Kentucky Bourbon Trail Advice?

Homebase out of Louisville. You can hit several places in a day.

We did this trip a few years ago. We hit Old Forester and the Louisville Slugger museum one day and then the next we did Woodford, Castle and Key and Buffalo Trace.

Castle and Key was our favorite.

Going in the fall with some college buddies, including three who are local. We are staying in Louisville and going to Woodford Reserve and Castle & Key. Will likely throw in another. Also going to Keeneland for a day at the races. Dinner at Jeff Ruby's Steakhouse.

Thanks everyone. I appreciate the feedback!

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Saw one recommendation to stay in Louisville because it's the best location for more than just the distilleries (like restaurants, bars, activities). But then I see how spread out the distilleries are...

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I just did this and would agree. I stayed at the Hotel Distil in downtown Louisville. No complaints

I can’t recommend this enough…book a tour with unique horse farm tours in Lexington, it was an amazing experience and a very good value.

Just did this trip over spring break.

We arent a big fan on the drives so we moved around to make our commutes a little shorter and not feel pressed for time or driving while drinking.

We flew in Sunday mid day and hit Evan Williams tasting room. Note most of these places close at 5 so you got to get it in early. Also some distilleries are closed on various days so take that into consideration when planning it out.

Monday we shifted down to Bardstown and stayed at The Trail hotel. If you can get the hotel for a good price it's great, we overpaid for what it is. Technically it's a redone "motel" that' they done a considerable remodel and additions, but it's still a motel.

We hit Makers and Willet. Heavens Hill was closed. Eat lunch on property at Makers. Food was great. Willet is an awesome tour because you have pours you can choose from throughout versus sitting for a set tasting at the end. I think we ended up with 6-7 pours by the time we were done.

Next day we shifted to Versailles and stayed at the Woodford Hotel. It's like a AirBnB with theme rooms. We specifically stayed in the Buffalo Trace room. Nice room in downtown. That was our anniversary so we only did Woodford that day. Do the upgraded tour and you get a pour of a slightly longer aged version of Baccarat they dont sell. Baccarat retails for $2200 a bottle. We had dinner at the Kentucky Castle. Fantastic.

Next day we went to Lexington and did Four Roses (skip), Wild Turkey (just for a drink) and Buffalo Trace. Buffalo Trace tours are free but you still have to book them, book them early.

To finish up we went back to Louisville and stayed two nights at the Galt hotel. Great room on the river and perfectly located. Angel's Envy stayed open pretty late so we did the 6:45 tour. It was just me and my wife and the tour guide. We got plenty of extra pours.

At some point we did the Bardstown Tasting Room in Louisville because the distiller was closed when we were there. Old Forrester, Chicken Cock, etc. Two must do's for dinner. The Last Retreat - 1500 unique bourbon selections. 6000 bottles in total. It's bourbon overload. La Bodeguitta De Mima is a Cuban restaurant in an old yellow house. Probably one of the top 5 meals I've had in my life.

I probably wouldn't jump from city to city as much as we did. That was a little bit of a pain, but we did enjoy exploring those smaller towns. But it did cut down on the driving especially after having a few pours. Some of those distilleries are in the middle of nowhere on winding two lane roads that feel like one lane roads.