Kentucky Bourbon Balls | Rolling down the Not-Just- Bourbon Trail
Why on earth would anyone who barely drinks (such as myself) venture out on the Bourbon trail? Because as it turns out, there's way more to this 200 mile trail than visiting one distillery after another.
Last Fall, Hansom hubby and I made a long weekend trip to Louisville, Kentucky and then drove down the Bourbon trail into Lexington for a day. We'd struck a deal. We'd visit a couple of distilleries in the area (he's happy) and then spend some time checking out horse-related highlights (I'm happy) along the way, given Kentucky's close association with raising and racing Thoroughbreds.
Happy to report that we both came away winners. His spoils included a couple of special bottles of bourbon sourced from distilleries on his list. And I came back with some small winnings (winnings nonetheless, however meager they may be) from our day at the races at Keeneland. Plus, after visiting a horse breeding farm, a little larger vocabulary on horses than before I left and the recipe for Bourbon Balls, a classic Southern delicacy. Sweet!!
 |
| My Bourbon Balls made with chopped pecans, bourbon and powdered sugar. Then dipped in dark chocolate and dusted with sparkling sugar and nuts. |
My no-bake recipe for Bourbon Balls follows at the end of this post. I made them for Christmas. So easy! And, since I was so taken up with the races, I just might have a Kentucky Derby Day party in May, hats and all. These Bourbon Balls will definitely place on the list.
But first, I'm sharing my one day itinerary for an enjoyable day out on the Bourbon trail.
My 1 Day Itinerary on the Not-Just- Bourbon Trail (October 2024)
 |
| Driving west from St. Matthews/ Louisville toward Lexington and to Paris. Approximately a 3.5 hour driving loop. |
Morning:
- Take the Kentucky Scenic Byway from Louisville to Paris- 1.5 hour drive
- Visit Runnymede Horse Breeding Farms, Paris, KY
Afternoon:
- Go to the races at Keeneland, Lexington, KY
- Drive the scenic route to Woodford Reserve Distillery
- Also stop at Castle and Key Distillery
Evening:
- Dinner at W.W. Cousins
- Halloween Walk on Hillcrest in Louisville
1. Kentucky Scenic Byway to Runnymede Horse Farms, Paris, KY
We based ourselves in St. Matthews, just east of Louisville, which made the drive to Bourbon County towards Lexington a tad bit shorter. I'd highly recommend taking the Kentucky Scenic byway for a lazy drive on a beautiful country road, covered with shaded trees and dotted with stone fences. Horse farms with their distinct fences dot this charming Southern landscape.
We set off early and thoroughly enjoyed every moment of the journey to our destination, Runnymede Horse Farms in Paris, KY. Extensive and sprawling, I was in awe at the tranquility that prevailed on this horse breeding facility.
 |
| Walking through Runnymede Horse Fam in the morning. So tranquil! |
Our guide at Runnymede took us through both pastures and stables, including the horse graveyard, educating us on what Thoroughbred horse breeding is all about and what it takes to produce winners.
Soon my head was swimming with all these new terms- a stallion is commonly called a sire (the father) and the mother mare, called a dam. A horse is bred where it is foaled (born). Colts or foals are called yearlings after a year and geldings are males that are castrated to make them behave better. Who knew!
 |
| Yearlings walking up to meet us at the fence. They love the peppermints that we offer them. |
There are only females at Runnymede and they travel to the stallion's farm to do the deed while being carefully watched and recorded by the breeders to make sure the right sire inseminates the right dam. No artificial insemination at Runnymede. Just the old fashioned way.
If all the stars line up, the dam will produce a foal that turns out to be a Thoroughbred horse racing winner. There's huge money in breeding and many of Runnymede's horses have been auctioned to international owners including Sheikh Mohammed.
Horse Races at Keeneland, Lexington
After our 90 minute tour through Runnymede, we stopped for a quick lunch at KFC! How could we not? When in Kentucky, it's a must to dine with Colonel Sanders. Then, a quick wardrobe change from farm wear to race wear. We were off to the races at Keeneland!
 |
| And they're off! |
It was a magical experience. We arrived in time for the first race at 1PM. A betologist (another new term that I learned!) gave us a brief introduction to the world of racing and helped us place our bets. Between taking in all the beautiful people dressed to the tee, experiencing the exhilaration that horse racing brings, enjoying Southern mint juleps and traditional Bourbon bread pudding, we came away invigorated, culturally richer and so pleased to have gotten to experience something that might be just another weekend for the locals, but a real special one for us.
Read more about my experience at Keeneland and my recipe for Bourbon Bread pudding.
Visiting Bourbon Distilleries
Woodford Reserve
After spending a couple of hours at Keeneland, we decided to make our way to Woodford Reserve in the late afternoon, taking the scenic way. Such a beautiful drive!
We didn't take a tour but took a look at the grounds and stopped in at their beautiful store.
 |
| At Woodford Reserve Distillery facing the rickhouses where the Bourbon barrels are aged. |
Castle and Key
We continued our lovely drive along a winding country road, meandering through the hills until we reached Castle and Key located in the historic Old Taylor Distillery dating back to 1887. The property is absolutely gorgeous with beautiful gardens set along the river from which the limestone-filtered spring water, which is rich in calcium in magnesium is drawn to make bourbon. It's this water that's key to the flavor and aroma of bourbon.
 |
| The 'key' on the Castle and Key property that holds the special limestone filtered water that gives Bourbon its special flavor. |
As the sun dipped below the horizon, we headed back west toward St. Matthew stopping at W. W. Cousins for Louisville's famous butter burgers. They were selected as Kentucky's Best Hamburger by Food Network Magazine.
And we ended our night with a spooky stroll on Louisville's Halloween street- Hillcrest on Halloween- where the houses were decorated with ghosts and ghouls and skeletons galore.
The house with the ghost of Secretariat racing past their front door and other deceased Derby winners buried in their lawn was my favorite. What a great way to end the day!
Kentucky Bourbon Balls Recipe
Apart from a new found vocabulary in equine breeding, I returned home with a taste for Kentucky Bourbon Balls. Here's the recipe.
Recipe from Taste of Home Test Kitchen
Ingredients:
☐ 1 1/4 cup finely chopped pecans, divided
☐ 1/4 cup bourbon
☐ 1/2 cup butter, softened
☐ 3 3/4 cup powdered sugar
☐ 1 lb. dark chocolate candy coating
Step-by-Step Instructions:
- Combine chopped pecans and bourbon. Let it stand overnight.
- Cream butter and sugar together until crumbly. Mix in pecan mixture and refrigerate until firm enough to shape into balls.
- Roll into small balls. Refrigerate until firm.
- Melt the dark chocolate. Then, using a toothpick dip each of the balls into the coating allowing excess to drip off. Place on wax paper. Sprinkle with a topping of finely chopped pecans and sparkling sugar. Allow chocolate to harden.