I'm off to these two states for some recreational travel next month. Any tips on bourbon hunting while I'm there? My family likes to have retail experiences on vacation. I might as well spend my own time wisely. Help?

This one has been around forever in VA and puts out some great bourbon, but face masks are still required[game changer as far as I'm concerned].
https://asmithbowman.com/visit-us/

Actual "Bourbon" probably comes from an area of Kentucky between Limestone (now Maysville) and Louisville and points south whose flowage empties into the Ohio River, or the old Virginia county of Bourbon which encompasses about 37 counties in the Commonwealth of Kentucky. It became a much-coveted whiskey due to the particular qualities of the limestone in the area and the water that flowed from its aquifers. The way it got its name was from "Old Bourbon" being stamped on the oak casks that shipped out of the region, being sent to New Orleans.

I'm not throwing shade on anyone's whiskey, but the true Bourbon comes only from Kentucky and there are some fantastic distillery tours. I would center my attention between Lousiville and Lexington, Kentucky.

https://kybourbontrail.com/map/

South of the Ohio River, the settlers took their surplus corn and distilled it so they could sell it. North of the Ohio, the settlers fed surplus corn to hogs and then marched them to places like CIncinnati. I could point you in the right direction, if you're interested, but most folks like the idea of a Bourbon Tour-- pork tours don't sell nearly as well.

Copper Fox Distillery in Sperryville, Virginia. Makers of 1797 whiskey.

Is that a statement of how you feel about it, or a statement of fact?

In the first case, fine. In the second case, you are in error.

LOL, not throwing shade, just telling the guy to visit Kentucky rather than where he's actually going.

Good bourbons come from all over, even out here.

"Kentucky Straight Bourbon" only comes from Kan-tuck

Bourbon in general doesn't have to.

With ice[even]?

Legally, it can be called Bourbon if it comes from inside the US, it's made mostly of corn liquor and it is cured in a virgin charred oak cask. That means that it can be made in New Jersey if you like.

A purist would say it has to have been made from water coming from the limestone of the old Bourbon County.

Me? I'm just a scotch drinker. However, I did have a best friend that got paid for writing a book on Bourbon. I'd tell you to take it up with him, but he died in '97.

Hey, if he's coming from South Dakota, he can hit Kentucky on the way. I'm sure there are excellent whiskies on the other side of the gap.

There are also limits to the proof of the distillate as it comes off the still and when it goes into the barrel.

JFC you guys sure know how to hijack a thread! Hahahaha

Be better off hunting up some good shine....

Might be easier in West-By-god.

Especially if he wants to avoid yuppies, and metro sexual.
Because that what he is gonna find in some microdistillery.

I know a bend in the road on RT 92 south of Somerset KY. . .


BTW: I don't hold Bourbon on a pedestal any more than I hold Kentucky Bourbon on a pedestal. I used to have to visit a big Jim Beam warehouse in Louisville that my employer operated for them. We got frozen out of the deal when the Frogs sold out to the Japs (or was it vice-versa?) and I ended up getting laid off.

At one time, I researched this as a gag. I don't mean to say anyone is really doing this for real.

Let's say you're an entrepreneur operating out of Northern Kentucky. You contact a certain large distillery and ask for their catalog. It prints out to many dozens of pages. You finally pick your formula (using a dart board) and order #1013 -- Desc: Corn Formula #3. It comes to your garage in a tanker truck. You unload it into your Stainless steel vat recently purchased from the set of Breaking Bad. You then cut it with purified water from the Ohio River, a bit if carmel coloring, and the maximum legally allowable amount of pasteurized goat urine and then send it through a charcoal filter before bottling it.

The bottles are then shipped to a facility in Hebron, Kentucky where a beautiful and elaborate full-color sleeve is shrink-wrapped onto the bottle. You can't miss the place-- it's right at the end of one of the runways at CVG. The label reads "Old Goat Piss Kentucky Bourbon, bottled in Boone County, KY Charcoal Filtered" It shows a very realistic portrait of Daniel Boone sodomizing a goat.

You have just made real Kentucky Bourbon, at least by legal standards. I'm skipping over the finer points here, but the point is we've got all these little places around on the south side of the river and they all feed off the same catalog. Some of them are just "value added," meaning they take what comes off the truck and do something to it before sticking it in a bottle. Others don't even do that. They just have a label that says, "Bottled in Kentucky." My company ran that warehouse in KY and also runs one of the world's largest shrink-wrapping facilities. We did liquor, beer, and most all of P&G's liquid soap products. Their marketing had started to cater to small-batch distilleries and breweries.

