I got a call yesterday from a guy in North Carolina who makes a very cool 750 ml glass jug bottle. His pitch was simple. It would make a great container for Tennessee moonshine, and best of all, it’s made in America.

Ever since voters in every precinct of Cannon County voted Nov. 2 to allow us to build Short Mountain Distillery, the calls and emails have provided some perspective on the character of America in a time of great need.

You can hear the eagerness in America’s voice. It’s not defeated. It’s not the voice of fear you hear on cable news. It’s the sound of America doing what we do best: work.

It comes in calls from small businesses who will make the bottles, labels, boxes and barrels, and emails with resumes expressing big hopes to be one of the folks we’ll need to build and produce a locally owned American brand of whiskey.

Countless hands will work to build some part of Short Mountain Distillery. Some may not realize it as they become busy filling our orders, making lunch for a tourist, or passing by acres of local corn we’ll need. Still more will never see our impact in the lives and economy of our community and our great state. But it’s there.

Our needs create jobs: employees, architect, farmers, builder, concrete, steel, consultants, attorney, accountant, boiler, forklift, box truck, fermenters, dry wall, pot still, bottles, bottling machine, labels, paint, barrels, racks, computers, point of sale systems, boxes, grain, air compressors, signage, kitchen sinks, security systems, water, power, prep tables, insurance, phones, landscaping, office furniture, merchandise, advertising, and much more.

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The Tennessee Municipal League’s bi-monthly magazine Tennessee Town & City had a nice article in today’s edition featuring Billy Kaufman.

The article by Victoria South highlights Cannon County’s cultural heritage and legacy we hope to share with the world through Short Mountain Distillery.

“This is about jobs,” said Kaufman, who is the great grandson of iconic Samsonite Luggage founder Jesse Shwayder. “It’s also about tourism, revenue, and the kind of sustainability we need to preserve our way of life. We want to share our local history with the world, and we want tourism to bring new opportunities for local businesses.”

With Cannon County’s rich agricultural heritage, Short Mountain Farm is revered by old-timers for the quality of its moonshine, made from ice cold spring water, which still flows from three springs on the property. Kaufman is hoping to tap this renewable energy source for the distillery’s operations.

“I had been looking for a way to make farming profitable,” he said. “One of my strongest drives is making farming sustainable, having it make sense again. It’s the best way of life there is, but that doesn’t mean it makes financial sense, as it’s structured now. You have to be incredibly skilled and lucky to make a living.”

Heavy regulations and substantial start up costs of several hundred thousand dollars or more could be a formidable obstacle for legal moonshine distillers. “Just getting through all the red tape and hurdles makes it a community endeavor,” Kaufman explains. “It’s also my commitment to my community.”

As part of that commitment, Kaufman plans to hire locally and use locally grown agricultural products.

“Cannon County is full of qualified hard working farmers, factory workers, industrious people, who are already telling me what they can do,” he said. “It’s a great time to harness this tremendous energy of a community doing something that relates to their values close to where they live.”

An increased interest in Tennessee culture and heritage prompted the state Department of Tourism to launch a tourist attraction dubbed “White Lightning Trail,” where drivers traverse a network of roadways spanning hundreds of miles across nine counties in northeast Tennessee. Along the trail, visitors can travel the same routes where bootleggers in hopped up cars, transported illegal moonshine whiskey, rumored to be the inspiration for NASCAR. As tourists visit the various sites, neighbors along the way might be more than willing to swap a moonshining tale or two.

“If people would be willing to drive a little farther, they could come to the place where the history of moonshine is rich and the living history of moonshine, the people, are still alive,” said Kaufman. “Let me tell you, the stories here are rich. Almost everyone in Cannon County can tell you a great story about the moonshine in this area, whether it be the law enforcement against it, or their family struggle to make a living at a time when there was really no other way to make a living. It’s part of this area’s heritage and goes back much further than you think.”

In this weekend’s Murfreesboro Post, Mike Vinson speaks from personal experience on the rich cultural heritage Short Mountain Distillery celebrates.

Indeed, Short Mountain has a long, rich history for producing moonshine.

Having grown up in the Centertown-Blues Hill area of Warren County, about a 20-minute drive from Short Mountain, I, personally, can attest to the “lore” that connects Short Mountain to the craft of whiskey making.

