Forty years ago, Hunter S. Thompson declared the Kentucky Derby "decadent," and over the last five years Woodford Reserve Bourbon has perfected the decadence with the $1000 Mint Julep. This year's julep cup is no exception and would make Audrey Hepburn smile.
73 silver cups have been designed by Tiffany & Co. and are presented in the famous Tiffany "blue box." The cups commemorate the 73 years that the Mint Julep has been recognized as the traditional Kentucky Derby beverage. This year's sale benefits the Barnstable Brown Diabetes & Obesity Center at the University of Kentucky.
"We are so delighted to have the Barnstable-Brown Kentucky Diabetes & Obesity Center be the beneficiary of this year's Woodford Reserve $1000 Mint Julep Cup sales," Tricia Barnstable Brown. "This wonderful partnership will further help the cause of diabetes research, education and care for years to come."
Brown-Forman Vice-President of Corporate Communications Phil Lynch notes the program has raised over $250,000 for charity during its five-year history.
According to Lynch, the cocktail is "the ultimate Kentucky Derby luxury."
The julep will be made from exotic ingredients: organic Turbinado raw-cane sugar from Brazil, Kentucky Colonel Mint from Louisville that was grown in a used Woodford Reserve barrel, ice from 10,000-year-old glacier near the Gulf of Alaska, and a small batch of the Master Distiller's personal selection of Woodford Reserve which was selected specifically for the $1000 Mint Julep.
Cups can be purchased at www.woodfordreservemintjulep.com and can be picked up on Derby Day at Churchill Downs, inside Gate 10. Any remaining cups will be available for sale at that time.
