Thursday, October 15Kentucky culture, out loudLouisville · Lexington · the hollers in between
The Kentucky Guide

A field guide to Kentucky culture

Kentucky packs a lot of culture into one state. Here is the quick version: the sounds, the horses, the barrels, the plates and the places worth the drive.

The numbers
1875The year the first Kentucky Derby was run at Churchill Downs
95%Roughly the share of the world’s bourbon made in Kentucky
120Counties, from the Big Sandy to the Mississippi
400+Miles of mapped passages at Mammoth Cave, the longest known cave system on Earth
1939Bill Monroe forms the Blue Grass Boys and a genre gets its name
2 minThe most exciting two minutes in sports, every first Saturday in May
01

The sound of bluegrass

Bluegrass music takes its name from Bill Monroe and his Blue Grass Boys, the band that turned mountain string music into something faster, tighter and harder to sit still through.

Today the sound lives everywhere from back-porch jams to big festival stages, and Kentucky still claims it as its own.

  • FiddleThe lead voice of old-time music
  • BanjoThree-finger picking, Scruggs style
  • MandolinMonroe’s instrument of choice
02

Horse country

The rolling pasture around Lexington is some of the most famous horse land in the world, dotted with stone fences, black barns and thoroughbred farms.

Spring and fall race meets draw crowds from everywhere, and the first Saturday in May belongs to the Derby.

  • FurlongAn eighth of a mile
  • 1 1/4 miThe Kentucky Derby distance
  • Spring & fallKeeneland’s race meets
03

Bourbon & barrels

Bourbon must be made in the United States, from a mash of at least 51 percent corn, and aged in new charred oak containers. Kentucky’s limestone-filtered water and big seasonal swings in temperature are a big part of the story.

Distillery visits, rickhouse tours and tasting rooms have turned the bourbon country of central Kentucky into a destination of its own.

  • 51%Minimum corn in the mash
  • New oakCharred barrels, used once for bourbon
  • LimestoneWater filtered through the bedrock
04

At the table

Kentucky cooking runs from country ham and biscuits to the Hot Brown, the open-faced turkey sandwich born at a Louisville hotel in the 1920s.

Add burgoo, beer cheese, spoonbread and a slice of chess pie, and you have a menu worth the trip.

  • Hot BrownLouisville, 1920s
  • BurgooA slow-cooked stew for a crowd
  • Beer cheeseA spicy spread with Kentucky roots
05

Made by hand

Quilts, baskets, pottery and woodwork carry on long traditions, especially in the Appalachian east, where craft fairs and folk schools keep the skills alive.

In the cities, galleries, theaters and music halls bring a modern edge to the same creative spirit.

  • QuiltsPatterns passed down for generations
  • AppalachiaHome to deep craft traditions
  • GalleriesFrom Paducah to Pikeville
Straight from the source

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