Buff City Soap

{This post contains products gifted to me through my role as a Buff City Soap Brand Ambassador. All opinions are, as always, my own. Thanks for supporting the brands that support HerKentucky!}

I recently had the opportunity to tour the Buff City Soaps makery here in St. Matthews. It is so cute, y’all, and it carries great-smelling products that are plant-based and free of harsh chemicals and animal fats!

I can’t wait to visit Buff City Soap with my little nieces. Of course, they’re obsessed with anything pretty and bubbly and fizzy for bath time or washing their hands, and I love that they won’t be exposed to parabens or harsh detergents. Buff City Soap uses ingredients you actually recognize — things like coconut oil and green tea extract — to create a safer alternative to harsh commercial products. The soaps are even made daily in-store!

A great nod to Louisville’s neighborhood coffee shops is the Fresh Heine soap, a collaboration with Heine Brothers coffee!

My favorite product in the Buff City Soap lineup is the laundry soap! The Fresh Cotton scent is so lovely; it provides a subtle, clean scent and it keeps harsh detergents away from your skin.

Thanks so much to Buff City Soap for showing me around! Visit them in NuLu at 815 E Market St and in St. Matthews at 4600 Shelbyville Rd Suite 651. The Middletown location opens next month at 13006 Shelbyville Rd!

Agave & Rye Louisville

{Disclaimer: Bob and I were guests at Agave & Rye’s Soft Opening. Our food was provided at no charge; no additional compensation or consideration was provided. All opinions are our own.

Bob and I were recently invited to attend the soft opening of Agave & Rye. We were immediately impressed by the fun decor. The tributes to Muhammad Ali were such a fun touch, a nod the local hero’s famous “float like a butterfly, sting like a bee” line and a play on the regional restaurant chain’s bee mascot.

And, oh my, y’all. The food at Agave & Rye is so good. We started with the sweet corn fritters with Serrano aoli, which might be my new favorite food anywhere. These were amazing, with just the right balance between sweet, salty, and spicy. I absolutely adored them.

We also went with an order of tortilla chips with all the sides. The queso, guac, and salsa were all fantastic, and the huge chips were great.

When our tacos arrived, we were in for a treat. Now, Agave & Rye bills their concept as the home of the Epic Taco, and they lived up to this claim in every sense. The tacos were huge — you could easily make a meal on one or two tacos alone — and filled with creative and fresh ingredients. I think my favorite was The Alderman, filled with carne asada steak, Mexican street corn salad, cojita cheese and arbol salsa. It was incredible.

After dinner, we made our way to the back of the restaurant, where a large area is filled with free-to-play vintage arcade games. I may have spent a while at the Pac-Man game, and can certainly see myself passing an afternoon with a margarita or two, an order of those corn fritters, and challenging my Pac-Man score! Agave & Rye is one of those rare spots that works as well on the drinks and entertainment front as on its menu.

We left Agave & Rye with smiles on our faces and a bag full of leftovers. It’s a great addition to the HIghlands food scene, and I can’t wait to go back! Thanks so much to Agave & Rye for hosting us!

Stoneware & Co Summer Gift Guide

Summer is a time of new beginnings — people move after graduation, they get married, and they purchase new homes. I feel like I’m always on the lookout for meaningful keepsake gifts, and I find myself, time and again, giving presents from Stoneware & Co. I especially like to give pieces from the Embossed Running Horse collection. The neutral tones and subtle pattern complement nearly any decor, and are a great way to add a piece of Kentucky heritage to a home.

I’ve teamed up with Stoneware & Co. to show you some of my favorite Embossed Running Horse gifts, and Stoneware has graciously extended a coupon code for HerKentucky readers. Use code SUMMERTIME at online checkout, in-store, or on phone orders to take 10% off your Stoneware order. (This offer is valid from today, Friday June 21st, through Thursday June 27th at midnight.)

Here are a few of my favorite Stoneware pieces for summer gifting.

