Page 15 - DEC2021 Digial Issue: Barbecue News Magazine

and pay. There is a
line at 11:30am on
this Friday of
about a dozen
people. Two of us
order while the
“birthday girls”
find us a table in
the large dining
area as there is al-
ready an overflow
crowd. We all
order a BBQ Sand-
wich and Sweet
Tea with chips. And, we all order several containers of barbecue to take home — just like we did 70 years ago — and all the other vis- its through the years. Dianne lives in Athens and she always
I’ve tasted a lot of barbecue, es- pecially over the last 40 years, doing cook-offs, many sauce and rub judging events, with some of the best of the best trav- eling across this well-trained palate! So much of it has been
“way above the average’. I have tried many BBQ Joints when peo- ple were ecstatic about the taste and only mediocre to my taste buds. What was the difference? They grew up eating barbecue with a particular taste ... and individual palates will adjust over the years.
I’ll have to admit that Fresh Air Bar-B-Que in Jackson (Flovilla), Ga is still some of the best I have had to cross my almost 80-year- old palate. You know it’s got to be good if these old gals drive for an hour or more each from surrounding towns to celebrate birth- days. I also admit to having other barbecue to rival the taste! Let’s face it ... the best
each of us have prob-
ably had is in our
backyard and mine
would be with Doc
Gillis and Joe Phelps
manning the grill. Of
course, Kell Phelps is
working his way up to
making my list as
well!
Salter Sisters celebrating another birthday visit: About 10 years ago with a visit to Indian Springs, Fresh Air Bar-B-Que and even the family graveyard. L-R: Dianne, Carlene, Glenda, Bobbie and Sylvia.
stopped here when making trips to family reunions in Thomaston to pick up the barbecue over a period of some 50 of these years.
I don’t remember any names when we first visited over 70 years ago, but I guess it would have been Toots Caston and his family, the founder and in- ventor of the pit back in the 1940’s. They fire up every day, 24 hours a
Life is way too short not to take EVERY OPPORTUNITY to taste as much barbe- cue as possible. Let’s face it ... when it comes to barbecue, we’re all still looking for the BEST OF THE BEST!
day, 7 days a week, year-round, with a combination of hickory and oak wood, and cook only hams in the traditional way it’s always been done. I did not take more photos on this trip since an article was not on my list of to-do items. However, after leaving I thought it was time to share my barbecue background. The wood, hams and sauce combination is what gives their barbecue a dis- tinct flavor. The meat is chopped and allows the taste of the tomato-vinegar sauce to saturate the meat.
Fresh Air barbecue plates usually consist of Brunswick with crackers, BBQ with white bread, slaw and a pickle.
Fresh Air’s barbecue sandwich is served on a bun with your choice of chips or fries. They keep it simple and many barbecue establishments have learned that simple is better — with less menu items using the same ingredients are the best.
DECEMBER 2021
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