I've twice done unsupervised bourbon tours in Kentucky. It was a lot of fun and the hosts and fellow travelers on the trail were great people. (Anyone pouring you a taste of good bourbon has gotta be a nice person.) That being said, I find the politics of Kentucky awful: mean, mysoginist, homophobic, and all the immoral values of Republican Party. So what can be done? Get quality bourbon made locally near where you live. And try Maryland Rye. BTW, gay marriage became legal by popular vote in Maryland. Great whisky made where the taxes don't support Mitch McConnell and the other bums in the Trump crime family.
23
The article states: " Part of the problem was location" with reference to county liquor laws. That is the least of KY's problems with location, which include cold to sweltering weather, lack of landscape esthetics, poor access to complementary forms of recreation or culinary pursuits, resistance of progressives (who tend to have more money than opiate-addicted Trump voters), and proximity to population centers, all of which make west coast wine country far superior to a niche bourbon destination.
7
Napafication? I read the term and I cringed. I wouldn’t wish that type of a transition on any area. As a Napa native, I witnessed what was once a nice, agrarian valley with prune, apple and walnut orchards, beef cattle, and yes, vineyards, turn into a Disneyland of wineries and related attractions fueled by outside Johnny-come-lately Silicon Valley money, and catering to pseudo-sophisticated wine snobs and destination wedding seekers. In the meantime, skilled labor jobs have turned into service-economy jobs, squeezing the middle class. Limited development has contributed to skyrocketing rents. Restaurants here are closing their doors because they can’t attract and keep workers. As was stated in an earlier post, “Be careful of what you ask for.”
11
I'm no fan of Mitch McConnell or his Politics. I'm Not going to boycott Kentucky bourbon because of McConnell. That is just plain close minded. Many people don't agree with Speaker Pelosi does that mean those people should boycott California Wines? People are just getting CRAZY. I'm a Card carying member of ACLU and will continue to buy and Drink Kentucky bourbon. But I'm not spending $170 for a bottle.
6
It’s difficult to distinguish NYT’s coverage here from craven marketing. As for Kentucky’s hopes, I suspect Napa may not be a model they can successfully replicate, not least because liquor “tastings” at successive distilleries engender risks. But if they keep drinking their product perhaps they can convince themselves of it.
2
Since Napa has already become somewhat 'Kentuckified,' the Napa-fication of Kentucky only seems fitting. Just as the frenzied art world always seeks the latest, hottest (and therefore most expensive) works, soon it'll be time for the lemmings to move on to their next nectar.
3
Napa has its famous “Wine Train.” (Just like it sounds — local fine wines consumed on a tourist train through Wine Country.)
So does KY plan a Boubon Train, I wonder?
1
Lots of small towns and cities that saw their jobs disappear with globalism turned to promoting crft brewing and distilling as clean industries that would build tourist economies. Take My town as an example. It already had a growing economy, historic downtown, increasing population all somewhat upended by the recession, but it was generating a lot of local ventures and innovation that could have used continuing public support. Instead the chamber and city council decided to focus on alcohol tourisM. We might as well have gone with the casino industry. We have a brewery on every corner and cheap hotel chains on every block in between, all built of aluminum framing and composit walls designed to last about 30 years at best. They will make their money out of them in five years and feel free to shut them down in the next recession.The jobs are low paying, seasonal and hotel industry is now the dominant local power player fighting every project or proposal to benefit residents. Local shops are closing in favor of T- shirt shops and make no mistake, the bulk of tourists now coming here come to get drunk and party. Public drunkenness, assaults,accidents, crime have all increased. Ask any Uber driver how many people they’ve had to kick out of their cars for beligerance, vomiting, yelling racial epithets out the window and the rest. Residents no longer feel safe going downtown yet we’re paying the high property taxes to support this mess.
2
Beware of what you ask for, Napafication is not a positive model, unless you want expensive housing, restaurants, hotels and hordes of high end tourists who drive up local rents. This pushes out the people who used to live there who are then replaced by wealthy retirees and second home owners. This type of high end tourism leaves places unaffordable to middle America and hollows out communities so that they are no longer real places. This same process is unfortunately happening in large parts of Sonoma County as well.
11
I’m stunned by the reaction of some readers here that Kentucky distillers should be punished because Mitch McConnell represents the state in the Senate from a red state.
