Whisky · Region · Short entry
Kentucky
The US state where most bourbon is made and aged, although US law allows bourbon to be made anywhere in the United States.
Character
Bourbon and rye whiskey matured in charred new oak barrels.
Bourbon country
According to the Kentucky Distillers' Association's 2026 report, 17.1 million barrels of spirits were ageing in Kentucky, 16.1 million of them bourbon; the state had 125 distilling locations run by 104 companies in 45 of its 120 counties, and produced 27% of US spirits. These are the industry body's own figures.
Federal law does not tie bourbon to Kentucky. The standard of identity reserves the word for whisky distilled and aged in the United States.
How it connects
Style
- related Bourbon whiskey
- related Rye whisky (United States)
Continue exploring
- CountryUnited States of America33 entries in the atlas so far
- StyleBourbon whiskeyLegal category
- StyleRye whisky (United States)Legal category
- StoryCereals: the grasses that fed the worldTurkey
- MethodCask maturationMaturation
- HistoryCongress declares bourbon a distinctive product of the United States4 May 1964
- HistoryUS Prohibition1920-1933
- StyleCanadian whiskyLegal category
- StyleTennessee whiskeyLegal category