A few weeks ago, I had the opportunity to take a tour of the A. Smith Bowman Distillery in Fredericksburg, Virginia. Master Distiller Brian Prewitt led our special tour as he explained the distillation and aging process of A. Smith Bowman’s bourbons. From the giant stills to the high-quality barrels to the final bottling, the process of crafting small batch bourbon was fascinating to see.

At the end of our tour, my group sampled some of A. Smith Bowman’s products, like John J. Bowman bourbon, George Bowman colonial era dark Caribbean rum and Mary Hite Bowman Caramel Cream liqueur. We also visited the gift shop, which was full of everything you could think of that has anything to do with bourbon, from barbecue sauces to bourbon-scented candles. I picked up a bag of barrel char – the blackened, bourbon-soaked shavings from the charred inside of a used bourbon barrel – and decided to give it a try along with some hickory chips when my husband smoked a pork shoulder recently.

Here’s the barrel char soaking with some hickory chips.

Mixing up the dry rub – coarse salt, fresh ground black pepper, paprika, cayenne pepper and a bunch of other good stuff.

Before (applying the dry rub) and after smoking.

The finished product!

The barrel char definitely added a layer of flavor to this delicious smoked pork shoulder. Of course, this yummy barbecue is best served with a pour of your favorite bourbon.