Cancel

    Open app

    Search

    Circa 1856

    4.9 (8 reviews)
    Closed 11:00 am - 6:00 pm

    Circa 1856 Photos

    CIRCA 1856 ATMOSPHERE

    What's the vibe?
    Outdoor seating
    Happy hour specials

    You might also consider

    Recommended Reviews - Circa 1856

    Your trust is our priority, so businesses can't pay to alter or remove their reviews. Learn more about reviews.
    Yelp app icon
    Browse more easily on the app
    Review Feed Illustration

    11 months ago

    Helpful 0
    Thanks 0
    Love this 0
    Oh no 0

    11 months ago

    Helpful 0
    Thanks 0
    Love this 0
    Oh no 0

    7 months ago

    Helpful 0
    Thanks 0
    Love this 0
    Oh no 0

    11 months ago

    Helpful 0
    Thanks 0
    Love this 0
    Oh no 0

    2 years ago

    Business owner information

    Photo of Circa 1.

    Circa 1.

    Helpful 0
    Thanks 0
    Love this 0
    Oh no 0

    2 years ago

    Fantastic experience! Delicious, smooth flavor profile. A must try for bourbon fans touring the area.

    Helpful 0
    Thanks 0
    Love this 0
    Oh no 0

    2 years ago

    Helpful 0
    Thanks 0
    Love this 0
    Oh no 0

    2 years ago

    Helpful 0
    Thanks 0
    Love this 0
    Oh no 0

    Ask the Community - Circa 1856

    You might also consider

    Watch Hill Proper

    Watch Hill Proper

    4.4
    (94 reviews)
    36.6 mi
    Locally owned & operated
    Luxury

    If you have folks visiting from out of state, Watch Hill Proper is a must-see to show off Kentucky…read morebourbons! They have a catalog of over 2,000 unique bourbons from which you may choose and watch the bartender climb the old library style ladder to retrieve it! I'm sure there are many pictures of this online and I apologize for not adding to the multitudes because it really is impressive! I was with a large party and neglected to take pictures because I had such a great time! The food and drinks really deserve to be seen; I apologize for missing that opportunity to show them off. We had out-of-town family visiting and they really enjoyed the experience. The service was exceptional and the food even better. Our experience was all around wonderful and we will be back! The pricing there is on par with the finest restaurants in town and is well worth it. If you're on a tight budget, get a seat at the bar for one drink just for the large catalog of bourbons to browse and the overall bourbon club atmosphere and experience.

    Top notch spot for an upscale dinner with friends or a special someone. At dinner last night we got…read moreto try the new menu and seasonal drinks and had a delightful time! Highly recommend - the chicken schnitzel (split), steak tartare, beet salad, and the fried brussels sprouts. Service was terrific, attentive and ready to go the extra mile to make sure you've had a high quality experience to match the food and ambiance. Finally, if you're into it, you cannot go wrong with their house old fashioned. That said, the seasonal Huber's Apple Crusta was a treat yesterday. I ordered one first and the rim tasted like a salty, caramel-ly, sugary slice of apple pie. Not too sweet, just enough. My dinner date ended up ordering another in lieu of dessert.

    Photos
    Main room
    Main room
    Main bar
    Main bar
    Entrance to Main room

    See all

    Entrance to Main room
    Angel's Envy

    Angel's Envy

    4.6
    (796 reviews)
    34.3 mi
    $$
    Takes reservations
    Available by appointment

    The Angel's Envy distillery is pretty much the #1 reason that my top-tier chum who literally went…read moreto the school of hospitality and I decided to go on a trip to Kentucky, and after actually visiting, justified it as well. During an early 2025 trip to Washington, D.C., we went to multiple establishments and, coincidentally or not, encountered this specific bourbon and just loved it. The most notable occurrence was at Jack Rose Dining Saloon, where I had literally the best Old-Fashioned I've ever had, using a special Angel's Envy that hung out in some sherry barrels for a while. Since then, we've both regularly ordered it when given the opportunity, and ultimately decided that the best way to appreciate this fine spirit was to go right to the source. So to the mothership we went. My chum did most of the heavy lifting here and scheduled a bourbon tour with Louisville Food Tours (very strong recommend) that featured Angel's Envy at the first stop. It's hard to really put into words what this building looks like as you walk in and explore, but it's just so...nice. It's classy without being inaccessible, and it just felt like a true cathedral of bourbon. As tasteful as the bourbon it makes. During our initial tour, we were probably in the distillery for a solid half hour plus, getting a quick tour of the still and fermenters before being led into a side room on the second floor to formally taste some bourbon. Paula was our guide, both during this tour and later on, and was just enormously impressive, which I touched upon in my review of the official tour as well. She's no-nonsense and loves her bourbon - who can't relate? We learned how to inspect the bourbon in the glass, to take a test sip to numb the pain receptors and to truly appreciate the subtle notes in the bourbon with the second sip. It was legitimately helpful, useful information that we're both going to utilize going forward. After our three-hour tour ended (go hard or go home), it wasn't even much of a discussion - we came back here for a few hours to soak in more of the atmosphere and drink some more bourbon. At this point, it was probably close to 5ish but the place was still pretty busy; somehow we were able to secure spots at the bar upstairs and made ourselves at home. I wish I could remember the name of our bartender (blame the time that has elapsed, not the bourbon), but he was very good, social without being oppressive and was just present and let us do our thing. After sipping straight bourbon for most of the afternoon, I switched to the Bourbon Renewal, which you'll be shocked to know includes Angel's Envy but is a more summer, fruit-forward cocktail and super refreshing. Was the right call and hit the spot. (We also got waters because that's the responsible thing to do.) We finally went back downstairs to the gift shop, which doesn't feel like the right term - it was more majestic than something you'd walk into after going through, say, a museum for an hour or two. It's enormous and offers numerous bourbons and also some very high quality swag. We reunited with our chum Paula and sampled their limited edition two-grain, which was created due to a fortunate mistake in which the rye wasn't added so it's just the corn and malted barley. You CAN see the difference and taste it; to me at least, it's more caramel-y than their normal single barrel. We each bought a bottle to bring back to the homeland. My chum basically bought half the store, but I remained calm/deliberate and my only other purchase was a MAGNIFICENT black hoodie. I'm not kidding - I love hoodies and have probably owned dozens over the years, and this is literally the best quality one I've had. It has this interesting front pouch pocket design with like a pocket within the pocket for high-priority items like your ID or credit cards, and the hood itself is interesting. It's just really good and I wore it all day the next day as we slowly made our way back to the East Coast. It's been washed and carefully placed in my closet, where it will reign supreme when the weather inevitably turns nippy again. It's not an exaggeration to say we probably spent hundreds of dollars (at least not thousands) directly and indirectly involving Angel's Envy on this trip. Worth it.

    Right downtown and close to many other places. This was great to check out. Learned a lot about the…read morehistory. Our tour guide, Paula, was fabulous. She was attentive, informative and taught us how to get past the initial burn of bourbon. I much enjoyed the bourbon and the chocolate pairings were a nice surprise. We were able to get tickets the night before at a time that worked well for us. The bar area is a nice place to hang out and if you don't do the tour you can still go get some tastings.

    Photos
    The "Cathedral"
    The "Cathedral"
    Tasting room
    Tasting room
    Cocktail class

    See all

    Cocktail class

    Circa 1856 - whiskeybars - Updated June 2026

    Loading...
    Loading...
    Loading...