A few Lexingtonians might not agree but it’s a known fact; man does not live on bourbon alone. Really and truly, the people of Lexington and Greater Bluegrass, enjoy their beer and as with many other parts of the country, they have come to appreciate the well crafted stuff too. There’s good reason Lexington is most closely associated with horses and bourbon, so, if you’re in town, take in a distillery and check out the impressive and handsome confines of Keeneland Race Course but, don’t forget to leave some room for a beer or two.
Dr. Pearce Lyons, and Irishman who set up shop in Lexington with Alltech, his his high end livestock feed company, has also initiated the craft brew movement in the Bluegrass with Kentucky Ale. By aging ale for about a month and a half in some just emptied bourbon barrels, Lyons has created a perfect marriage of the local whiskey and the spirit of the olde sod with Kentucky Bourbon Barrel Ale and it is spirited with an ABV around eight percent. The other offerings of Kentucky Ale and the Kolsh style Kentucky Light are worth a try as well.
Alltech’s Lexington Brewery, located downtown at 401 Cross Street, offers tours and tastings at 3 p.m. Monday through Friday and 1 p.m. on Saturdays. If you like your baseball, they have a taproom at the Houston Astro’s AA affiliate Lexington Legends at Appelbee’s Park for that beer and baseball kind of experience. Also served at Keeneland, the Kentucky Ale pairs nicely with that quintessential Kentucky stew known as burgoo.
For a uniquely Kentucky experience, you can take Old Frankfort Pike out to the small town of Midway and spend some time at the Grey Goose where in addition to Kentucky Ale, they serve Bell’s Two Hearted and Smithwick’s and you can’t help soaking up some authentic Kentucky culture minus the attitude. We highly reccomend the New York Style Pizza too. Just rubbernecking the horse farms, the dry laid stone fences and the serene bluegrass pastures between Midway, Lexington and Versailles are worth the drive.
Lexington has also become a mecca of sorts for its retail beer and spirits outlets. The Beer Trappe at 811 Euclid Avenue has hard to find brews in draught and bottle form and the three Liquor Barns around town offer large square footage access to all kinds of adult beverages with an emphasis on bourbon and beer selections and nice food sections too.
As for Beertown’s favorite Irish Pub we decided on McCarthy’s in Downtown Lexington. Cozy, verging on small when the weekend crowd shows up, just a very Irish feeling place to enjoy a nicely poured Guiness. McCarthy’s is our current favorite Irish watering hole but there are quite a few more scattered around town and we’ve yet to be dissapointed by any of them.