Heeeeellllllllllooooooooo Otterites!
Wow. Been a minute or two since any of us have posted. Seems as if adding two new members to the Brotherhood has caused much chaos and falling down on the job.
Since the last post we’ve settled in quite nicely with the new format, including a change to Code of Honor where we only discuss a single quote now, and dive much deeper into the meaning and those pesky eternal questions. We’ve recorded at Cajun’s ranch and the Imperator’s palace. The latter episodes premiering this month. We’ve even been to Bourbon Fest in the Holy Land of Kentucky, Bardstown.
I can’t say enough good things about that event and Bardstown itself. Love the place. Bardstown is the prototypical small town in style and layout. It’s full of friendly people and fantastic little shops and restaurants befitting the tourist attraction it has become with the rise of bourbon’s popularity. I seriously want to move there and live close to downtown where I can walk to all those little shops and restaurants.
One thing about this area is it doesn’t have the same distrust of outsiders some places do. Sure, you’re an outsider or from away as some places say, but people are friendly. You can hit the local watering hole and have a great time chatting and laughing with the locals. Tell them how you know someone local or are related to them, and you’re almost as good as someone born there.
This actually happened to the original members of the Brotherhood recently. We went to an adjacent town called New Haven where Francis and Cajun are from. One of our all-time favorite watering holes closed its doors last weekend and we had to go pay our respects.
Alas, the Sherwood Inn is no more.
We hope it will rise like the Phoenix as it has in the past, but that is unknown at the. moment. You can still experience some of that hospitality at a local restaurant called the Rickhouse. It’s run by the same people.
Anyway, the place was PACKED. They had live music in the bar, but no space so we went to the restaurant area in the back and had some great food. As we’re sitting there drinking the dollar beers, Francis notices a guy he went to grade school with and started yakking away, catching up. The guy goes and gets his wife and Francis catches up with her. While they’re doing that, Marty and I are talking and laughing with the husband like we’d known him as long as Frannie. Oh, and their daughter was the singer in the live band. He also let us try some moonshine.
Yeah. Moonshine. In the Sherwood. He gets it out of the fridge in the back and hands it to us. it’s a creamy concoction with some kind of pudding mix. It was really good. Not the clear crap that makes you go blind. Smooth with a really nice finish and flavor.
On the way out, we get sidelined by several similar encounters. At the door, Frannie runs into ANOTHER old classmate from grade school who buys us a drink. We had some tasty bourbons. I had the Monk’s Road Fifth District which is always good. Frannie went to an old favorite too. Old Forrester 1920 Prohibition Style. Marty tried something totally new to us. I. W. Harper. All outstanding bourbons. Great taste and excellent finishes.
We hung around a little longer and finally left around 10:30. Early night, but we’re old farts and some of us had to get up for Church in the morning.
A great evening though and a fitting send off to an iconic watering hole that figures prominently in a few Snakes and Otters tales.
Maybe this will shame the others into posting again. Francis is up tomorrow.
(Hint, hint)
