Louisville Magazine is Louisville's city magazine, covering Louisville people, lifestyles, politics, sports, restaurants, entertainment and homes. Includes a monthly calendar of events.
Issue link: https://loumag.epubxp.com/i/453014
LOUISVILLE MAGAZINE 2.15 37 the Afterlife of Barrels If you know the basics, you know that bourbon must age in new, charred oak barrels. Ever wonder what happens to those barrels once that delicious juice is gone? Many ship to other distilleries to age scotch, for example. Some breweries put beer in them. And with the recent bourbon boom, people are getting creative with the abundance of used bourbon barrels. Here are a few of the more creative ways Kentuckians have repurposed the vessels in which our native spirit reaches maturity. = = Buried and Treasured Many of the legends of Kentucky bourbon distilling are still with us — just operating underground at storied Cave Hill Cemetery. Last year whiskey historian Mike Veach, in associ- ation with the Cave Hill Heritage Foundation, conducted two public tours of the grave sites of famous distillers, most of which are located in the original acreage west of the administration building (sections arranged alphabetically rath- er than by numbers) or very close to it. Among the luminaries: A slew of Brown- Forman men, including early distiller John Thompson Street Brown Jr., bourbon innovator (and half- brother) George Garvin Brown, his son Owsley Brown, Owsley Brown's son W.L. Lyons Brown and Lyons Brown's cousin Owsley Brown Frazier; Frederick Stitzel, 1879 inventor of an industry- changing system for racking whiskey barrels; Julian "Pappy" Van Winkle and Alex Farnsley (uncle of former Louisville Mayor Charles Farnsley), originally salesmen for bourbon wholesaler W.L. Weller and Sons, who gained control of the company and led it into the historic Stitzel- Weller Distillery era, now represented by the Bufalo Trace Distillery in Frankfort; Weller and Sons founder William LaRue Weller and son George P. Weller; Thomas Jeremiah Beam, ffth- generation of the Beam family to head the giant Nelson County whiskey company now known as Beam Suntory (with most of the Beam family buried at Bardstown City Cemetery); Paul Jones, who registered the Four Roses trademark in 1892; subsequent to his death in 1895, his company bought Frankfort Distilleries (one of six to be allowed to continue production during Prohibition) and turned Four Roses Straight into a national favorite before a new owner blended it into oblivion in the U.S. market. (Today's Four Roses Distillery in Lawrenceburg, Kentucky, makes the original straight, resurrected by Japan's Kirin Brewing Co. in 2002.) Veach is planning two more Cave Hill distiller tours this year, tentatively scheduled for June 7 and Sept. 20. Bourbon Barrel Foods on Story Avenue in Butchertown has found multiple ways to put those pre-loved barrels to good use. In 2006, owner Matt Jamie started making bourbon-barrel-aged soy sauce as the United States' frst soy sauce microbrewery. Now he sells 36 products, ranging from barrel-aged bitters to barrel-aged vanilla, sugar, salt and spices. Bourbon Barrel Foods will soon open its frst retail location on Frankfort Avenue in Crescent Hill. John King, owner of DrunkWood, makes chairs, tables, coat racks, wine racks and just about anything out of barrels. The Kentucky Shop (thekyshop.com) sells various Kentucky-themed treasures, including this reclaimed-bourbon-barrel necklace. While you can't make your own bourbon in one of Bluegrass Barrels' miniature barrels (bourbon barrels can only be used once), they are a great way to make bar- rel-aged cocktails for a party. They are also customizable (bluegrassbarrels.com). The Bourbon Wood Trading Co. (bour- bonwoodtradingcompany.com) fashions belt buckles, bottle openers, tie bars and cufinks out of barrels. Bourbon Barrel Rehab (bourbonbar- relrehab.com) makes garden benches, cake platters, lantern hangers and other products. Grillin Char (from the charred oak bar- rels) adds a hint of bourbon favor to your grilled foods. You can pick it up at most Liquor Barn locations.