Defeated...

We always make an effort try to eat interesting, local fare when we travel. Kentucky made this very hard to do. Looking for dinner on our second night in Bardstown, we finally lost the battle. We saw a Mexican place, but we had already learned the hard way that you don't go to random Mexican places in Kentucky. I won't go into the gory details - just trust me on this...

Not up for another hot brown, we didn't have many other options - Kentucky is national chain restaurant central. We eventually gave in, and ended up at A&W. And not just any A&W - this one was a joint A&W / Long John Silvers establishment. Complete with a disaffected teenage girl running the till.

I hate to say it, but the food tasted pretty good...

Jim Beam, Hot Brown, Liquor World

Our final distillery visit was a quick stop at Jim Beam - the largest producer of bourbon. Nice setting, with some fun exhibits like the above statue of Booker Noe and this fire truck:



The tasting was very pleasant as well. They were pouring two of their premium whiskeys: Booker's and Basil Hayden's. We enjoyed both, but preferred the Basil.

While bourbon was our focus in Kentucky, we did manage to try some local chow as well. What qualifies as local chow? A Kentucky Hot Brown, of course:



This version is courtesy of Mammy's Kitchen, a restaurant on the main drag in Bardstown. Substantial hunks of smoked turkey and thin slices of nice, salty ham sat on top of two thick slices of toast, completely smothered in a rich, cheesy, Mornay sauce. The turkey was very good quality with a great smoky flavor. Not something we would order every day, but pretty darn good comfort food.



Also in Bardstown, and not to be missed, is Liquor World - a small liquor store that just happens to have the most jaw-dropping crazy huge selection of whiskey I've ever seen in my life.

Jim Beam Distillery
149 Happy Hollow Rd.
Shepherdsville, Kentucky
(502) 543-9877

Mammy's Kitchen
114 N 3rd St.
Bardstown, Kentucky
(502) 350-1097‎

Liquor World
93 N Salem Dr #C
Bardstown, Kentucky
(502) 349-7560‎

Maker's Mark and Four Roses

Our visit to bourbon country continued with Maker's Mark Distillery. Like Woodford Reserve, they also do a tour of their production facilities (the tour at Maker's is free, though).



If you've seen one distillery, you've pretty much seen them all, but we still enjoyed the tour.



One thing unique to the tour at Maker's was the dipping area where they add the signature red wax coating to each bottle of whisky (note the spelling - Maker's is the only American brand that uses the Scottish "whisky", rather than the Irish "whiskey").



And, of course, the tour ends with a tasting. It was more interesting here than at Woodford Reserve since they let you taste the unaged spirit ("white dog") as well as the finished product.



We also stopped in at Four Roses Distillery.



Although they were not doing tours (they shut down production during the summer), it was probably our favorite of the distilleries we visited. They gave a very interesting description of their bourbon-making process. They distill ten different "flavors" of bourbon - combinations of two grain bills with five strains of yeast - that are then blended in various ways to produce their various offerings.

We tried three of their whiskeys - Yellow Label (their primary brand), Small Batch, and Single Barrel. The Small Batch was our favorite - more complex than the Yellow Label, and more mellow than the Single Barrel. Good stuff.

Maker's Mark Distillery
3350 Burk Spring Rd.
Loretto, Kentucky
(270) 865-2881‎

Four Roses Distillery
1224 Bonds Mill Rd.
Lawrenceburg, Kentucky
(502) 839-3436‎

Woodford Reserve Distillery

The first stop on our Kentucky Bourbon tour was Woodford Reserve Distillery. It is located in a beautiful setting amid the sweeping green fields of Thoroughbred farms. We took a very nice tour (5$) of the facility that goes through all of the phases of the operation.

The massive fermentation tubs boiling with yeast activity are fascinating to watch.



They do a three-stage distillation using copper stills brought over from Scotland.



It is hard to beat the atmosphere of a whiskey warehouse, with barrels of aging spirit stacked from floor to ceiling.



Here is Sherry getting a pour straight out of a barrel. Unfortunately, we were only allowed to smell and not taste (some song and dance about "health regulations").



Watching bottling machines is mesmerizing...



And let's not forget the tasting part of the tour. This was the first time we'd had Woodford Reserve. The taste is difficult to characterize, but if I had to describe it I would say that it had notes of toffee, roasted nuts, delicate butterscotch, vanilla, peach and aromatic spices...

Woodford Reserve Distillery
7855 Mccracken Pike
Versailles, Kentucky
(859) 879-1812‎

Breakfast at Waffle House in Lexington, Kentucky

It is hard to get through a 6 week road trip across the Southern United States with just one post on Waffle House. So here is a second one - but this time we actually went inside.



We were in Lexignton, Kentucky (getting ready to plough through bourbon country) and we needed breakfast. There was a Waffle House virtually in our hotel parking lot. Fate had come calling and would not be denied.

First up, a waffle - not great, but edible.



The country ham, on the other hand, was actually pretty good.



As was pretty much everything else we had (although the "smothered" hash browns were a bit disappointing, with just a few onions scattered underneath).



As advertised, they had the jukebox complete with the left column of songs all about Waffle House.



Bellies full and Waffle House virgins no more (although does it count if you go before midnight?), we hopped in the car and headed out in search of bourbon.