I'm a fan of good bourbon. Further, I'm a fan of Maker's Mark bourbon, as I visited their distillery a couple of years ago and enjoyed their hospitality. The brief story:
I was moving across country from Seattle to Providence, RI with my father, and friends Carly and Brandon. We had my trusty old Volvo and the bright yellow Penske 16' moving van. Woo hoo! The drive from Seattle to Providence, however, was interrupted by a southern sojourn to the glorious state of Kentucky, in which we sampled Bon Tiki Mini Mart fried chicken (known to be the best in America), the famous Lexington Hot Brown sandwhich, and a distillery tour at Maker's Mark. Unfortunately, when on a tight schedule, one has little time for summer road construction. So when repairs to the Kentucky interstate made us miss the last tour of the day, we were so sad. So sad. And yet, upon hearing of our plight (and our great pilgrimage), we were taken on our own little tour, after hours, gratis. What hospitality! Well, anyway, since then I've had a bit of a soft spot for the ol' Maker's Mark.
Well, I was thinking about Maker's Mark, pilgrimages, and my not-so-secret desire to grow my own bourbon ingreedients some day, I felt compelled to write the following short piece:
A reading from Ryan's Letter to the Kentuckians:
And I did go unto the Makers and make known to them my skill. Unto them, I did say: "Go forth into the land, you men and women,and gather in thine arms the golden wheat and barley of thy fields, discard the chaff, and add to it the wheat that grows red in Winter.
Mark me well when I say unto thee that ye shall add no rye to thine grains, for it is the mark of inferiority and tool of a shoddy craftsman. Instead add these grains, I tell you, to the the cool, sweet spring waters that flow forth, by the grace of Dixie, from the ground in this land. Into a large Vat shall ye pour this Holy elixir. Heat it, I say, slowly, for many days and nights. Drain ye the liquid, and pass it through yon copper tubes and pipes, heated with purifying flame. Visit the cooper, and have made a barrel of such quality, toasted to perfection, and made ready to be filled with thine Spirits. Wait now children, for the Still waters must becalm, for 10 summers. Great patience will be rewarded, I tell you.
If you do this, if you heed my words, and heed them well and true, unto thee shall be delivered the greatest of gifts: a golden ambrosia so Healthful and Right, that all shall know its power, even by scent. You shall call it: Bourbon. See ye this Mark? Affix it to thine vessels, o Makers of Dixie, that all shall know its power. In time, the people of distant lands shall hear, and perchance, even partake of your Bourbon. When they do, they will feel compelled to embark upon a Great Journey, across the mountains, from whence your sweet water flows; across the plains upon which your grains grow. To thine door, shall they Journey. And ye shall welcome them, these weary travelers, with arms and doors flung wide. Unto them shall ye say: 'Behold, road-worn traveler, the Mark of the Makers. Ye have traveled long and well, and thine deliverance is at hand. But take heed: to step through these doors and to partake of the Bourbon is to be transformed. If ye stay with us this night, on the morrow shall ye depart an agent of the Makers, burdened to spread the Gospel of the Bourbon through the land. Aye, cross this threshold and ye shall become an Ambassador.'"
And I did go unto the Makers and make known to them my skill. Unto them, I did say: "Go forth into the land, you men and women,and gather in thine arms the golden wheat and barley of thy fields, discard the chaff, and add to it the wheat that grows red in Winter.
Mark me well when I say unto thee that ye shall add no rye to thine grains, for it is the mark of inferiority and tool of a shoddy craftsman. Instead add these grains, I tell you, to the the cool, sweet spring waters that flow forth, by the grace of Dixie, from the ground in this land. Into a large Vat shall ye pour this Holy elixir. Heat it, I say, slowly, for many days and nights. Drain ye the liquid, and pass it through yon copper tubes and pipes, heated with purifying flame. Visit the cooper, and have made a barrel of such quality, toasted to perfection, and made ready to be filled with thine Spirits. Wait now children, for the Still waters must becalm, for 10 summers. Great patience will be rewarded, I tell you.
If you do this, if you heed my words, and heed them well and true, unto thee shall be delivered the greatest of gifts: a golden ambrosia so Healthful and Right, that all shall know its power, even by scent. You shall call it: Bourbon. See ye this Mark? Affix it to thine vessels, o Makers of Dixie, that all shall know its power. In time, the people of distant lands shall hear, and perchance, even partake of your Bourbon. When they do, they will feel compelled to embark upon a Great Journey, across the mountains, from whence your sweet water flows; across the plains upon which your grains grow. To thine door, shall they Journey. And ye shall welcome them, these weary travelers, with arms and doors flung wide. Unto them shall ye say: 'Behold, road-worn traveler, the Mark of the Makers. Ye have traveled long and well, and thine deliverance is at hand. But take heed: to step through these doors and to partake of the Bourbon is to be transformed. If ye stay with us this night, on the morrow shall ye depart an agent of the Makers, burdened to spread the Gospel of the Bourbon through the land. Aye, cross this threshold and ye shall become an Ambassador.'"
And the Makers made the Bourbon, affixed their mark to the vessels, welcomed the travelers, and spread the Good News of the Bourbon far and wide. And it is good.
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