About The Crawl

Why We Exist

The Smoky Mountains corridor is home to some of the most authentic craft distilleries in America — places where the recipes are generations old, the stills are still running, and the stories are worth hearing. But most visitors never find them. They stick to the tourist strip, hit the same two or three well-advertised stops, and leave thinking they've seen it all.

Backroads & Barrels was built to change that. We created The Moonshine Crawl^™ to give visitors a genuine, guided experience — one that goes deeper than the surface, connects guests with the real makers, and tells the true story of Appalachian spirits.

We're not a bus tour. We're not a bar crawl. We're a curated experience built on relationships with the distilleries, deep local knowledge, and a genuine commitment to making every crawl memorable.

The Founder

Joshua McFadden grew up in Sevier County. He knows these mountains, these roads, and these distilleries the way only a local can — not from a guidebook, but from years of living here, building relationships with the makers, and watching the craft spirits scene grow from a handful of heritage operations into one of the most vibrant distillery corridors in the Southeast.

Josh built The Moonshine Crawl^™ because he believed visitors deserved better than the standard tourist experience — and because the distilleries he'd come to know deserved a partner who could bring them the right guests. The Crawl is that bridge.

The Team

Our Commitment to Partners

The distilleries on our route aren't just stops — they're partners. We've built relationships with Tennessee Shine Co., Mountain Cut Distillery, Shine Girl, and every other location on our roster because we believe in what they're doing. We send them guests who are genuinely curious, genuinely engaged, and genuinely ready to appreciate the craft. That's the deal: we bring the right people; they deliver the experience.