Kentucky Bourbon Festival
The Kentucky Bourbon Festival is a five-day “weekend” full of “smooth bourbon, delicious food, and great entertainment, with a healthy dose of Kentucky hospitality thrown in for good measure”. Road Trips Foodies can meet master distillers and sample their bourbons, drive along the Kentucky Bourbon Trail and even attend a gala to sample food made with — and paired with — bourbon. (The official drink for 2009 is the Clementine Crush.)
The extravaganza, running from September 15 to 20, 2009, is centered on the Bourbon Capital of the World, otherwise known as Bardstown, Kentucky — where people have been making bourbon since 1776. Of course this historic town has more going for it than bourbon. The house said to inspire Stephen Foster’s “My Old Kentucky Home” is here for the touring, and a musical about his life plays all summer (as it has for 51 seasons…so far). The Kentucky Rail Museum draws train fans from around the world, while the Civil War Museum of the Western Theatre is a must-stop for military buffs.
Whether you’re stopping in Bardstown for the bourbon festival, or passing nearby at another time of year, plan to have a meal at The Old Talbott Tavern, 107 West Stephen Foster, Bardstown, Kentucky. This is where you can sample the legendary Kentucky Burgoo, a stew-like soup (or a soup-like stew — see photo, at right) served by the bowl or cup. (It’s said that if you can still see what meats and veggies went into a burgoo, it hasn’t been simmered nearly long enough!)
