MOONSHINE UNIVERSITY in Louisville, Ky., is a lot like its name: equal parts illicit pleasure and rigorous study. Take a class on bourbon history, and you'll spend some time examining a working still. Sign up for a bourbon making workshop, and you'll not only operate the still, but also mill the grain that goes into it and fire up the cooker where the grain's starches are converted to fermentable sugars. Either way, you'll taste plenty of whiskey, and you'll understand what you're drinking better than you ever could by reading a book or sitting through a lecture.

The...