by Sarah Beavers, Messenger Staff Writer

On March 23, Sweet Southern Spirit Bakery will officially open a new location in Cowan. Paige Jones, owner, started in the baking business 13 years ago, supplying the Lynchburg bakery with Tipsy Cakes. Jones expanded her business with the purchase of the French Confection, a family-owned Nashville-based wholesale bakery. After 17 years in business, The French Confection Bakery amassed many loyal customers that complimented the needs and customer base of Jones’ bakery in Lynchburg. Her small batch homemade baked treats are now distributed throughout the Southeast and loved by her clients and chefs alike.

Paige Jones took over the baking of the famous Tipsy Cakes by chance. She started by opening a small shop in Lynchburg as a side project to break up her time with her other business, AHF Consultants. The small Lynchburg shop grew into a full-time bakery when Jones located the original 100-year-old Irish Tipsy Cake recipe. Jones, with 30 years of experience as a fraud accountant, never imagined her side project would grow as much as it has.

“The lady who had been making them stopped, but we still had people coming in to ask about the Tipsy Cakes,” said Jones. “Those little cakes are responsible for putting us on the map.” In 2014, the bakery won the Nashville Baker’s Cook-Off. The next year, Tennessee Crossroads featured Sweet Southern Spirit Bakery on a show, and from 2016-2018 the bakery won the Bakery/Caterers of the Year awards.

Sweet Southern Spirit Bakery’s Cowan location will do wholesale with the added element of retail. Customers can come in and sample Tipsy Cakes, fudge, candies, toffee, cakes, whoopie pies, doughnuts, pies, and whatever other baked goods you can think of, even chocolate covered bacon.

“There’s something a little different for everybody. It’s not just sweets but savory food as well,” Jones said, pointing to the shelves stocked with homemade pickles, sauces, jams, and coffee. “A facility in Lynchburg roasts the coffee, and the high-quality beans are from Colombia.” The bakery will offer roasts such as Coal Train, Wake Up Cowan, Whistle Stop, and Whiskey Coffee.

“The Whiskey Coffee is a special something we’re coming out with. The coffee beans will be infused with local whiskey to bring out more flavor during the brewing process.” Jones said. “The reason we have a lot of cakes with spirits is because the spirits bring out a lot of flavor in the cakes.” For those of you who are wary of eating your alcohol, Sweet Southern Spirit also offers spirit-free versions of their cakes.

In the future, Jones will be offering dessert parties where party-goers can sample homemade desserts paired with coffee or local craft beers. For now, Jones offers catering for company events, and weddings complete with “good, simple, pretty, and elegant” wedding cakes. Everything in the bakery is baked the old-fashioned way, and Jones attributes this partly to her success.

“I think if you have a really good product it can make you, but if you don’t have the customer service to go with it, you don’t really have anything because I think people want both. They want customer service. We try to go that extra mile and try to offer something that you just can’t get in a box and I think that’s what has made us successful. Opening a bakery is a way for me to help the community. If the people in Sewanee, Cowan, and Winchester support us, we’ll do just fine.”

Mark your calendars for March 23 and be sure to check out all the homemade treats Sweet Southern Spirit Bakery has to offer.

Sweet Southern Spirit Bakery is located at 209 E. Cumberland St., Cowan, and is open for retail Thursday–Friday, 7 a.m.–4 p.m., and Saturday, 9 a.m.–2 p.m., Monday through Wednesday is for call ahead orders only. Call ahead or place your order at (931) 247-8958. Follow Cowan Bakery on Facebook or check out <sweetsouthernspiritbakery.com> for offerings, ordering information, and pricing.