For a first apartment or dorm room

The Embossed Running Horse Julep Cup Soy Candle is such a great present for someone who’s just starting out in their first apartment or dorm room. It’s a clean-burning candle AND a keepsake julep cup. I love using Stoneware julep cups as small vases for fun, informal flower arrangements.

For a first home

1. The Embossed Running Horse 1 quart bar pitcher and julep cups are such a lovely housewarming gift for the new homeowner. Whether they choose to serve lemonade or Manhattans, they’ll entertain in style!

For the newlyweds

The Embossed Running Horse Wine Cooler and Saucer makes the absolute best present, y’all. It’s not only an elegant serving solution for chilling wine (you can store it in your freezer ahead of time to keep your wine appropriately chilled!); it also makes a gorgeous vase for tall flower arrangements! This is such a great present for newlyweds!

For the home chef

If you’re giving a gift to a serious home chef this summer, I suggest the Embossed Running Horse Large Oval Platter. The serving possibilities are absolutely endless with this piece. I plan to use mine as an elegant way to present my next charcuterie board, and it’s always fabulous for serving main courses!

I love that Stoneware has been producing unique Kentucky pottery — made from local clay and hand-painted and -fired by local artists — since the early 19th century. I love to gift Stoneware because it carries such a lovely story and provides your loved ones with a true heirloom. Let me know if you’re giving Stoneware gifts this summer, and don’t forget to use the special coupon code! Use code SUMMERTIME at online checkout, in-store, or on phone orders to take 10% off your Stoneware order. (This offer is valid from today, Friday June 21st, through Thursday June 27th at midnight.)

Old Forester Distillery

I’m frequently asked what I recommend on a short list of Louisville tourism destinations — where to go if you only have a day or two to spend in the Derby City. I also often hear folks wondering where to start their bourbon tourism education. The Old Forester Distillery is the perfect answer to both of those questions.

Old Forester was the first bourbon whiskey to be sold exclusively in sealed bottles, and it’s the oldest bourbon on the market. It was even produced during Prohibition for medicinal use. If you want a great primer on the history of Kentucky bourbon — sales, marketing, and production — you need to visit Old Forester.

At the turn of the 20th Century, the 100 block of Louisville’s Main Street was integral to Kentucky’s bourbon industry. Over the years, production and storage facilities moved to more spacious areas, with Whiskey Row revitalization efforts only arising over the past few years. Brown-Forman built the Old Forester Distillery on the site of the brand’s original headquarters, providing both a tourism facility and a working distillery on history Whiskey Row.

In addition to giving visitors an overview of how the bourbon is made, the Old Forester tour actually gives its guests a glimpse into the cooperage process. Brown-Forman, Old Forester’s parent company, is the only distilling company that makes its own barrels. This tradition is honored at OldFo, as you can actually watch barrels being constructed and charred as part of the tour.

Don’t miss the gift shop which offers the Whiskey Row series (the 1920 blend is fantastic!) and the Distillery-Exclusive President’s Choice single barrel blend!

The Old Forester Distillery is open for tours and shopping 7 days a week at 119 West Main Street in Louisville. The $16 tour includes a tasting for guests over 21. Click here for more tour details.

5 Fun Facts about Hi-Five Doughnuts!

It's National Doughnut Day, an observance dating back to the 1930s, which honors the Salvation Army "Lassies" who served doughnuts and other treats to U.S. Troops during World War I. Here in Kentucky, we take our doughnuts pretty seriously. In fact, the New York Times once traced a doughnut trail across our great Commonwealth. One of the state's most beloved doughnut stops is in a gas station!  That's the great thing about doughnuts: they're inexpensive, accessible, and enjoyed by almost everybody! My favorite doughnut spot is Hi-Five Doughnuts, which serves amazing creations with a Kentucky flair. You absolutely MUST try the bourbon caramel glaze, and if you're really brave, you can try the Kentucky Fried Buttermilk Chicken Doughnut.

