BOURBON AND BARRELS

Sometimes it's about who you know, and sometimes it's about who your SO knows. In my case, it was my SO's network of people who arranged for me to visit the A. Smith Bowman Distillery this past week. I met with Master Distiller Joe Dangler. Joe provided camera access and an informative tour of the distillery. And let me tell you, Joe knows his whiskey.

We started with the difference between a distillery and a brewery. Please, my friends, do not confuse the two. A brewery makes beer. A distillery, at least this one, produces fine bourbon whiskey (and rum and vodka and gin).

DEEP RUN LAKE

Those of my friends from Fredericksburg, VA are quite familiar with the Bowman Center. Most of them are probably familiar with the distillery. The A. Smith Bowman Distillery sits along the banks of Deep Run Lake. Joe told me that the distillery was a cellophane plant before the Bowman family took over.


But the magic is inside the distillery. Upon entering, a distinct odor captures the senses. My immediate question was the nature of the scent. It's called Angel's Share (the spirits volume lost to evaporation while aging in the barrels). Inside, barrels and barrels and barrels of aging spirits reach from floor to ceiling, as do the vats, stills, whatever you choose to call them.

To this photographer, the image of the interior was heightened by the rustic age of the facility. And the building is vast. Warehouse rooms filled with barrels, and those empty, awaiting barrels.

The barrels intrigued me. Did you know that whiskey barrels are charred on the inside? Did you know a barrel maker is called a cooper? The A. Smith Bowman Distillery uses white oak barrels, which Joe said makes for the best flavor of whiskey. And you know, when you've been in business that long (they've been brewing since before Prohibition), you know what works best and you stick with it.

I'm keeping this brief because whiskey is not my specialty (hit the links to learn more). Photography is my specialty and I hope you enjoy the shots (no pun intended).

 I want to thank Joe Danger and the A. Smith Bowman Distillery for the wonderful opportunity to photograph and learn about the this fine family business. I had a great time.

AGING

...AND AGING

...AND AGING
Makes for a fine bourbon

INSIDE AN EMPTY WAREHOUSE
This warehouse was refurbished from it's days in cellophane
keeping to the original architecture as closely as possible

CUTTER USED FOR CUTTING TAX STAMPS (if I remember this correctly)
Tax Stamps are no longer in use, but the distillery uses replicas
for decorative labeling across the bottle tops of the their spirits

MAKING A BARREL

WEIGHING THE BARREL
While no longer used, this scale is kept calibrated

COOPER'S TOOLS

HOPE YOU ENJOYED THE TOUR