Bourbon & Beyond

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Bourbon & Beyond
Genre Rock, Folk, Pop, Country
Dates4-day weekend in September (currently)
Location(s)Highland Festival Grounds at the Kentucky Exposition Center, Louisville, Kentucky
Years active2017–present
Attendance210,000 (2024, weekend total) [1]
Organized by Danny Wimmer Presents
Website bourbonandbeyond.com

Bourbon & Beyond is an annual bourbon and music festival that takes place in Louisville, Kentucky, United States. It is know as "The World's Largest Bourbon, Food, & Music Festival". The festival is held the weekend before Louder Than Life at the same venue. Both festivals are produced by Danny Wimmer Presents. The two festivals combined had an estimated impact of $42 million on the local economy in 2024. [2]

Contents

History

In 2013, Louisville Mayor Greg Fischer established the Bourbon and Local Food Work Group with the goal of guiding tourism and economic development centered around bourbon and food. The committee published the Bourbon & Food Work Group Report in 2014 with recommendations for the city, including "creating an annual world-class signature Bourbon and Food Festival." Due to a lack of resources and experience with this type of festival, the city gave Danny Wimmer Presents the opportunity to establish a private bourbon festival in Louisville as a result of their success with Louder Than Life. The city provided suggestions for the name and how to celebrate Louisville culture, which the company used to establish Bourbon & Beyond. [3] [4]

The festival began in 2017 as a 2-day weekend festival held at Louisville Champions Park. In 2019, the festival changed to a 3-day festival and moved to Highland Festival Grounds at the Kentucky Exposition Center to prevent flooding. [5] [6]

The 2020 festival was cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic and was not held in 2021. [7]

In 2025, major changes to the festival and venue were announced including reworking the layout, adding stages, and adding an entrance. As part of these changes the venue was moved from within the Kentucky Exposition Center south of Phillips Lane to an area adjacent to Freedom Hall and Kentucky Kingdom. Tickets now include free access to a section of Kentucky Kingdom. [8] [9]

Estimated yearly attendance

References

  1. 1 2 Adams, Kirby (September 23, 2024). "Bourbon & Beyond saw record-breaking crowds. Here's how many people attended the festival". Courier Journal. Retrieved September 5, 2025.
  2. ↑ "Bourbon & Beyond Festival Reveals Line-Up For 'World's Biggest Bourbon Festival'". Go To Louisville. Louisville Tourism. February 5, 2025. Retrieved September 5, 2025.
  3. ↑ Loosemore, Bailey. "Bourbon & Beyond celebrates 'soul and spirit' of Kentucky". Courier Journal. Archived from the original on September 4, 2025. Retrieved September 5, 2025.
  4. ↑ 2014 Bourbon & Food Work Group Report (PDF) (Report). 2014. Retrieved September 5, 2025.
  5. ↑ "Louder Than Life 2019". splice-mediagroup.com. Retrieved September 4, 2022.
  6. 1 2 "Bourbon & Beyond Wraps Incredible Weekend with 91,000 Fans, Special Appearances And Performances From Foo Fighters, Robert Plant, Zac Brown Band & More". Side Stage Magazine. Retrieved September 5, 2025.
  7. 1 2 "Hometown Rising, Bourbon & Beyond and Louder Than Life canceled amid COVID-19 pandemic". WDRB.
  8. ↑ Garcia-Franceschini, Fernando (August 8, 2025). "Organizers for Bourbon and Beyond and Louder than Life expand site, partner with Kentucky Kingdom". WAVE3. Retrieved September 5, 2025.
  9. ↑ Alonzo, José (August 27, 2025). "Major changes announced for Bourbon & Beyond and Louder Than Life Festivals". WHAS11. Retrieved September 5, 2025.
  10. ↑ Loosemore, Bailey (October 2, 2017). "Bourbon & Beyond festival draws 50,000 attendees in its first year". Courier Journal. Retrieved September 5, 2025.
  11. ↑ Coffman, Josh (September 26, 2018). "Beyond the threat of watered-down bourbon, came a louder call to harbor life". WAVE3. Retrieved September 5, 2025.
  12. ↑ Aulbach, Lucas (February 3, 2021). "Louder Than Life returns to Louisville, but Hometown Rising and Bourbon & Beyond are off". Courier Journal. Retrieved September 5, 2025.
  13. ↑ Shapiro, Sam (September 20, 2022). "Bourbon & Beyond sets attendance record, announces dates for 2023". WDRB. Retrieved September 5, 2025.
  14. ↑ Bolgan, Sarah (September 21, 2023). "Bourbon & Beyond officials release how many people attended the enormous festival this year". WHAS11. Retrieved September 5, 2025.
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