Without going into needless detail and giving up any names, I’ll just say that clear, homemade, high-proof liquor could be purchased at any of several Short Mountain locations back in the day.

The Sanbourns told us we were welcome to pick as many apples as we wanted from their small Short Mountain orchard.

Like most homeowners, the Sanbourns grow them organically and couldn’t possibly eat everything their orchard produces. Mrs. Sanbourn told us about the only thing appreciating them lately were the deer, so she was happy to see us put them to use.

After a couple of hours of picking we ended up with about seven bushels of apples. They were a mix of Yellow Delicious and a hybrid they called “Johnny” Delicious. If we had time, we probably would have gotten more, but we had to meet up with Gabby by 2 p.m. if we wanted to use his apple press.

In the old days, this is how cider and distilled brandy was made. The process was often a collective effort by locals that extended the life of fruit well into the winter, warming the farmer, making holiday cheer and soothing mild winter ailments.

In the late 1800s, residents throughout Cannon County would bring their apples to Jim Jamerson who ran a legal distillery near Burt. “Jimerson” would then turn the collected apples into brandy. Jamerson was just one of several enterprising distillers in Cannon County who created sustaining value for the community’s rural way of life. It was an American way of life that made friends out of neighbors and let nothing go to waste.

Distilleries have always been a part of American culture. Nearly every single one of our founding fathers distilled spirits, and one of the first taxes they levied on the American people to pay for war and to build our nation was the Whiskey Tax.

You don’t have to look too far back into Tennessee’s history to understand the role distilleries played in making farms successful and building our great state.

In 1840 the U.S. Census reported that Cannon County alone had 18 distilleries. Distilling spirits was a necessary way to turn grain into a medicinal and dietary staple of rural family life.

In an 1874 letter to Tennessee’s Secretary of Agriculture J.B. Killebrew, Robertson County attorney William Moore described how distilleries in his county kept local farms profitable.

The immense amount of grain required in the manufacture of the article has stimulated the farming community to produce more corn, there being an active and steady demand for it at the highest and most remunerative prices. Seven hundred and fifty bushels of grain are being daily consumed, (which would be forty-five thousand barrels annually). This will give some idea of the immense business. The increasing demands for grain have absorbed the entire surplus of corn in the county, and have compelled our distillers to rely in a great degree upon the St. Louis and other foreign markets, including the productions of the rich Wabash Valley.

Since 1900, Cannon County’s population has gained just a few hundred people. In many ways, we still embrace an agrarian lifestyle. In his 1874 report The Resources of Tennesseee, Sec. Killebrew had this general observation of the people of Cannon County.

The citizens are industrious and energetic, but not enterprising. They prefer the old way because they believe it to be the sure way. They are greatly attached to the county, and emigration to other states is very rare. They would like to have additions to their population, though labor is sufficiently abundant and cheap. The county is free from debt, and jury tickets are at par. Infractions of the law are not common. Ease, peace and plenty characterize the county. Economy is the ruling trait of the citizens, and they mingle with their labors many of the pleasures of life.

Life in Cannon County has strayed little from that quaint description from 136 years ago. About the only noticeable exceptions are jobs, revenue and the quality of life both sustain.

The opportunity we have to preserve our way of life is tucked between our rolling hills and pages of history’s wisdom. It comes in bushels of corn, rye, sorghum, and maybe even apples, all grown here for over 100 years. And with your support in November, our values and our heritage can be our most treasured export to the world.

Commissioners Aug. 28, 2010 from CannonWire on Vimeo.

Somewhere around the 6 minute mark you can listen to the Cannon County Commission officially set the date of election for our distillery referendum for the November 2 general election. Video by the Cannon Wire. You can read their story here.

The Cannon Courier posted the full text of the ballot question before voters in November and are also running an online poll of how you’d vote today.

Cannon County Administrator of Elections Stan Dobson certified that enough signatures of registered voters had been obtained by the proponents of the measure.

Nine of the 10 county commissioners voted to place the items on the ballot, with Karen Ashford passing.

The question which voters will see on the ballot will be:

— To permit and legalize the manufacture of intoxicating liquors and other intoxicating drinks within the boundaries of Cannon County.

