Let’s raise a glass to dads, for all their good advice and bad jokes, for their tough love and their soft spots, for all the work they’ve put into raising us. Being a dad’s no easy task—let’s be honest, we’re all responsible for more than a few gray hairs on our old mans’ heads.
After a year of quarantine, we know you and your father are both itching for a road trip—anything but another beer on the same couch in front of the same TV. So we’ve crafted the ultimate escape for you and your whiskey-lovin’ dad, playlist included. Load up these musical homages to whiskey via Spotify or Pandora and hit the Tennessee Whiskey Trail! We’ve got a stop for everyone’s Pops.
Big Machine Distillery: Lynnville
Songs for the Ride: “Whiskey Man” by The Who | “Whiskey” by Trampled by Turtles | “Whiskey in the Jar” by Thin Lizzy | “Take Your Whiskey Home” by Van Halen | “One Bourbon, One Scotch, One Beer” by George Thorogood
Big Machine’s Lynnville location, originally Tenn South Distillery, is located on Highway 10 in the rolling green hills south of Nashville. For the dad who really wants to get away from it all, there’s nothing better than a glass of sweet and smoky Clayton James Tennessee Whiskey sipped on 28 acres of pristine farmland. You and Dad can take it easy here, taking your time to explore the ample tasting room and enjoy the countryside.
Just about three minutes up the road you can visit historic Lynnville for lunch at Soda Pop Junction, an old-fashioned soda shop with the best hamburger in Tennessee. And if you haven’t gotten him a gift yet, take him next door to Colonel Littleton’s Great American Leather Company. With their handcrafted leather goods and techniques handed down through generations, this place is truly a dad’s dream come true.
Leiper’s Fork Distillery: Franklin
Songs for the Ride: “Whiskey Rock-A-Roller” by Lynyrd Skynyrd | “Whiskey’n Mama” by ZZ Top | “Alabama Song (Whiskey Bar)” by The Doors | “Have a Drink on Me” by AC/DC | “The Gambler” by Kenny Rogers
Leiper’s Fork runs on the values Dad instilled you with: tradition, craftsmanship, perseverance. The story of Leiper’s Fork is one of honoring our forefathers’ labor and love, preserving their craft before it becomes a lost art. Take your father on a distillery tour here to learn more about the history and community that go into making your favorite amber drink, and taste the quality for yourselves.
Leiper’s Fork is also a great spot if your dad is a music lover. After your tour, you can head just a mile down the road to catch a show at the original Puckett’s Grocery & Restaurant. For over 50 years, this laid-back joint has served up Southern home cooking and live, local music, including acts like Lady Antebellum and Don Schlitz—the man who wrote “The Gambler.”
Old Glory Distilling Co.: Clarksville
Songs for the Ride: “Ain’t Worth the Whiskey” by Cole Swindell | “Beer for My Horses” by Toby Keith | “The Whiskey Ain’t Workin” by Travis Tritt | “Whiskey River” by Willie Nelson | “Tennessee Whiskey” by Chris Stapleton | “Whiskey Bent and Hell Bound” by Hank Williams, Jr.
“Our give-a-damn runs pretty high,” says Matt Cunningham, the proprietor of Old Glory Distilling Co., perfectly capturing this distillery’s no-nonsense commitment to character and quality. Old Glory is a love song to American whiskey, and veteran fathers especially will appreciate the proud display of patriotism here. Each of their spirits carry the stars and stripes, and their names—like “Pin-Up Gin” and “Jumper’s Stash White Rum”—are tributes to our men and women in uniform. So, like Cole Swindell says, raise a glass to the ones saving our, well, behinds—it’ll mean a lot to dear old Dad.
Knox Whiskey Works: Knoxville
Songs for the Ride: “Rocky Top” by The Osborne Brothers | “Whiskey’s Gone” by Zac Brown Band | “Deacon Blues” by Steely Dan | “Drowns the Whiskey” by Jason Aldean | “Wasn’t That a Party” by The Rovers
Coach Neyland’s first football maxim goes like this: “The team that makes the fewest mistakes will win.” And it would be a real mistake if you and your Volunteer dad missed out on Knox Whiskey Works, Knoxville’s first (legal) distillery. If you want to win Father’s Day, treat your Pops to some Gold Release Tennessee Whiskey, made with 100% locally grown Heirloom corn and mellowed using a sugar maple charcoal filter. Spectacularly smooth, this whiskey is the taste of East Tennessee, with all the fighting spirit distilled right in.
To the Men Who Made Us
Enough with the coffee mugs and cufflinks. It’s time to give your dad something he really wants—quality time with you, his favorite tunes, and a glass (or few) of fine whiskey. With 25 distilleries to explore, the Tennessee Whiskey Trail has your back, so plan your trip today at tnwhiskeytrail.com.
The post Celebrate Your Pops Along the Tennessee Whiskey Trail appeared first on Tennessee Whiskey Trail Official Site.