Perhaps they forget that when Trump stupidly imposed tariffs on European products,the E.U. reacted with tariffs on Kentucky bourbon.
Just like so many states, including California, Washington and Oregon, all tremendous wine producers, the geography of these states is overwhelmingly red even if population centers vote blue.
Kentucky is stunningly beautiful. Louisville is incredibly diverse with democrats often occupying a seat in Congress. It is also a complicated state with its eastern section being one of the poorest in the country but paradoxically voted for Trump.
I hope some readers rethink their boycott on visiting Kentucky because of Mitch McConnell. Talk with people there and realize that preconceptions of a place can’t be reduced to a single person.
Enjoy the bourbon too.
16
@B Eaton
Punish an entire state because of their U.S. Senator? That’s not who we are as a country and with that sentiment could lead to a boycott of lots of states.
6
Gourmet bourbon may only be found in liquor stores in KY, but the regular stuff is in chain drugstores. Take that, NY!
Like wine in the Napa Valley, it appears the snob factor is catching on in KY (of all places!). $100 dollar *blended* bourbon whiskey? Puh-leeze!
Reminds me of 50 years ago when my friend in DC begged me to bring a case of Coors beer with me on a visit there. Coors beer! Give me a break!
This, too, shall pass.
5
Not only has the increased demand for bourbon been jacking up the prices, but the quality has also been suffering. Age statements are now disappearing from some labels as many distillers are aging their products less to meet this demand (Elijah Craig is one example). Yet I haven't seen any concomitant price reductions.
So I am all for new startup distilleries. But I've yet to see one that is charging anything other than inflated prices for minimally aged, undistinguished bourbons. And how rich would I have to be before I paid more for a bottle of Pappy Van Winkle than my first new car?
6
“Age statements are disappearing ...” Well, if your bourbon spends less than four years in the barrel, an age statement is required. That’s federal law, and has been since 1964. No age statement is required on bourbons aged longer.
1
To the posters stating they will boycott Kentucky until Mitch McConnell is not elected, you are part of the problem. You're probably still scratching your head wondering why Hillary lost. Do you realize there are patches of blue in the Bluegrass State? Do some research on Berea College. Go visit Kentucky and talk to the locals. Drive to Elkhorn City and visit. Seek to understand how people from geographically isolated areas live and look to see how many good paying jobs are available that not related to coal. Imagine you lived in the area, but you were too poor to move and someone is threatening to close the business that gives you your livelihood. While you're at it, find out if Kentucky has any problems with gerrymandering. When you make stercoraceous remarks about boycotting a state, you sound like an ignoramus and the type of person who threatens to leave because Hillary lost the electoral vote.
33
@Berea Alumna Well said but with one caveat. There are “patches of blue” everywhere. But it’s still not a compelling reason to visit a place that’s more a placard for red. And neither is booze.
2
Bourbon can be made anywhere in the world and still be called bourbon. In fact, much Kentucky bourbon is distilled out of state, closer to corn fields, in huge contract distilleries, then trucked to Kentucky for blending and the all important barreling and rackhouse storage process. I've been tasting great Bourbon (and even greater Rye) from lots of producers outside of Kentucky. Kentucky has the edge in Bourbon culture though and I wish them luck with increased tourism. They need the jobs badly.
8
@Rob D To be Bourbon, it must be produced in the United States. If it is made elsewhere its Whiskey. 95% of all bourbon produced is still made within the State of Kentucky.
3
The better model and analogy for boutique whiskeys would be Scotch, with its reputational consistency, bog by bog and barrel by barrel, rather than the wildly variable annual wine harvest and consequently continual repricing. Kentucky probably also needs a Ralfy to help drinkers decide what's what.
4
I used to drink KY bourbon, then decided it better to save for my kids college instead. The latest tax bill gave a massive boon to brewers and distillers, just where we should be routing our money, no? I’ll keep my money and buy something local if I ever feel like it. The Washington Post had a recent article about lost expansion opportunities in Europe following retaliatory European tariffs.
2
Relax folks. Treat people as individuals. I was down there in October and found Louisville and Lexington surprisingly “blue”. I don’t agree with much of the state - in fact we saw a few rebel flags on the drive to Maker’s mark. But we did find many avenues for communication - even with those in the middle.
17
@Mark W Cities are always the bluest parts of any state in the US.
