On The Road At Louisville’s Haymarket

By Randall H. Borkus

A narrow late 19th Century building at 331 E. Market St in Louisville, Kentucky’s NuLu district hosts the appropriately named Haymarket Whiskey Bar. Part of that is how the bar is a stone’s throw from downtown’s historic Whiskey Row. The other part is the bar being within sight of the almost as historic Haymarket, an outdoor farmer’s market established in the wake of the Civil War days. The market occupied the blocks between Market, Liberty, Floyd and Brook streets, on the site of the city’s first rail station. Despite the name, the Haymarket merchants did not actually sell hay.

During the 1920s the building was occupied by S. Goodman and Sons Company, for four generations Kentucky’s premiere dealer in medicinal plants such as ginseng and goldenrod. Sometime after the beginning of the turn of the 21st Century, the Goodman family vacated the premises as business dwindled. After sitting vacant for several years, 331 E. Market sported a new tenant when Derby City Espresso opened on April 1, 2007. Originally an artsy coffee shop, it later added a craft beer selection and began promoting local musicians.  In January 2012, the owner of Derby City Espresso closed and reinvented the space into Louisville’s only “punk rock bourbon bar,” the Haymarket.

Frequently acclaimed as one of the best bourbon bars in the country, Haymarket boasts one of the largest whiskey collections in Louisville, and is a fixture of the Urban Bourbon Trail.

I was in Louisville with my business partner, Jim Collins, and we found ourselves with a free night following an interesting dinner at the local brewery “Against the Grain,” where we consumed a full slab of dry rub ribs and pork belly popsicles.  Yes, half-inch thick, six inches in length of deep fried bacon on a stick!  After that dinner, we headed to Haymarket Whiskey Bar.

At Haymarket Whiskey Bar we were greeted by Chris Maggio, bartender extraordinaire who stood ready to pour the treasured Kentucky juice we sought after.  When I looked through the whiskey menu I was temporarily consumed with 15 pages of choices.  I studied and studied the choices and finally looked up at Chris and asked, “What do you recommend?”

Chris’ first recommendation was Old Bardstown 100 proof.  It drinks hot, but surprises the senses with a slap of sweet caramel and wood spice. Next up we enjoyed a pour of Elijah Craig 23 Year Old. It’s an all-time favorite of my business partner Jim’s, while for me the EC23 is like inviting a saw mill to dance in your mouth, rich with tannins and heavy oak spice.

After a cigar break, I returned to a solid pour of William Larue Weller, a personal ambrosia with a few drops of water. The ultra-flavorful nose surprised me with a hint of burnt sugars.  The mouth feel is syrupy and warm up front.  The flavors immediately transform into a potpourri of caramel, vanilla, baking spices, tobacco, and mature oak; everything folding into an enjoyably long finish with heavy oak flavor dancing in my mouth.

Haymarket Whiskey Bar has over 300 whiskeys and about 70 beers to choose from as well. They regularly stock tightly allocated bourbons, and have a wide range of ounce and one half pours ranging from $5 to $200 a each. The bartenders pride themselves at maintaining a high level of whiskey knowledge relative the bottles on the shelf. You may find the Weller family, Elijah Craig 18, 20, 21, 23, Parkers Heritage Collection, multiple Four Roses LEs (Yummy), the Buffalo Trace Antique Collection, the Van Winkle selections and oldies such as Mount Vernon BIB, National Distillers Old Grand Dad, Stitzel-Weller Fitzgerald, etc. If you’re not fond of whiskey, visit for the beer and the ’80s memorabilia, Star Wars posters, old pinball machines, and a lighted green glass bar.