The Wine/Beer/Spirits Shelf

Making Bourbon
Karl Raitz
The University Press of Kentucky
663 South Limestone Street, Lexington, KY 40508-4008
www.kentuckypress.com
9780813197012, $40.00, PB, 656pp

https://www.amazon.com/Making-Bourbon-Geographical-Distilling-Nineteenth-Ce= ntury/dp/0813197015

Synopsis: While other industries chase after the new and improved, dedicate=
d bourbon makers celebrate traditions that hearken back to an authentic fro= ntier craft. Distillers enshrine local history in their branding and time-t= ested recipes, and rightfully so. Kentucky's unique geography shaped the wh= iskeys its settlers produced, and for more than two centuries, distilling b= ourbon fundamentally altered every aspect of Kentucky's landscape and cultu= re.

With the publication of "Making Bourbon: A Geographical History of Distilli=
ng in Nineteenth-Century Kentucky", Professor Karl Raitz illuminates how th=
e specific geography, culture, and ecology of the Bluegrass converged and g= ave birth to Kentucky's favorite barrel-aged whiskey.

Expanding on his fall 2019 release "Bourbon's Backroads", with the publicat= ion of "Making Bourbon: A Geographical History of Distilling in Nineteenth-= Century Kentucky", Professor Raitz delivers a more nuanced discussion of bo= urbon's evolution by contrasting the fates of two distilleries in Scott and=
Nelson Counties. In the nineteenth century, distilling changed from an art= isanal craft practiced by farmers and millers to a large-scale mechanized i= ndustry. The resulting infrastructure (farms, mills, turnpikes, railroads, = steamboats, lumberyards, and cooperage shops) left its permanent mark on th=
e land and traditions of the commonwealth. Today, multinational brands emph= asize and even construct this local heritage.

"Making Bourbon: A Geographical History of Distilling in Nineteenth-Century=
Kentucky" is a unique interdisciplinary study that deftly uncovers the com= plex history poured into every glass of bourbon.

Critique: Informed and informative, comprehensive and detailed, and an abso= lute 'must read' choice for the legions of dedicated Kentucky bourbon enthu= siasts, "Making Bourbon: A Geographical History of Distilling in Nineteenth= -Century Kentucky" is a significant and comprehensive history that is unres= ervedly recommended for personal, professional, community, college, and uni= versity library collections. Originally published in hardcover (University = Press of Kentucky, 2020), this new paperback edition is also readily availa= ble in a digital book format (Kindle, $11.99).

Editorial Note: Karl Raitz (https://geography.as.uky.edu/users/gegraitz) is=
Professor Emeritus of Geography at the University of Kentucky and the auth=
or of :Bourbon's Backroads: A Journey through Kentucky's Distilling Landsca= pe". He is also co-editor of "The Great Valley Road of Virginia: Shenandoah=
Landscapes from Prehistory to the Present" and co-author of "Rock Fences o=
f the Bluegrass".

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