Prichard’s Distillery sits in the tiny town of Kelso, Tennessee, where Phil Prichard started making whiskey in 1997 after leaving his job as a geologist. He built his operation in what used to be an old schoolhouse, and you can still see some of the original architecture mixed in with the gleaming copper stills. Phil wanted to make Tennessee whiskey without the Lincoln County Process (that charcoal filtering most Tennessee whiskeys go through), which makes his stuff technically different from what Jack Daniel’s and others are doing. The distillery produces bourbon, rye, rum, and their signature Tennessee whiskey using traditional pot stills. Prichard got into distilling after years of homebrewing and decided Tennessee needed more craft spirits beyond the big names. He spent years convincating local officials and navigating regulations to become one of the first small distilleries in Tennessee since Prohibition. The operation stayed small by design—Phil wanted to control every step of the process himself. His son now works alongside him, keeping it a true family operation where they know every barrel personally. They age everything on-site and bottle by hand, which means production stays limited but consistent. When you visit, you’re walking into what feels more like an old-school workshop than a polished tourist destination. The tasting room has that lived-in feel where locals actually hang out, and Phil or his son will often be the ones pouring your samples. You can see the entire operation during tours since everything happens in one building. The whiskey has won some serious awards over the years, but they’re not the type to plaster certificates all over the walls—you’ll hear about accolades casually during conversation.