Revival Vintage Spirits: Collecting Is More Fun When You Drink Your Collection.

Written By: The Gnarly Gnome
Photography By: The Gnarly Gnome

Full disclosure: Revival Vintage Spirits is a client of mine. This doesn’t change how I feel about what they’re doing and who they are, though – and this is NOT a sponsored post, nor do they even know I’m writing about them.

With that out of the way – let’s move on!

Raise The Middle Finger

I’m easy to judge if judging is the sort of thing that makes you feel good. I remember being told I was wrong for tossing some ice cubes and a splash of soda water in a glass of wine one hot summer afternoon. I remember the look of disgust that a fellow craft beer enthusiast gave me for tossing a giant lemon wedge in my witbier one time during dinner. Wouldn’t you believe it… I also opened up a bottle of dusty bourbon one time at a party, to the dismay of a particular bourbon nerd friend in the corner who was busy explaining the secondary market as I guzzled down a pour of a fantastic whiskey.

I’m a drinker. That’s what we do; we drink.

That is why I fell in love with Revival Vintage Spirits the first time I met owners Brad Bonds and Shannon Smith. While sure… they love getting their hands on old bottles and selling them to cranky old bourbon folks who won’t ever try them… they’re like me.

They understand that spirits are more fun when you actually drink them.

It’s a big middle finger to many loud people who live on the internet – and I can’t get enough of it.

Willy Wonka’s Bourbon Factory

The experience of Revival is very different right now than it will be extremely soon, and because of that, I have been eager to share it with anyone willing to listen to me. To get your Revival experience, you must venture a block off the main drag in Covington, Kentucky, to their little shop… and it’s just that – a very, very little shop (for now). When you walk through the door, you enter a flea market-meets-liquor store that, if you’re a drinker like me, you’ll immediately get lost in.

Sure… the tall shelves have more than their fair share of vintage bourbons, but bottles of dusty rum… schnapps, vodka, a whole shelf of gin… scotch are scattered through the shop. It’s mind-blowing. Have you ever sipped on vintage Sambuca? (It’s better than vintage creme de menthe, I can tell you that)

Everywhere your eyes land, there’s a bottle that ignites curiosity, excitement, and something missing from some parts of the “bourbon game”—fun.

And Then, There’s The Tasting Bar

Finally… lost in your journey through Willy Wonka-like wonder, you land on the bar in the corner. Brad Bonds has been called “The Indiana Jones of vintage spirits” (I think he calls himself that), and he’ll gladly walk you through the history of anything that tickles your fancy – but where he really shines is his pure love of the hunt. I am fairly certain that he’s as excited to pop the top of a bottle of 1990s ‘Hot Damn’ as he is a vintage whiskey that your Grandpa stashed away under his home bar to be forgotten about.

He’s not as much like Indiana Jones as he thinks he is. Indiana Jones wants to stash all this fun stuff away in a museum, while Revival wants to share it with the world… and let as many people try it as possibly can.

There’s a full tasting bar to try these crazy spirits. With tastes as cheap as $5, there’s something for everyone to try, and I encourage that DEEPLY. Don’t just grab the fun bourbons, either. Get something weird. Get something crazy. For the love of being a drinker – get something FUN.

Takeaway

I could write a hundred articles about Revival – because there is no place I’ve ever seen like it on Earth. To get a picture – you have to check them out. It would help if you did it fast, too. As of this writing, the shop is getting ready to open a huge new location down the street next to Hotel Covington. If you want to be one of those folks sitting at their new fancy bar telling folks how you used to come there when they were in a tiny little box – you have to get there.

Revival is also working on its second location in Elizabethtown, KY. I believe they are about to blow up, and I’m excited for them. But even more importantly, I’m pretty thrilled about what it means for drinkers like us.

There is no better time to be a drinker than right now. Shannon and Brad at Revival believe that the best spirits have already been made, and they’re willing to search high and low to connect with people to get them into our hands.

I believe that the best place to get those spirits is a place like Revival… and I have a sneaking suspicion that once you stop in, you’ll understand what I mean.

If you want to visit Revival (I’ll update this when it changes), you can check them out at 5 E Eighth Street in Covington.