7
Heavy Mitch McConnell bashing in these comments, which I fully understand. But boycotting Kentucky-produced bourbon because of that guy...? I care for Donald Trump even less — or, on second thought, at least with equal distaste — but does it mean that just because he’s this country’s president I should stop buying American-made products? I think not. Now, if Mitch himself was distilling something like Old Turtlehead, believe me, I would not buy it.
I do enjoy bourbon (among other whiskies), and have even visited several distilleries in Kentucky over the last twenty years. It has not escaped my attention that the variety and selection of bourbons and ryes has really exploded. Perhaps we can thank the late Booker Noe for getting that started in the early ‘90s with his first of a kind unfiltered, uncut, barrel proof whiskey. Regardless, I’m appreciative. And if Kentuckians want to bring tourists to check out what they’re so rightfully proud of, more power to ‘em. I’ll just miss the relatively quiet places I enjoyed when I had my opportunities to stop by.
Cheers!
37
The (white and wealthy) Brooklynites will go regardless of what their parents say about spending money in the Mitch McConnell state. Commodify blue collar culture while still adding some Lululemon and Whole Foods Stores, and you’ve got the winning formula. Who needs a middle class amirite
11
You’d have to depopulate the state (beyond Jefferson County) for this to become reality.
6
@Henry Karpinski
I think tobacco (KY has the highest smoking rate in the US, I noticed in a news item) and Opiods are already making a dent.
Grim but true from what I’ve read.
2
To the editors: Proof is not a "whiskey-themed hotel", it is a restaurant. The hotel is 21-C, which has nothing to do with booze.
As for the content of the article, having grown up in Louisville, it's hard to say that Kentucky is becoming the Napa Valley of the South. Napa has rolling vistas and year-round temperate climates. Kentucky has some of that, but the state is really only visitable a few months in the spring and fall, otherwise it's way too hot or cold.
All of that said, for folks who've never been, try to plan a week or so close to the Derby - the weather is spectacular, the state is gorgeous, and you'll get a lot of bang for your buck. Especially downtown Louisville - that area has changed a lot since I was a kid.
14
It’s a familiar pattern. A commodity product, on the shelves for centuries, gets “discovered” by the prevailing hipster crowd, premium products with huge margins are developed, articles appear in the New York Times as if a new element was added to the Periodic Table, being hip is redefined to require the new product, mass quantities are conspicuously consumed while posing, the truly cool move on.
17
@Stevenz
It wasn't "hipsters" who created ""NAPA VALLEY"" and the absurd prices there. Nor is it "hipsters" driving Burgundy prices sky high.
Very expensive Napa Valley wines are the go-to wines of liberal Silicon Valley new money elites and Texan lawyers alike.
The Bourbon trend will be fueled in only small part by hipsters. Plenty of the buying is coming from "heartland" folks with some money and a new appreciation for home grown spirits. Oh, and the Japanese and now the wealthy Chinese are on board too. And their spending power makes hipster trust funds look like Kindergartners' piggy banks.
11
Ok a pretty cynical criticism.
This describes gaining an appreciation of any product. It can be a shallow or deep investigation but part of what makes life interesting.
3
@Stevenz Great comment.
By introducing the comparison to Napa Valley you are sledgehammering what is an otherwise noble, commendable and worthy chase.
Kentucky (OMG Kentucky!) has a serious image problem. Yes, Louisville does float somewhere in the nether-regions of most people's consciousness, but take away the Derby and the Mint Juleps and you're not left with anything culturally or intellectually magnetic.
Kentucky will never draw in the same people that Napa does, so why use that measuring stick?
23
Have you visited Kentucky recently?
12
And Trump is a proud New Yorker! Guess no one should visit there either?!
13
@lowereastside
Mamouth Caves is a known attraction—pretty sure it’s in KY.
But the best thing KY ever produced was Abe Lincoln — born there & moved to IL.
3
We've had the pleasure to get to know Dixon, and drink with him LOTS, a few years ago. Dixon is as genuine as they come, and a good man, with a wonderful family and family HERITAGE. We both at the time were attempting to resurrect old family traditions and businesses and we shared many great family histories with each other. As left as I am (and I'm pretty left) Kentucky's politics is bothersome, but to hear a good man like Dixon slandered by association hurts my soul for what our country has become.
