John and Shauna are onsite for the full Kentucky Bourbon Festival weekend in Bardstown — the thirty-fifth anniversary edition. Distillery sessions across the town’s working houses, signature events on the Spalding Hall Lawn, and the kind of weekend that anchors what a serious bourbon trip looks like. KBF is the spiritual home for everyone who takes American whiskey seriously.

Expect coverage on The Cut Daily through the week of the festival, plus a Beyond The Cut episode unpacking the conversations that matter most.

What is the Kentucky Bourbon Festival?

The Kentucky Bourbon Festival is the annual industry-and-enthusiast gathering held every September in Bardstown — the Bourbon Capital of the World. Founded in 1992, KBF runs as a 501(c)(3) nonprofit headquartered at 114 N. 5th Street, Bardstown. The 2026 edition celebrates the festival’s thirty-fifth anniversary, September 10–13.

Most ticketed programming runs on the Spalding Hall Lawn in downtown Bardstown, with curated experiences, master tastings, and distillery dinners across the town’s working houses — Heaven Hill, Bardstown Bourbon Company, Lux Row, Barton 1792, Maker’s Mark, Buffalo Trace, Wild Turkey, Four Roses, Jim Beam, Willett, Log Still, Preservation.