AMERICAN DISTILLERIES
If you’re a Scotch whisky aficionado, and you’ve always turned your nose up at the thought of bourbon, it’s time to reconsider! After all, bourbon (and other American whiskey) is NOT Scotch’s poor relation. They are a delicious alternative; sometimes sweet, sometimes “bitey”, and in some ways more authentic than Scotch. After all, some Scotches put so much caramel color in their whiskies; they could have started out green, for all you know. But, bourbon is pure. No artificial colors – just corn, barley, rye &/or wheat (or sometimes both), water, and yeast. What you see (and taste) is what you get. There are some excellent bourbons out there.

Tasting Notes        About American Whisky

Barton Distillery (Barton Brands Ltd.) The popular Ridgemont Reserve 1792 is named after the year Kentucky became a State. The distillery is located in the Bourbon Capital of the World, Bardstown, Kentucky. 1792 is aged 8 years and was the Official Toasting Bourbon for the 2007 Kentucky Bourbon Festival. It’s well known for its smooth and rich character. Distillery Information Region: Kentucky Master Distiller: Greg Davis Tours: Not open to the public Phone: 502-348-3991 Location: 1 Bardstown Road Bardstown, Kentucky Range: Ridgemont Reserve 1792 / Very Old Bartons Greg Davis Master Distiller 1792  Watch	Buffalo Trace (Sazerac) Buffalo Trace was known as the George T. Stagg the distillery until it was renamed in 1999. The distillery also introduced the increasingly popular Buffalo Trace Kentucky Straight Bourbon Whiskey at that time. The distillery also makes several other famous brands including, Blanton’s, W.L. Weller, Old Charter and our favorite, Eagle Rare. The distillery is also home to the popular Old Rip Van Winkle’s brand. The first modern distillery was founded on the site in 1857 but whiskey making can be traced back to the late 1700’s. Recently, the distillery won the 2005 “Distiller of the Year” from London based Whisky Magazine. Buffalo Trace is a favorite of our lead writer and master of all things liquid, Brett Calish. Since it’s not yet sold across the country he stuffed half a case in his luggage coming back from a recent trip to Kentucky. To our surprise, all the bottles arrived intact when we landed in Newark. Distillery Information Established: 1857 Region: Kentucky Master Distiller: Gary Gayheart Tours: Open to the public Phone: 502-696-5926 Location: 1001 Wilkinson Blvd. Frankfort, Kentucky 40601 Range: Ancient Age / Blanton’s / Buffalo Trace / Eagle Rare / Elmer T Lee / Hancock’s Reserve / Old Charter / Old Rip Van Winkle / Old Weller / Rock Hill Farms / WL Weller Sazerac Whiskey Journey www.buffalotrace.com Bayway World of Liquor, Elizabeth NJ Bayway ownership and staff talk about selecting an Elmer T. Lee cask, the store & the one of a kind wine selection Click Here to Watch
Bulleit Distilling Company (Diageo) The Bulliet family can trace its bourbon making all the way back to Augustus Bulleit who first began making bourbon in the 1830s. Augustus was a tavern owner and first began making brandy before perfecting his bourbon recipe. In 1987 Tom Bulleit revived his Great-Great Grandfather’s recipe and today, Bulleit is available across the Globe. Bulleit has a high rye content which creates smoky and dry bourbon that’s very smooth but still has a little attitude. The bourbon is crafted in very small batches by only mixing a very limited number of barrels before bottling at 90 proof. Distillery Information: Established: 1987 Region: Kentucky Master Distiller: Tom Bulleit Tours: Not open to the public Phone: 859-229-5171 Location: Lawrenceburg, Kentucky Range: Bulleit www.bulleitbourbon.com	Four Roses (Kirin) Four Roses was founded by Paul Jones, Jr., and legend claims that the distillery name came from the number of roses on a corsage that a ‘Southern Belle’ wore as an indication of her interest in him. In 1884 Paul Jr., moved his distillery to Louisville, Kentucky and the distillery is now located near Lawrenceburg. The distillery is also one of the most beautiful in Kentucky and features a Spanish Mission – Style design that is unique to the region. After prohibition the brand grew into the largest selling Bourbon in the United States. In 1943 the distillery was purchased by Seagram who in incredibly discontinued US sales of the wildly popular Four Roses Straight Kentucky Bourbon line. Instead, they introduced a blended bourbon for the domestic market but continued to sell Straight Bourbon overseas. In 2002, the Kirin Brewery Company purchased the distillery and quickly introduced Four Roses Straight Bourbon back into the US market. Distillery Information: Established: 1888 Region: Kentucky Master Distiller: Jim Rutledge Tours: Open to the public Phone: 502-839-3436 Location: 1224 Bonds Mill Road Lawrenceburg, Kentucky Range: www.fourroses.us Four Roses Profile