Hi-Five Doughnuts is one of my favorite Kentucky businesses, combining local ingredients, awesome female entrepreneurs, incredible marketing, and a fabulous product. Let's celebrate National Doughnut Day with five fun facts about Hi-Five Doughnuts!!!

1. Hi-Five is woman-owned and operated. Leslie Wilson and Annie Harlow began their business running a food truck, affectionately named Shelby, then opened a storefront in Louisville's Butchertown neighborhood. 

The bacon-glazed doughnut is amazing, y'all.

2. The business name pays tribute to the legend that the custom of giving a high-five was invented in a U of L basketball practice in the 1970s.

3. Hi-Five has trademarked their hashtag! When you talk about the #ladiesofthemorning, then according to to the US Patent and Trademark office you're referencing Hi-Five Doughnuts!

4. The Hi-Five business model is so cool, a book has been written about it! Dr. Lyle Sussman of U of L's College of Business wrote "Breaking the Glaze Ceiling: Sweet Lessons for Entrepreneurs, Innovators and Wannabes", which establishes 12 business principles based on Leslie and Annie's success. In interviewing the Doughnut Ladies for a prior article, I was so impressed that they built the entire enterprise on a no-debt model, opting instead to purchase only what they could afford at any given time.

That's cinnamon glaze + Cinnamon Toast Crunch. You need it in your life.

5. Everybody loves Hi-Five! The Travel Channel has visited them, they're a staple at local events like the Forecastle Festival, and they're often served as a finishing touch at local galas and weddings.

Kentucky Derby Festival Princesses and the Fillies Ball

2017 Kentucky Derby Festival Princesses

Today, I had the opportunity to meet the 2017 Kentucky Derby Festival Princesses. The Derby Princesses are a group of 5 college-aged women selected annually to reign over the Derby and the Derby Festival proceedings.

Me with the 2016 Kentucky Derby Festival Princesses

Tonight, one of the Derby Festival Princesses will be named Derby Festival Queen at the annual Fillies Ball. The Fillies, Inc., is a women's club founded in 1959 to further the mission of the Derby Festival Committee. All proceeds from the Fillies Ball will be donated to the Kentucky Derby Festival Foundation, which provides scholarships and grants throughout the community. 

To read a first-hand account of a Derby Festival Princess's schedule, check out this post that  fashion blogger Grace Wainwright of A Southern Drawl wrote for HerKentucky about her year on the Derby Festival Court.

5 Words You're Saying Wrong if You Aren't A Native Louisvillian

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Louisville has its own language more than any other Kentucky city. Here's a few words that only natives know how to say propertly.

Seelbach: Pronounced in Louisville as Seel-bæk to rhyme with the synonym for spine; pronounced by everyone else as Seel-bahk to rhyme with family of German composers. The storied downtown hotel where Fitzgerald's Daisy married Tom Buchanan. Now a Hilton property, but nobody mentions that part either.

Valhalla: Pronounced in Louisville as Vaal-haal-a, with the first two syllables rhyming in their very long a's; pronounced elsewhere as Vaal-ha-la, with the middle syllable sounding like an exclamation for a mildly funny joke. It's the real deal PGA golf course; it may also have something to do with Greek mythology.

School: The pronunciation is pretty standard -- skōōl -- but somehow native Lousivillians intone the word to indicate that they're precisely referring to high school. Where did you go to school? usually leads to a discussion of private vs. public schools.

Benedictine: Another word with a standard pronunciation, but with vastly different meanings. To the rest of the world, it's an order of Catholic monks, or the herbaceous liqueur originally produced by those monks. Here in Louisville, it's a green sandwich spread.

Louisville: Perhaps the most disputed word of all. Kentuckians know it's Lew-a-vill. We've heard "Leweee-ville", "Lou-vill", and all sorts of foolishness.

Did we leave any out?