Woodford Reserve Once Again Runs For The Roses With Special Bottling

Two things are pretty much a certainty in Kentucky ever year – new bourbon is being bottled and the famous Kentucky Derby horse race will run at Churchill Downs in Louisville. These two traditions collide in a tasteful way courtesy of bourbon maker Woodford Reserve and its limited edition Kentucky Derby commemorative bottle.

Each year the Woodford Reserve distillery, known for the last 16 years as the “Official Bourbon of the Kentucky Derby,” releases a bottling with art on it that in some what captures the essence of what the Run for the Roses is all about. For the 2014 offering Woodford turned to local Louisville artist David O. Schuster for a contribution of artwork.

Schuster’s image on the bottle, said Woodford, “is entitled ‘The 4^th Turn’ and captures the horses and jockeys in their multi-colored silks racing down the final stretch and last turn of the Kentucky Derby, one of the most thrilling moments in sports. There is a blur of the stands of fans in the background cheering them on to victory.”

Available this month for around $44, the bottle’s neck band features a diamond pattern of light blue and copper as well as the Kentucky Derby 140 date sealing the top of the commemorative bottle. An attached tag bears information about the product and the artist.