Can a Strong Drink Revive a City?
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Does bourbon have the strength to reinvigorate a whole city? And is it really wise to seek answers at the bottom of a barrel?
Kentucky produces 95 percent of the world\\u2019s bourbon and its history is richly steeped in the drink. But now its largest city, Louisville, has decided the future should rest on it too.
Could \\u2018bourbonism\\u2019 revive the city? According to Louisville's mayor, tourism based on the amber liquor is \\u2018shooting through the roof\\u2019. But, for many, alcohol is a gateway into other forms of addiction, and Kentucky is already facing a drugs epidemic. Alcohol-induced death rates in Louisville are higher than state and national figures.
In this episode, journalist Phil Reevell explores the emergence of \\u2018bourbonism\\u2019 through the city\\u2019s food and music scene. He joins the \\u2018bourbon trail\\u2019 which attracted 1.4 million people last year.
As the coal industry has turned to dust, large areas of the city have been deindustrialised, but Phil finds there are plans for the construction of more than 20 hotels, and that some tourists will pay hundreds of dollars for a bottle - or more.
(Photo: Giant bourbon bottle looms over cityscape of Louisville, Kentucky. Credit: Getty Images).
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