— Not to permit and legalize the manufacture of intoxicating liquors and other intoxicating drinks within the boundaries of Cannon County.

County Executive Mike Gannon said that if the question was not on the November ballot, the county would have to spend $10,000 to $15,000 in the spring of next year for a special election.

Every step we take to bring jobs and tourism to Cannon County we’re reminded of some very big shoes we have to fill.

The reminders come as fond memories folks share with us of working for Billy Kaufman’s grandfather and great-grandfather at Samsonite in Murfreesboro, TN.

The stories come from local officials, shop owners and farmers. They’re our neighbors, people we know and trust. If you ask around you are bound to know someone who made the daily trip to Murfreesboro to make a living for their family.

One of those neighbors is Harold Stembridge. When he heard Billy wanted to build a distillery on his Short Mountain farm, Harold put the word out through friends that he had something very special to share with Billy.

Harold has lived here all his life. He’s a farmer who now keeps bees, chickens and reindeer. When Harold was younger he worked in a t-shirt factory and wanted something better. His co-workers laughed when he left and told him he’d be back. Harold landed at Samsonite and ended up working for Billy’s grandfather for 34 years.

Harold remembers Samsonite like it was yesterday. For years he tried get the Cracker Barrel in Murfreesboro to hang a portrait of Samsonite founder Jesse Shwayder telling them this was the man who made Murfreesboro. The portrait hung in the lobby of the Samsonite factory greeting employees and visitors for years.

Harold told Billy when his great-grandfather would visit that he’d ask folks if they had their Golden Rule marble on them. If they did, he let them take a paid hour off work. Harold still has his Golden Rule marble to this day among some of his valuable treasures, a blue one with the Golden Rule inscribed on a golden band.

But Harold had one more treasured item he wanted to give to Billy. It’s the portrait of his great-grandfather Jesse, conservatively dressed with the Holy Bible firmly griped in his right hand.

An engraved brass plate at the bottom reads: “Jesse Shwayder, Founder and Chairman of the Board, Shwayder Bros., Inc., Taken on his 80th birthday March 26, 1962.” It’s a portrait of conviction, service and respect that reminds us what good people can do when we expect the very best from each other.

Angie Meadows from the Smithville Review came out and interviewed Billy Kaufman on his Short Mountain farm about bringing jobs and tourism to Cannon County. The article above was clipped from today’s front page.

Voters will ultimately decide in November whether they want to allow a distillery to be built here under a new state law legalizing distilleries. Cannon County was once home to as many as 18 legal distilleries as reported by United States Census data prior to Prohibition.

When Lewis McEacharn saw Billy Kaufman on the news this morning, he told his wife he wished he could meet these fellas trying to start that Short Mountain Distillery. You can imagine his surprise when we showed up at his place of work this morning.

McEacharn works at the George Dickel Distillery in Normandy, TN giving tours. We ended up getting a very nice private tour by Brandy (who reminded us she’s perfectly aware of the irony), but back in the gift shop, McEacharn thought he recognized Billy. He was right.

Like many folks we bump into, McEacharn is excited about the potential craft distillers have to share the rich history and vast recipes of legal moonshine. There’s a deep cultural connection people have with moonshine and other traditional American spirits.

McEacharn shared some old moonshine stories of his own, then took us aside to share some wisdom he gained distilling his own spirits as a younger man traveling the world.

McEarcharn took us to a display showing the basic distillation process and added something about flavor he learned through his own experience. You could see him tasting and smelling the mash by the look in his eyes and the movement of his hands as he described a critical process.

We’re definitely seeing a growing need to return the pleasure of meeting so many amazing people by providing a few private tours. Without giving away all of McEacharn’s advice, the bottom line is this. You can’t rush good flavor, and that’s good advice any way you look at it.

100 years ago in 1910, Billy Kaufman’s great grandfather, Jesse Shwayder, founded an iconic American brand called Samsonite. Billy’s grandfather, Louis Degan, later brought Samsonite to Murfreesboro employing several Middle Tennesseans.

The quality of Samsonite’s products served a bustling nation on the move, and Jesse proudly built that company around an important core value: The Golden Rule.

Jesse shared this value by giving employees, vendors and even customers a marble made with the Golden Rule inscribed on a band encircling the marble. Jesse asked folks who received this special gift to consider the rule when making tough decisions.

