September 16 – 28

We left the farm and having seen all that liquid pumping through the collection mechanism, realized that we all needed a bit of our own wet refreshment to carry us through the afternoon.  This led to a stop at Beachwood, the kind of casual bar you can often find close to a lake, in this case Rocky Fork Lake, a 2,080 acre body of water that forms the basis of a state park of the same name.

We returned to the house and hung out for the rest of the afternoon, doing our best to stay hydrated and around dinner time, set out for The Porch, where I had enjoyed my first meal the last time I came through town.  A Saturday evening, it was crowded when we arrived and thinking we’d have to wait for a while to get a table, we hit the bar for a round of drinks.  Not long after though, we were escorted to our seats on the outdoor patio and proceeded to order and eat. 

JB got a Club Sandwich (Toasted wheat bread, creamy bacon pepper relish spread, ham, turkey, Swiss, American, bacon, lettuce & tomato) while Rendy enjoyed a good looking and large Blackened Chicken Cobb (Blackened chicken, tomatoes, Cheddar cheese, red onion, bacon & avocado).  Having had a BLT my last time here, I opted for a traditional sandwich prevalent in this part of the country, a Pork Tenderloin Sandwich (8oz Pork Tenderloin, double cubed & grilled on the charbroiler.  Served with Lettuce & Tomato).  It was all I could hope for, savoring each bite until the end.

The next morning brought an early start as we would be making a three-hour drive down to Kentucky for our first bourbon tasting of the trip at Woodford Reserve Distillery, located in beautiful horse country midway between the towns of Frankfort and Versailles.  But first up on the agenda was breakfast and for this we stopped in at an east coast mainstay, Bob Evans.  Founded in 1948 by Bob Evans (1918–2007) when he began processing and packaging sausage for his small diner located in Gallipolis, Ohio, early operations were based at his farm in Rio Grande.  As the reputation of his sausage grew, so did the number of guests who visited his farm to buy it in bulk.  Friends and family partnered together to establish Bob Evans Farms, Inc., in 1953 and the increased traffic led him to build the first company restaurant at the farm in 1962 that was named “The Sausage Shop”.

Today, the restaurant chain operates 440 locations (all corporate owned, with none of them franchised) in Delaware, Florida, Illinois, Indiana, Kansas, Kentucky, Maryland, Michigan, Missouri, New Jersey, New York, North Carolina, Ohio, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, Tennessee, Virginia, and West Virginia.  Seated with the guys, I ordered and thoroughly enjoyed a real deal ham steak and eggs.

As we prepare to enjoy our first tasting experience, a legitimate question to ask here is how or why did I pick the brands we’d be visiting the next couple of days?  Was it based on personal favorites, brand name, or distillery proximity to others?  Well, to be honest none of the above.  I’d set up our original timeline, that is visiting Doug’s place on Friday and Saturday and leaving the Bourbon Trail until weekdays thinking we would find them less crowded and indeed they were as I discovered two weeks before liftoff when starting to schedule visits of the eighteen potential sites we could enjoy, all but seven of them would be closed the days we’d be in town.

And so, scrambling to save what appeared to be a disastrous situation, I was fortunate that of those seven, there were a couple of brands I regularly consume, including one of my favorites, Makers Mark.  Thus, our first stop would be at Woodford Reserve as it was east of Louisville and somewhat on the way there, while most of the others we’d visit were south of town.  Also, it was the only one of them open on a Sunday.  It would be an easy drive with Rendy and I dividing the driving duties as the rental car agreement designated us as the only two who could captain our Chrysler Minivan.  This would be the second time in a year or so that I’d rented this model van and just as with the last time, we were impressed with its comfort, technology options, carrying capacity, configurability, and drivability.  I’d consider buying one in the future except that products from this manufacturer tend to score way down the charts in terms of reliability. 

Doug drove down separately as the rest of us would be flying out of Louisville, so for this leg it was JB, Evan, Rendy, and myself.  This journey would take us on two state highways, the 62 and the 68, crossing the Ohio River near Aberdeen, and then down the road hitting Interstate 64 for twenty miles to turn off for the last stretch.  We passed mile after mile of meticulously constructed stone fences that bordered lush fields of grass, perfect surroundings for the expensive racehorses that live in these parts. 

Arriving at distillery, we checked in and awaited our tasting, opting not to take a tour of the grounds as we were short on time, and we’d be touring several of them later in the trip.  Woodford Reserve Distillery, formerly known as the Old Oscar Pepper Distillery and later the Labrot & Graham Distillery, began production on the site of the current day distillery in 1812.  Although it has not been continuously operational as a distillery since, the main structure, built in 1838, stands as one of the oldest distilleries in Kentucky, is listed on the National Register of Historic Places, and is designated as a National Historic Landmark for its well-preserved distillery architecture and its role in the development of the bourbon industry.

Originally established by Elijah Pepper, the distillery was passed on to his son Oscar.   After he died in 1867 the distillery was passed to his son James whose family sold the property to Leopold Labrot and James Graham in 1878, who owned and operated it (except during Prohibition) until it was sold to the Brown-Forman Corporation in 1941.  Brown-Forman operated it until the late 1960s, then sold the property and its accompanying acreage to a local farmer before re-purchasing the property in 1993, refurbishing it, and bringing it back into operation. The Woodford Reserve brand was introduced to the market in 1996.

Our first tasting of the trip would set the tone for subsequent ones, with a witty and knowledgeable guide leading us through the four bourbons we’d taste, including regular Woodford Reserve, their Rye version, the double oaked, and a single barrel.  Most bottled bourbon is the result of the mixing of many different barrels to produce a consistent product.  In the case of a single barrel, the bourbon in your bottle comes only from that barrel. 

Finished at Woodford, we climbed back into the van and made our way west to Drury Inn & Suites Louisville East, our home for the next three nights.  We’ve used this chain in the past as its rates are competitive with other similar properties, it offers a free breakfast and substantial happy hour each day, and has a two-room suite configuration that works when there are five of us, enabling us to put three individuals in one of the two rooms we rent. 

Upon arrival we caught up with Doug and after checking in, hit the lobby for the happy hour (which includes two free drinks per person), which had enough to offer (hot dogs, chili, nachos, chicken fingers, etc.) for us to be able to skip going out to dinner.  We’re not talking about gourmet chow here but not every meal needs to be memorable, just filling.  And so, our first day on the Bourbon Trail had ended successfully and we were ready for a full day of the same tomorrow. 

Links

Beachwood: https://www.facebook.com/@Beechwood-Pizza-Carryout-100063564183331/

The Porch: https://www.theporchhillsboro.com/

Bob Evans: https://www.bobevans.com/menu

Woodford Reserve Distillery: https://www.woodfordreserve.com/

Drury Inn and Suites: https://www.druryhotels.com/locations/louisville-ky/drury-inn-and-suites-louisville-east?utm_campaign=gmb&utm_medium=organic&utm_source=local

Bourbon Trail: https://kybourbontrail.com/