I'll Drink to That

by Sophisticated Living contributor Bridget Cottrell in the March/April 2025 issue

In a 2009 feature story for Sophisticated Living, Dr. Matthew Bessen wrote: “Jason Brauner, Louisville restaurateur and co-founder of Bourbons Bistro, traces his affection for the renowned Kentucky distillate back to times with stouthearted comrades and boyhood companions. The environs at Bourbons Bistro are unambiguously manly. Decorative flourishes adorning the interior of its simple 19th-century building include wooden lids from bourbon barrels posted beneath the ceiling like bold medallions saluting the major leagues of distilling. Dark frames enclose black and white historic photographs, procured with the aid of the University of Louisville archives and the Filson Historical Society, which depict the processes of bourbon distilling, the laborers, the revenue men and some of the industry’s founding fathers. The unique bar, constructed from barrel staves, was assembled by Brauner himself and stands in front of a galaxy of assorted bottles covering the space like a mural.”

Read the entire article here.