Bourbon Trail - Four Roses

The next stop on our Bourbon Trail tour is Four Roses Distillery! This distillery is in Lawrenceburg, Kentucky. James and I actually happened upon this stop by chance. Look at us, being spontaneous again!

James and I had a dreary late fall day to ourselves and there wasn't much we could do. We had just started out saltwater tank and so one of our big hobbies at the time was visiting aquarium stores. Being landlocked, good fish and corals are hard to come by and we had already learned that the most unsuspecting vacuum-store-basement-fish-mongers can be the best. So, sometimes finding the most interesting and healthiest corals and fish meant driving quite a ways.

James had read about a fish store in Lawrenceburg, which was past his parent's house. We decided to set off to explore this new fish store, and stop at the farm on the way back. So off we went. It was quite a ways for just a fish store, so James suggested I look for something else for us to do while we were in the area. I love finding little whole-in-the-wall restaurants for us to try out when we are on the road, so I got to looking. Turns out, Four Roses was just around the corner from our fishy destination! James and I usually do the bourbon trail with our friends, but there was no way we were going to drive all this way, be right down the street, and not check this stop off our list.

Well, the fish store was kind of a bust. It was actually an old Blockbuster-turned-fish-store. So strange, but at least we had found something else worth our drive.

Just a peak at the spanish-style distillery.

An old copper fountain fish pond, surrounded by the tall still houses in the hills.

We headed away from the store and down a windy drive along the Salt River to find ourselves immediately upon the distillery property. We were surrounded by giant still houses set upon the steep hills. This place looked totally different from any other bourbon distillery we had visited before. It was a huge surprise for both of us. We drove up to the deep yellow spanish mission style buildings and parked. We had come by just in time, they were getting ready to start another tour.

We stood in with the group in the lobby and we didn't have to wait long. We were shuffled back out into the dreary drizzle to visit the mash.  We walked upon the first of the huge spanish buildings and entered. Instantly we felt better. The bourbon smells and the warmth from the fermentation had filled the building. If there is anything to make a terrible weather day better, it is stepping foot inside a bourbon distillery.

Nothing warms you up quite like the smell of fresh mash.

We wandered through the tour. We peeked inside the giant mash barrels. In these pictures you can actually get an idea of the scale of these behemoths. They bubbled and steamed. You could feel the heat coming off of the mash inside the barrels, and, when you climbed the stairs and the tour guide opened the door to let cool air in, you could see the gases blur and spread out over the entire crowd. It was something I had never noticed on our other distillery tours.

James taking a peek. These barrels extend down another 10-15 feet or so.

The building itself was very different from our other tours. It was definitely a working distillery. You get the feeling you are in a factory and seeing the actual stills and mash barrels that are used. It was all the same spanish yellow, except for four giant, beautiful, rich roses painted on the walls. It lacked the Kentucky-esque charm that all of the other distilleries held, but possessed a very distinct authenticity.

We climbed the stairs and ladders to peek into the beer stills, we walked around the giant copper pot stills, we watched the mash bubble and spit through the glass windows. This was all in the same building, which was nice. We were able to see each step, from start to finish, in one continuous flow.

Once we were led out of the building we were shown where all of the grain is led in and unloaded. We were also shown where the bourbon is put into trucks and driven off to the barreling facility. This was something we hadn't seen at other stops, so it was fascinating. We had never stopped to ask about the grains that go into making the bourbon before.

Next, we sought the shelter of the bar area. Here we were told about legend that brought Four Roses it's name. An old proposal that was answered with a sign of four red roses in the form of a corsage on the young girl. We talked a little about the history and passed around toasting and tasting glasses. We sampled a little bit of everything, single barrel, small batch, yellow and platinum. James and I decided that the regular Four Roses was our favorite. We shared tasting notes with our tour-mates and then ushered ourselves to the gift store.

Our new addition.

Since James and I keep a bottle from each of our tours we had to pick ours out. We purchased one small bottle. A small one because we don't intend to ever open them. We like to keep our bottles on the mantle, to track our progress. Some day, when we have a bar, they will be proudly displayed, lending the stories of each distillery to any eager listener.

The mantle collection, so far!