| Revival Vintage Bottle Shop | |
|---|---|
 | |
 Liquor available for tasting | |
 | |
| Restaurant information | |
| Established | 2020 |
| Food type | Liquor |
| Street address | 5 East 8th Street |
| City | Covington |
| State | Kentucky |
| Postal/ZIP Code | 41011 |
| Country | United States |
| Coordinates | 39°04′56″N84°30′34″W / 39.08222°N 84.50944°W |
| Website | www |
Revival Vintage Bottle is a resale store and tasting bar in Covington, Kentucky, stocking vintage bottles of liquor and some new liquors. [1] It is a stop on the Kentucky Bourbon Trail. [2]
Vintage spirits, known to collectors as dusties, are illegal for commercial sale in almost all US states. [3] [4] [5] Vintage spirits are legal for sale under Kentucky's 2018 Vintage Spirits law, [6] [3] known as House Bill 100. [7] As of 2022 [update] , the law was unique to Kentucky among US states. [5]
Because Kentucky distillers historically included bourbon in employee compensation packages and Kentucky is part of the Bible Belt, an area of the United States where the temperance movement retains some adherents, it is not uncommon for some households to have unopened bottles dating back decades. [3] According to the Kentucky Distillers Association, they receive "regular calls from state residents asking what they can do with unopened bourbon cases they discovered while cleaning out a relative’s attic or basement". [3] Unlike wine, liquor stored in unopened bottles remains essentially unchanged from the date of bottling [5] because of its much higher alcohol content and near total lack of yeast following distillation.
The shop opened on 8th Street in Covington in 2020. [8] In 2022, the shop opened a second location, also in Covington. [8] [4]
The shop sources bottles of various liquors from estate sales and other private sellers; some vintages date from pre-prohibition. [1] [6] [3] [9] As of 2023 [update] , it had over 4,000 bottles. [10] It collects and sells bottles of bourbon, scotch, brandy, tequila, rum, and gin and [4] offers tastings. [11] [12] [13]
Because the liquor remains essentially unchanged, it allows drinkers to experience older versions and compare them to newer versions of the same liquor, the recipes for which and techniques used to produce may have changed over time, or to taste cocktails made from liquors available when the recipe was developed. [4] [5]
Tasting Table said, "If northern Kentucky is basically the Disney World of bourbon, then Revival Vintage Bottle Shop is its marquee attraction." [1] In 2021 it was named one of the country's best bourbon bars by The Bourbon Review. [14] In 2023 it was added as a stop on the Kentucky Bourbon Trail. [2]
Bourbon is a type of barrel-aged American whiskey made primarily from corn (maize). The name derives from the French Bourbon dynasty, although the precise source of inspiration is uncertain; contenders include Bourbon County in Kentucky and Bourbon Street in New Orleans, both of which are named after the dynasty. The name bourbon may not have been used until the 1850s; the association with Bourbon County did not appear until the 1870s.
Rye whiskey can refer to two different, but related, types of whiskey:
Corn whiskey is an American liquor made principally from corn. Distinct from the stereotypical American moonshine, in which sugar is normally added to the mash, corn whiskey uses a traditional mash process, and is subject to the tax and identity laws for alcohol under federal law.
Tennessee whiskey is straight whiskey produced in the U.S. state of Tennessee. Although it has been legally defined as a bourbon whiskey in some international trade agreements, most current producers of Tennessee whiskey disclaim references to their products as "bourbon" and do not label them as such on any of their bottles or advertising materials. All current Tennessee whiskey producers are required by Tennessee law to produce their whiskeys in Tennessee and – with the sole exception of Benjamin Prichard's – to use a filtering step known as the Lincoln County Process prior to aging the whiskey. Beyond the perceived marketing value of the distinction, Tennessee whiskey and bourbon have almost identical requirements, and most Tennessee whiskeys meet the criteria for bourbon.
