Vincent enjoyed a spa week while we were in Ohio. While we bustled around, tying up loose ends in our daily lives, Vincent had his fluids changed, and we made some basic changes to the interior that would make life easier, such as more permanent window coverings, mounting the drawer units so they won't pour out every time we take a sharp turn, and coming up with more permanent organization so we're not saying "Hey, where's __" every few minutes.
Before we knew it, everything was ready and set, so there was nothing left to do but... Go!
We felt like we had unfinished business in Kentucky, since we had to put the pedal down and hope for the best on our way back up to Ohio. Our first stop, then, was the Maker's Mark tour.
Maker's Mark has long held its place as one of my favorite bourbon/whiskeys, but seeing the facility, which is steeped in history and tradition, and hearing the process really opened my eyes to the whole business of bourbon. It also happened to be Kentucky Derby weekend, and the place was crawling with ladies in hats and fellows in suits. (I was wearing a black tshirt and jeans).
At the end of the tour, we were invited to try a few samples of the different products made at the facilities. I fell in love with the Private Select whiskey, and now we conveniently have a bottle of this stashed in Vincent for the remainder of the trip.
Also of note: the glass work at Maker's Mark is done by none other than Dale Chihuly, who is also responsible for the glass work at the Columbus Art Museum (among other stuff- the guy really gets his stuff out there).
After the tour, we grabbed a quick sandwich at the on-site farm-to-table restaurant, Star Hill Provisions, and since it was Derby Weekend, there was a small tent set up selling signature Mint Juleps. Of course we had to have a Julep before we left (it's tradition!).
We had tickets for the Gothic Avenue Tour the next morning at Mammoth Cave, and due to be pretty close, we more or less wandered our way to Cave City. We stopped at a local joint known as The Front Porch, which just so happens to have cocktails and tasty food.
We camped that night at Mammoth Cave, since our tour started at *gulp* 8.30 in the morning. Just for fun, the skies opened up around 11 that night, and I had the pleasure of lying awake listening to heavy rain ping-pong off the roof of Vincent, while thunder crashed through the trees and the bluffs surrounding us. I was super-pleasant the next morning.
Still, the tour of the cave was INTENSE.
We learned a lot about cave systems and how they're created, but most importantly, we learned that we really like caves and underground exploration. So now we're not just adventure junkies, we feel like we need to wander around underground, too.
All stoked up on caves, we headed over to visit our friends in St. Louis. But first! Brewery!
Tin Man is a super-cool place. It's robot-themed, which is pretty excellent, and the beer and food are both pretty delicious. We probably could have spent some significant time there, but onward to St. Louis!
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