Jefferson Reserve (Castle Brands) Kind of like Kentucky’s version of an a Scottish Blending House, Castle Brands doesn’t distill their own whisky but they buy Bourbon casks form local distilleries and blend their own expressions. They make the popular Jefferson Reserve and Sam Houston blends which are known for their smooth taste and drink ability. Jefferson reserve history & Sam Houston Bourbons: Jefferson / Jefferson Reserve / Sam Houston	Heaven Hill The Heaven Hill distillery was started shortly after the end of prohibition by the five Shapira brothers and has since grown to be the largest independent family-owned spirit producer in the world. Heaven Hill makes many popular distilled spirits and their bourbon line includes Evan Williams, Elijah Craig and Old Fitzgerald among other lesser known brands. Their Evan Williams Select Barrel premium brand is one of our favorites. It’s a sophisticated whiskey that’s smooth and full of flavor. The distillery is also home to the world’s second largest warehouse stock of Kentucky whiskey with over 700,000 barrels, representing over 17% of the world’s bourbon supply. Distillery Information: Established: 1930s Region: Kentucky Master Distiller: Parker & Craig Beam Tours: Open to the public Phone: 502-337-1000 Location: 1311 Gilkey Run Road Bardstown, KY Bourbons: Cabin Still / Daniel Stewart / Echo Springs / Elijah Craig / Evan Williams / Heaven Hill / Henry McKenna / JTS Brown / JW Dant / Mattingly & Moore / Old Fitzgerald / Old Heaven Hill / TW Samuels www.bourbonheritagecenter.com www.heavenhill.com Heaven Hill Profile Parker Beam Master Distiller Heaven Hill  Watch
Jim Beam (Jim Beam Global Spirits) Jim Beam has been in business for over 200 years and makes the best selling bourbon in the world. The business was past down from father to son and eventually the legendary Jim Beam started working for the company. He took over the family distillery in 1894 when he was 30 and ran the distillery for the next 52 years. Jim Beam White Label is the largest selling bourbon in the world. The distillery has also discovered great success with a line of Small Batch bourbons, most notably Knob Creek and Booker’s. Distillery Information: Established: 1790s (not officially) Region: Kentucky Master Distiller: Jerry Dalton Tours: Open to the public Phone: 502-543-9877 Location: 149 Happy Hallow Road Clermont, Kentucky Bourbons: Baker’s / Basil Hayden’s / Beam’s Choice / Booker’s / Jacob’s Well / Jim Beam White / Jim Beam Black / Knob Creek / Old Crow / Old Grand Dad / Old Taylor www.jimbeam.com www.smallbatch.com Jim Beam tasting Journey Jim Beam Profile Paige Guzman Brand Ambassador Small Batch Bourbon  Watch	Kentucky Bourbon Distillers Known originally as the Willett Distilling Company, the distillery produced its first bourbon shortly after the end of prohibition. In America, The Willett's first began distilling in the 1870's but John D. Willett sold his interest in the company after a decline in his health. The Willett’s remained in the distilling industry and Thompson Willett built a distillery on his Father Lambert’s hog farm in 1935. The first 30 barrels of bourbon was produced in 1936. Today, the distillery makes the popular Johnny Drum brand as well as the Vintage Collection which is an ultra premium small batch line. Distillery Information: Established: 1935 Region: Kentucky Master Distiller: Even Kulsveen Tours: Not open to the public (a new visitor center is currently under construction) Phone: 502-348-0081 Location: 1869 Loretto Road Bardstown, Kentucky Bourbons: Johnny Drum / Black Maple Hill / Noah’s Mill / Old Bardstown / Kentucky Vintage /  Pure Kentucky / Rowan's Creek  www.kentuckybourbonwhiskey.com
