Iron Forge Brewing Co.
Our first stop is Iron Forge Brewing Company, the new hot spot in town. The brewery is known for great food and lives up to its reputation. Owners, Rani and Audrei Dabul opened the brewery and tasting room located near the fast-rushing Little Pigeon River one year ago, and it’s become a popular gathering place for visitors and locals alike. “We wanted something that’s relaxed, where people can hang out,” says Audrei. “You come to the Smokies to be outside, and we’re right next to the river.” There’s ample seating both in the indoor tasting room as well as the outdoor patio.

The flight of four five-ounce pours is fresh and frosty. I adore the Smoky Mountain Gold Honey Mead that resembles a sparkling wine with floral and honey notes. The brews we ordered pair well alongside our fried green tomatoes, Margherita flatbread, and fried Nashville hot chicken sandwich. We check in through our Sipping Pass and receive a 10-percent discount off our food bill.

Farm Fresh Wines and Cider
Next, we drive to Sevierville’s iconic Apple Barn . This complex consists of a creamery, winery, Christmas shop, two restaurants, candy store, and the Apple Barn Cider House where we meet Jonathan Ball, chief operating officer. “We’ve been processing apples since the 1980s using a unique sterile filtration process that allows us to use raw, unpasteurized apples for our cider,” he says. “That’s why it tastes like a fresh squeezed apple when you take a sip.”

We sample top-sellers like Red Lemon Head, a tart and sweet blend of strawberry, lemon, and apple. “We are a homegrown facility and can easily change flavors,” he says. “We’ve blended rhubarb, loganberries, blackberry, and peaches from the Apple Barn’s orchard and nearby farms.” These ciders impart a glorious mingling of delectable fruits.

We visit several shops at Apple Barn including the general store, creamery, and candy shop before making our way to Apple Barn Winery. The winery blends grapes with apples as well as other fruits, but Jonathan encourages us to try something new. “Muscadine grapes only grow south of Kentucky, and Tennessee produces the world’s best muscadines,” he says. “It’s been in regional and international competitions, and Tennessee comes out #1.” We learn Muscadine grapes are thick-skinned and grow like apples. The wine resembles a German Riesling, a little sweeter and smokier. With the Sipping Pass, Jonathan says we can try wines and ciders that other guests are not offered yet.

Up the road is Hillside Winery’s expansive tasting room where we request four samples of East Tennessee wines. The winery is known for producing dry, semi-sweet, and very-sweet blends of white, blush, and red wines. My favorite is Indian Summer, a unique composite of grape, lemon, and blueberry. The wine slushie is terrific, too, and served in a souvenir cup.

Taking a Shine to Tennessee
For the next few days, we shift our sampling focus to moonshine. It’s easy to visit several distilleries in a short amount of time since they’re close to Historic Downtown Sevierville. At Old Tennessee Distilling Company, we show our Sipping Pass, which entitles us to ten percent off merchandise. Along with moonshine, gin, vodka, and other spirits, booze-infused fruit is also for sale. The Butcher Bourbon Cherries and Moonshine Mandarin Oranges are aromatic garnishes you can add to your homemade cocktail. The distillery’s walls are plastered with movie posters and Prohibition-era news clippings. One eye-catching display is an old car with a trunk full of whiskey.

Distiller Adam Gratz says the distillery sells 17 different flavored versions of moonshine plus two clear ‘shines. The most popular is Coffee Moonshine. For first-time tasters, bartender Robin recommends trying the banana and tangerine flavors, but says, “Pick what draws you the most.” She pours our choices into tiny shot glasses. The moonshine takes on the individual flavor profile of every fruit, cream, syrup, or spice. They’re so good we buy the mini-cream variety pack to take home.

History of Moonshine
Next, we visit Tennessee Shine Co. to meet Briggs Jones. His family owns the distillery, and before tasting, he recommends touring the interactive, self-guided museum. “Our family is fifth generation moonshiners. We used natural resources like corn because that was what was around us,” says Briggs. “The History of Moonshine Museum tells a little about how my grandpa used to do it back in the day.”

After a walk-through, we’re ready to sample some zany-sounding moonshines. At the tasting bar, Briggs pours Dew Drop, Spicy Pickle, and Blue Houdini. “We have over 30 flavors, along with whiskeys and vodkas. We pride ourselves on the family aspect, and we’re pet friendly, too. We like to share that Southern spirit with everybody.”

My favorite is Jalapeño Cornbread, which tastes sweet and buttery with a hint of heat. “Because we have so many different flavors, we have the ability to make everyone’s experience unique to them,” says Briggs. “For the softer drinkers, we have Choco Moo that tastes just like a Wendy’s Frosty, but we also have whiskeys and moonshine straight off the still. People ask us what to mix this with, and we say you really don’t have to. The joy of moonshine is you can pour it over ice and drink it.” We check in to our Sipping Pass and hop back into the car.

Tennessee Legend Distillery also has a huge lineup of flavors and Brian Lowe, regional manager, points us to the bar: “Belly up and play boozy bingo.” He says to place our cups on the icon of the flavors we want to try. The list features creamy, fruity, savory, and seasonal options. He starts me off with peppery and sweet Mango Margarita, which he says he uses for cooking: “It’s great for seasoning chicken, fish, scallops, or pico de gallo salsa.” Brian hosts the Tennessee Legend podcast on which you can learn about moonshining and Smoky Mountain lore.

Celebrities Make Moonshine, Too
Our last stop is Shine Girl owned by Dolly Parton’s niece Danielle Parton. Along with running her moonshine business, Danielle appears on TV shows like Moonshiners and recently had a guest spot on RV There Yet? That, in between flying jets commercially and for the Air Force, developing her own blends, and printing her own T-shirts.

“I created my spirits to be used over and over again,” she says. “Not as a novelty drink but as mixers. I have list of cocktails that go with everything so people can reuse them and know how to partake on a regular basis.” Her four flavors are subtle and lower-than-average amounts of sugar. The Rosé is inspired by rosé wine, and Lavender is like stepping into a warm bath. “If you’ve had a rough day and need to unwind, you’ll be so calm with Lavender,” she grins.

Danielle sells unaged rum and vodka, too, and you can order cocktails and find recipes at Shine Girl. She’s a dog lover and owns five “Shine Pups,” so fans bring their dogs in all the time. We use the Sipping Pass to buy T shirts emblazoned with “Shine In All You Do” at ten-percent off. Danielle explains her tagline: “I came up with ‘Shine In All You Do’ because it applies to so many different things. Whatever you’re doing, I think you should shine at it. You should do your best.”