Townsend Grains and Grits Festival
A celebration of Tennessee distilling
All the distilleries on the Tennessee Whiskey Trail gathered this weekend in Townsend, Tennessee to celebrate their craft. From the newest distillery, PostModern Spirits, to distilleries rooted in history of our state like Jack Daniels, Grains and Grits did not disappoint. And attendees from all across the state and many other states were also treated to regional cuisine from restaurants like Dancing Bear Lodge, Central Flats & Taps, Miss Lily’s Catering, The Old Mill and Rickard’s BBQ. As well as some unique beer offerings from the Blount County Home Brewers Association that were great to sample.
The Townsend Grains and Grits Festival is in its 2nd year and offers members of the Tennessee Distiller’s Guild a chance to show off their wears to the public as well as each other. There were straight spirit samples including rare single barrel releases and brand new offerings as well as cocktail samples for those not interested in the straight stuff. Not only was their whiskey and moonshine but there are a couple of distilleries in the state making tasty gins, vodka and liqueurs. If you are not familiar with spirits made in Tennessee, this was the place to try them all.
In the way of food, Chef Shelley Cooper from Dancing Bear Lodge created an Appalachian Hot Pot that had everything from low country to mountain influence. There was ham, sausage, shrimp, blackeyed peas and greens all in one pot, served with a piece of cornbread. It was a beast of a dish! The guys from Rickard’s BBQ showed off with ribs and sides while Miss Lily’s Catering took care of the BBQ pork sandwich end of things. They served their with sweet potato and grits casserole. Shrimp and grits as well as corn chowder was on the menu from The Old Mill and Flats and Taps served up a smoky bbq flat bread that was baked on a smoker. This was one of our favorites!
The guys from Old Forge Distillery never disappoint at these events and were showing off their spirits with 5 fall inspired cocktails as well as a whiskey sampling.
We had a wonderful time this year at the Grains and Grits Festival! It was a gorgeous fall night in East Tennessee and We are thankful to have been surrounded by friends and spirit lover alike. If you were there, what was your favorite part? If you did not get the chance to go, you need to set a reminder to get tickets for next year’s event! Cheers!
The Blount County Homebrewers while sampling their beers were also promoting their Battle of the Brews with the Tennessee Valley Home Brewers out of Knoxville. It will be a 6 vs. 6 competition to decide the best of the best homebrewers in the area. Get on out and support these guys, we sure did have a lot of fun with them!
We spotted Kristen Luna sporting her best George Dickel gear and had to try their Dickel-ade along side the 12-year Tennessee Whiskey and the George Dickel Rye.
