The 'Beer Cheese Capital Of The World' Is A Charming City In Kentucky's Bluegrass Region Full Of Local Eats

Beer and cheese together is golden, and in Kentucky, you'll find a city where the combination is celebrated. So much so, it was named the official "Beer Cheese Capital of the World." Winchester isn't just the holder of this title, it's also the birthplace of this unique type of cheese. Okay, so it's a cheese spread, but no complaints here.

As the legend goes, beer cheese was created in the 1930s by chef Joe Allman for his cousin to serve at his local restaurant. The goal was to give people something tasty but salty enough to keep drinking beer. And the rest is, as they say, history. Since that time, beer cheese has evolved and become part of Winchester's identity. The city has been hosting an annual Beer Cheese Festival honoring this snack every year since 2009, and visitors who come for the festival find themselves in a city full of personality and Bluegrass charm — and plenty more good eats than just beer cheese.

In Winchester, the word Bluegrass isn't just tossed around because of the location — it's in Kentucky's Bluegrass Region where the culture and history have helped make Kentucky what it is today. Walking around the historic downtown you can't help but feel that cultural heritage. There are Victorian era homes, boutique shops for spending some cash, and restaurants that serve local favorites like the beer cheese it is famous for. Getting there is fairly simple — it's just under 30 miles east of Blue Grass Airport (LEX), which works with major airlines like Delta, United, American, and Allegiant to service several major airports around the country.      

If you want to take a deep dive into the local specialty, just follow the Beer Cheese Trail. Like Loretto, a scenic city along Kentucky's Bourbon Trail, Winchester has great local spots that either serve or sell beer cheese. Ther's even a digital passport known as the Cheese Log that guides you to places like Abettor Brewing Company and Hall's on the River, where you can try many different versions, each made from coveted secret recipes. 

The eateries in Winchester pair great food with local history, and there are nearly 40 of them, many housed in historic buildings with its own stories to tell. So, once you've conquered the Beer Cheese Trail, you'll want to explore some of the other bites and beverages, like a classic Kentucky hot brown. This baked, open-faced sandwich with bacon, turkey, tomatoes, and cheese sauce is a Kentucky original and you can grab one at Hall's on the River, a restaurant with roots dating back to 1781 and once owned by Johnny Allman, the man whose cousin invented beer cheese.   

While beer cheese clearly goes way back in Winchester's history, it isn't the only original the town is known for. It's also home to Ale-8-One, the official Kentucky soft drink, a lightly carbonated ginger and lemon-flavored concoction that has been made locally since the 1920s. The glass bottles with their twist off caps are packaged just like a six pack of suds, and these days you can get a variety of flavors, like cherry, orange cream, and blackberry, along with the original, caffeine free, and some zero sugar varieties.

One of the best ways to explore a new destination is through its food, but Winchester has much more to offer. The city's historic downtown, which was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1981, is home to an elevated portion of sidewalk, vintage five-globe streetlamps, and more than 100 well-preserved buildings.

The state's Bluegrass Region is rich with history. After all, it's home to Harrodsburg, Kentucky's oldest city and places like Elizabethtown, which has a walkable downtown and is a top place to retire in the Bluegrass State. Winchester is a great place to explore the history that helps make the region so charming. The Bluegrass Heritage Museum has rotating exhibits that showcase the area's Black, military, Civil War, and agricultural history. You can even view the museum's Bean Collection, which luckily is a collection of quilts from the Bean family, not a collection of dried legumes. The museum is located inside a Victorian-style building and is open Monday through Saturday. Tickets are only $5 for adults and $2 for seniors and children 6 to 18 years old.

While you are exploring the city you will probably notice the limestone fences marking property in the area. You'll find them throughout the Bluegrass Region, and you can do a self-guided driving tour of the ones in Winchester. This drive takes you on a scenic route through some the beautiful landscape of rural Kentucky to see these examples of the early 18th century craftsmanship that helped shape the region.