The Future of Craft Beverages Is Vibrant in Washington County, VA

Tyler Irving

In the heart of Appalachia, Washington County, Virginia, has been shaping the craft beverage culture for generations. Taking inspiration from Scottish and Irish immigrants, farmers once transformed surplus corn into liquor deep in the hollers. Although Prohibition ended in 1933, rooted families have kept the skills and spirit alive, and a new generation of brewers and distillers is tapping that heritage to build what’s next. From barrels to bourbon, innovation is driving the industry forward. 

Appalachian Heritage Distillery & Brewery 

In Damascus – known as “the friendliest town on the Appalachian Trail” – hikers can step off the path and into the Appalachian Heritage Distillery & Brewery. The business launched in Bristol, Tennessee, in 2016 and moved to downtown Damascus in October 2021, but its story stretches back to 1919. 

Grandpa Bud Justus, the family’s original distiller, kept a copper still tucked inside his smokehouse. Four generations later, founder Tim Nichols revived that family legacy, using Bud’s moonshine recipe as inspiration for a vodka. 

Volunteer Vodka debuted in 2018 and quickly drew acclaim, winning double gold at the seventh-annual Denver International Spirits Competition. Distilled eight times and charcoal-filtered to 80 proof, it set the tone for a portfolio that now includes a botanical 80-proof gin and well-balanced, 96-proof bourbon and rye. 

©Journal Communications/Lynne Harty

Behind the bar, a proprietary double-diamond still, handcrafted in the Ozark Mountains by renowned still maker Col. Vaughn Wilson, keeps the operation humming. In 2024, the team renovated the building next door, demolished the shared wall and added a brewery to pour fresh beer alongside their spirits. Guests can also enjoy their flavored Appalachian Sucker Punch ready-to-drink beverages. 

As a licensed Virginia ABC store, Appalachian Heritage Distillery & Brewery can sell bottles and offer samples on-site. But it’s more than a place to stock your bar. True to the town’s ethos, it’s become a community living room where neighbors celebrate milestones, leaders make big decisions, and friends and family simply enjoy each other’s company. 

“We want to be a place where people can meet up and hang out,” says Chief Operating Officer Tyler Irving. “We’ve got mocktails, snacks and soft drinks for those who don’t drink.” 

At Appalachian Heritage Distillery & Brewery, everyone’s welcome to raise a glass. 

iStock/kellyvandellen

Speyside Bourbon Stave Mill 

Bourbon’s character isn’t created by distilling alone. It’s shaped in the barrel, and by law, that barrel must be new, charred white oak. The char inside lends all the spirit’s color, while months and even years of contact draw sugars from the wood, layering in flavor notes like vanilla, caramel, spice, apple, oak, and even sweet and fruity notes. 

In Glade Spring, the Speyside Bourbon Stave Mill plays an essential role in every great pour: building the staves that eventually become barrels. 

Speyside Bourbon Cooperage began in 2016 in Jackson, Ohio, and has grown rapidly to meet demand, expanding from a single facility buying from outside suppliers to two cooperages and eight stave mills – including Glade Spring. That vertical integration ensures consistency from white oak log to barrel, a critical advantage as the U.S. craft spirits scene continues to surge. 

Opened in February 2020, the Glade Spring mill was sited near its parent company, Speyside Bourbon Cooperage in Atkins, Virginia, to keep the supply chain tight. 

Here, white oak logs are quarter sawn – an exacting cut that helps barrels hold liquid – on modern equipment that lets operators work safely at a distance. Even so, the most important tools are the trained eyes that inspect and grade every piece for quality. The staves and headings produced in Glade Spring are shipped to the nearby Smyth County cooperage, where they’re assembled into finished bourbon barrels. Those barrels are later filled with the distilled spirit and aged in rick houses to create a smooth, flavorful bourbon. 

With the industry’s anticipated growth, access to high-quality, precisely made barrels will matter more than ever. The work happening in Glade Spring will be a key ingredient in producing legendary spirits in the region, country and the world.