Yesterday Percy took me to the birthplace of Tabasco Sauce, Avery Island, LA. It’s very intriguing and fairly huge. We took a tour of the factory, learned about the farming of the peppers and how the farmers use “le petite baton rouge” or “the little red stick” to pick out the ripest, most juicy peppers. The peppers have to match the color of the stick or else they’re not picked.

Did you know that after the peppers have been picked, salted, and ground they are then put into barrels which are sealed with rock salt (all of which is mined on Avery Island) and fermented for three years! Then it’s churned in this huge thing for up to 28 days mixing with vinegar before it gets bottled. Amazing how this stuff is made.

Anyways, we toured the property as well and we saw alligators. I had nightmares last night. All things reptile creep me out. But it was fascinating.

An excellent date and very informative! Enjoy some of the pictures and pretend that you are there with Percy and I enjoying the humid, beautiful day.

the swamp land of Louisiana & a beautiful base of a magnificent tree

inside the McIlhenny's Tabasco factory and an overview of a small piece of Avery Island

the Tabasco Country Store had TONS of Tabasco products from measuring spoons to jalapeno ice cream

a barrel that housed tabasco sauce that is cemented shut with Avery Island rock salt and crawfish etouffee which I don't really care for

the new jalapeno tabasco sauce bottled and getting ready to be shipped out and a beautiful flower that grows throughout louisiana

percy enjoyed the crawfish etouffee while I enjoyed the scenery

the really cool tabasco artwork and a shot of two alligators

alligators and the marshlands of louisiana

giant, and I mean GIANT spiders all over the place... about the size of a baseball

agillators as my good little friend Jeremy used to call them

amazing scenery paired with two alligators