Woodford Reserve Blends Art And Bourbon For The Kentucky Derby
Horses will have raced at the Kentucky Derby for 151 consecutive years after the next crop of three-year-old thoroughbreds meet at Churchill Downs on May 3. Sponsor Woodford Reserve has its own tradition to commemorate the occasion, though it only goes back a mere 26 years.
Beginning in 1999, the bourbon brand has sold commemorative Kentucky Derby bottles each year, often working with new artists to capture the tradition and thrill of the event that's been called 'the most exciting two minutes in sports.'
The 2025 commemorative bottle features the artwork of painter Humberto Lahera, whose vividly colored painting 'Carrera Dinamica,' which translates to 'dynamic race,' evokes the fluid motion of the Kentucky Derby.
Lahera tells me during a virtual interview that he's been an artist all his life, drawing on the walls of his childhood home by the age of three, painting portraits from what he saw on television, and later reproducing classic works like Leonardo da Vinci's 'Mona Lisa.' His mother encouraged his interest in art and later, Lahera was only one of eight students admitted to Cuba's prestigious El Alba Academy of Fine Arts. He relocated to the U.S. in 2022 and his work has been exhibited in private galleries and institutions including Louisville Metro Hall and the Governor's Derby Exhibit.
'I have had a natural talent since I was born,' says Lahera of his lifelong interest in art.
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Shortly after moving stateside, Lahera says he worked to integrate himself into the Kentucky community and the regional art museum and gallery scene. Within just a couple years, he received a call from Brown-Forman, the parent company of Woodford Reserve, who shared that he was a finalist for the Kentucky Derby commemorative bottle. After he was selected for the project, Lahera visited the distillery to meet with the team. The initial concept he sent to the Woodford Reserve team was ultimately approved for the bottle.
'Everybody wants to have the American dream,' says Lahera. Kentucky, he adds, 'is full of culture. I love it.'
The Woodford Reserve Derby 151 bottle is for sale at a suggested retail price of $49.99.
His artwork has evolved to represent a blend of his Cuban background and his exposure to American culture. Lahera says his approach to art has changed now that he's had an opportunity to see artwork from greats like French painter Claude Monet and American artist Jackson Pollock, who were stuck in books when he lived in Cuba but was able to experience in real life in American museums.
'I like to show people that in one painting, you can find all the styles—photorealism, realism, impressionism, abstraction—everything,' says Lahera. 'That's not art used for Americans or Cubans. I feel that my art can be recognized and loved internationally, because it has everything in one piece of art.'
Lahera's Derby bottle is meant to represent the event's action as a jockey and horse are depicted vaulting from an explosion of roses, racing toward the finish line, Lahera explains.
'Everything is fluid and full of colors and movements,' he says, including the classic representations of Churchill Downs with the twin spires that are part of the spectator stands and roses that are given to the winning horse. 'Carrera Dinamica,' Lahera adds, captures the image of a jockey 'chasing his American dream. Just like me.'
The Woodford Reserve Derby 151 bottle is for sale at a suggested retail price of $49.99 and available for purchase at the Woodford Reserve Distillery and online for shipping to select states at ReserveBar and Woodford's online store.
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