Float through bourbon country
Attractions overflowing on Kentucky river cruise
I have just returned from an eight-day bender. Before you get the wrong idea, let me hasten to add it was an eight-day bender in the form of a bourbon-themed cruise aboard the American Countess riverboat.
I was a passenger on the sleek paddlewheeler, which has a capacity of
245 people. Departing from Louisville, Kentucky, and destined for St. Louis, Missouri, we cruised both the Ohio and Mississippi rivers, both of which boasted plenty of attractions.
But as remarkable as those places are, my primary reason for hopping aboard was the bourbon. Louisville-based bourbon historian Michael Veach was there for the same reason. Dickie Brennan, owner of Dickie Brennan’s Bourbon House Restaurant in New Orleans and friend to Kentucky’s distilling industry, was also there. So was Regina Charboneau, American Queen’s culinary ambassador, who I first met during her days as chef at Monmouth Plantation in Natchez, Mississippi.
Bourbon with a twist of history
Bourbon was the star of this cruise. From the complimentary cocktail in my room the first night to the final Boulevardier (made of bourbon, Campari and sweet vermouth) cocktail in St. Louis, this was destined to be a week of indulging in Kentucky’s favorite elixir.
If you simply wanted to sip, the American Countess’ resourceful bartenders came up with a bourbon drink of the day for passengers to enjoy in the Grand Lounge.
If it was Wednesday, it was Brandenburg and a Peach Smash (a concoction of bourbon, peach, brown sugar simple syrup,
ginger beer and mint); if it was Thursday, it was Owensboro and the Due South (bourbon, pecan bitters, orange bitters and Southern Amaro); Friday featured Henderson and bourbon coffee punch (bourbon, milk, heavy cream, coffee liqueur, dark rum, espresso, vanilla and sugar). You get the picture.
However, if you wanted to learn something about the bourbon itself and the bourbon country you were
floating through, Veach was there to help. During the cruise, he gave three lectures on the eye-opening history of bourbon.
Tastings, cooking demos
Emulating Dr. James Crow, the namesake of
Old Crow bourbon, Veach offered tastings of favorites like Wild Turkey 101, Angel’s Envy, Old Forester and George Dickel No. 12.
On another day, culinary ambassador Charboneau
and Brennan invited passengers to a “Biscuits and Bourbon” cooking demo. Brennan mixed us one of his concoctions, while Charboneau, once affectionately dubbed “the Biscuit Queen of Natchez,” demonstrated how to make the perfect biscuit.
Charboneau also offered signed copies of her collection of recipes, “Mississippi Currents: A Culinary Journey Down America’s Greatest River.”
In her role as culinary ambassador for the American Queen line, Charboneau plans to introduce some of those recipes to the riverboat menus.
In between the lectures and demos, there was time for lighthearted fun in the form of bourbon trivia and other games.
Excursions to distilleries, restaurants
Several opportunities for bourbon tastings were available onshore as well. In Owensboro, I opted for a tasting at Green River Distilling Co., which dates back to 1885, making it one of the oldest distilleries in the state.
I was not familiar with Green River prior to this visit, but the distillery, now owned by Bardstown Bourbon Company, calls itself “the Western Gateway to the Bourbon Trail.”
We also made a postdistillery stop to Old Hickory Barbecue. Owensboro lays claim to the role of Barbecue Capital of Kentucky, and the brisket and creamy banana pudding make Old Hickory a must-taste destination.
In Henderson, I had what turned out to be my favorite bourbon experience, at Hometown
Roots Restaurant, which describes its cuisine as Southern comfort food.
Our group started with a deviled egg duo accompanied by a Peerless rye; followed by pimento cheese fritters and red pepper-bacon marmalade, whose spiciness was accentuated by a Woodford Reserve bourbon; and finally, roasted Brussels sprouts with country ham and jalapeño cornbread paired with a wheated bourbon from Green River.
At the tasting, I learned that Peerless, now distilled in Louisville, got its start in Henderson in 1889, and that the first distillery in the western Kentucky city since Peerless left will open this year.
Popularity of liquor driving cruises
If this sounds like a lot of bourbon for one boat, it’s because the demand for such expeditions is big. Cruisers included a gentleman from North Carolina’s Outer Banks who made a fully stocked bourbon bar in his laundry room, and the lady whose T-shirt read, “Some women are made of sugar and spice; others are made of bourbon and ice.” Both said they chose this cruise specifically for its theme.
That statement was not lost on Cindy D’Aoust, former president of the American Queen line.
“Bourbon was a seamless fit and a natural highlight for this region,” D’Aoust said. “Kentucky’s many distilleries offer no shortage of ways we may be able to expand this specialty offering as we look to recreate the voyage in coming years.”