Jack and Mary

By Mary

When we have cocktails, my usual drink is Jack Daniel's and diet coke. I have often said I drink water, milk, diet pepsi, and JD and coke. That's the whole list of what I drink.

I started drinking Jack Daniel's in 1980 when I went to the Kentucky Derby. Before then I rarely ever drank anything alcoholic. The group I was with almost insisted that I drink something so I tried beer, which I have never liked, then I tried mint juleps....they are TERRIBLE. Someone had JD so I tried that and quite frankly it was the lesser of three evils. At least I could drink it without gagging----a good sign!!

Over the years I have continued to drink Jack Daniel's and I have also collected some Jack Daniel's stuff. Bottles, tins, laying cards, tray's, and flasks.

So in 2004 when Rex was planning our vacation he mentioned that we would be going by Lynchburg, TN and would I like to see the Jack Daniel's distillery. Well ya I sure would!!

The distillery tour was really interesting and we thoroughly enjoyed it. We learned the difference between Jack Daniel's, Gentleman Jack, and Single Barrel. We also learned a lot about Jack Daniel. For instance, he registered the first distillery in the U.S. He was 16 years old!! We also learned the he was only 5'2" tall. Small of stature but larger than life with personality!

After the tour the search was on for a souvenir. This is usually a t-shirt. Unfortunately, I couldn't find a t-shirt I liked but I did find a cocktail glass that I just loved. Based on recent blogs, I know you will find this difficult to believe, but I really am not much of a drinker, and I almost never drink at home. But because I really liked my glass I decided that I would just take it with me when we went to a bar to have a cocktail. Of course you can't just walk in with a glass, it has to have a carrying case so I made one.

Yes, I do put my glass in this little bag and take it with me...believe me, the bartender seldom forgets me or my drink order!!! The reason that I chose green instead of black for the lettering is because the original Jack Daniel's label was green and white. It was changed to black on the death of Mr. Jack and was suppose to be temporary ...just used for a period of mourning. But Mr. Jack's nephew and heir decided to keep the label black and white. The opposite side of the bag says "Mary's Glass" in gold letters. It has become a great conversation piece and I must say I have enjoyed all the comments I have gotten. It's been fun.