Enjoyed: Tuesday, August 6 , 2024

Listed on the menu: No, but the menu informed us that the restaurant had a “wildly talented bar team” so making an Old Fashioned was not a problem.

Ingredients: Bowman Brothers Small Batch Virginia Straight Bourbon Whiskey, simple syrup, bitters, orange rind.

The occasion: This month’s mini-adventure was an overnight stay (in an oh-so-colonial bed and breakfast) in the historic district of Fredericksburg, Virginia. We hiked along the Rappahannock River, ate crab sandwiches for lunch, popped into a few museums, visited the Fredericksburg National Military Park, and ate an amazing supper at FOODE. We also–finally!– toured the A. Smith Bowman Distillery, the state’s oldest distillery, founded in 1934 on the day after the end of Prohibition.

My rating: **** out of 5. I wanted to try another type of Bowman bourbon, since only one sample was provided on our tour. This drink was smooth and well-balanced, with major vanilla flavor, and exactly what I expected out of a traditional Old Fashioned.

Final thoughts: A free tour with free samples is always appreciated, but we were disappointed in the samples: vodka, port barrel finished bourbon, gin, and caramel bourbon cream. We were hoping for more craft bourbon, since that’s their specialty. (Bowman’s top product was once Virginia Gentleman, but now that’s distilled in Kentucky by Sazerac, the parent company.) The “new” Bowman’s has won several major awards, including “World’s Best Bourbon” but I still prefer Kentucky’s products, to be honest.