If y'all are interested, I could look into us doing a small batch and calling it "24 Hour Campfire"

No you haven't.

All I asked was where to shop for bourbon in either state. That's all I asked...

You know how things go around here.

OMG NO KIDDING

No kidding. Some guys are really sensitive about this stuff. Don't even get started on things like ice cubes....

Morgantown WV. Bourbon prime restaurant!! Great food and a great selection of bourbon including Country Roads bourbon made exclusively by Woodford Reserve.
Watch the 30 second video!

http://www.bourbonprime.com/

No need to go the nasty route.

https://www.sbdistillery.com/

I've not been there myself, right across the Blue Ridge from me. "Independent craftsmen" in that county make some good stuff.

Also, https://www.copperfoxdistillery.com/home-of-american-single-malt
This is northeast of us.

OK. I'll bite. What did I leave out? I'm going to guess aging.

Remember, even though it's the Ohio River, the river water actually belongs to Kentucky-- up to the Ohio shoreline. Cincinnati Metropolitan Sewer District empties out right below downtown, so being a proud Cincinnatian, I piss on KY with every flush.

Oh wait! I'm sorry, #1013, Corn #3 comes from the plant at Lawrenceburg, IN. Sorry, my bad. See you, get away from this stuff for a few years and it all goes flying out of your head.

Bourbon allows for no additives, goat wizz or even the caramel color that is allowed in Scotch. I didn't note where your juice passed through a barrel either.

Virginia Bourbon Trail

Guide to Virginia Bourbon Distilleries

Some of the harder to find bourbons are easier to find outside of Kentucky. Check out the small out of the way CVS stores. I was traveling in WV and wife needed to visit one for something. I went in with her and found a E.H. Taylor small batch at retail which is $40. Actually can be hard to find here in KY and if the small mom & Pop liquor stores have it, they mark it up considerably.

For the small places, always ask what they have hidden under the counter and look up on the shelves above the counter, but those prices will probably be high. Ask anyways.

Also, check out Catoctin Creek distillery in Northern Virginia. Their rye is pretty good.

I’ve never had decent shine from WVa. Virginia is the home of the best moonshine made, and lots of it. Hands down.

https://www.24hourcampfire.com/ubbthreads/ubbthreads.php/galleries/16191969/wv-bourbon

It’s to confusing posting pics from 24HR galleries

I doubt that. WV has plenty of good shine. Never needed to go to Virginia to get it.

Me either. WV has very good shine. Someone talking out there nither region again.

Have family there. Great grandfather was a full time moonshiner there. You want good shine, West Virginia.
You want the best shine, Virginia, hands down.

Franklin County. Look no further.

Logan and Boone…the rest are amateurs.

Bingo.

How do you know such things ? You live on a iceberg in Alaska.

SMH in wonder

😬🦫

I grew up in North Carolina and went to college with a guy from Franklin Co. We made a few trips up there when supplies were low. Hell, I used to have the glow in the dark tee shirt. I’ve got no idea where it is now, though.

Sipping an ice cold Wellar Old Fashioned as I read this.

24 600 gallon stills. Franklin Co.

Aah, you lived in the lower 48 for many years...copy - that.

I duckfoo’d Palmer, Alaska, just now....I wasn’t too far off on the iceberg descriptor.

Black Lights for the win in the 80’s

Grins

🦫

Destroying that big still made some people pissed and poor.

F’n government!

🦫

I actually killed the first buck deer I ever heard of ever being killed in those parts not 1.5 miles from the original location ca. 1976 Had a buddy that smoked a few woodchucks with his 22/250 around Bowman's old overgrown warehouses. That stuff stank to us kids some days when we were down wind.
.

PREACH IT!

.gov never got involved unless it killed people, shyning for profit never developed a taste.

People left money at dads doorstep, he never sold it.

I've had good shine from both.
And rotgut crap that literally gave me a sore throat.

A WWII vet friend sourced the VA stuff.
A truck driver, he befriended a black family that made a bit.
When the needed jugs or jars, he was able to help them out.
For years they gave him a few gallon as a thank you.

Good stuff. Went down smooth, made your belly glow.

The Hillbilly stuff came from the hollows of Morgntown.
Again good stuff. That contact died too.

All I can get now is local.
And not remotely worth the money.
People drink it because it's shine.
Big bad wannabe hillbilly types.

Can get decent legal hooch that's better and cheaper.