Bourbon whiskey is a barrel-aged American whiskey made primarily from corn (maize). The name derives from the French House of Bourbon, although the precise source of inspiration is uncertain; contenders include Bourbon County, Kentucky, and Bourbon Street in New Orleans, both of which are named after the House of Bourbon. The name bourbon might not have been used until the 1850s, and the association with Bourbon County was not evident until the 1870s.
Jack Daniel's is a brand of Tennessee whiskey produced at Jack Daniel Distillery in Lynchburg, Tennessee, which has been owned by the Brown–Forman Corporation since 1956.
Heaven Hill Distilleries, Inc. is a private family-owned and -operated American distillery, founded in 1935 and headquartered in Bardstown, Kentucky, that produces and markets the Heaven Hill brand of Kentucky Straight Bourbon Whiskey and a variety of other distilled spirits.
Woodford Reserve is a brand of premium small batch Kentucky straight bourbon whiskey produced at Woodford Reserve Distillery, in Woodford County, Kentucky, by the Brown-Forman Corporation.
Four Roses is a brand of Kentucky straight bourbon whiskey produced at Four Roses Distillery in Lawrenceburg, Kentucky by the Kirin Brewery Company.
The Kentucky Bourbon Trail, sometimes informally referred to as "the Bourbon Trail", is a program sponsored by the Kentucky Distillers' Association (KDA) to promote the Bourbon whiskey industry in Kentucky. The KDA has registered the phrase "Kentucky Bourbon Trail" as a protected trademark.
W. L. Weller is a brand of "wheated" bourbon whiskey. The brand was created by the Stitzel-Weller Distilling Company, and was sold several times after 1972. Since 1999, the brand has been owned by the Sazerac Company. It is produced at the Buffalo Trace Distillery in Frankfort, Kentucky. Like all bourbons, Weller is distilled from a mash composed of at least 51% corn (maize). The secondary grain used for the Weller brand is wheat, whereas most bourbons use rye.
Small batch whiskey is whiskey produced by mixing the contents of a relatively small number of selected barrels. Small batch whiskeys are commercially positioned for the upper-premium market. The term is most commonly used for American whiskey but is sometimes used for other whiskeys as well. For example, the Bowmore distillery in Islay, Scotland, has produced a single malt Scotch whisky labeled as "small batch".
Old Forester is a brand of Kentucky straight bourbon whisky produced by the Brown–Forman Corporation. It has been on the market continuously for longer than any other bourbon, and was the first bourbon sold exclusively in sealed bottles. It was first bottled and marketed in 1870 by the former pharmaceutical salesman turned bourbon-merchant George Garvin Brown – the founder of the Brown–Forman Corporation. During the Prohibition period from 1920 to 1933, Brown–Forman received one of only six licenses authorizing lawful production.
Willett Distillery Ltd, is a private, family-owned-and-operated company that produces bourbon and rye whiskey. Over the years, the company has bottled whiskeys that range from two years of aging maturity up to 28 years. The company was named Kentucky Bourbon Distillers (KBD) between 1984 and 2012.
Blanton's is a brand of bourbon whiskey produced and marketed by the Sazerac Company. Though it does not own the brand, it has exclusive distilling rights. It is owned by Age International, Inc. It is distilled in Frankfort, Kentucky at the Buffalo Trace Distillery.
Elijah Craig is a premium and super-premium brand of bourbon whiskey produced in Kentucky by Heaven Hill Distilleries. The brand is sold as a straight bourbon, typically in 750 millilitres glass bottles.
Old Taylor Bourbon is a brand of straight bourbon whiskey produced at Buffalo Trace Distillery in Franklin County, Kentucky, by the Sazerac Company. It was named in honor of the historic distiller Col. Edmund Haynes Taylor, Jr.
Willett Pot Still Reserve Bourbon is brand of a bourbon whiskey produced in Bardstown, Kentucky by the Willett Distillery.
Old Pogue is a brand of Kentucky straight bourbon whiskey. Located in Maysville, Kentucky, the Old Pogue Distillery carries strong family ties dating back to the 1870s, and is privately owned by members of the Pogue family.
James E. Pepper is an American whiskey brand. The brand is named after a historic American whiskey maker with that name who built and operated a distillery in Lexington, Kentucky, and marketed his whiskey under his family's brand name "Old Pepper" and under his own name. The brand's distillery, known as the Henry Clay distillery and later as the Old Pepper distillery and James E. Pepper distillery, was shut down in 1958 and was left abandoned for more than 50 years until Amir Peay purchased the historic distillery site and relaunched the brand name in 2008. Distilling resumed at the site in 2017.
Stitzel–Weller Distillery is a former distillery located in Shively, a suburb of Louisville, Kentucky. It was founded in 1935, sold in 1972, and closed in 1992. It produced a number of notable brands, and since 2014 it has served as a public tourism site for Bulleit Bourbon, as part of the Kentucky Bourbon Trail.
Master distiller is a title often used for a distilling expert or a key leader or owner at modern distilleries. The title doesn't have a fixed definition and can mean different things at different companies. Although the craft of distilling has existed for centuries throughout history, the term "master distiller" only dates back as far as the 1800s when it was first used to acknowledge the distilling expertise and knowledge a person gained after practicing and perfecting the craft of distilling for many years. In more recent usage, the term can have a much broader meaning and is sometimes used for owners and company leaders who run their companies but do not actively create the distilling recipes and processes used at their distilleries.
Atherton Whiskey was a pre-prohibition brand of Kentucky Straight Bourbon whiskey first produced by J M Atherton & Co, a chemical and distilling business.
