gr8erdane Posted May 6, 2004 Share Posted May 6, 2004 Hmmmm, just thinking that maybe a good marketing ploy would be $5 a head OR free with a coupon you get when you buy a bottle of WR. Kind of a thank you for the purchase. Of course they will claim that they have to raise the price to pay for the coupons. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
angelshare Posted May 6, 2004 Share Posted May 6, 2004 Wow, I had no idea that BT offered tasting for free. That changes my opinion of the LG charge a little bit. If someone else offers tasting for free, that becomes the standard for others to meet.Maybe I missed it, but I'm still not clear on whether there was tasting at LG before the $5 charge. When we were there, there was no charge, but no tasting. You did get a little certificate at the end, and I think some kind of snack? That was 6 years ago - hard to remember the details now. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jeff Posted May 6, 2004 Author Share Posted May 6, 2004 I had been to L&G twice prior to this visit and they did not offer a tasting on those visits. They said something at the time that they couldn't offer a tasting then due to some regulations. I guess they got all that cleared up. Let me be a little more specific in what is included in the price of admission:1- Tour, which seems considerably longer than what I remember.2- Tasting with souvenir shot glass. It is acrylic, but still rather nice. I think I'll take it with me on picnics and the like. 3- Bourbon Balls. Considering a box of 4 is almost $5 and I ate 3, I figure I came out ok. 4- Each ticket is worth $1 off anything, including bourbon, in the gift shop. They will even allow you to combine tickets. Leslie and I gave our tickets to Brian and he got a $3 barrel magnet for free. The fee didn't bother me too badly, especially since Brian had not been before. It might make me reconsider an impromptu "for the hell of it" visit, but if there is something I really want to do or see again I'll pay it. I figure they are just covering the cost of the bourbon balls, the free glass, and the extended tour. I also think they are trying to drive a little more business to the gift shop. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bourbonv Posted May 6, 2004 Share Posted May 6, 2004 The bus is probably more of a cost and legal issue. Handicap ramps and the senior citizens have a very strong lobby when it comes to access to tours. An elevator down that hill would be much more expensive than the bus.Nike Veach Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
doubleblank Posted May 6, 2004 Share Posted May 6, 2004 Jeff....I agree with you 100% as I believe we got our $5 worth at WR. And when I saw the price of the bourbon balls, I went back for two more for good measure. BTW, I've never bought a bottle of WR as I don't care for it. So the $5 keeps me from being a freeloader. Randy Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paradox Posted May 6, 2004 Share Posted May 6, 2004 Like I said, a bus is fine for those who need it, but to have something like that for people who are easily able to walk the steps that are there, it is still in my opinion unecessary. Hell, many people including myself could use the exercise of walking those steps! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cowdery Posted May 6, 2004 Share Posted May 6, 2004 Yeah, I suspect it was an access and liability issue. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cowdery Posted May 6, 2004 Share Posted May 6, 2004 This discussion has reminded me that my recent visit to Bernheim Forest cost $5. I hesitated because I knew I couldn't stay long, but I really wanted to have at least a brief visit. $5 isn't too bad. It's $5 per vehicle and only on weekends. It's still free during the week. It used to be free all the time. You can also become a member and get free admission all the time. It's interesting that these attractions are starting to charge modest admission fees because, for example, in London the public museums and many other attractions are going in the opposite direction, eliminating admission fees with the idea that the cost of administering the fees makes them a wash and leaves very little actual revenue for the institution. The difference, of course, is that those institutions receive considerable public funding, which Woodford Reserve and Bernheim Forest do not. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
angelshare Posted May 6, 2004 Share Posted May 6, 2004 1- Tour, which seems considerably longer than what I remember. 2- Tasting with souvenir shot glass. 3- Bourbon Balls. Considering a box of 4 is almost $5 and I ate 3, if figure I came out ok. I figure they are just covering the cost of the bourbon balls, the free glass, and the extended tour I emailed LG. My dad is planning to tour their distillery later this month, and I did tell him it was worth $5 (even before I knew about the tasting, actually). I did not mention our ongoing discussion at straightbourbon.com, but I asked the question (to paraphrase), why is `the tour $5 when it used to be free? The response: "We do feel like we have enhanced our tour in several ways including the addition of tastings at the end of the tour, plus we now offer some more "in-depth" tours." Essentially, I think they mean what you cite above. Is it worth $5? I guess each tourist has to decide based on two things: the philosophy involved and the value of the goods and service. I think most of us would agree that a long distillery tour with a tasting is a $5 entertainment value. It is in the philosophy of charging for distillery tours that there appears to be disagreement. As for me, I would go back. But I would probably go to BT first since I've never been, and you get a free sample! As for Bettye Jo's poignant post: Being relatively new here (discovered the site about 5 weeks ago), we certainly want to let everyone know how much we appreciate this site and whatever their contribution is to our enjoyment. Until Bettye Jo's post, however, we had no idea of the magnitude of Mr. Butler's individual effort and expense. Sheepishly, we must admit that we don't recall making a birthday post, nor can we reconstruct the logic regarding why not. Seems like an easy thing to do in retrospect. So, Mr. Butler, please accept our apology for any perceived (but very unintentional) discourtesy. Too late to say "Happy Birthday," so we'll just say, here's to Jim Butler We've been trying to think of a catchy quip or saying to add to our signature. Bettye Jo's post gave us inspiration, so we thought we'd try this one. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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