Russell Driscoll

About

A senior project manager at a regional logistics company in Louisville, Kentucky, I have lived in Germantown long enough to know the bourbon trail gets backed up on October Saturdays and to have a reliable route around the dry-county exit ramps that catch out-of-state shoppers trying to order online.

The shelf started in 2018 with three bottles and a small notebook on the pass-through ledge. By the end of that first year the notebook had impressions from each one, with things that did not hold crossed out and things that surprised me underlined. The notebook habit outlasted most of the bottles. The shelf has been spreading from the pass-through into the cabinet above the dishwasher ever since, and it currently holds fourteen.

Wine arrived through my neighbor Noreen Callaway, who dropped off a Burgundy leftover from her book club in 2020 that nobody had wanted to finish. Tried it the same way I try bourbon: two separate sittings at least a week apart, written notes on what changed between the first glass and the second. The process has been the same for every wine that has passed through the kitchen since. No formal training, no certification, no scoring methodology. Just the habit of noticing before the impression fades.

Gareth Kinlaw, a work acquaintance from a logistics conference in Cincinnati who turned into a Tuesday tasting regular, keeps a running spreadsheet of every bottle he has opened and is skeptical of anything with a hype-driven price premium. Fenton Burley, another regular, quietly shifted to non-alcoholic options about a year into the Tuesday routine without making any announcement. That shift is what prompted the dedicated NA section on the shelf, and eventually on this site.

Eight years of ordinary household spending and enough Tuesday tastings to know what the group finishes versus what gets left at the two-thirds mark. The writing here is the version from someone who pays attention, writes things down, and shows up the following week to check whether the impressions held.

Articles by Russell Driscoll

• Custom Etched Wine Bottles for Special Occasions from Mano's Wine
• Best Bourbon for Old Fashioned Cocktails Made at Home
• Best Wine Glasses for Beginners Who Drink Both Red and White
• High Tannin Red Wines for Beginners Who Enjoy Dry Flavors
• Best Single Serve Wine Bottles for Hosting Small Tasting Parties
• Why Allocated Bourbon Bottles Are Hard to Find and How to Get Them
• What I Learned About How to Read a Wine Label for Beginners
• Joining a Bourbon of the Month Club with Bourbon Concierge Service
• Best Non Alcoholic Craft Beer for a Dry Month After the Holidays
• Difference Between Bourbon and Rye Whiskey for New Spirits Drinkers
• Best Bourbon Distillery Tours for First Time Visitors in Louisville
• Best Online Bourbon Shops for Rare Bottles Without the Waitlist
• The Best Non Alcoholic IPA for Grilling This Summer
• Tasting Notes for Cabernet vs Merlot for Beginner Wine Drinkers
• Online Bourbon and Wine Retailers Compared: State Shipping, Price, and Selection
• How to Ship Bourbon Safely Across the Country Without Any Breakage
• Non Alcoholic Beer for Weight Loss After Months of Trying
• Best Red Wines for Bourbon Drinkers Transitioning to the Vine
• Best Wine Gift Baskets for Professional Clients After the Project
• Best Bourbon for Beginners to Sip Neat Without the Burn
• Comparing Bourbon and Red Wine Pairings for a Backyard Steak Dinner
• Best Personalized Wine Bottles for Special Gifts and Milestones
• Practical Ideas for How to Organize a Home Bar for Beginners at Home
• How to Buy Hard to Find Bourbon Online Without the Local Markup
• Best Wine and Cheese Gift Baskets for a Housewarming Party
• How to Host a Casual Bourbon Tasting for Your Neighbors
• Low Calorie Non Alcoholic IPA for Craft Beer Drinkers Who Care
• The Best Wine Tasting Kits for Beginners to Try at Home (2026 Update)
• Finding a Non-Alcoholic Beer That Tastes Like Real Beer After Work (2026 Update)
• Why You Should Decant Wine Before Serving to Your Guests
• Best Bourbon Gift Sets for Men Who Already Have Everything: 2026 Shelf Report
• The Shelf Over the Kitchen Pass-Through: Lessons from Eight Years of Louisville Pours

Disclosure

Some of the retailers, wine calendar companies, and non-alcoholic brands I write about here send me a commission when a reader orders through one of my links. Your price stays the same as going direct. The shelf came together over eight years of regular-person spending, and I keep what I keep because it earned that spot. If a bottle did not hold up through the Tuesday tasting, that is what the write-up says. Check your state's direct-shipping rules before you order anything.