Bourbon itself certainly has changed over the past 10 years, and while I may never get a hold of his "limited" bourbons, as a collector and drinker I'm proud to have thousands of bottles in my collection. YES, some are investments, but many of them are there to be enjoyed with friends left and right, just as Dixon and I did in his family's Inn years ago. I wish him nothing but success. And for what it's worth, if you're chasing his bourbon because you think it's good, you should definitely be seeking out his 11 year Kentucky Rye Whiskey, which is available in far greater numbers, at a great proof, for a reasonably fair price (the first batch was just north of a hundred dollars....the second batch is admittedly too expensive for my budget, almost double).
20
I have family in Lexington, Ky., and have really enjoyed my visits there for weddings and b'nai mitzvot. We didn't do the bourbon tours, but one of our family friends, who is from Tokyo, did that on recent visit, and he said he really enjoyed it. (He is in his 80s.) We stayed at a very cute boutique hotel, the Gratz Park Inn, the last time, and we toured Henry Clay's home, Ashland. It's a lovely area with friendly people and a relaxing atmosphere. I think many people would enjoy a trip to this area of our country.
21
We visited and stayed in Frankfort last spring and loved Bluegrass country, Keeneland Racetrack, the Corvette Museum, Lincoln's birthplace and boyhood home, Henry Clay's, Ashland, Woodford Reserve, Mary Todd Lincoln's childhood home and much more. The people were friendly, Lexington is hip and even though we despise McConnell, we never felt that the entire state was Trump country. Lots to like and we'll return. Maybe after 2020, I'll like Kentucky even more than I do now.
9
I hope that Kentucky Bourbon does not go the way of Napa-fication. I visited the Baron 1792 distillery with my family three years ago. It was a 90 minute extensive free tour with samples at the end. A very nice time. A year later we did the same in Napa where we had to pay $20 a person for a 30 minute hurry-them-through tour that was a total let down.
As the big money pours into Kentucky, it will change the flavor of the region in profound ways and none of it will taste good.
11
I hope the bourbon tourism goes well. Aside from the Derby and basketball, the state of Kentucky does not have a lot of economic inspiration.
However, I don't see how it can become a Napa Valley of tourism. Wine goes with food. Bourbon is a neat distilled spirit or can be used for a cocktail which leaves many pie-eyed, or worse.
Making wine is more of an art. Making whiskey is more an industrial science of distillation. Wine is salubrious, while bourbon leaves you intoxicated.
Hence, the analog is tenuous. Having said that, I am sure the whiskey described here is the best that has ever been produced anywhere.
7
@Joe
Most wine (by volume) is very much an industrial science and IMO many expensive Napa wines taste boring, manipulated, and cloying. Many wines seem to rely nearly as much on the barrel as bourbon's do.
Many visitors to Napa aren't really sophisticated wine drinkers and few are worldly in their vinous experience. Plenty of them only know "Cab" and Chardonnay and might get adventurous and have a massive, dense Pinot or a super-ripe Sauvignon Blanc every once and a while. So there is the sum total of their wine food pairing potential.
If somebody wants to have a fine bourbon with their steak dinner, so be it.
7
@Joe - With respect, I would suggest that your knowledge on the subject of bourbon and the state of affairs in the industry is a bit out of date.
Though bourbon can indeed be a pretty simple drink, there is considerable art and science to producing good bourbon, as anyone who's had a badly-blended one can attest.
Aging locations within a warehouse, grains used in the mash, and yeast strains can affect the final product. Different methods of aging the wood used in barrel staves, char levels, and the species of wood itself can also have a significant effect.
That doesn't even get into things like single-cask bourbons or those finished in different wine or spirit casks (a thing also done by Scotch producers for a long while).
Also: Served in reasonable amounts, bourbon pairs wonderfully with a wide variety of foods.
4
I will spend none of my "coastal elite" dollars in Kentucky while they support the likes of Mitch McConnell. Besides, I don't have to leave Washington to find great whiskey, as we can make it just as well here. Hard pass.
28
@wanda Here here.
9
@wanda
Wanda! Thank you for the perfect 'distillation' of very important thoughts and ideas.
This New Yorker is proud to be your fellow American.... as well as a fellow American to, no doubt, honorable and lovely, old-school anti-McConnell and anti-Trump Republicans.
We must find ways to coalesce and unite through the static.
31
@wanda
Wanda, you might also have "conservative" friends of the non-Trump variety (crossing my fingers they still exist in meaningful numbers).
