Now THIS is why you should go to Louisville. My top-tier chum who literally went to the school of…read morehospitality and I signed up for a bourbon tour with Greta a few weeks before our trip here. Our expectations were probably middle of the road going in; I'm honestly not sure how much research my chum did on this one (this was all her) but we were both a little apprehensive that this might be overrated and too touristy. But if you legitimately enjoy bourbon, are willing to drink it throughout an afternoon and want to have a few more talking points when the topic comes up - check, check and check - this was fantastic and worth the money.
The tour packed a lot in during its roughly three hours. The specific reason we chose this one was because it included a visit to Angel's Envy, our favorite bourbon, but it also had stops at Bourbon Barrel Foods, Whiskey Thief and Chicken Cock. These were all within roughly five or 10 minutes of one another, pretty much on the eastern side of Downtown and around Butchertown. The weather was atrocious (raining pretty much the entire time) but we had a handy dandy trolley with us to save the day.
I can't say enough about Angel's Envy and how impressive this distillery was. To me it was the unequivocal star of the show and we probably spent the most time here, at least in terms of really learning about bourbon and doing tour shizzle. It's just a gorgeous facility, and if you've ever driven through SE Kentucky wondering where all the money is, I found it. After the tour, we came back here for two hours and bought a lot of bourbon and swag to bring back home. We had the great fortune of getting Paula on our tour, who knows her bourbon and provided a ton of interesting insights about the creation of bourbon and just some general facts that we didn't know. I liked that the reason bourbon is basically just in KY has a lot to do with their soil/water, which ties in pretty closely with the trip we took the prior day to Mammoth Cave; like those passageways, everything is connected.
Bourbon Barrel Foods was probably the weakest part of the tour if there was one, just because they didn't have a lot to bring to the table in terms of specific bourbon. It's pretty much just there as a stop to get a little food in you (not a bad thing AT ALL) while also offering you a $5 Old Fashioned, which we both took advantage of. Cute little bar/boutique store with a lot of bourbon-influenced bougie condiments and food stuffs for purchase, and the Old Fashioned was fine. We then went to pretty much just a wine store nearby (not sure about the name) where our guide Greta got a chance to shine with some more facts about bourbon, obviously drink some more and also gnaw on some artisanal cheese.
By the time we got to Whiskey Thief, everyone was pretty rosy-cheeked and having a good time. This was strategically a really wily stop because you basically just hung out for half an hour drinking another cocktail (not sure but I don't think this was exactly an Old Fashioned, but more of a summer/fruity variation perhaps? Who knows. I'd had a few.), sampling some sauces/crackers and meeting Bourbon Tour Canine Chum Betty, who was a true professional and lover of the rump rub. An excellent addition to any distillery. But just an awesome stop, and we were starting to legit hang out with other people on the tour; I had a rousing 20-minute conversation with a fellow from Ohio who also had some real issues with how the Cincinnati Reds have been run over the last few decades. The Big Red Machine is sadly a distant memory. Anyway.
The tour ended at Chicken Cock, which had a great vibe to go with its name. I was definitely pretty toasty by this point, as was my chum, and this is probably the best place to remind you that it's REALLY easy to get drunk on this tour. I was very proactive in seizing every food opportunity and keeping very hydrated, which for sure helped, but I also didn't really say no to any of the bourbon samples. So if that's a legitimate concern for you, just pick and choose your moments. One or two more might have been a problem, but the tour and its accompanying drinks were spread out enough not to do too much damage to me. Just know your limits, etc.
Really great group too; I'm sure even if they'd been atrocious I would have liked them by Chicken Cock. This tour cost about $200 - your mileage may vary on the price, but we thought it was 100% worth it to get so much perspective on a spirit we've really grown to love over the past few years and of course to set foot in the Mother Ship aka Angel's Envy. And because it's pricier, you're not getting low-class lushes here - everyone was respectful and just cool people to spend time with. We had a bachelor party in our group from Scranton, PA, and they couldn't be nicer - and one of them worked at the arena where I saw Third Eye Blind in 2000! Wild times.
Bourbon rocks. This tour rocks.
