Driving down the Kentucky Bourbon Trail, you’ll discover many things beyond tasting good whiskey. First, that it’s not really a trail, but a smattering of distilleries located in and around Louisville and Lexington, and second, that every distillery making “bourbon” follows the same basic recipe required by U.S. law. 
Unexpectantly, you’ll find a wide variety of flavors both in the drinks and the distilleries themselves.
When it comes to the whiskey, I’ll let you be the judge of what you like and don’t like. Try as many of the distilleries as you can, follow your guides’ tasting advice, and don’t be afraid to try new things. Judy was our Designated Driver – she generally doesn’t like Bourbon – but she was a trooper and tried some of them, even finding one or two she liked. I reveled in the new and different flavors, all derived from the grains used in the mash and the wood of the charred oak barrels. I became a bourbon drinker several years ago, when a former boss – a retired Air Force two-star general – pretty much insisted I join him at the bar when we were on business travel and introduced me to Maker’s Mark and a few others. 
I became hooked. Judy and I now keep a small collection of fine bourbons, scotches, and Irish whiskeys in our library’s globe bar. There’s something uniquely relaxing about reading a good book with a dram of amber, 90-proof liquid rolling around your tongue and palate.
I also reveled in the wide variety of architectural styles. From the classic “down in the holler” buildings of Maker’s Mark, Woodford Reserve and Buffalo Trace (not on the tour but worth a stop) built in the 1800s with their worn and aging cypress fermenters, to the modern and spotless glass and stainless-steel Town Branch facility, to the gleaming polished copper, brick and wood Angel’s Envy distillery built inside a former manufacturing plant in downtown Louisville…architectural personalities young and old were featured. Even the retail “experiences” of Evan Williams and Jim Beam featured architectural styles that put their products and personalities in best light.
Each of our guides also brought their own unique personalities to the tours and tastings. Nicholas at Town Branch was, by far, the funniest and most entertaining, but the booming voice of classically trained actor Jimmy James Hamblin at Angel’s Envy earned him a nomination for Louisville’s Recognition of Service Excellence (ROSE) Awards this year…and our utmost respect and admiration. 
But unvarying among all our guides and the people we met along the way were the warm Kentucky welcomes we received and felt, making our Kentucky Bourbon Trail experience one of our favorite diversions so far.
There’s a whole world out there waiting to be explored. Go see it!
After “standing on a corner” in Winslow, Arizona (such a fine sight to see), we followed some local’s advice and made a reservation (reservation?!) at the 
We bought fudge packed in 
In all our previous visits, we’ve sat at the bar, enjoying fine cocktails (their French Martini is always a hit), excellent appetizers, and even one of the best Filet Mignons we’ve ever tasted. But this time, I wanted to make it a bit special, so I booked a table (through 
The legs were longer than Cyd Charisse’s and the color was an incredibly deep, inky maroon. If you held the glass to the light, you couldn’t see through it. The nose took you away to some other place, and the first taste on the tongue was captivating. THIS is why you spend good money on good wine.
We had planned a glass of wine and maybe a little bubbly to celebrate our special day. Instead, we ordered from the specialty cocktail menu – a Rye Manhattan (served in a martini glass) and something called “Aviation.” It turns out the Aviation was a very pretty pale purple concoction of Gin, fresh lemon, Crème de Violette and a Luxardo Maraschino cherry. It was as delicious as it was pretty.
This fresh, colorful dish popped with flavor. The tomatoes were vine-ripened-sweet, the corn in the relish was delightfully crisp. The flavors were perfectly paired. The food was so good we overlooked the confusion of having what seemed like an endless stream of waiters.
While we waited for the steak to come back, we shared Greg’s scallops. We usually split our entrees anyway, so this was perfect. The scallops, sautéed in garlic lemon butter were outstanding! We noticed a very light coating, which gave them a delightful touch of crunch before the soft bite of a perfectly cooked sea scallop. The sauce provided a brilliant accompaniment. We were just finishing them up when the properly cooked steak arrived.
He also delivered the previously-overlooked steak knife. One cut, right down the middle, revealed that brilliant, almost-red color of medium rare. The texture was sublime. Even if the steak was a bit on the cool side, I think the best way to cook a great cut of meat is that touch of sear over the blissful flavor of beef. The chef nailed it!
In February we had been talked into the panna cotta, so we figured we give it another go. Panna cotta is not easy to get it right. There’s a creaminess about a good panna cotta that must be hard to achieve. I’ve never tried. I have had a LOT of panna cottas that go just beyond creamy to gelatinous. In February the panna cotta was stunningly creamy. This time it was not. There was just a touch of creaminess hidden in a gelatinous, albeit flavorful scoop.