On a small double-sided sheet of paper that came with each marble Jesse handed out was the following message.

"Do unto others as you would have them do unto you." - New Testament, Matthew VII, 12 "We have found, for practical as well as moral reasons, the Golden Rule is the finest program we could adopt. The Golden Rule has more power than the atomic bomb. With its help, men still can work wonders." Jesse Shwayder Founder, Shwayder Tunk Mfg. Co. (Samsonite Corporation)

The Meaning of the Golden Rule Marble The Golden Rule marble, encircled with a band bearing the Golden Rule, was created by Jesse Shwayder as a symbol of the philosophy upon which he founded the Shwayder Trunk Mfg. Co. (Samsonite Corporation). Traditionally every new Samsonite employee receives a Golden Rule marble. Over the years this delicately inscribed sphere has served as a reminder not only to employees, but to customers and friends around the world of the universal doctrine, the Golden Rule. The Golden Rule is the basic religious concept of all the earth's great religions. Moses handed it down to the children of Israel. Christ proclaimed it to his followers throughout the world. Buddha, Confucius, and Aristotle have their basic teachings in the Golden Rule. If the Golden Rule ideal were adopted by the nations of the world, perhaps the one great hope of mankind would be realized: Peace on Earth and Good Will toward Men.

To this day, businesses and church groups like the United Methodist Men continue this tradition. This 1965 TIME Magazine article described how applying the Golden Rule in business paid off for Samsonite.

The world’s largest manufacturer of luggage is named after the Bible’s powerful Samson. Its president has a name to match: King David. The firm’s official corporate philosophy is the Bible’s Golden Rule: “Do unto others as you would have them do unto you.”* All company officers and salesmen carry a marble encircled by a gold band on which the Golden Rule is printed, take it out for inspiration when they have a business decision to make.

This philosophical approach — wedded to some pragmatic business practices—has paid off handsomely for Denver’s Samsonite Corp. The firm now accounts for more than a quarter of all U.S. luggage sold, and its sales last year reached a record $55.9 million. Last week, as orders from vacation-bound Americans flooded into Denver, Samsonite raised its 1965 sales estimate from $60 million to $64 million.

100 years later, Jesse’s great-grandchildren keep these marbles as a reminder of the values that helped their family build an iconic global brand in pursuit of the American dream.

The Golden Rule helps good neighbors build strong communities and is a prominent family value of the Kaufman brothers and the Short Mountain Distillery.

Local farmers Billy Kaufman and John Whittemore spoke earlier today with WZTV Fox 17’s John Dunn. Skooter FarmDog even makes a cameo in this news clip.

In November, Cannon County voters will decide whether or not to allow a distillery to be built in the county. To Billy and John, it’s about honoring and preserving our way of life.

Up in the hills of Cannon County, Billy Kaufman hopes to turn water into shine.

“This water here is pure,” says Kaufman next to his mountain spring.

The organic farmer wants to open the Short Mountain Distillery here using old fashioned recipes for moonshine.

“One of the famous quotes for this area is without whiskey and baskets we all would have starved to death,” says Kaufman.

This November, Cannon County voters will have a referendum to decide if a distillery should be built here.

Kaufman promises at least a small number of jobs, and an increase in tourism.

“To me it’s about jobs and preserving our rural lifestyle,” says Billy Kaufman.

One thing the new state law allowing distilleries won’t do is allow just anybody to set up a moonshine still in their backyard.

The Cannon Courier gave readers just a taste of the regulatory red tape Short Mountain Distillery and anyone else must go through before opening our doors to the public.

You can read the full list and links to other state laws that will govern how we will operate as a business at the Cannon Courier. Here’s an excerpt:

1. $300 Application Fee (Non refundable – Must Accompany Application)
2. $1,000.00 Annual License Fee
3. Distillery Application. Downloadable Form AB-0034
4. Questionnaire (Form AB-0009) (each owner, partner or officer)
5. Approval by the local government for the location.
6. Copy of Lease and/or Deed, or other document evidencing possession or right to possess the physical premises or real property for the proposed location.
7. Federal Special Tax Stamp Registration.
8. Copy of all loan contracts.
9. Financial background check of applicant.
10. Credit check from banking/lending institution.