TopTenRealEstateDeals.com Hot Home News: Tennessee NASCAR Castle & Kentucky Bourbon Mansion For Sale

Online, September 12, 2013 (Newswire.com) - This week's Top 10 homes spotlight at TopTenRealEstateDeals.com includes a look at Tennessee's 24,000 square foot Crantzdorf Castle that includes a one-sixteenth scale version of the nearby Bristol Motor Speedway - reduced from $28.5 million to $4.3 million. Also, the 1925 mansion of the family that made Kentucky bourbon world famous is for sale at $5.5 million, and a Kansas estate with a replica University of Kansas Jayhawks basketball court is going to auction on September 25th.

"Tennessee Castle & Racetrack"

Tennessee's Crantzdorf Castle, a replica of Palacio de la Magdalena in Santander, Spain, and built by European craftsmen, is more than just another man cave for good old boys. It also sports a one-sixteenth scale version of the nearby Bristol Motor Speedway, making the property a study in contrasts. The castle was built by auto dealership owner, Steve Grindstaff, over a ten-year period, who apparently was torn between aspirations of grandeur and his deep seated affection for the backwoods bootlegging background of NASCAR. Having fulfilled his fantasy, Grindstaff was given a reality check by his wife, newly pregnant with twins, who pointed out that she had no intention of taking care of a 24,000 square foot house while chasing after babies.

In addition to the replica Bristol Motor Speedway, Crantzdorf Castle also has a 4,000 square foot climate controlled garage for the car collector, 22-foot entry doors imported from Paris, hand carved bar from England, stained glass windows, nine bedrooms, fourteen baths, huge fireplace, a pub, billiards room, finished basement and attic. There is an indoor basketball court, a swimming pool with lake view, covered veranda and gazebo. The castle was originally priced at $28.5 million - now $4.3 million.

"Kentucky Bourbon House"

Bourbon is an original American whiskey that evolved after the Revolutionary War. While other distillers in the eastern U.S. were using traditional rye, the Kentucky area was beginning to see its first settlers and only had leftover native corn to ferment into alcohol. Since land was freshly deforested for crops, stumps still remained, making it impossible to plant row crops requiring a plow. Early Kentuckians were forced to hand plant seeds around these tree stumps in order to produce a crop, some of which was transformed into whiskey.

Whiskey was also an important medicine in the 1800s. George Garvin Brown was a pharmaceutical salesman in 1870 and heard many complaints from doctors that the quality of whiskey was unreliable. Sensing an opportunity, George joined his half-brother's whiskey firm to find a way to make the quality of medicinal bourbon consistent. This was the beginning of the production of the best Bourbon available, starting out as Old Forester, the first to be sold in glass bottles. The guarantee of high quality of the product established a reputation for the company which it has maintained through generations of whiskey fans.

For sale for the first time since it was built in 1925 for the grandfather, Owsley Brown, The Avish, the original Brown family manor, is named after the family's ancestral home in Ireland. It sits on 24 acres and is listed on the National Register of Historic Places. After twentieth-century additions, the mansion now measures more than 17,695 square feet with six bedrooms and eight bathrooms. The estate also contains a barn, garden house, greenhouses, and a two bedroom guest house. Asking $5.5 million.

"Kansas Jayhawks Mansion Auction"

How popular is basketball in Kansas? Going up for auction on September 25th, in Lawrence, is a 10,000 square foot modern day English estate named Stone Bridge, complete with a replica University of Kansas Jayhawks basketball court. Situated on 54 acres, the 10,000 square foot mansion contains five bedrooms, nine bathrooms, a chef's kitchen and a secret passageway from the library to the master suite. Furnished in medieval style, there are tapestry covered walls and coffered walnut ceilings. The estate includes a solid concrete tornado room and an old-fashioned phone booth.

The grounds contain a greenhouse imported from England, equestrian facilities, riding trails and a hay field with a stocked fishing pond. When not playing or watching hoops, basketball fans and non-fans can enjoy the home's billiards room, wet bar, fitness center and infinity-edged pool. The home furnishings are included in the sale. Auction bids start at $500,000.

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