Not far away a land awaits
you full of history, bourbon, and American Honey Girls riding mechanical bulls.
BourbonBlog.com has been covering The Kentucky Bourbon Festival in Bardstown, Kentucky
for several years now. I somewhat jokingly tell people that the free samples
were the initial lure to the Bourbon Fest. How do I wrap up every story from
our Bourbon Fest week during into one article? I could give you statistics like
how over 50,000 people come from all over the world to share in a common bond.
I am tempted to explore how in the last several years the interest and
consumption of bourbon has grown by large digits. I think I'll give you a
little taste of what we've been doing and you can and get a full glass on
BourbonBlog.com.
This year, BourbonBlog.com is joined by Jake Bilinski of
Cinephreak Pictures, who captured the Festival on videos that we feature on our
site. An arrival to Bardstown always means there is bourbon waiting for us
almost everywhere. Before we even hit our hotel, we hit up an event happening
under what looks likes a big tent where bourbon brand names are projected in
neon lights on the tent top. It's a Hollywood
studded Americana- and baseball-themed welcome to Bardstown where we hang with
the "Rockstars of Bourbon." In this world, these rockstars are the
Master Distillers for each brand who oversee the making of the bourbon from
beginning to end. Wild Turkey Master Distiller Jimmy Russell has been in the
business for fifty-five years. "What do they give you for completing 55
years with Wild Turkey?" I ask. "An extra drink," he responds.
After fifty-five years, I bet he has been having a few Turkeys. Watch
more of the All-Star Sampler and interviewed with Master Distillers on
BourbonBlog.com
Tom interviews Kentucky Governor Steve Beshear.
After we leave the All-Star sampler, there is more
bourbon waiting for us in the hotel lobby.
Oddly enough, we're staying at a hotel that even has a bar. It just so
happens that it is Bardstown, and this is the way they do it. Our friends from
Jim Beam want us to feel welcomed and they start pouring Basil Hayden, Booker's
and even some of their new Red Stag before we check in. Actually, we delay that
check in for a few hours.
I should note, the Bourbon Festival isn't only about
having fun, all the proceeds from events go to help many organizations and
non-profits in the Kentucky
and their region throughout the year.
Hundreds of people from those organizations volunteer their time to the
Bourbon Festival to make it a success year after year.
One of the events that seem to catch our eyes year after
year is Wild Turkey's Boots and Bourbon. I own a pair of boots and this is one
of the only times each year I break them out.
I break out Wild Turkey more often than I break out my boots. Can you figure out the equation for how many
Wild Turkeys I drink a year? One drink that Wild Turkey makes that I've grown
fond of is American Honey, a honey-infused Wild Turkey Bourbon. Tonight, Wild
Turkey has some “American Honey Girls,” some Southern girls dressed up in boots
out riding a mechanical bull. Again, you can catch this and the recipe for “Sex
in the Holla” and the video of the American Honey Girls riding on
BourbonBlog.com. (A brief interjection, Tom… the Honey Girls were riding,
somehow, your website? Color me intrigued – ed).
Enough of only bourbon drinking and fun; isn't it time to
learn something? A Whiskey Professor
will educate you. These are three distinguished gentlemen who work for Jim Beam
to “profess” the word of bourbon are teach at the Bourbon
Style Cooking
School along with a Chef from Lexington. Margarita
Shrimp Cocktail with Coriander dusted grilled Shrimp is a dish that you can eat
and then drink from the martini glass. A Beef Bourbon-gnon with Baker's
Bourbon... get it? Like the French dish Beef Bourguignon? You can get all the recipes and watch that
video once again on BourbonBlog.com.
Another side note, while the Bourbon Festival is for
famous for the main parties and organized events, there is also another must-do
list on our “Guide to Taking in all the Bourbon You Can” during the Fest.
Welcome to the gazebo and our StraightBourbon.com friends. These guys are the
true aficionados from all over the world who will welcome you in with open arms
as nearly a hundred rare, unique and limited-quantity bourbons sit on a table
for you to sample. This is the ultimate after party where you can savor
whiskeys you will never see again. The only thing you need to enter this party
is your own glass and a bottle of any bourbon to share of your own. If you want
to know where this gazebo is during the Bourbon Festival, hit us up on
BourbonBlog.com and we will tell you.
The Kentucky Bourbon Festival week ended with a surprise
visit from Kentucky Governor Steve Beshear, who came to honor a Fort Campbell
pilot who was the 1000th person to complete the world-famous Kentucky Bourbon
Trail. BourbonBlog.com interviewed both Governor Beshear and First Lieutenant
Clint Hooker, who visited all eight distilleries. It is an inspiring American
story with much more tell when you visit BourbonBlog.com
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PHOTO CREDIT | JAKE BILINSKI OF CINEPHREAK PICTURES
