4278. Visit Jack Daniel Distillery in Lynchburg

The hubby wanted to go to Jack Daniel's Distillery in Lynchburg if it wasn't out of the way. I think it added an hour of drive time.. maybe. Really not of out of the way. It actually broke up the drive between Atlanta and Nashville.

However, like I said in a previous post, the hubby didn't want to taste any Jack. Luckily for us and the the teetotalers in the world, Jack Daniel Distillery offers Dry County Tours which basically the tour without the tasting at the end. They also offer several tasting tours. The tours used to be free but now they start at $15/adult. We bought our tickets ahead of time on line to guarantee the time slot we wanted to fit everything in.

We checked into our tour 30 minutes or so before hand like they require. Then we waited... and waited.. and waited. While we waited we checked out the few exhibits in the visitor center and browsed the Jack Store. The only thing you can buy at the gift shop is Jack Daniels Whiskey. You can get bottles engraved as well. If you are looking for other souvenirs, you need to hit up the General Store or official Jack Daniel's Store in the town square where you will get a free shot glass or two with a $10 purchase.

Finally they called our tour. They were several tours that were leaving around the same time. You had to make sure you went with the right group. A pre-tour photo was required. I am not sure where you could buy those pictures afterwards but I'm sure they were somewhere in the visitor center. Then we boarded a bus to take us to the beginning of the tour.

The entire tour is a walking. It does include hills and stairs. You start off learning the history of Jack Daniel and how he learned to make whiskey. You learn the history of the distillery as well.

The tour takes you to the cave where Jack first set up his first still and still has the ice cold natural spring water flowing through it which is still used to make Jack Daniel's today.

We saw Jack's office and learned how he eventually died. Jack and a safe got into a fight... Jack eventually succumbed to his death from the wounds his sustained in the fight.

The infamous safe

After the history lessons, we moved inside to the actual distillery buildings. We could take any pictures inside the buildings.. something about technology and alcohol fumes and not wanting to go boom. I suppose that would be a big liability.

I wish I got a picture of the hubby smelling the mash. Let's just say it will clear up your sinuses.

Our last stop was one of the many barrel houses on the property where we saw the whiskey aging in the barrels. Each barrel weighs about 500 pounds so it is not easy to sneak one out of there. The placement of the barrels in the barrel house determines the type of whiskey that is being made. It has to do with the heat in the barrel house and other factors.

It was a great tour. I recommend it to anyone passing through the area. The tour itself is about an hour and 15 minutes. I still wish the hubby wanted to do the tasting. That would have made a perfect day. Maybe one day I can convince him.

4281. Eat at Miss Bobo’s in Lynchburg

When the hubby said he wanted to go to Lynchburg, I immediately thought of doing lunch at Miss Bobo's Boarding House. I first learned about this place while reading Wanderlost: shots of Literary Tequila for the Restless Soul by Simon Williams. Because of the crazy things the Australian did on his travels, I wasn't sure if the place still existed. A quick Google search confirmed it was still thriving.

Miss Bobo's Boarding House is a former boarding house that was ran by Miss Bobo in the late 1800s and Mr Jack ate many of his meals. It is only open for lunch with several seatings a day Monday through Saturday. Meals are served family style in nine different dining rooms. It was a bit pricey for lunch ($25/person) but was worth it.

Each table seats 8-10 people with a host who explains the rules of the meal along with the history of Miss Bobo's and Lynchburg. The main rule of the meal is pass to the left. We were lucky that we were at a Lazy-Susan table and once we initially rotated everything to the left, we could rotate the Lazy-Susan either direction for refills.

We had a traditional southern meal of fried chicken, pulled pork, baby red potatoes, tomato casserole, green beans, fried okra, homemade rolls, and fried apples with Jack sauce. Dessert was fudge pie with Jack Spiced whipped cream. Our host was like you have to try more than that when I passed on a couple of dishes. I did try the okra but refused to touch the tomato casserole. The apples were amazing. The hubby said the pulled pork was delicious. The only downside was beverages was water, coffee, or iced tea.

I am glad we splurged for this lunch. I won't do it as part of the Jack Tour though because I can't justify a $50 "gift". The tour and lunch is $100... the tasting tour is $25.. lunch is $25 which means the gift has to be worth $50.. probably a bottle of Jack.

If you ever find yourself heading to Lynchburg, I would highly recommend lunch at Miss Bobo's. Make sure you get reservations ahead of time.

4290. Visit a Winery in Tennessee

The hubby wanted to go to Jack Daniels Distillery but he didn't want to do the tasting tour. Our conversation went something like this.

The hubby: I don't like whiskey
Me: But come on, it's Jack's.
Hubby: Nope
Me: Just do it. You'll like it.
Hubby: It's like drinking lighter fluid. It burns.
Me: Fine whatever.. then we are going to the Lynchburg Winery and I am doing the wine tasting.

He gets to tour the distillery later in the day and I get to go to a winery. Win-win.

Lynchburg is in Moore County.. one of the dry counties in Tennessee. I was surprised to find a winery in Lynchburg, let alone be able to taste and buy wine. I'm not complaining. I am on a mission to hit a winery in every state and this one made it easy.

Lynchburg winery is a small winery located in the square downtown Lynchburg. The moonshine tasting is next door, in case you're still thirsty. You get 5 samples for $5 plus you get to keep the glass. It is probably the smallest wine glass I own.

They offer 14 different wines but were out of two. Don't ask me where they get their grapes or if they actually produce their own wines on site. I was there to taste. I don't care that much about the details. Besides the gal behind the counter probably wasn't very knowledgeable. Maybe I should have tested her.

My five wines were all sweet or semi-sweet.

Southern Tradition Red Muscadine -- It wasn't bad. I still prefer my red from St. Augustine.

Ruby Red Slippers Moscato -- A Girly wine if I have to say. Quite tasty and smooth. This one came home with us. The hubby probably won't like it.. too girly.

Serendipity -- This was their Signature Southern wine.. a sweet Muscadine. It was good but didn't wow me. I learned I am not a big fan of Muscadines.

Just Peachy -- I tried to get the hubby to try this one but he refused. Apparently 10 AM is too early for wine tasting for him. It was a decent peach. The peach from Vines to Cellar is still my favorite I think.

Lynchburg Black -- This is the other one I wanted the hubby to try since he likes blackberry wine. It was good but Basil's is better. I think I'm becoming a wine snob. If the hubby would have tried this and liked, I probably would have bought back a bottle.

Overall not a bad little winery. It is a good time killer if you have extra time in Lynchburg. If we were ever back in Lynchburg, I would pick up another bottle of Ruby Red Slippers.