AmericanPub$$downtownTue-Sat 17:00-24:00; closed Sun-Mon
Henry Clay's Public House pours pints on North Upper Street, blocks from the statesman's old law office, a downtown Lexington blues and covers pub.
Signature drink: Kentucky drafts with live blues on Tuesdays
Tip: Closed Sunday and Monday; Tuesday blues nights are the local pick over the busier weekend cover bands.
Cocktail barSpeakeasy$$distillery-districtSun-Wed 17:00-24:00; Thu-Sat 17:00-02:30
Wiseguy Lounge hides a Prohibition-styled bourbon bar above Goodfellas Pizzeria on Manchester Street, Lexington's speakeasy with hundreds of bottles.
Signature drink: Bourbon old fashioned above the pizza ovens
Tip: Enter through the pizzeria and head upstairs; Thursday to Saturday it pours until 02:30 with slices below.
Cocktail barDive bar$north-limestoneMon-Sun 16:00-02:30
The Green Lantern books doom metal, bluegrass and punk into a West Third Street dive, one of Lexington's most-loved and longest-running dive rooms.
Signature drink: Cheap cans and whatever band is loading in
Tip: Cash helps at the bar; Wednesday karaoke and the happy hour before 19:00 are the reliable nights.
AmericanDive bar and music venue$north-limestoneTue-Thu 17:00-00:30; Fri-Sat 17:00-01:30; Sun 17:00-00:30; closed Mon
Al's Bar anchors the corner of Sixth and Limestone with burgers, local beer and gigs, the long-running NoLi corner bar wired into Lexington's music scene.
Signature drink: Local drafts before a punk or bluegrass set
Tip: Closed Mondays; Tuesday open mic is free and the Thursday to Saturday bookings range from hip-hop to bluegrass.
AmericanDive bar$chevy-chaseMon-Thu 14:00-24:00; Fri-Sat 14:00-02:00; Sun 14:00-24:00
Chevy Chase Inn has poured since 1933, Lexington's oldest bar, a cash-friendly Euclid Avenue dive that opens at 14:00 and never pretends to be more.
Signature drink: A cold bottle in Lexington's oldest bar
Tip: Afternoon drinking is the move; it opens at 14:00 daily and the jukebox and regulars do the entertaining.
AmericanBeer bar and bottle shop$$chevy-chaseMon-Thu 16:00-22:00; Fri-Sat 11:00-23:00; Sun 13:00-22:00
The Beer Trappe runs taps and a bottle wall on Euclid Avenue, the Chevy Chase beer bar where Lexington's beer nerds drink in or carry out rare releases.
Signature drink: Rotating craft drafts beside a wall of bottles
Tip: Anything on the shelves can be opened at the bar for a small corkage; ask what rare Kentucky releases landed.