They’re buying into an entire “bourbon experience,”
What blather. Straight from the liars in advertising. When you're drunk, you're drunk.
3
I guess it’s praise the Lord and pass the bottle in old KY.
3
Yes, invest money in forward thinking Kentucky, home of Mitch McConnell and tax breaks for wacky arks.
https://www.courier-journal.com/story/news/2017/07/21/ark-park-violation-deal-over-18-million-state-tax-breaks/500245001/
Refer to GOP gerrymandering and other shenanigans in North Carolina to see how well that will go.
7
Kentucky should be careful about wishing for the “Napafication” of its bourbon industry. As the saying goes in neighboring Sonoma County, “Sonoma makes wine; Napa makes auto parts”.
22
Kentucky is south of I-70, north of I-40, and completely misses I-80, I-90, and I-10. Kentucky is a drive-by state. No amount of over priced Bourbon will convince me to stop. I prefer Scotch anyway but I'll get my kicks elsewhere regardless. There's a lot more to a fine drink than craft. Culture matters as much if not more than the actually beverage. There's a reason the Germans are praised for beer making and the French for wine. Americans might be wise to consider why.
7
@Andy
American craft beers and American wines hold their own against their European counterparts. Not really sure what your point was here.
12
The answer is YES!!
1
The great America business idea for our age — marijuana and artisan booze.
15
As long as they keep electing Mitch I won't spend a dime in Kentucky. Country over bourbon.
67
I've been to many wine tastings in my day but then I went to a Scotch tasting. A sip of this and a sip of that - I got so drunk so fast I was staggering. Fortunately I didn't have to drive.
3
Should you have concern about your blood glucose levels,
Don't touch the stuff.
F3
8
"A wonderful story," is it? Another "true American success story" about someone who never had to look for a job his entire life.
"...bourbon appealed to consumers tired of flashy luxury and looking for simple, recognizable products." Apparently these "consumers" are abandoning their love of simple products and yearning for flashy luxury.
I work in the Napa Valley, so I know what the wages of Napa-fication are. At least we don't have wine-based theme parks.
Yet.
28
Wait a minute...I thought it wasn’t bourbon unless it was brewed, aged, and bottled in Kentucky.
5
@A Aycock that's a common misconception. Bourbon must be completely produced in the USA - not limited to Kentucky.
3
@A Aycock What makes it bourbon is not the origin, but the type of grain used in the distillation process. The mash for a bourbon must contain at least 51% corn. That, I believe, is when a whiskey crosses the line and can be defined as a "bourbon."
1
@Bryan It's the limestone that filters the water--so they say--that makes strong bones in horses and good bourbon.
7
Everyone is in on this (now very stale) act. Even places in rural Canada with absolutely no heritage in spirits are churning out bespoke brandies, whiskies, gins, vodkas and rums (just like the Romanians are now hoping people will buy $500 bottles of their terrible wine). The trendies abandoned the 10,000 craft breweries of the early part of the century and flocked to spirits, a fad that has now gone some way down the path of the hula hoop.
2
"Consumers [were] tired of flashy luxury and looking for simple, recognizable products."
In theory, that's wonderful. But when a product that historically has sold for a very reasonable price is invaded by Mr. P.T. Bourbon, who charges up to 1000% more for the same product, you end up with a simple and EXORBITANT product.
You also encourage a feeding frenzy among the wealthy to corner the market for the latest "Unicorn" bottle sold by a "Master Distiller" whose distilling experience consists of having his picture taken with the distiller who actually produces his "sourced" bourbon.
12
This wonderful story barely scratches the surface of the bourbon boom. From the general tone of the comments here, most Times readers don't drink it, or they associate it with Mitch McConnell, which is fine, but that doesn't reflect the phenomena. As a bourbon aficionado, what strikes me about the market since 2014 or so is how many tens of thousands of Americans have procured enough bottles to create a "bunker"--the bourbon equivalent of a wine cellar. Buying, sharing, and trading fine bourbon is now a thing, and a big one. The best examples of it may be produced in a red state, but bourbon has its advantages--it is cheaper per ounce than my fine Napa wines, tastes delicious, and doesn't need to be stored in a climate-controlled cellar. And, sorry NY and CO distillers--a $30 bottle of Kentucky hooch made with limestone water still beats your $75 bottle of bourbon in taste tests.
