Mitenbuler proposes a trade-and-aging mechanism; merchant motives and the Tarascon scenario remain hypotheses requiring archival support. Present the exact etymology as unresolved.
Mitenbuler places middlemen and trade routes alongside distillers in the formation of bourbon identity.
Merchants moving whiskey toward New Orleans had incentives to let it age in barrels, distinguish it by place or style, and sell it at a premium. The precise origin of the name “bourbon” remains contested, but commercial distribution plausibly helped stabilize the category.
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51
Chapter Three — Dark and Bloody Ground
September 29 fresh audit: matched to supplied PDF sheets 51–54. These are PDF sheet numbers, not the print-edition pagination used in the index. Verification concerns source fidelity, not independent historical/scientific corroboration.
Verified evidence record from the complete source review. Use with the linked Source and Literature Note; retain the stated cautions when drafting.
Evidence
Merchants moving whiskey toward New Orleans had incentives to let it age in barrels, distinguish it by place or style, and sell it at a premium. The precise origin of the name “bourbon” remains contested, but commercial distribution plausibly helped stabilize the category.
Locator
Locator type: Page
Start: 51
End: 54
Source section: Chapter Three — Dark and Bloody Ground
Context
Mitenbuler places middlemen and trade routes alongside distillers in the formation of bourbon identity.
Annotation
Mitenbuler proposes a trade-and-aging mechanism; merchant motives and the Tarascon scenario remain hypotheses requiring archival support. Present the exact etymology as unresolved.
Verification
Status: Verified
September 29 fresh audit: matched to supplied PDF sheets 51–54. These are PDF sheet numbers, not the print-edition pagination used in the index. Verification concerns source fidelity, not independent historical/scientific corroboration.