dinner cost only $1.75 and a

New Year’s Eve dinner was $5.00!

Gone down easy!

Even though there was a 57-foot long bar containing

scores of orange-reddish back-lit bourbon bottles, we chose to savor some

bourbon and bourbon cuisine in the outdoor dining area of Maker’s Mark Bourbon House & Lounge. I tried a shot, six-year old, 93-proof

bourbon known as Blanton’s, produced from a single barrel. Being a bourbon novice, I was told to swirl it around in my glass, then sniff it

with my mouth open. The scent was one of caramel; I drank it "neat" (or

straight). It was really strong,

though not quite fiery, it went down smoothly!

When I’ve drunk less expensive bourbons like

Old Crow, I felt a fiery afterburn! This restaurant and bar has quite a litany of bourbons, including some older than 20 years like Pappy Van

Winkle’s Family Reserve (23 years old and 95.6 proof). It also offers flights (a

sampling of a number of bourbons), subject to availability.

[IMAGE: image-003.jpg | alt: Bourbon smoked salmon pasta]

Bourbon smoked salmon pasta

I was treated to some bourbon-inspired

cuisine that really enhanced the flavor of the food. For appetizers, you can’t go wrong with their

irresistible Lobster “Corn Dogs” that come with a bourbon mustard. They look like traditional corn dogs, but are

smaller and taste better!

Appetizers range in price from $7.00 to $18.00.

For dinner, I enjoyed the very filling Bourbon Smoked Salmon Pasta, came with superior-tasting Orecchiette Pasta. Their dinner entrees ($26-$45) also include a Bourbon

Braised Kobe Short Rib, as well as several steak entrees like a yummy bourbon

marinated sirloin, which I sampled from one of my fellow diners. For

dessert, I tried perfectly sweet (but not rich) Vanilla Sweet Cream

White Pie whose graham cracker crust stood out positively. Desserts range in price from $8.00 to $9.00. Service is fast and friendly.

Sampling bourbon history

In the

darkly lit building dating back to the 1870’s and a couple miles from downtown, I had the chance to try quality bourbon full of

history at Bourbon’s Bistro. I was served

a glass of 20-year old, 90.4 Proof Pappy Van Winkle’s Family Reserve bourbon. This is considered one of the best

bourbons. It comes from a bourbon maker

that has spanned four generations dating back to the late 1800’s who took no

short cuts in making their spirits. They forbade chemists on their premise

who have been used by other distilleries to make less quality bourbons. What makes this bourbon unique is that wheat

is used instead of rye, which is supposed to make the bourbon smoother,

sweeter, and age better.

[IMAGE: image-004.jpg | alt: 20-year old bourbon]

20-year old bourbon

As you can

see from the image, this bourbon is beautifully colored. After swirling it in the

glass, I noticed a fiery, lightly caramelic scent. Upon drinking it, I tasted "hot", but it went down smoothly.

As far as food goes, I savored a filling dinner that included a Shrimp Cocktail and a Baby Spinach Salad. Then I feasted on delicious Pan Seared Lobster Cakes that came with a memorable lemon-chiffon

Hollandaise topping.

Those dinner appetizers/salads range in price from $6.00 to $11.00, included Steak Tartar and Fried Cornmeal Dusted Oysters. The entrees were a ribeye steak that’s

accompanied with Bourbon Butter and a burger that’s “dressed” with an Apricot

Bourbon Mustard, plus many fish dishes like the one I had. These range in price from

$11.00 to $33.00.

Bourbons

Bistro serves over 130 bourbons ranging in price from $5.00 to $75.00. You can choose from nine bourbon flights (which

includes a “pick your own”).

For more information, see Bourbon Country.

I stayed at The Galt

House, on the banks of the Ohio River, a

short walk from many downtown attractions like The Louisville Science Center

and The Louisville Slugger Museum. Rooms have comfortable beds and plenty of workspace for accessing the free

high speed internet. Their fitness

center has a 360 degree view

of the Louisville area

from the eighteenth floor rooftop.