Friday, March 4, 2011

Visiting Jack Daniels: Spring 2010


This post is one I thought I published last spring after we got home from Alabama.  But I guess I never hit the "publish" button.  So here is my little report on our trip to the Jack Daniels Distillery in 2010.


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The tour is worthwhile, just for the humor of the tour guides. At least our guide was hilarious--a person I would have to consider a member of the classification of humans in the "character" category!


The tour at the Jack Daniels in Lynchburg, TN is free.  Lynchburg is an absolutely beautiful area to visit and drive through.  It sits in a beautiful spot in the foothills of the Appalachian Mountains of Tennessee and has a long history and beautiful farms, particularly Tennessee walking horse farms.  The area is absolutely breathtaking in the spring.


 Now Jack is nothing I drink, actually nobody in this house -- but we were told it was an interesting, educational tour,  so we went!



The original office for Jack Daniels. He ran away from home at the age of seven and learned his trade from the "new family" he lived with.





We were told by our tour guide that all the trees were blackened from the vapors from the whiskey vats...we were told that it actually is healthy for the trees and protects them. The revenuers who were searching for the moonshine culprits in the woods back in the days of prohibition would look for the black trees to find the stills...




This was our tour guide and we found by visiting with him that he was from Michigan. This is the shelter for the firetrucks...still used on the campus.







The source of the spring water for the whiskey, coming out of a cave on the side of the mountain that backs up to the distillery grounds.  This same stream of water that has been in use for years and is some of the best fresh water in the world.

















The trees with black trunks and branches and all the blooms were disturbing at first.  I kept noticing them and wondered what was up.  After all, trees shouldn't look like charcoal!  I was glad that the tour guide explained how they'd all been blackened.  














Visiting was like stepping back in time, and the whole little "city" is just a beautiful one that is very well kept.






The house that Jack built, and where all the tours start -- and it houses a gift shoppe and tasting room.








Southern porches are so peaceful and usually have one or more straight-back rockers.


My traveling companions.  :0)



I loved this whiskey barrel, turned on its side, with flowers spilling out...

















It was a glorious spring day and all the blooming trees were a treat for the Michiganders that were visiting from a state that was still frozen!

There is nothing quite like a spring day in the deep south for a Yankee!





We walked from the distillery into the "town"...









If you ever have a chance to go, take the time to visit, you will love the whole area.  




  


I would like to talk GARDENS next week, 
how about you?

4 comments:

Tractor Mom said...

We love going to the Jack Daniels Distrillery! We stop by any time we are on I-24. Each time we've been, we've gotten a different tour guide. I really think that it's the guides that make the trip! Everyone we have had has kept us in stiches! We even bought a whiskey barrel, but haven't done a thing with it yet...

Susan said...

I am ready to talk gardens, flowers and anything springtime.

Donna said...

We've visited the charming little town a year or so ago, but didn't go through the distillery (too long a line). It is a beautiful area! We went on a tour of the nearby George Dickel whiskey distillery nearby and we were the only ones with the tour guide! It was great personal attention! We adore all kinds of factory tours, and find them fascinating.

Kathie Truitt said...

It looks so peaceful.