re: KY Bourbon Trail

Flew into Louisville in October 2021 & last month.

On the first trip, we left the airport and went straight to Stitzel-Weller for an Orphan Barrel tasting...walking around seeing the Old Fitz landmarks was special.

Next day we had 23 of us on a Mint Julep tour bus, cannot recommend them enough. Our driver Terry took great care of us (we definitely hit the "over" of yelling "Back up, Terry!")

We started with a Russell's Reserve tasting at Wild Turkey, followed by a tour & tasting at Woodford and then a visit to Castle & Key, which is on the grounds of the Old Taylor distillery. Turkey had the best juice (including an Eddie Russell pick), Woodford was the most well-balanced experience, and the scenery at Castle & Key was a nice way to end things.

Last month we went back to tour & hand dip our Maker's Ambassador bottles after the barrel came of age. The tour there was fantastic and gave a lot of insight to the history of production. They also had the BRT-01 & 02 limited releases available for purchase (don't think they've made it to LA yet). There's also a really good restaurant on site with bourbon slushes that were great.

On the way back to Louisville, we stopped at Heaven Hill which has a brand new facility. They offer (pricey) pours of some really great juice. We sampled an Elijah Craig barrel select (in the baby barrel bottle) and an Old Fitz 17-year.

All the spots listed were winners for us. It's hard to go wrong up there, honestly. As far as how many days, I think flying in Thursday night and leaving Sunday morning leaves plenty of time to do what you'd like to do.

Any other questions, feel free to ask...happy to help.