We have long turned to Jack Rudy Cocktail Co. when making our custom cocktails at home and for our Friends of the Café dinner series at The Factory. Jack Rudy was founded by Brooks Reitz (husband to our designer Erin Reitz) in 2010. Since that time, Brooks has slowly grown a small food and beverage empire that continues to… Read on

This post published last Wednesday in the midst of technical difficulties that lasted more than a week. We are deeply proud of this collaboration, adore all things Jack Rudy, and want to be sure that everyone gets a chance to meet Brooks up-close (or at least closer). Here we re-publish  the story, giving the Pink… Read on

As most of you know, Alabama Chanin strives to support local farmers whenever possible—especially now that we’ve opened The Factory Café and are sourcing local and organic ingredients for all of our dishes. Our kitchen manager, Arron, has built a strong relationship with our friends Steve and Connie Carpenter, who operate nearby Jack-O-Lantern Farm. Each… Read on

“But there is another South, the one that we know: a South that is full of people who do things that honor genuinely honorable traditions. Drinking. Cooking. Reading. Writing. Singing. Playing. Making things. It’s also full of people who face our region’s contradictions and are determined to throw our dishonorable traditions out the window.” ―… Read on

In August, The Factory Café hosted celebrated chef and literal rock star Cheetie Kumar for a special evening of savory and sweet offerings highlighting her Indian and American culinary background. We were also joined by renowned wine importer Eric Solomon, who curated delightful wine pairings for each dish. Benefitting the Southern Foodways Alliance (SFA), the… Read on

In 2018, the store and café celebrated five years serving our community and the public and is anticipating brand new programming for 2019. Having shared a review of the past year for The School of Making and Bldg. 14, today we look back at The Factory Store + Café. The Factory Store rotated its offerings… Read on

Toast the season with a Christmas cocktail (or two). WHITE CHRISTMAS COCKTAIL 1 ounce Jack Rudy Elderflower Tonic 4 ounces Prosecco Fresh rosemary Fill a cocktail glass with Jack Rudy Elderflower Tonic and top with Prosecco – garnish with a sprig of rosemary.

… the role of the architect, or the designer, is that of a very good, thoughtful host, all of whose energy goes into trying to anticipate the needs of his guests—those who enter the building and use the objects in it. – Charles Eames A place at the table. What does that mean?  It means… Read on

“Certainly work is not always required of a man. There is such a thing as sacred idleness, the cultivation of which is now fearfully neglected.” – George Mac Donald As the weather gets cool and crisp and the days get shorter and darker, we are instinctively encouraged to cultivate idleness. We head indoors to sit… Read on

In August, The Factory Café hosted James Beard Award-winning chef and fellow Southern Foodways Alliance lover, John Currence, for a special evening that combined savory with sweet and included personal touches to each dish. We were also joined by renowned wine importer Eric Solomon, who created original and clever wine pairings. The meal featured a… Read on

We couldn’t have asked for a livelier kick-off to our 2018 Friends of the Café Dinner Series. James Beard award-winning chef Steven Satterfield joined us in house and created a flawless meal. Steven started the night out with rye biscuits topped with sweet butter and country ham, radishes with whipped feta and a pesto drizzle,… Read on

“We have forgotten how to be good guests, how to walk lightly on the earth as its other creatures do.” – Barbara Shelley Earth Day, which has been celebrated in the United States on April 22nd for the past 48 years, serves as a reminder to us to treat all aspects of the Earth—water, land,… Read on

Cathead Distillery has been on our radar for many years. They sponsored one our very first Friends of the Café dinners with Vivian Howard in 2014, and we made a hand-sewn banner for them to use at special events. This spring, we’re partnering with them and Jack Rudy Cocktail Co. for a special Cocktail Workshop… Read on

Each year Alabama Chanin hosts a community picnic—a time for employees, artisans, collaborators, supporters, and members of the community to gather and celebrate. It gives us the opportunity to say hello to each of you, spend time together, and give thanks for the beautiful work and support we receive throughout the year. What started at… Read on

“There are only ten minutes in the life of a pear when it is perfect to eat.” – Ralph Waldo Emerson You can’t beat the taste of a perfectly ripe pear. When I’m at the market, I hear Emerson in my head reminding me of the short window I have to enjoy them. However, you… Read on

The Factory Café routinely attempts to maintain a fresh and unique selection of food and beverages, utilizing as many local and regional purveyors as possible. One of our most recent additions is Oyster Shed Rosé, developed by friend and collaborator Brooks Reitz, founder of Jack Rudy Cocktail Company, and Harry Root, president of Grassroots Wine…. Read on

Our most recent Friends of the Café Dinner, helmed by Ashley Christensen and her team, was another memorable milestone in our ongoing friendship and professional relationship. We have always proclaimed Ashley to be a badass, and she proved herself worthy of the description, once again. She has dedicated such an enormous amount of time, energy,… Read on

