FRANKFORT, Ky. (AP) — Kentucky distilleries are reporting another record year for bourbon tourism in the state that produces most of the world's bourbon.
The Kentucky Distillers' Association says tourists made a record 1.4 million stops at distilleries along the Kentucky Bourbon Trail and Kentucky Bourbon Trail Craft Tour in 2018. KDA says that represents a 370 percent increase in the past decade.
KDA says the Kentucky Bourbon Trail logged 1 million visits for the first time since its creation in 1999. It says the Kentucky Bourbon Trail Craft Tour — which includes smaller distilleries — tallied 340,000 distillery stops, the most since its founding in 2012.
A bill aimed at bourbon tourism has been introduced in the Kentucky legislature. The measure would allow distilleries to sell exclusive bottles in their gift shops.
