Like Scotch, Cognac and some other spirits that must meet certain standards as well as be produced in a particular geographical region, Bourbon is a whiskey which is only so named if distilled in the United States. Bourbon is so intrinsically linked to Kentucky, the 'Bluegrass State' that it's easy to think the spirit is exclusively made there. What's more, according to the Kentucky Distillers' Association, 95 per cent of the world's supply comes from Kentucky. The reality is, however, that it can be produced anywhere in America, and new bourbon distillers are cropping up across the country all the time.
To legally be a considered Bourbon, it must be 51 percent corn, stored in new (not aged) charred-oak barrels and distilled no more than 160 proof and barreled at 125 proof. While the standards state that bourbon must be stored in charred oak barrels, there isn't actually a minimum-ageing requirement. However, bourbon which has been aged fewer than four years must have an age statement on its label, and to be defined as 'straight bourbon' it must have been aged for a minimum of two.
This particular whiskey derives its name from the county which was established in 1785 and was a large producer of corn. The corn, once distilled, would be put in barrels and stamped "Old Bourbon" and shipped down the Ohio River.
In 1964, a Congressional Resolution designated Bourbon as America's native spirit. Since then, there is nowhere else in the world that can make a whiskey and call it Bourbon.
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