Our café team continues to create festive cocktails to add to the menu archives for The Factory Café. This cocktail speaks to two different demographics: whiskey drinkers and wine lovers. Follow the recipe below and make your own at home. In this Prosecco cocktail, we channeled the taste of a Manhattan to create a brunch-appropriate drink… Read on

Bon Appétit’s October issue hit the stands this past week and featured a big Alabama party—complete with a campfire, Lodge Castiron, and whiskey. Read the full story of our ‘Alabama Getaway’ and find the recipes online here. A HUGE thank you is in order to all the chefs, makers, artists, and friends who drove (and… Read on

In December of 2011, we started playing with bitters. Today, we explore how craft meets cocktail with Jesse Goldstein. Read on to learn how to make variations of your own of cocktail bitters and how to use this relatively simple ingredient to add complex layers to your own drinks: It was in 1806 when the… Read on

This month, we offer our second installment on creative cocktails from Jesse Goldstein on the often overlooked of beauty lavender as a flavor. Hopefully you will be inspired to experiment with your own infusions to create spirits with complex, but delicious, flavors. While the idea of infusing herbs and botanicals into spirits may seem to… Read on

Ever since I read about classic Southern drinks in the latest issue of Garden & Gun, I’ve been craving a crisp, refreshing cocktail. We’ve shared some grenadine-inspired libations before and, in keeping with that theme (and continuing our love affair with Jack Rudy’s Small Batch Grenadine), we created a blood orange-infused pomegranate cocktail. Boasting a… Read on

Thank you to everyone who came to our Grand Opening yesterday – it was great to see all of our old friends, and make some new ones. We are overcome by the outpouring of support from our community (and beyond) for our new venture.

In anticipation of tomorrow evening’s opening exhibit of our BBQ’ed Dresses Collection at Warehouse Row in Chattanooga, Tennessee, we mixed up a celebratory cocktail. Our friend Brooks Reitz of the Jack Rudy Cocktail Co. sent us a few more bottles of his Small Batch Tonic for the event, and the Chattanooga Whiskey Co. is providing… Read on

A couple months ago, we launched a line of cocktail napkins made with our 100% organic cotton jersey and printed with the Alabama Chanin logo. We also shared a new favorite cocktail: our version of a Maiden’s Blush. Friend Brooks Reitz of the Jack Rudy Cocktail Co. sent us some of his small batch grenadine,… Read on

Charleston, South Carolina has its own style of “Southern-ness” that almost can’t be defined. And although it has been years (almost two decades) since I have been there, I definitely recognize Charleston when I see, hear, or smell it. Charlestonians sound like no other group of Southerners: “Chawlstun,” they say with their long middle vowels… Read on

We’re not quite in the cocktail business (yet), though we seem to be sneaking behind the bar more and more lately. Our collaboration with Jack Rudy Cocktail Co. brought about the Jack Rudy Bar Towel, which we featured early last month along with the Jack Rudy Small Batch Tonic, both available for purchase on our… Read on

Everything from roasted potatoes to strawberries and Prosecco  (sometimes in the same meal) have been flavored by my rosemary plants; I have been known to make flower arrangements (and wreaths) from the fragrant leaves and drink rosemary infused tea at the same time.  And while I use rosemary year-round, this evergreen bush is readily available… Read on

Thank you to the Wall Street Journal for including me for their “In My Kitchen” series. “Crafty Cook Natalie Chanin”  by Charlotte Druckman (who was a pleasure to work with). Here you have the full interview (with a small disclaimer) and the recipes for the full menu we cooked that day: “I GOT MY NICKNAME… Read on

A few weeks back I hosted a small outdoor Wednesday night dinner to welcome friends Nathalie Jordi and Brett Anderson to Florence (and to celebrate my new deck).

Thanks to everyone who came out last night for our first ever Visiting Artist Series. Our Handmade (the new favorite cocktail) with Jack Rudy Cocktail Co. Small Batch Tonic and Tito’s Handmade Vodka was beloved by all! And thank you to Jeff Moerchen for being our first… Get his newly released book – Ligonier: A… Read on

Made (and Grown) in the USA: Jack Rudy Cocktail Co. Small Batch Tonic Tito’s Handmade Vodka Lemon Verbena – from my garden (and thanks to  Angie Mosier) My friend John T. Edge – the man who understands everything culinary and loves “liquor and its accompaniments” – wrote yesterday of Jack Rudy Cocktail Co. Small Batch… Read on

“Life seems to go on without effort when I am filled with music.” ― Mary Ann Evans (under the pen name George Eliot), The Mill on the Floss For us, a relaxed summer evening spent at home, listening to music, in comfy clothes, with a favorite cocktail, sounds just about perfect. For some stay-home inspiration… Read on

Journal followers are likely familiar with one of the newer faces on our design team: Erin Reitz (née Connelly), who we have featured recently. Erin and business partner Kerry Clark Speake are co-founders of The Commons, a Charleston, South Carolina-based shop that sells high quality, local, and American-made housewares. In addition to the work at… Read on