What begins as a dinner at Maker's Mark in Vivian's honor ends as an American history lesson. A tour of Maker's Mark and Jefferson's distilleries illuminates the differences between whiskey, scotch, and bourbon for Vivian who also learns how Frank and Jesse James fit into Kentucky's boozy biography.

On a short hiatus from the book tour, Vivian takes the twins to pick persimmons and learns about the different varieties of the fruit. She then takes that knowledge to Atlanta where she cooks for an event. Back in Kinston, Vivian gets a pudding lesson from chef Bill Smith.

Vivian plans a respite from the road during the holidays, but finds herself equally busy in Kinston. She volunteers at a soup kitchen, does one last book signing, visits Sunburst Trout Farms, and prepares a Feast of the Seven Fishes dinner at the restaurant where trout shines.