Pottery, moonshine, and ice cream in EDGEFIELD, SOUTH CAROLINA

This modest town with a formal square is located about 3 hours northwest of Charleston and is home to the headquarters for the National Wild Turkey Federation. It is also home to the largest peach grower outside of California, Titan Farms. And in 1997 it was transformed into the fictional town of Edgefield, Massachusetts in the Disney movie “That Darn Cat.” Nowadays, the area is making culinary waves at nearby Juniper restaurant in Ridge Spring.

Old Edgefield Pottery

230 Simkins St., (803) 634-1634. Thur-Sat 10am-4pm.

Master potter Justin Guy works here at Old Edgefield Pottery making the town’s namesake pottery, which range in color from olive green to pumpkin brown. The fine stoneware style dates to the early 1800 and is highly collectible. Several pieces are in the Smithsonian. A tour and demonstration can be scheduled during which you’ll learn the history of one of South Carolina’s most memorable art forms (the others being Catawba Indian pottery and sweetgrass baskets). At other times you can view an informal collection of pots--a sort of small museum--that Guy uses for inspiration. “I love the pots,” he says. “They all tell stories.”

Master Potter Justin Guy in front of historic pottery collection
in Old Edgefield Pottery in Edgefield, South Carolina

face jugs from Africa at Old Edgefield Pottery in Edgefield, South Carolina

Edgefield General Store

102 Courthouse Square, (803) 637-3100. Tu-Sat 10am-6pm.

Just around the corner from the pottery shop, this old fashioned general store has its original soda fountain and serves up hand-dipped ice cream. I chose butter pecan.

ice cream sample at Edgefield General Store in Edgefield, South Carolina

Carolina Moon Distillery

116 Courthouse Square, (609) 510-7465. Tu-Sat 11am-5pm. $3/taste. Must be age 21+.

Step inside here to sample some of South Carolina’s famous moonshine, which nowadays is totally legal, still local, and handcrafted. In fact, this shop is located just across from the county courthouse. At Carolina Moon Distillery they use local corn and other fresh produce--even the area’s famous peaches--to make memorable 100% corn moonshine whiskeys, bourbons, vodkas, and rums. You can see the stills and sample the wares, including blends--don’t miss trying the smooth Rabbit Spit (116-proof moonshine that is “mean enough to make a rabbit spit in a bulldog’s face”) and blackberry moonshine, which is particularly popular because it is good in lemonade. Production takes place both upstairs--known as the “fun level,” where the stills are--and in the dank dark downstairs, where the mashing, which entails enzymes and yeast and fermentation, is done “low and slow.” They use old recipes in what is described as a “pretty primitive process,” and use an old-time pot still. “There’s nothing new with what we do,” says owner David Long. “We got into this business because we like to weld and build stuff.”