THE Stateline Whiskey Tour

BY TONY CENTONZE

20 • CLARKSVILLE BUSINESS JOURNAL I n a show of interstate cooperation, it was announced in September of 2018 that Casey Jones Distillery, MB Roland Distillery, and Old Glory Distilling Co. were officially launching the Stateline Whiskey Tour, a self-guided tour that brings whiskey enthusiasts to scenic Hopkinsville, KY, agriculturallyrich Pembroke, KY, and our own historic Clarksville, TN. Owners of the three companies, Peg Hays and AJ (Casey) Jones, Paul and Merry Beth Tomaszewski, and Matt Cunningham worked together to create their own version of the popular Kentucky Bourbon Trail, offering a great experience, complete with a commemorative gift for those who visited all three. “We saw bourbon and whiskey trails popping up in Tennessee and Kentucky, with the Kentucky Bourbon Trail being the ringleader of the bunch,” MB Tomaszewski said. “Matt with Old Glory and Peg and AJ with Casey Jones have always been very friendly. So, we got together and thought, why not go ahead and do something that brings tourists to all of us. Most tourists are looking for the experience. We’ve found that usually, if they’re interested in one of us, they’re interested in all of us.” Tomazewski took time recently to share her thoughts from Texas, where she and her husband were promoting their business at the Houston Whiskey Social. She feels that the venture has helped expand tourism in both states, while also inspiring some to begin exploring other distilleries they may not have been familiar with. “We tossed ideas around for two to three years,” Tomaszewski said. “We had to flesh out the details about what we wanted to provide for the customers as a thank you gift. We wanted something that would be unique, so we decided to go with a barrel stave customized with the Stateline Whiskey Tour logo. “People love barrels, they make such a personal connection with the feel and aromas of the wood and the charring. It’s a great reminder of their distillery visits, so it’s a perfect keepsake. Each stave has holes that hold shot glasses. At each tour, part of the deal is getting one of our shot glasses. At the last one, they will get the barrel stave which represents all three distilleries. It’s a really cool souvenir for those from out of the area and locals too.”

Tomaszewski doesn’t find this inter-business cooperation to be unusual, at least not in her line of work.

“Maybe it’s unique to Kentucky distillers, but I would say 95% of us work very well together. We have our own organization, the Kentucky Distillers Association, that brings us together. And, we are all working toward the same thing. We’re not really in competition with each other, even with shelf space. If your product is good and you can convince a store to pick it up, that’s awesome. If not, you have to continue to work.”

Tomaszewski says Tennessee seems to be doing a good job at emulating that spirit of camaraderie.

“Tennessee seems to be embracing ideas like the Trail Tours,” Tomaszewski said. “I can’t say for sure that other states are as friendly with their businesses. We’re not like Coke vs Pepsi. We hope you like Old Glory, Casey Jones, and us.”

She and the other owners recognize that though they are in the same business, each product is unique.

“We’re trying to impart that idea to the consumer,” Tomaszewski said. “Just because you’ve been to one distillery, doesn’t mean

you’ve seen it all. All our products are unique, in origin, and history, and flavor. They’re not all the same.

“Peg and AJ have a unique process. They do a different style of fermentation, which is more home-cooked, like the old distillers would have done. AJ’s grandfather was a moonshiner back in the day, so they emulate that process, legally of course.”

The Tomaszewski’s chose to do an old-school style of Bourbon that was made before prohibition.

“We don’t add water,” Tomaszewski said. “Everything goes straight from the still, to the barrel, to the bottle. You won’t get an 80-proof Bourbon from us. We go for a full flavor. We’re not trying to go high proof to get anyone tipsy, quickly. We are going for the body, and the flavor, and the experience. The customer is then welcome to add water to make it any proof they want.”

The three distilleries have been working together for more than two years now, so far so good.

“All of us have seen a nice increase in traffic,” Tomaszewski said. “When you look at customer reviews on Yelp and Trip Advisor, each of us has customers that preferred our distillery better. That’s what is so fun about this. Customers are going to find something they will like.”

For more information on the Stateline Whiskey Tour - KY/TN, visit their websites: www.caseyjonesdistillery.com, www.mbrolanddistillery.com, or www.oldglorydistilling.com.