Bourbon Trail, Trip #2

S and I revisited the Bourbon Trail, a trip we first made a year ago.  Our travel this time was with S's dad and stepmom, so it was a bit more civilized than our last trip -- which is to say, more driving and eating at nice restaurants, less biking and drinking of one's dinner.  I think.

We stayed at the Central Park B&B in Louisville.  It is over-the-top Victorian; staying there, I felt like I should have been wearing a dress with 28 layers of fabric and have feathers springing from my elaborate hairdo.  (I had neither a 28-layer dress nor feathers.)

We headed down early Friday and revisited Buffalo Trace (S's and my only repeat performance from last year), before doubling back to Louisville for a culinarily experiential dinner at Proof on Main.  Most unusual thing we ordered: roasted bones.  Most unusual thing on the menu that we didn't order (though I wanted to but couldn't get anyone to share): lamb fries.  Which is code for lamb testicles.

Also interesting about Proof: it is on the ground floor of a hotel.  Which has an extensive lobby hosting a contemporary art gallery.  Including bathrooms with semi-translucent walls.  So I suppose it's safe to say that it was a multi-sensory experience, if horror is one of the senses.

Buffalo Trace rickhouses

 The Louisville riverfront

Saturday we started out at Angel's Envy.  AE had a nice (brief) intro followed by a tasting, which is something that I wish every distillery offered!  From there we headed to Peerless, and they did us one better: a free tasting, with a piece of chocolate included!  After that we paid a visit to Copper & Kings, a brandy and absinthe distillery, but did not do a tour or tasting.

Tasting room at Angel's Envy

We had a late lunch at Doc Crow's, which is an interesting combination joint: smokehouse and raw bar.  We all opted to stay on the smokehouse side, which was decent.  The fried okra were especially tasty.  Our final stop of the day was Evan Williams, where we took part in our only full tour (though it's an abbreviated one) and tasting.

Because we had such a late lunch, we picked up a few snacks at the grocery store and forewent dinner in favor of some afternoon wine back at the B&B.

Sunday we treated ourselves to two breakfasts (hobbit-style!) -- one at the B&B, and a second one which was a charity brunch hosted as part of the Kentucky Bourbon Festival.  In between our two breakfasts, we entertained ourselves with a stop at the Jim Beam distillery.  Unfortunately they require a tour to do a tasting, and by then we were all well-versed in the bourbon-making process, so we forewent the whole experience.

Our final stop of the trip was a fundraiser brunch, at which I had just about everything but the fried chicken, although I heard from S's dad that it was a shame to miss that - and I can't believe I did!  Fried chicken at a southern brunch and I passed up the opportunity.  What a shame!