The great thing about Louisville is... you can hit up a liquor store and pick up the best Bourbon on the planet for a fraction of what you'd pay anywhere else... at that point, who needs a bar?
Also... I'm not sure how long it's been since you were there, but craft brewing seems to have picked up over the past couple of years... I've got a bottle of bourbon barrel stout in the archives - waiting to be shared with some adventurous friends...
Last time I was in Louisville I went out for lunch and was able to get a snifter of 25-year-old Pappy Van Winkle bourbon to accompany my vegetarian lasagne... Maybe you just needed a tour guide.
I suspect that bartenders are more accustomed to serving drinking bourbons, rather than slow-sipping bourbons... Maker's seems to be the one that's most popular for doing shots... my KY friends express a preference for Woodford when it comes to sipping, though.
Personally... I find it tough to beat the Elijah Craig 21-yo... although that Pappy Van Winkle 25-yo was pretty awesome. Perhaps I'll have to do a side-by-side comparison when I'm down there.
As mentioned elsewhere... Elijah Craig and Pappy Van Winkle are pretty much the pinnacle, as far as I'm concerned... Evan Williams and Basil Hayden are pretty solid, too... just stay away from Ezra Brooks and that ilk.
...then again, what do I know... I mean, I'm one of the few that actually enjoys Booker!
Anyhow... craft breweries have started to pop up down there recently... they certainly aren't on the same level as some of the more established companies in the north-east, but there's still some pretty interesting stuff going on...
the best value for money on a quality bourbon is the elijah craig 18 year old, its $35 to $38 for a 750 ml bottle.
the pappy van winkle is hard to find. they make a 15, 20, and 23 year old. i've never seen the the 23 but i do have a bottle of the 20. it ran me almost $90 for a 750 ml bottle.
you had the 20 year old pappy van winkle, they don't make a 25, only a 23. i have a bottle of the 20 year old that needs to be killed off.
same for an 18 year old bottle of elijah craig. i also have an unopened bottle that i was planning to bring you during the april trip but was already at the quota for booze.
if you went to the bourbon bar i'm thinking of it is some how tied in with maker's mark, so of course they'd serve you that.
if you were looking for beer you should have hit up either of two BBC locations downtown. one is near that bourbon bar and their brewery is further down main street.
Oh, and regarding their craft breweries; one bar we went to had a "$2 domestic draft". Perfect.
Except that Sam Adams somehow doesn't qualify as Domestic. Nor did Blue Moon. "So, what's domestic to you?" Bud, bud light, coors, coors light and - prepare to be amazed - CORONA AND HEINEKEN.
What's good on your bourbon lists these days? I've been drinking almost exclusively basil hayden's...
the problem here isn't that its crappy (well, it may be crappy) but that everything is so spread out. most of your bar type stuff and brewpubs are in the highlands or on the east side of downtown. which are no where near any of the hotels or crap downtown.
that may change once they finish building the new arena downtown.
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Also... I'm not sure how long it's been since you were there, but craft brewing seems to have picked up over the past couple of years... I've got a bottle of bourbon barrel stout in the archives - waiting to be shared with some adventurous friends...
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(The comment has been removed)
I suspect that bartenders are more accustomed to serving drinking bourbons, rather than slow-sipping bourbons... Maker's seems to be the one that's most popular for doing shots... my KY friends express a preference for Woodford when it comes to sipping, though.
Personally... I find it tough to beat the Elijah Craig 21-yo... although that Pappy Van Winkle 25-yo was pretty awesome. Perhaps I'll have to do a side-by-side comparison when I'm down there.
Reply
(The comment has been removed)
...then again, what do I know... I mean, I'm one of the few that actually enjoys Booker!
Anyhow... craft breweries have started to pop up down there recently... they certainly aren't on the same level as some of the more established companies in the north-east, but there's still some pretty interesting stuff going on...
Reply
the pappy van winkle is hard to find. they make a 15, 20, and 23 year old. i've never seen the the 23 but i do have a bottle of the 20. it ran me almost $90 for a 750 ml bottle.
Reply
same for an 18 year old bottle of elijah craig. i also have an unopened bottle that i was planning to bring you during the april trip but was already at the quota for booze.
Reply
if you were looking for beer you should have hit up either of two BBC locations downtown. one is near that bourbon bar and their brewery is further down main street.
Reply
Except that Sam Adams somehow doesn't qualify as Domestic. Nor did Blue Moon. "So, what's domestic to you?" Bud, bud light, coors, coors light and - prepare to be amazed - CORONA AND HEINEKEN.
What's good on your bourbon lists these days? I've been drinking almost exclusively basil hayden's...
Reply
that may change once they finish building the new arena downtown.
Reply
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