Shop by craft
Best of Lexington; search or filter for all 11
Lexington, Kentucky, USA
R.E. Fennell Co. has made leather tack on Red Mile Road in Lexington since 1909, and the Glenn family has run the shop across multiple generations since buying it in 1964. Craftspeople there hand-cut roughly 250 vegetable-tanned hides a year into show halters, English bridles, belts and dog collars.
Best for Hand-cut leather halters, bridles, and belts from a century-old Lexington saddlery
Lexington, Kentucky, USA
4th Level Roasters roasts small batches weekly from its shop on United Court in Lexington, selling blends like the 429 and the low-acid BFLA. It won Best Plain Cold Brew at the Lexington Cold Brew Festival in both 2022 and 2024.
Best for 429 Blend and low-acid BFLA roast
4th Level Roasters runs a weekly small-batch roasting operation from its shop at 381 United Court in Lexington, a rhythm that keeps its bean stock closer to fresh-cut than most retail coffee reaches. The lineup carries a handful of named blends rather than a single house roast: the 429 Blend, a Cleo's Coffee Blend, and BFLA — shorthand for Bold Flavor Low Acid, a roast built specifically for drinkers who want strength without the acidity — sit alongside straight single-origin lots like an Ethiopia Yirgacheffe and a rotating stock of specialty teas.
The clearest external proof of quality sits in competition results rather than marketing copy: 4th Level won Best Plain Cold Brew at the Lexington Cold Brew Festival in 2022, then repeated the win in 2024, a back-to-back result in the same category two years apart. Beyond the shop itself, the roaster sells through farmers markets and local shops as well as online, extending its reach past the United Court storefront.
For a small Lexington roaster, a named low-acid blend and two competition wins in the same category are concrete enough to set it apart from a generic neighborhood roastery.
Lexington, Kentucky, USA
Dr. Pete Wright and Jeff Wiseman founded Barrel House Distilling Co in a former barreling house of the historic James E. Pepper complex at 1200 Manchester Street in Lexington's Distillery District. The team hand-crafts RockCastle Bourbon and other spirits from local Kentucky corn and wheat filtered through limestone water, and pours them at the on-site Elkhorn Tavern.
Best for RockCastle Bourbon tastings and tours in the Distillery District
Lexington, Kentucky, USA
Bluegrass Distillers began in Lexington, mashing grain by hand in small batches to produce Kentucky bourbon and other spirits. The company has since expanded to Elkwood Farm in nearby Midway, where it grows its own corn to supply its original Lexington still.
Best for Small-batch bourbon from a hand-mashed, farm-to-glass distillery
Lexington, Kentucky, USA
Common Grounds opened as a single Lexington coffee shop in 1992 and has grown into what it describes as the city's largest locally owned coffee business. Its lineup includes a Bourbon Barrel Coffee and a Bleed Blue roast, with proceeds supporting local community groups.
Best for Bourbon Barrel Coffee and a Bleed Blue roast
Common Grounds opened as a single coffee shop in Lexington in 1992 and has since grown into the city's largest locally owned coffee business, a scale that now includes a corporate roasting operation on Dennis Drive and a drive-thru location on Richmond Road. The roast lineup leans into Kentucky specifics rather than generic blend names: a Bourbon Barrel Coffee nods to the state's signature spirit, Bleed Blue reads as a Wildcats reference, and an Anniversary Blend marks the company's own decades-long run. Beyond the Kentucky-themed roasts, the shop also stocks a straight Sumatra Mandheling single-origin and rotates seasonal flavor brews through its café and drive-thru locations.
The company also runs a wholesale side, supplying other businesses under a separate partnership program, and states that part of its proceeds goes toward local organizations working on community health and creativity — specifics on which organizations or how much aren't published, but the commitment is stated directly by the company itself. More than three decades in, a Kentucky-branded roast lineup and a stated local-giving practice are what separate Common Grounds from a standard regional coffee chain.
Lexington, Kentucky, USA
Entrepreneur Amir Peay revived the James E. Pepper brand in 2008 after historical research into the family's whiskey-making lineage, which traces back to a Revolutionary War-era distillery and continued at this Lexington site until 1967. Distilling resumed at the restored National Historic Landmark property on Manchester Street in December 2017, and the distillery now produces Old Pepper Rye and Old Pepper Bourbon along with barrel-finished expressions.
Best for Old Pepper Rye and tours of the restored 19th-century distillery
Lexington, Kentucky, USA
Old Kentucky Chocolates hand-produces regional confections such as Old Kentucky Bourbon Chocolates, Derby Mints and Chocolate Thoroughbreds from its Lexington kitchens. The shop also keeps a recipe for Old Fashion Pulled Creams, an old-fashioned hand-pulled candy tied to the city's bourbon and horse-racing culture.
Best for Bourbon-filled chocolates and Chocolate Thoroughbreds as Kentucky gifts
Lexington, Kentucky, USA
Pinkston's Turf Goods supplies the Thoroughbred racing and equestrian trade from West High Street in Lexington, carrying tack, health and grooming supplies, and breeding and foaling equipment for barns across the Bluegrass. The shop also produces leather goods such as belts with nameplates and dog collars for its horse-country customers.
Best for Thoroughbred racing tack and horse-country leather goods
Lexington, Kentucky, USA
Relic Lexington operates out of the old James E. Pepper Distillery rickhouse at 1170 Manchester Street, filling a warehouse with bourbon barrel furniture, reclaimed and vintage pieces, and other goods made by Kentuckians. Owner Chad mixes barrel-built tables and barware with rugs, signage and home decor sourced from around the state.
Best for Bourbon barrel furniture and Kentucky-made home goods
Lexington, Kentucky, USA
The Tack Shop of Lexington sells English riding equipment out of Griffin Gate Plaza at 1510 Newtown Pike, stocking saddles, bridles and apparel from brands such as Equiline, GPA, Pessoa and Samshield for the region's dressage, jumping and eventing riders. The shop also takes used saddles on consignment and offers clipper sharpening and repair for barns across Lexington horse country.
Best for English saddles, bridles, and consignment tack for horse country riders
Lexington, Kentucky, USA
Lexington Brewing & Distilling Co opened in 1999, and its Town Branch label takes its name from the creek that supplied the city's earliest distillers. Located at 401 Cross Street, the operation is a combined brewery-and-distillery stop on the Kentucky Bourbon Trail, producing a higher-malt bourbon alongside its Kentucky Bourbon Barrel Ale.
Best for Town Branch Bourbon and Kentucky Bourbon Barrel Ale tastings
Neighbourhood walks
Area names come from each shop’s published address record; ORBIS does not invent neighbourhoods.
Visit official site ↗
Visit official site ↗
Visit official site ↗
Visit official site ↗
Visit official site ↗
Visit official site ↗
Visit official site ↗
Visit official site ↗
Visit official site ↗
Visit official site ↗
Visit official site ↗