A drought in Tennessee causes some problems
From
WBKO-TV in Bowling Green, Kentucky comes this story of deprivation and tragedy:
Is Jack Daniels Drying Up?
Jack Daniels water supply is running low and putting the century-plus whiskey business in jeopardy.
Jerry Hamilton is the distillery plant manager for Jack Daniels. He checks the progress of the whiskey being made at the Lynchburg distillery. While doing so he finds a small problem - wasting water.
The water here has become a precious commodity. The water source for the whiskey is a spring flowing through the Jack Daniels property. For more than 140 years this spring, known as Cave Spring, has been the water supply for Jack Daniels. It is one of the most essential parts of the whiskey’s recipe.
“Cave Spring as most people know is iron free and because it is iron free, it tends to skew the fermentation just a little bit and allows us to produce Jack Daniels as we know Jack Daniels,” Hamilton explained.
But this year there is a problem - that water supply is starting to flow less and less. Hamilton said the drought Tennessee is in is taking a toll on Cave Spring.
“Water flow is down substantially. I would say at least one third to half of what we normally see,” Hamilton said.
To the people who make Jack Daniels, all water is not created equal. It takes a special kind to make this whiskey and they say it’s only here in this cave. For that reason they have started conserving as much as they can. Using the water only for the whiskey and nothing else and even finding ways to cut back on the amount used in the process.
What will happen if the spring goes dry?
“If we can’t use what it takes to make Jack Daniels I suspect we won’t make Jack Daniels until we get all the ingredients we need,” Hamilton said.
Moore County ironically it is a dry county. You can’t buy a drink here, but if this drought continues that term “dry” could take on a whole new meaning.
Iron causes major off-tastes in any fermented product so Iron-free water is crucial. Tennesee has a lot of limestone (same as our area) and the hard water is also very very beneficial for fermentation, it adds a depth of flavor to the finished product and serves as an excellent yeast nutrient. The folks at Jack Daniels are not just blowing smoke when they tout their water -- good water is crucial.
NPR has a good article on the drought here:
Tennessee Drought Stunts Growth of Local Crops
Posted by DaveH at June 18, 2007 9:14 PM