Maker’s Mark (Jim Beam Global Spirits) Maker’s Mark is a throw back to old world whisky making. It’s still made by hand from beginning to end and is considered one of the best premium bourbons available (and one of our favorites). The current distillery is one of the most picturesque in the America and includes a great new visitor’s center. In 1953, Bill Samuels, Sr. bought a dilapidated distillery in Happy Hallow, Kentucky near Loretto. Not fond of the family recipe he developed a new recipe in his kitchen that included red winter wheat instead of rye. This gave the whiskey a softer and sweeter character. The recipe is still used today. Bill’s wife designed the Maker’s Mark unique bottle and named the whisky after the mark that pewter craftsmen stamp on the bottom of their products. She also came up with the idea of dipping the bottle in wax which is still done by hand today. Distillery Information: Established: 1953 Region: Kentucky Master Distiller: Dave Pickerell Tours: Open to the public Phone: 502-865-2099 Location: 3350 Burks Spring Road Loretto, Kentucky www.makersmark.com Maker’s Mark Profile Interview with Bill Samuels Jr. Maker's Mark	Wild Turkey Distillery (Pernod-Ricard) The ‘Dirty Bird’ of bourbon is no longer the shot and a beer whiskey that you ordered during your college days (or Biker days). It’s an easy drinking sipping whiskey that’s slowly shedding its hard livin’ and drinkin’ image. That image has been perpetuated in numerous films and popular culture for decades since Wild Turkey portrays such a Frontier American image. Now you can get a little small batch ‘Rare Breed’ or ‘Russell’s Reserve’ as you sip that expensive German Lager at you local pub. As for the distillery, it was built in 1905 and the popular Wild Turkey brand was born in 1940. Today, the distillery makes a number of high end small batch bourbons that are popular around the world. Distillery Information: Established: 1905 Region: Kentucky Master Distiller: Jimmy Russell Tours: Open to the public Phone: 502-839-4544 Location: 1505 Tyrone Road Lawrenceburg, Kentucky 40342 Bourbons: Wild Turkey 101 / Wild Turkey 80 / Wild Turkey Rare Breed (Barrel proof) / Wild Turkey Kentucky Spirit (Single Barrel) / Wild Turkey American Spirit 15 Year Old / Russell's Reserve 10 Year Old Rye Whiskey: Wild Turkey Rye 101 / Russell's Reserve 6 Year Old
Woodford Reserve (Brown-Forman) Woodford Reserve makes a classic All American bourbon that’s wonderfully sweet, spicy and easy drinking. The distillery was founded in 1812 by Elijay Pepper, making it one of the oldest distilleries in Kentucky. In 2000, the distillery was designated a National Historic Landmark. In 2003 the distillery changed its name from Labrot and Graham to Woodford Reserve and is currently owned by Brown-Forman. The picturesque distillery is located in Versailles, Woodford County in the heart of Kentucky’s horse farming industry. The distillery uses ‘cycling’ to heat and cool their barrels during maturation. This process allows master Distiller Chris Morris more control over the maturation process and ensures a consistent end product. If you’ve never tried this great bourbon pick up a bottle and it may quickly become your everyday dram. We also love their limited Four Grain expressions that offer more spice and amazing complexity. Distillery Information: Established: 1812 Region: Kentucky Master Distiller: Chris Morris Tours: Open to the public Phone: 859-879-1812 Location: 7855 McCracken Pike Versailles, Kentucky 40383 Range: Woodford Reserve / Sonoma-Cutrer / Four Grain Chris Morris Master Distiller Woodford Reserve  Watch	Independent Stave Company Ok it’s not a distillery, but how can you talk about whiskey or whisky for that matter without mentioning the Independent Stave Company. This legendary cooperage headquartered in Missouri produces over 50% of the barrels in the world and not only for Bourbon but for other distilled spirits and wine. For Bourbon barrels they offer four levels of char and the barrels are made from white oak and hold fifty three gallons. The company was founded in 1912 and now exports barrels all over the world, not to mention the second life many of them find in maturing Scotch whisky. Lebanon, Missouri www.independentstavecompany.com
Tennessee