The Kentucky Bourbon Trail, sometimes informally referred to as "the Bourbon Trail", is a program sponsored by the Kentucky Distillers' Association (KDA) to promote the Bourbon whiskey industry in Kentucky. The KDA has registered the phrase "Kentucky Bourbon Trail" as a protected trademark.
The KDA launched the Kentucky Bourbon Trail program in 1999. At the time, it included seven of the eight distilleries in the region.[1][2] In 2008, an eighth distillery, the Barton 1792 Distillery, joined the Trail program.[3] However, the distillery was purchased by the Sazerac Company the following year, and Sazerac withdrew both the Barton 1792 Distillery and the Buffalo Trace Distillery from the KDA at the beginning of 2010.[4] The two Sazerac distilleries continue to host public tours, and a Sazerac spokesperson stated they still feel they are "very much a part of the Bourbon Trail", but Sazerac wishes to promote its distilleries independent of the KDA.[4]
In August 2012, the Town Branch Distillery was added to the trail, bringing the number of distilleries back to seven.[5] The Heaven Hill Evan Williams distillery in Louisville was added in May 2013, expanding the primary tour program to include eight destinations.[6] In 2014, The Bulleit Experience at Stitzel-Weller Distillery joined the Kentucky Bourbon Trail, raising the number to nine destinations. In June 2018, Old Forester opened an urban distillery in downtown Louisville and became a member of the Bourbon Trail.[7] O.Z. Tyler Distillery in Owensboro joined the same month.[8] In July 2018, the KDA announced that Lux Row Distillers would be added to the Kentucky Bourbon Trail.[9]
In October 2012, the KDA announced that it would expand the Kentucky Bourbon Trail program to include a new "Craft Tour" of seven artisan distilleries.[10] 2012 had the highest-ever rate of completion for participation in the trail.[11] In December 2013, the Craft Tour added Danville's Wilderness Trail Distillery, thereby expanding to eight destinations.[12] Several other distilleries have been added and the Bowling Green branch of Corsair Artisan Distillery closed on August 30, 2018, bringing the current number to 13 destinations on the Craft Tour.[13][14]
The KDA opened an official welcome center for the Bourbon Trail in August 2018 at the Frazier History Museum in downtown Louisville.[15]
As of 2024[update], there are 46 stops on the Bourbon Trail.[citation needed] The program sends free T-shirts to people who mail in a promotional passport that has been stamped by all the participating distilleries.[16]
There are 18 stops on the main Bourbon Trail, broken down into 4 "gateway cities": Bardstown Gateway, Lexington Gateway, Louisville Gateway, and Northern Kentucky Gateway.[17] The 18 stops are:[17]
Louisville
Bardstown
Lexington
There are 28 stops on the Bourbon Trail "Craft Tour", broken down into 4 regions: Northern, Central, Western, and Bluegrass.[17] The 28 stops are:[10][19]
Northern Craft Tour
Central Craft Tour
Western Craft Tour
Bluegrass Craft Tour
The B-Line,[20] an official partner of the Kentucky Bourbon Trail,[21] is another organization promoting distilleries, bars, and restaurants in the Bourbon Trail that are in the Northern Gateway area.[22]
