Festival Celebrating Bourbon and Music Returns to Covington for Second Year

A festival celebrating the spirit of bourbon and bluegrass returns to Northern Kentucky this March.

The B-Line, a collection of bourbon-forward restaurants, bars and distilleries in Northern Kentucky, and Covington restaurant Smoke Justis are teaming up again for the second annual Bonded Spirit Music Festival on Saturday, March 8. Brought together to celebrate the bourbon purity law the Bottled in Bond (BIB) Act, the festival will feature plenty of bourbon and food and a lineup featuring blues, soul, folk and bluegrass artists Nat Myers, Lindsay Lou and The Brothers Comatose.

“Covington owns the unique Bottled in Bond aspect of bourbon’s long-standing history in this country,” Smoke Justis founder, Richard Dickmann, said in a press release in 2024. “Smoke Justis looks forward to celebrating bourbon and bluegrass with whiskey enthusiasts from all over against the backdrop of our iconic Roebling Bridge.”

Passed in 1897, the Bottled in Bond Act set stringent standards and an authentication process to improve the quality of American-made whiskey, and a Northern Kentucky man played a key role in its passage.

“Everyone knows Kentucky has a rich history rooted in bourbon but what many don’t know is Northern Kentucky’s role in that history,” president and CEO of meetNKY Julie Kirkpatrick said. “The Bonded Spirit Bluegrass Festival is the perfect way to celebrate the Bottled-in-Bond Act, which Covington’s very own John G. Carlisle was instrumental in passing in 1897. We partnered with our friends at Smoke Justis — a B-Line location — to bring together the perfect collision of bourbon and bluegrass to draw visitors to our region and give them and locals another fun thing to do that weekend in addition to Bockfest.”

General admission tickets are $60 for early bird (ends Jan. 31). VIP tickets are $185 for early bird and include priority viewing of the main stage, access to the VIP Lounge in the Roebling Rickhouse tent, limited drink tickets and light bites, a VIP swag bag and more.

Tickets can be purchased here. Attendees must be 21 or older.

The Bonded Spirit Music Festival will be held from 1-10 p.m. Saturday, March 8 outside Smoke Justis, 302 Court St., Covington. More info: bondedspirit.com.