The world's best bourbon: Pappy van Winkle

Southerners drink bourbon like the French drink wine: with pride and abandon. But how much does the average whiskey drinker know about America's liquid gift to the world? We gave you the rundown on bourbon in our February issue, but here are a few more facts to keep you well-stocked with Kentuckian anecdotes.

Bourbon, Defined

You can produce bourbon anywhere in the 50 states, but it must be made from at least 51 percent corn and aged in charred new white oak barrels. In the late 1800s, there were hundreds of distilleries in Kentucky. Now, ten major distilleries produce hundreds of brands.

How George Washington Helped Invent Bourbon

In 1789, frontier farmers violently rebelled against their new American government for trying to tax their whiskey (which they used as currency and bank for surplus crops. They also drank it, obvs). George Washington rode at the head of an army out west to quash the rebellion. He succeeded (as he was wont to do), and some of the disgruntled distillers fled further west, to Kentucky, where they'd go on to invent the bourbon we know and love.

We'd Like to Buy That Guy a Drink

That being said, no one knows who exactly invented bourbon. Elijah Craig, a Baptist preacher and distiller, sometimes gets credit. Not true. What we do know is that barrels marked "bourbon" were sent from Limestone in Kentucky (then located in Bourbon County) to New Orleans. Soon people began requesting "the whiskey from bourbon."

Aged On The River

Faced with the choice of hauling barrels of whiskey over the Appalachians to sell east, or rafting the suckers down to New Orleans, Kentuckians wisely chose the river route. Still, though, the trip from the still to the city could take up to 9 months, which let the white whiskey sit for a bit. Sophisticated New Orleanians, with a taste already for French brandy, paid more for the mellower booze, so smart Kentuckians started letting it sit before sending it to market.

Mayflower Firewater

But before whiskey production made its way to Kentucky, most American whiskey was drunk fresh from the still--with enough kick to blow your deerskin slacks off. Think more moonshine than fine sipping liquor.

White Hot

Speaking of which, white whiskey, basically legal moonshine, is riding the bourbon wave. Usually high proof, it's what whiskey looks and tastes like before it goes into barrels for aging. Like most bartenders, we recommend mixing it into cocktails instead of sipping it straight.