Photo by Sarah Hoskins
Matt Preston, Lexington Bourbon Society
Bourbon Society founder Matt Preston has been organizing bourbon-themed events for nearly a decade. He started the Lexington Bourbon Society with his wife Laurie in 2013.
When I had the opportunity to interview Matt Preston, co-founder and president of the Lexington Bourbon Society, I knew I couldn’t do it over coffee. So instead, we met at the Chevy Chase Inn to have our conversation over some bourbon.
When Preston arrived, he scanned the bar and ordered us Old Fitzgerald – his on the rocks, mine neat. I noted that of all of the offerings, he had picked an unpretentious brand that’s a great value for money – an embodiment of the laid-back and unostentatious vibe he has curated for his local bourbon-themed social club.
A Lexington native, Preston and his wife, Laurie, founded the Lexington Bourbon Society in 2013, but the couple started hosting organized tastings well before that. Preston recalled a bourbon tasting date night he and his wife organized in 2007 – he bought a bunch of airplane bottles, and the two of them took turns pouring blindly for each other and taking notes.
“That was an expensive date night, and it was too much to taste in one setting – I think we tasted eight different pours,” he said. “We fried our palettes. But it was fun to do.”
The Prestons soon took their personal bourbon tastings up a notch by inviting friends to join the fun. On fall Saturdays when the University of Kentucky didn’t have a home football game, they would invite friends and friends of friends over to their house early for a bourbon-themed field day.
“We’d have Bloody Marys; Laurie would make quiche. We’d go to a distillery, tour a distillery, come back to our house, and I would have smoked a pork shoulder or some type of barbecue,” Preston recalls, adding that the distillery field trips would be followed by “late afternoon, early dinner sipping through the expressions that came from that distillery.” The evening conversations would revolve around what was learned at the distilleries or what was learned from the tastings.
The events grew quickly with more and more friends wanting to attend – Preston recalls that they started filling vans, with more cars following, on the outings. The growth compounded across a few years, with the events becoming more frequent and more elaborate, evolving into partnerships with local restaurants and bars. Eventually, Preston gave the events a more honed-in focus: raising money for various charities.
After the success of several fundraiser events with no slowdown in the growth, by 2013 it became obvious the group was here to stay and needed to get organized and become official. Members volunteered to form the founding board and Preston applied for a 501(c)7, the designation for a “social club,” which gave the group the flexibility to raise money for any charities they choose. As serious as the group is about bourbon, it is equally as serious about community.
“We’re a social group that likes to use the history of bourbon, Kentucky and our country to get together but also to raise money for charities,” Preston explained. Today, the Lexington Bourbon Society has more than 100 members, hosting regular “Social Sipper” gatherings, educational events, cocktail tastings and charity fundraisers throughout the year – the group has raised money for Big Brothers Big Sisters, the American Heart Association, Bluegrass Conservancy, God’s Pantry Food Bank, Hospice of the Bluegrass and many other charities.
Aside from being 21 or older, there are no requirements to join the Lexington Bourbon Society. The $100 annual dues offer members a bevy of benefits – in addition to an open invitation to LBS events and a Lexington Bourbon Society engraved Glencairn bourbon glass, members also receive an LBS card that provides discounts for many distillery tours and at local restaurants. Another notable membership perk is a spot on the list to participate in a “barrel pick” – a holy grail experience for the bourbon enthusiast which often has long waiting lists.
According to Preston, many members are in the society for the group experiences even mores than for the bourbon itself. He added that among the members are people who are new to “America’s Native Spirit,” as well as some who have had “less than favorable” previous experiences with bourbon.
“We’re not fussy; we’re not uppity,” he added. “We’re a group of like-minded people that have a penchant for bourbon and a desire to use its heritage and deliciousness to benefit our community.”
For information on joining the Lexington Bourbon Society, visit its website at www.lexingtonbourbonsociety.com or search for the group on Facebook.
Best Bourbons for your Buck
By Matt Preston, Lexington Bourbon Society
$10-20: Old Fitzgerald, Evan Williams 1783
$20-30: Old Grand-Dad Bottle-in-Bond, Larceny, Buffalo Trace, Elijah Craig Small Batch, James E. Pepper 1776 Rye, Johnny Drum
$30-40: Eagle Rare, Henry McKenna 10-Year Single Barrel, Knob Creek Rye, Russell’s Reserve 10- Year, Bulleit 10-Year
$40-50: Michter’s Rye Single Barrel
$50-60: Booker’s