Maker's Mark is a small-batch bourbon whiskey produced in Loretto, Kentucky, by Beam Suntory. It is bottled at 90 U.S. proof and sold in squarish bottles sealed with red wax. The distillery offers tours, and is part of the American Whiskey Trail and the Kentucky Bourbon Trail.
Jim Beam is an American brand of bourbon whiskey produced in Clermont, Kentucky, by Beam Suntory. It is one of the best-selling brands of bourbon in the world. Since 1795, seven generations of the Beam family have been involved in whiskey production for the company that produces the brand. The brand name became "Jim Beam" in 1943 in honor of James B. Beam, who rebuilt the business after Prohibition ended. Previously produced by the Beam family and later owned by the Fortune Brands holding company, the brand was purchased by Suntory Holdings in 2014.
Evan Williams is a brand of Kentucky straight bourbon whiskey bottled in Bardstown, Kentucky, by the Heaven Hill company. The product is aged for a minimum of four years. It has been ranked as one of the world's best selling whiskey brands.
Wild Turkey is a brand of Kentucky straight bourbon whiskey distilled and bottled by the Wild Turkey Distillery, owned by the Campari Group. The distillery is located near Lawrenceburg, Kentucky. It offers tours and is part of the American Whiskey Trail and the Kentucky Bourbon Trail.
Woodford Reserve is a brand of premium small batch Kentucky straight bourbon whiskey produced in Woodford County, Kentucky, by the Brown-Forman Corporation. It is made from a mixture of copper pot still spirits produced at the company's Woodford Reserve Distillery, and column still spirits from the Brown Forman Distillery in Shively, Kentucky. Each 45.2% alcohol by volume bottle bears a unique batch and bottle number. The brand was introduced in 1996. Domestic sales of Woodford Reserve surpassed one million cases in 2021.
Various unique terminology is used in bartending.
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.
Although the culture of Kentucky is considered to be firmly Southern, it is also influenced by Southern Appalachia, blending with the native upper Southern culture in certain areas of the state. The state is known for bourbon and whiskey distilling, tobacco, horse racing, and college basketball.
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.
Sazerac Company, Inc. is a privately held American alcoholic beverage company headquartered in Metairie in the metropolitan area of New Orleans, Louisiana, but with its principal office in Louisville, Kentucky. The company is owned by billionaire William Goldring and his family. As of 2017, it operated nine distilleries, had 2,000 employees, and operated in 112 countries. It is one of the two largest spirits companies in the United States, with annual revenue of about $1 billion made from selling about 300 beverage brands.
Wigle Whiskey is an artisan small batch whiskey distillery in the Strip District neighborhood of Pittsburgh. Wigle Whiskeys are the flagship products of Wigle Whiskey, which is entirely family owned and operated.
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.
Knappogue Castle Irish Whiskey is a brand of premium single malt Irish whiskey produced by the Irish Distillers subsidiary of Pernod Ricard. The brand is named for historic Knappogue Castle in County Clare, Ireland, originally built by Clan MacNamara in 1467. Knappogue Castle is known for bottling one of the oldest and rarest known Irish whiskies, Knappogue Castle 1951, a pot still whiskey produced at the now-defunct B. Daly Distillery.
Twin Valley Distillers is a distiller based in Rockville, Maryland, United States. It was the first distiller in Montgomery County, Maryland and one of the few in Maryland since 1970. Twin Valley Distillers is a member of the Maryland Distillers Guild.
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.
Vintage spirits, also known as dusties, are old, discontinued, or otherwise rare bottles of liquor. The collectibility of a bottle is based on rarity, with age as a secondary factor. The name "dusty" refers to the fact that many such now-collectible bottles had been sitting on a liquor store shelf or unopened in a home or in a restaurant bar for years, collecting dust. In the United States, sales of vintage liquor is generally illegal, the exception being Kentucky, which is a frequent hunting ground for dusties for a variety of reasons.
