Buffalo, Barrels, and Bourbon: The Story of How Buffalo Trace Distillery Became the World's Most Awarded Distillery

Biographical Note:

F. PAUL PACULT has been hailed in Imbibe magazine as "an all-knowing spirituous oracle, a J.D. Powers of liquor" and by Forbes.com as "America's foremost spirits authority." He is an award-winning educator and journalist, as well as the author of seven books, including American Still Life, A Double Scotch, and The New Kindred Spirits. For twenty-eight years, he was the editor of the widely acknowledged "bible" of spirits reviews, F. Paul Pacult's Spirit Journal. He is a Life Member of both the Bourbon Hall of Fame and the Kentucky Distillers Association's Order of the Writ.

Vast herds of buffalo, sometimes numbering in the tens of thousands, astonished the initial Euro-American hunters, including Daniel Boone, who in the early eighteenth century ventured deep into the westernmost frontier of Virginia Colony. Inspired by the Native Americans they encountered, the adventurers called the untamed wilderness, Kentucke. In the 1770s this bucolic territory would be surveyed and settled by, among others, brothers Hancock and Willis Lee. The Lees established a primitive log homestead, close to nearby cold springs, on a well-situated bank of the Kentucky River. In 1786 Leestown was founded.

A later inhabitant and site owner, Daniel Swigert, erected the first distillery on the property in 1857. Future distillers of the location, most notably Colonel E.H. Taylor, Jr., George T. Stagg, Colonel Albert B. Blanton, Orville Schupp, Gary Gayheart, Elmer T. Lee, and Harlen Wheatley, would build on the vision of the Lee brothers and Daniel Swigert by developing many of the most coveted bourbon and rye whiskey recipes in the history of Kentucky.

In Buffalo, Barrels, & Bourbon, best-selling author and spirits expert F. Paul Pacult delivers a comprehensive and entertaining chronicle, not only of Buffalo Trace Distillery's specific plot of riverside land but also of the distillery's remarkable whiskey-making legacy. Tracking the distillery's evolution through the Civil War, two World Wars, Prohibition, the Great Depression, and into modern times, the author brings to life with wit and clarity the colorful past of its acclaimed whiskeys.

The book weaves meticulously researched historical data with compelling insights into now-legendary whiskey brands like Pappy Van Winkle, W.L. Weller, Blanton's Single Barrel, Eagle Rare, Thomas H. Handy Sazerac, and George T. Stagg. The larger-than-life personalities brought to life on each page make this the ideal read to be savored both by American history buffs and whiskey devotees.

Buffalo, Barrels, & Bourbon is an indispensable resource for anyone seeking an engaging distillation of one of the American heartland's most storied whiskey distilleries.

Acknowledgments ix

Introduction xi

Glossary xv

1 "This River Runes North West and out of Ye Westerly Side . . ." 1
Sidebar: The Unforgivable Extermination of Tatanka 12

2 "This Map of Kentucke: Drawn from Actual Observations . . ." 15

3 ". . . As Crooked as a Dog's Hind Leg . . ." 29

4 ". . . 10,530 bls. Flour; 1374 Whiskey; 1984 Beef and Pork . . ." 35
Sidebar: The Kentucky River's Natural Wonders 41

5 ". . . The Machinery Is of the Best . . . for Making Copper Distilled Whisky." 43
Sidebar: Kentucky Whiskey Production: Grain 49

6 ". . . Bourbon Production . . . Was at Best Crude and Unreliable . . ." 51

7 ". . . That in Consideration of Five Hundred Dollars . . ." 61

8 "Rev. Dr. McLeod Thanks God for Duffy's Pure Malt Whiskey" 69

9 "The Most Valuable Assistance That We Got in St. Louis . . ." 75

10 ". . . An Early Nineteenth Century Residence Situated in the Middle of an Expansive Lawn . . ." 83

11 ". . . Raised the Daily Production from 400 to 600 Barrels . . ." 95

12 "Despite Many Salacious Rumors, He Is Mostly Remembered As . . ." 103

13 "Show Up Next Monday Morning . . ." 115
Sidebar: The Indelible Impact of American Whiskey's Greatest Generation 127

14 Sazerac: The New Orleans Company and the Fabled Cocktail 131
Sidebar: The Sazerac Cocktail and Resurrection of Sazerac House 140

15 "Experimentation Is in Our DNA . . ." 143

16 "Resistance Is Futile" 153
Sidebar: Freddie Johnson's Promise 167

17 ". . . Projecting Forecasts in 2020 for the Next 100, 120 Years . . ." 169

Appendix 181

Timeline 185

Notes 189

Bibliography 199

About the Author 203

Index 205

Praise for BUFFALO, BARRELS, & BOURBON

"This book is more than just a history of a world-class distillery. Pacult uses the story of Buffalo Trace to tell the very story of bourbon itself--the very story of Kentucky itself--with expert verve and wit. An immediate classic."
--Clay Risen, author of American Whiskey, Bourbon & Rye: A Guide to the Nation's Favorite Spirit

"I could listen to Paul Pacult tell stories about the Buffalo Trace Distillery for days on end. That's a lot to ask of a guy, though, so I read his engaging book instead. And man, did it ever speak to me. It's an exhaustively researched and deftly written historical tome that is guaranteed to make you thirsty. With Buffalo, Barrels, & Bourbon, Paul Pacult continues his longtime reign as America's finest spirits scribe."
--Dan Dunn, author of American Wino: A Tale of Reds, Whites, and One Man's Blues

"Historically, a 'buffalo trace' was the path ground away by a herd of migrating bison. There were no maps to guide the pioneers along those trails, but in Buffalo, Barrels, & Bourbon, Paul has provided an excellent map to the trail of one of Kentucky's legendary distilleries. While the Buffalo Trace brand may be just a couple of decades old, it is built on a legacy dating back to the days of the pioneers, and Paul's extensive research provides the definitive guide to the story of Buffalo Trace from the Lees, Taylors, and Staggs to today's award-winning distillers."
--Mark Gillespie, Host/Executive Producer, WhiskyCast

Learn about one of the most impactful distilleries in American history in this comprehensive tale

Buffalo, Barrels, & Bourbon tells the fascinating tale of the Buffalo Trace Distillery, from the time of the earliest explorations of Kentucky to the present day. Author and award-winning spirits expert F. Paul Pacult takes readers on a journey through history that covers the American Revolutionary War, U.S Civil War, two World Wars, Prohibition, and the Great Depression.

Buffalo, Barrels, & Bourbon covers the pedigree and provenance of the Buffalo Trace Distillery:

• The larger-than-life personalities that over a century and a half made Buffalo Trace Distillery what it is today
• Detailed accounts on how many of the distillery's award-winning and world-famous brands were created
• The impact of world events, including multiple depressions, weather-related events, and major conflicts, on the distillery

Belonging on the shelf of anyone with an interest in American spirits and history, Buffalo, Barrels, & Bourbon is a compelling must-read.