Bourbon and wine: together? Yes. The collaboration is officially coming to the Bardstown Bourbon Company this spring, as the company continues to grow and diversify its brands. At an invite-only preview on Friday, Feb. 8, guests got a special sneak peek and celebrated another accomplishment of the company’s newest and second collaboration with wine, Phifer Pavitt Reserve, a 9-year-old Tennessee straight bourbon whiskey finished for 19 months in Phifer Pavitt cabernet sauvignon barrels from Napa Valley.
Phifer Pavitt Wine founder Suzanne Phifer Pavitt is one of the most respected vintners in Napa Valley, as she is known for creating big, bold wines from grapes that are organically and sustainably farmed. Phifer Pavitt said, “You have to be incredibly passionate and patient to make good wine.”
Employees at Phifer Pavitt Wine hand sort every berry and de-stem them before putting them in a fermentation tank. Wines are held in French oak barrels for a minimum of three years before being released. Phifer Pavitt said it was key for her to represent the best of what wine could be, stressing the importance of clean, sterile equipment and adding that it is best not to add sugars, additives or artificial color to manipulate or intervene in the process. Phifer Pavitt described her wines as rich, velvety and succulent, with “love in every drop.”
Having been raised in rural Georgia, Phifer Pavitt considers herself “a country girl through and through.” She and David Mandell, Bardstown Bourbon Company President and CEO, met almost three years ago through a mutual friend and Bardstown Bourbon Company board member in Nashville who was tasting Phifer Pavitt’s wine at an event. Phifer Pavitt said she had been interested in getting into the bourbon boom for a while because she considers bourbon one of the best spirits. The collaboration between the two is unique and meticulously planned: the used wine barrels are bunged, wrapped and placed in a cold, refrigerated truck, then transported across the country from Napa to the Bardstown Bourbon Company. Upon arrival, they are immediately filled with the bourbon and aged for at the top of a rickhouse.
Mandell describes the company’s newest collaboration as “two great teams with Southern roots and wonderful people to create a unique and exceptional product.” Mandell said Phifer Pavitt worked directly with Steve Nally, master distiller; Daniel Callaway, director of beverage operations & bourbon education; and John Hargrove, executive director of distillation operations, to make the collaboration a reality.
The collaboration is trailblazing the industry as the first Napa Valley-style destination on the Kentucky Bourbon Trail to combine distilling, culinary and beverage expertise to create a modern and authentic bourbon experience.
Invited guests from Friday morning’s event were later treated to a formal dinner Friday night, as were friends of Phifer Pavitt who had traveled from California. The four-course dinner consisted of food from Bottle and Bond, Bardstown Bourbon Company’s onsite full-service restaurant, paired with wines from Phifer Pavitt and the 9-year-old Tennessee straight bourbon whiskey used in the collaboration.
Guests also were treated to The Moxie, a cocktail consisting of Phifer Pavitt Reserve Straight Bourbon Whiskey, fresh lemon juice, simple syrup and Phifer Pavitt Date Night Cabernet Sauvignon. The specialty drink will be available this spring at Bottle and Bond. Phifer Pavitt Reserve will be available to the public first at Bardstown Bourbon Company in late March or early April. A bottle will retail for $124.99.
Bardstown Bourbon Company’s mission statement is: a celebration of the art of making bourbon and the community responsible for bringing it to the world. The company prides itself on their motto of no secrets, no hidden recipes, no mythical stories or embellished legends. Bardstown Bourbon Company is set on 100 acres of active farmland at 1500 Parkway Drive in the Bourbon Capital of the World. For more information, visit bardstownbourbon.com.