Out and About Kentucky Style: Bourbon in Kentucky

A friend of mine, sometime back assured me he was an expert on bourbon. Assuming that he had read books, experienced the bourbon trail and talked to master distillers, he quickly said, “None of that.”

Gary West is an author and News Journal columnist.

Then how do you know so much, I asked. “Heck, I ought to know, I’ve been drinking bourbon most of my life,” he laughed.

I bet there’s a lot of coffee experts out there, too.

For sure he wasn’t an expert. What about the palate, the nose, the burn. He said nothing about fermentation, or yeast pedigree and sugar. What about corn, wheat, barley or rye? My friend knew none of this.

Today, bourbon making is a science with a sophistication unmatched by anything in the beverage industry. Decades ago my friend’s years of sipping bourbon may have qualified him as an expert, and there’s a good chance some of it could have propelled a rocket to the moon.

It’s debated where the “cocktail” first came from and when. Some say it dates back to the early 1800s and was derived from the French. The crux of it all is that the cocktail came about because the whiskey from the numerous stills around the world tasted so bad that something, anything, had to be mixed with it to be tolerated. There, you have the cocktail.

But what about all of that bourbon being sold today? Would you believe 740 bourbon and whiskey brands? That’s an increase of over 15% since last year, and every one of the distilleries has a story behind their name. Who knows what’s true and what’s not? The story and more recently the bottle design, has become part of the marketing story.

Most people associate bourbon with Kentucky. And there’s a good reason.  Ninety-five percent of the world’s bourbon is made in Kentucky. But, there is a big misconception that in order to be a bourbon it must be made in Kentucky. Not so.

In the beginning bourbon wasn’t meant to cost much. It was the affordable choice of adult beverages. So what happened?

Bourbon people set their sights on doing for bourbon what Napa Valley did for American wine… elevating it to a luxury world class status. With most of Ken-tucky centrally located to a large portion of the U.S. population, unlike Napa Valley, the distillers built it and the people have come. It has been a financial bonanza for the bourbon industry.

Bourbon had been in a horrible slump. In 1969 1.9 million barrels were produced, but by 1999, thirty years later, production had spiraled downward to 455,000 barrels.

However, as a new generation of distillers came on the scene with slicker marketing ideas and stories to tell, also arriving were a new group of sippers who had jump-shifted from gin, vodka, scotch, rum, and even wine.

One of the marketing ideas was so simple, and yet it had been there all the time. When one distiller decided to open his operation to public tours, it became a game changer. The rest fell in line.

What once were dark, dingy industrial settings have now been turned into ultra-modern structures, manicured landscapes, bright lights, shiny vats and guides leading tourist on a memorable bourbon-making experience.

Not only was more bourbon being poured, but tourist were pouring into Kentucky to now see where and how their drink of choice was being made.

Is the building of the new and expansion of the old here to stay? Well, if money talks and walks the answer is yes. There’s a big world out there and with big corporations already beginning to gobble up the little guys (isn’t that the way it always happens) bourbon is on the brink of really getting competitive.

It is important to note that bourbon is a one-of-a-kind product of the United States. It is protected by international trade agreements and no other country can make it.

Much like the advent of amusement parks decades ago, it’s what distilleries are already implementing or preparing to do.

Some are in the planning and design stages of visitor centers, hotels, fine dining, meeting space, music venues, and even hiking trails. A few are bringing days-gone-by brands from the ashes and re-introducing them with a new twist.

If you are a bourbon veteran or novice look no further than the number of rick houses visible on distillery property. A rick house is a badge of honor, and in Kentucky there are plenty of badges.

Not to be confused with a tobacco barn, the average new rick house is a seven story structure, with 45,000 square feet and holds 24,288 barrels with each containing 53 gallons. You do the math. This is just one rick house and Four Roses Distillery is adding 17 new ones.

To put it in a more understandable perspective there are twice as many barrels of bourbon stored in rick houses throughout Kentucky as people living here. With a little less than five million people Kentucky has a lot of bourbon just sitting around.  In the process, however, it is aging. And guess what? It’s becoming more valuable.

The price of some bourbons has become almost unaffordable. There’s several that have reached thousand dollar and above status. Pappy Van Winkle is one. So is a brand of Jefferson. But, there is a Woodford Reserve rendition that is priced high enough to get your attention, not because of what’s in the bottle, but the bottle itself.

Woodford promotes it as their Baccarat edition. The bourbon is aged for three years in Cognac Casks and bottled in forged crystal glass by a French artisan. The decanter process takes five days to complete.

The cost? The internet says a bottle will set you back $2,000… if you can find it. You can, however, get a taste of it for a lot less money. The Matt Winn Steakhouse inside Churchill Downs will pour you two ounces for $350.

Like Dean Martin said in his song: “Ain’t That A Kick In The Head.”

There’s no excuse, get up, get out and get going! Gary P. West can be reached at westgarypdeb@gmail.com.