Yeah, I hit the trail down to Kentucky (Ashland) a couple times a month. I stock up whatever I need when there. Love to cook Apples in Bourbon Whiskey, brown sugar, and cinnamon and a bit of corn starch...and have some good buttermilk Cat Head biscuits with them on frosty cold mornings.
After the Whisky Rebellion in Pennsylvania 1791 -1794 which was fought over "The Whiskey Tax" and the injustice of it, Kentucky offered distillers free land there if they would come and grow corn. In Pennsylvania
the primary ingredient was Rye. But these areas of Pennsylvania and Kentucky didn't have the reserves of
actual "money" (metal coined money) to pay taxes with. How are you going to pay the tax man if you don't have "money" or specie as it's known on the frontier where there wasn't much of it in circulation ?
Obvious choice, move further away from Washington DC and tax collectors.
What made Kentucky so perfect for Corn Whiskey was Corn which would grow there heartily, limestone water, and the white oak trees to make kegs with. (white oak has a very good cellular structure that lends itself to whiskey barrels and aging/flavoring whiskey) With the free land and near by Ohio River Corn could be shipped to market. But in short time there would be those who would realize that so much of that Corn could be made into whiskey which would fetch a much greater price and exported down the river to New Orleans. An acre of corn in each hogs head barrel of Bourbon as some would say.
It was just good luck that Kentucky had so many towns named after French Cities. And the Bourbon district
added to the appeal of Kentucky for the French in New Orleans. The growth and sales of Kentucky "corn" Bourbon Whiskey was exponential and it became legend. But it is a good and agreeable whiskey that most people can enjoy.
I've grown up here with this history all of my life. Just thought I'd offer a brief bit about it. I think anyone would enjoy visiting the OLD Distilleries in Kentucky. Woodford Reserve is located in Versailles, KY is one of the oldest and a few miles south west of Cincinnati, Ohio.
Quest for the Perfect Bourbon University of Kentucky Archives/Youtube (39 minutes)
[video=dailymotion]
