For those arriving later in the day on Thursday, we will be holding an informal gathering in the hotel bar in the evening. This will allow many of us to meet each other for the first time and share a drink.

We’re thrilled to add Buffalo Trace Distillery – home of iconic brands like Blanton’s, Elmer T. Lee and Pappy Van Winkle to our itinerary. At the distillery our group will receive a Hard Hat Tour that will take us behind the scenes of the bourbon making process. We’ll see grain delivery, cookers, fermentation tanks, three column stills and much more. Immediately following our tour we will be treated to a tasting of select Buffalo Trace bourbons. And we may even have a chance to meet master distiller Harlen Wheatley as well. There will also be time for you to visit the Buffalo Trace gift store if you’re looking to add a few more souvenirs to your collection.

Updated!!! – Due to popular demand we’ve added an extra distillery tour to the Pilgrimage Itinerary. For those of you who can arrive early on Thursday we’ll be heading out for an optional tour of Buffalo Trace Distillery. (Note: Tour beings promptly at the distillery at 2 pm until 4 pm. There will be no tour shuttle for this distillery visit. Contact Bourbon & Banter to see if you can hitch a ride with other tour members if needed.)

Update 9/30/12: The Hyatt Regency Louisville is sold out and we no longer have discounted rooms available. Please confirm availability at a nearby hotel if you need a room prior to purchasing your Bourbon & Banter Pilgrimage tour ticket.

Following dinner, we will head out to one of Louisville’s bourbon establishments to continue the banter and enjoy a few more glasses of bourbon. This is optional and open to the public excursion. You never know who might show up from the extended Bourbon & Banter community. As they say, “When in bourbon country…”

Bourbons Bistro is an original member of the Urban Bourbon Trail and is the recipient of numerous awards. Most recently they were awarded the Gold Medal for Whisky Magazine’s “Whisky Bars of the World”. We will enjoy a three-course bourbon-inspired dinner along with a special bourbon tasting put together by our friends at Buffalo Trace. And if you need more bourbon you can always choose from their menu of over 130 bourbons. It’s a dining experience not to be missed. And did we mention that there will be a special guest to lead our tasting and give us the secrets behind what makes Buffalo Trace bourbons so special? That’s right. We’ll be joined by Chris Fletcher, Lead Chemist at Buffalo Trace. I guess you can call him a Bourbon Scientist.

From Wild Turkey, we’ll head back into Louisville for a brief rest at the hotel before meeting back up for an amazing dinner at Bourbon Bistro. (Mint Julep Tours will once again provide us transportation to/from dinner.)

Wild Turkey is the second and final distillery tour of the day. Our personal private tour guide will be none other than Wild Turkey’s Master Distiller, Jimmy Russell. Jimmy is a living bourbon legend. He joined Wild Turkey in 1954 and is the driving force that keeps the tradition alive at Wild Turkey. He is also a director of the Kentucky Distillers Association. Jimmy will also be leading our bourbon tasting following the tour. This is sure to be one of the highlights of our trip.

Next we’ll head over to the historic Holly Hill Inn for a relaxing lunch. Holly Hill Inn was built circa 1845 and will provide our group with the perfect backdrop to enjoy lunch, learn a little bit about the Inn’s history and maybe even try a few unique bourbons.