The Stitzel name is an important one in bourbon history. Brothers Philip, Jacob, and Frederick Stitzel built The Stitzel Brothers distillery in Louisville on 26th Street near Broadway in 1872. In 1908, Jacob sold the distillery, and the name was changed to Glencoe. Jacob continued to operate the Glencoe Distillery until he passed away in 1913, and was succeeded by his son, Frank H. Stitzel.

Before (and during) Prohibition, it was common in Louisville for folks to belly up to the bar and ask for “Kentucky Parfay With” or “Kentucky Parfay Without.” As you might guess, asking for “Kentucky Parfay With” meant bartenders would spike your soft drink with any spirit they had available at the time. And, of course, around Louisville, that spirit was usually bourbon.

My grandmother, Beth “Ganny” Thomas Radford, often said, “Prohibition was the stupidest thing ever.” Ganny, however, was clever, and realized that prohibition wasn't likely to last forever. So, in 1921 when she was just 20 years old, she started buying warehouse receipts, which gave her legal ownership of bourbon stored in bonded government warehouses. Consequently, when prohibition ended in 1933, Ganny was sitting on more than 300 barrels of 12 year old bourbon, all bought for pennies on the dollar!

With this commitment, my grandparents, Beth Thomas Radford and C.S. Radford, Sr., launched Kentucky Par just after prohibition from the Kentucky Parfay Company headquarters on Louisville’s famous Whiskey Row. Crafted by Kentucky’s finest distillers at the Bernheim and Glencoe Distilleries, their high-quality bourbon was a familiar staple throughout the Commonwealth for many years.

Following World War II, my grandfather renamed the Kentucky Parfay Company, “The Radford Company,” and moved its headquarters to the corner of Baxter Avenue and Lexington Road in Louisville. For the next 30+ years, The Radford Company distributed a range of domestic and imported whiskey brands including Old Crow, Bond & Lillard, Tanqueray, and Cutty Sark. My father, C.S. Radford, Jr., succeeded my grandfather as president of The Radford Company in 1965.

After finding a dusty pint of Kentucky Par in my father’s desk, I thought it would be great fun to bring the brand back to market. With the help of two lifelong friends, David Gibbs and Jim Thaler, we’ve done just that. Our first new batch of Kentucky Par was crafted by one of Kentucky’s oldest and most reputable distillers, naturally aged for 12 years in deep-charred American oak barrels, and bottled non-chill filtered at 100 proof.

Every bottle in our first new batch of Kentucky Par carries the date 4-2020 on the neck label, which was the month we pulled the barrels from the rickhouse. If you don’t see a bottle of Kentucky Par Straight Bourbon Whiskey on the top shelf at your local watering hole, ask them to order a bottle for you!

All but three bottles in the 4-2020 batch are topped by a hand-branded cork, featuring our classic 1930’s-era Kentucky Par Bourbon shield logo. To honor my Great-Grandfather Walter A. Radford, the remaining three bottles are topped by a hand-branded logo of his nickname, “WaWa.” If you find a “WaWa”-topped bottle, drop an email to cy@kentuckypar.com, and you will receive a signed barrelhead.