When Pat Daugherty was hired as our new Kentucky Cooperage Tour Guide in early 2020, the last thing he expected was a global pandemic to effectively end Kentucky Cooperage tours for a year. Thankfully, Pat is an optimist with an easy smile and friendly demeanor. He used the tour hiatus to spend the year managing the Visitor Center, assisting in the cooperage office, learning every aspect of the cooperage process, and launching the Visitor Center new e-commerce website.

Recently retired from the UPS after 34 years with the company, Pat joined the team at Kentucky Cooperage because he wanted to be around people. “Driving a UPS truck, you are alone most of the time, and in my retirement, I wanted to interact with people – hear stories about where they’re from and where they’ve visited on the Bourbon Trail.” Pat’s daughter, Ann, was our previous tour guide and told her father about the position when she transitioned into another job at Kentucky Cooperage. “I didn’t know all that goes into each barrel before starting this job,” Pat said. “It’s an amazing partnership between craftsmanship and technology. I still get excited as I’m telling tour visitors about each part of the process.”