The residents of Lincoln County, Tennessee, were once proud of their connection to the Jack Daniel’s Distillery, but now they are fed up with a stubborn black fungus that is coating their homes, cars, and outdoor surfaces near the whiskey maker’s barrel houses.
The sooty black mold, known as Baudoinia compniacensis, is fueled by ethanol vapor from the Jack Daniel’s facilities, which has been a menace to locals in Lincoln County ever since the company began building six new barrel houses in 2018 and launched plans to build 14 more.
Residents claim that the black fungus has obscured street signs, coated the leaves and bark of trees, and cements itself to any stationary object. Patrick Long, who lives adjacent to the Jack Daniel’s barrel houses, has to spend roughly $10,000 per year power-washing his house with a potent mixture of water and Clorox, and says that local officials have given up trying to clean the fungus-covered street signs and simply replace them when they become too blackened to be legible.
Long and his wife, Christi, have filed a lawsuit against Lincoln County, demanding the company and the county answer for the damage and sinking property values, and to prove the ethanol-filled air is safe to breathe. The lawsuit demands the county issue a stop work order to halt construction at Jack Daniel’s, alleging the company illegally built the facilities and lacks proper site-plan approval and building permits.
The ‘angel’s share’ of the whiskey feeds the fungus
The sooty black mold is caused by the ‘angel’s share’ of the whiskey, which is the amount of alcohol that evaporates from the wooden barrels and into the air. Locals are demanding an air-filtration system that could block the ethanol emissions and stunt the growth of the fungus, and an environmental impact study evaluating the amount of ethanol emanating from the barrel houses and any health risks it poses.
Jack Daniel’s official Melvin Keebler expressed sympathy to one resident who complained about her Stage 4 lung cancer and requested an air-filtration system. Keebler said the company already monitors its air quality and said the existing air filtration technology is for wineries and not whiskey and bourbon facilities.
A Jack Daniel’s spokesperson told Insider the company could not comment on pending litigation but that Jack Daniel’s “complies with all local, state, and federal regulations regarding the design, construction, and permitting of our barrel houses. We are dedicated to protecting the environment and the safety and health of our employees and neighbors.”
Residents in Lincoln County are hoping for some sort of resolution so the black fungus can be brought under control and the air can be made safe to breathe again. Until then, locals will continue to suffer from the effects of the whiskey fungus and its relentless spread.
