Made in the South Awards 2011

WINNER: HOME CATEGORY

Photographs Stacy Newgent
 

JC Wood Artisan; Louisville, KY

Everybody in Kentucky makes furniture out of bourbon barrels, but craftsman Jason Cohen makes art. And it certainly doesn’t hurt that his studio is just down the block from Bourbon Barrel Foods, where he sources his white oak barrels. Last June, Cohen made his first stool. “The tripod shape really balances you out, and you sit differently in it,” he says. Next, he tackled the pub table, using bourbon barrel staves for the legs. “Some people think the wood is going to break because of the angle,” Cohen says. “But the wood has been trained for years to that form, and it makes it strong. It’s green when they cut it, and then they pour liquor in it. It’s almost petrified.” Sturdy as white oak may be, Cohen takes care to apply an outdoor finish, making both the table and stools durable enough to use on a porch. “The set has an old-world look to it,” he says, “but it’s contemporary too.”
$150 (22-inch stool ), $335 (table); 
bourbonbarrelfoods.com