The bourbon industry has become an immersive experience and luckily for travelers, one can visit many distillery experiences in Kentucky. There’s no law mandating that bourbon must be produced in Kentucky, although it might seem that way given the state’s dominance in distilling the distinctive corn-based, barrel-aged whiskey. According to the Kentucky Distillers’ Association, the Bluegrass State produces and ages approximately 95 percent of the world’s bourbon whiskey. Some may ask, is there something in Kentucky’s water that has caused the bourbon industry to flourish? In fact, there is. The site sits atop vast deposits of blue limestone, which filters out hard iron and imparts sweet-tasting calcium and magnesium. Kentucky’s wide temperature swings—from cold winters to hot summers—are also conducive to producing bourbon because they cause the charred oak barrels, which give the spirit its amber color and distinctive taste, to alternately absorb and release the whiskey. Another factor that makes Kentucky fertile ground for bourbon production is literally its fertile ground. The influx of settlers who crossed the Appalachian Mountains in the late 1700s soon learned the Kentucky soil was perfect for growing bourbon’s second main ingredient—corn. Whiskey increased in popularity after the American Revolution as the import of rum—which had been the most popular alcoholic drink in many American colonies—slowed with decline of the “triangle trade” with Great Britain. Although the term “bourbon” began to appear in newspaper advertisements for Kentucky’s particular brand of whiskey by the 1820s, its origins are murky. Some historians believe the moniker was inspired by Kentucky’s Bourbon County—itself named after the French royal family in recognition of France’s support in the American Revolution.