Book Review: Kentucky Bourbon: The Early History...
Posted: Wed Oct 27, 2004 6:59 pm
Kentucky Bourbon: The Early Years of Whiskeymaking, by Henry G. Crowgey. Lexington, Ky.: The University Press of Kentucky, 1971. Contents, Introduction, Bibliography, Index, Illustrated, Pp.172.
Crowgey wrote his Doctorial Thesis at the University of Kentucky on the early distillers and distilleries of Kentucky. This book is the shortened version of that thesis. It is a scholarly work with footnotes and a bibliography but it is also very readable. Crowgey has done a wonderful job of making the history of this Kentucky industry interesting. At the same time he tackles some of the myths that are associated with the industry.
Kentucky Bourbon looks at the growth of the distilling industry until about 1820. It is well researched with many primary sources and newspapers contributing to his knowledge. He discusses the earlist distillers in the east in Pennsylvania and Maryland and the migration into Kentucky. He discusses the improvements in the product and the whiskey rebellion. He looks to the origin of "Bourbon" and whether Elijah Craig really created it.
Using newspapers he looks for advertisements that first use the term "Bourbon whiskey" for sale. The first known advertisement he found was 1821. This is long after the claim of bourbon being created 1789 by Elijah Craig. He then procedes with his arguments as to why Craig did not "create" bourbon whiskey. He then looks at the first distiller in Kentucky question and declares that as unknowable due the lack of records with probably a dozen candidates of equal merit to the claim.
The book has some black and white photographs in the book, but not many and they were placed as if an afterthought to the text. Even so this book is a must have to any good bourbon library. It gives good solid history with footnotes.
Mike Veach
Crowgey wrote his Doctorial Thesis at the University of Kentucky on the early distillers and distilleries of Kentucky. This book is the shortened version of that thesis. It is a scholarly work with footnotes and a bibliography but it is also very readable. Crowgey has done a wonderful job of making the history of this Kentucky industry interesting. At the same time he tackles some of the myths that are associated with the industry.
Kentucky Bourbon looks at the growth of the distilling industry until about 1820. It is well researched with many primary sources and newspapers contributing to his knowledge. He discusses the earlist distillers in the east in Pennsylvania and Maryland and the migration into Kentucky. He discusses the improvements in the product and the whiskey rebellion. He looks to the origin of "Bourbon" and whether Elijah Craig really created it.
Using newspapers he looks for advertisements that first use the term "Bourbon whiskey" for sale. The first known advertisement he found was 1821. This is long after the claim of bourbon being created 1789 by Elijah Craig. He then procedes with his arguments as to why Craig did not "create" bourbon whiskey. He then looks at the first distiller in Kentucky question and declares that as unknowable due the lack of records with probably a dozen candidates of equal merit to the claim.
The book has some black and white photographs in the book, but not many and they were placed as if an afterthought to the text. Even so this book is a must have to any good bourbon library. It gives good solid history with footnotes.
Mike Veach