Once seen as your granddad’s nightcap, bourbon has shaken off the mothballs and gone global. From Tokyo to London to the rooftop bars of São Paulo, this charred-oak darling of the South is now the drink of choice for trendsetters, connoisseurs, and cocktail creatives. Welcome to the Great Bourbon Boom—a worldwide revival that’s less of a comeback and more of a revolution.

From 1920 to 1933, the United States tried a bold social experiment: outlawing alcohol. Spoiler alert—it didn’t stick. But in the 13 years of Prohibition, bourbon didn’t vanish. It went underground, behind false walls, inside medicine bottles, and onto black market boats. This was bourbon’s ghost era—when the spirit couldn’t legally be poured, but never stopped being sipped.

In 1791, less than two decades after the Declaration of Independence was signed, the United States government faced its first major internal crisis. It wasn’t about borders, foreign enemies, or even politics—it was about whiskey.