牧師與美國威士忌 (Bourbon Whiskey)

Elijah Craig 18-Year-Old Single Barrel Bourbon is bottled solely from one barrel hand-selected by Master Distillers Parker and Craig Beam, not from the mingling of many barrels, which is the practice for standard and Small Batch Bourbons. Elijah Craig 18-Year-Old Single Barrel Bourbon is the oldest Single Barrel Bourbon available in the world. Only a handful of the millions of barrels of Bourbon aging in Kentucky have been allowed to mature this long. The brand carries the name of Rev. Elijah Craig, the man who discovered the method of making true Kentucky Bourbon when he stored his wares in barrels that had been charred in a fire. 這是美國威士忌 (Bourbon Whiskey)Elijah Craig 18-Year-Old Single Barrel Bourbon 的一段曆史。很難相信美國威士忌的發明者是一位牧師，而且這位牧師很會做生意，但是自己卻在世貧窮。 Elijah Craig出生在Virginia， 1771被按立為牧師，因為沒有牧師證，在布道時曾以非法布道被投入監獄。1777年成為正式牧師，並且同律師和未來的美國總統James Madison 建議信仰自由的法律。美國獨立後信仰自由在憲法中體現。1781年為了信仰自由他來到現在的肯塔基州，買了地，建了教堂，學校，企業。1789年創立酒廠，發明美國威士忌 (Bourbon Whiskey)工藝。 Elijah Craig1808年去世，“he consequently died poor. If virtue consists in being useful to our fellow citizens, perhaps there were few more virtuous men than Mr. Craig”很難想象牧師建立酒廠的動機，聖經中雖然不反對喝酒，但是明顯反對醉酒。虔誠的基督徒怕自己不能控製，喝醉了，於是幹脆就反對喝酒。 Elijah Craig的例子真是一個受人思考的典範。