30
Like everything in America we now have so many choices of bourbon and every other alcoholic beverage. Each claiming heritage, or unique taste or blah, blah blah.
After drinking upper middle of the road and slightly above bourbons. I attended a tasting at local package store of a small batch limited bottling bourbon out of Texas, 100% corn at 120 proof. Over $100. Told it doesn't get much better.
Read up on how to add a drop or two of water, let it sit, sip it and enjoy. Sits on shelf, as does an over proof Jamaican Rum, use them only to give to friends and family who want to taste it. Back to the middle of the road bourbons.
5
When a beverage goes from craft to corporate asset, it's already on the decline. People who lust after $1500 bottles of wine or $300 bourbons are generally (not always) more interested in status than enjoyment. Pappy Van Winkle's highest priced bourbon burns with over the top alcohol, yet people shell out hundreds to say they have it. Such individuals approach fad booze with the same lack of taste and appreciation as they do art, food, and music. And look at the integrity here; selling out to Europe after a few years. where's the soul? The real excitement in bourbon is outside of KY amusement parks. Colorado, New York, WV, and other states now produce bourbons that rival or surpass many of those between Lexington and Louisville.
33
@Rob - with all due respect, I drink bourbon, not collect it. I tour distilleries all over the country. I read about them, I go to lectures and tastings. But in the end, I drink the stuff I like and leave the rest for someone else. So I do understand bourbon; if by "hobby" you mean drinking bourbon, I have quals. If by "hobby" you mean having a cellar full of "collectible" bourbons, it's a different hobby, although I could come up with a wish list that passes muster. God bless you for having the funds to pursue and enjoy your hobby. Me? I'm happy with Russell Reserve, Eagle Rare and Breckenridge. Don't agree about overproofed bourbons, but your fondness for same is certainly valid.
8
Scotch has way more variety in flavor profile than Bourbon.
22
@Joseph And has a better locale to visit!
8
@Rick
lol, good point
2
nope...not while they got mitch
71
@jy Are you moving from New York since Trump is from there?
10
Expensive booze is only bought by rich MEN. Wine is bought by everyone. California is progressive, Kentucky is regressive.
Ain't no way I would step inside a flyover state like Kentucky.
43
@Mogwai
"California is progressive, Kentucky is regressive."
Et voilà! ...
2
@Mogwai Please stop using the phrase “flyover state.” It is offensive and serves only to separate us, which is exactly what this administration wants.
45
@Doubletree And wait! Reagan? Nixon? How short memories are.
3
Spend tourist money in a state that keeps re-electing Mitch McConnell? Forget it.
113
@Richard Schumacher
This is why I love reading the comments! Folks here can politicize any topic. Just say something anti-republican and tally up the recommendations.
6
@Sean G: Money talks, and politics is more than voting for President. You're welcome.
9
Nope. Don't and won't spend money in The South. Especially in Mitch McConnell's state; the man who put the KY into a Kentucky visit. Also, when one leaves a winery in California one is in California. Any questions?
78
The Whiskey Trail is fun. People just starting up little places, still lots of rough edges, authentic. The smooth machine of Napa is years away. On a plane to Cincinnati recently, I chatted with 3 German businessmen who were here on business but had added time for the trail in Kentucky, so word is spreading.
18
Well, I know my liquor expenditure has gone up substantially since November 2016.
45
@Mikeyz
Still plenty of good, inexpensive, bourbons out there.
Four Roses-Small Batch or Elijah Craig 12 yr work for me without busting the budget. Enjoy!
4
Perhaps the gentrification of Kentucky will turn a Republican State to the Democrats. It’s a beautiful state - horse racing and bourbon!
27
@Barbarra, my dream vacation is to spend a week in KY visiting Thoroughbred farms and distilleries.
4
Check out the web sight Bernheim.org and you’ll see that the founder of I.W.HARPER WHISKEY, gave back to the people of Kentucky a huge park in gratitude for his success. I.W.Bernheim was my great grandfather and his story is of interest to any history of the bourbon industry in Louisville Kentucky.
12
Having attended one of Dixon Dedman's whiskey tastings some years ago at the Beaumont Inn, I can attest to his incredible knowledge of bourbon in all its aspects. Then 33, Mr. Dedman's obvious youth was belied by his presentation. I learned so much from him.
It looks as if I'll have to plan another trip to Kentucky just to find some Kentucky Owl.
12