Sift the flour, baking powder, and salt together.

Cream the butter and sugar until light and fluffy.

Beat in the eggs one at a time.

Fold in half the flour, then fold in the milk, then the remaining flour, followed by the bourbon and vanilla.

Pour the batter into two lightly greased and floured 9-inch loaf pans and run the blade of a knife through the batter in an X pattern from corner to corner of the pans to eliminate air bubbles.

Place the pans in the center of a cool oven, leaving a space between them.

Turn the oven to 325F and bake for about 1 hour, until a wooden skewer inserted in the middle comes out clean.

Turn off the oven and let the cakes cool in the oven for 10 minutes.

Open the oven door and cool for 30 minutes.

Turn the cakes out onto a wire rack to cool completely before slicing.