The Indiana Historical Society (IHS) announces an extraordinary night of bourbon tasting in downtown Indianapolis has even more to offer in its third year. Indy’s Premier Bourbon Celebration, presented by Payless Liquors, features more bourbons than ever before, as well as the Indiana debut of American Freedom Distillery’s Horse Soldier® Bourbon.
Guests will be among the first to taste and purchase Horse Soldier® Bourbon before it hits store shelves in the Hoosier State. The bourbon’s unique name represents the mounted Special Forces unit its founders belonged to when they entered Afghanistan in the days immediately following September 11th.
“Part of what you really miss when you get out of the military is having a mission, and we have a mission now,” said Rob Schaefer, American Freedom Distillery’s co-founder and business operations manager. “That mission is to make great whiskey, but it’s also to build something for ourselves and our families, and to do it together.”
“A lot of people recognize us for our past, our military service, and we want to show them who we are today,” said Scott Neil, American Freedom Distillery’s chief of operations.
Guests of Indy’s Premier Bourbon Celebration will have the chance to bid on a bottle of Horse Soldier® Bourbon’s limited production Commander Select, along with many other exclusive bourbon packages from distillers and distributors across the country.
As in years past, the event will offer guests the chance to learn about the fine art and nuances of distilling. In addition to bourbon, there will be something for wine lovers, with tastings that compare bourbon barrel aged wines to their non-barrel aged equivalents.
New this year, guests can enjoy a cigar bar, courtesy of Stixx Social Room and Asian Grill in Indianapolis. Participants can also mix and mingle with Peggy Noe Stevens, the world’s first female master bourbon taster, and Bernie Lubbers, The Whiskey Professor.
Indy’s Premier Bourbon Celebration will take place Friday, March 1, from 6:30 to 10 p.m., at the Eugene and Marilyn Glick Indiana History Center, located at 450 W. Ohio St. in downtown Indianapolis. Proceeds from the event will benefit IHS’s education and outreach programs.
Tickets are $125, $100 for IHS members and $50 for designated drivers. The event is for ages 21 and older. To register, or for a complete list of participating distilleries and distributors, visit www.indianahistory.org/bourbon.