The Winery Crown of Tennessee

Discovering the wine region of Tennessee

Tennessee is a state located in the south-central United States, between the Mississippi River and the Appalachian mountain range. The state has a fairly Long history of winemaking, which began with European settlers in the 1800s and peaked at the turn of the century, but its wine industry is overshadowed by its whiskey production. The state is the home of Tennessee whiskey, a regional style of Bourbon that requires charcoal filtering, a common practice not required for other American whiskies. It was the abundance of oak trees for barrels that initiated the state's thriving whiskey industry.

This, combined with ideal geography, allowed access to waterways for distillation and historic distribution methods. The exact definition of Tennessee Whiskey has been the source of some confusion and disagreement. Unfortunately, the Prohibition era of the 1920s resulted in distilleries closing and vineyards being torn down in favor of tobacco crops, a situation from which Tennessee did not recover as quickly as its neighbor, Kentucky. The production of whisky was introduced in Tennessee in the 18th century by Scottish and Irish immigrants coming from Pennsylvania and Virginia.