Louisiana Spirits

knowing that the sugarcane we see growing in the fields will one day be turned into Bayou Rum. The connection to the land is there, the connection to the farmers and the sugar mill is there, and you can taste the passion and dedication of Louisiana in every drop of Bayou Rum.” Success for Louisiana Spirits has resulted in the need to grow. “We are in the final stages of our first expansion in about four years,” Murphy reports, “which means more barrel storage. We are building a Barrel Library that more than doubles our current barrel inventory.” Also included is an event center that will be able to hold weddings, along with corporate and special events. All should be complete and open by the end of May or early June. “We get a lot of interest in hosting special events and it’s been a big boom for the area for us to be out here.” In fact, Louisiana Spirits has become a major destination for locals and tourists alike. The distillery holds six tours, daily, and hosts tens of thousands of visitors a year from around the globe. Indeed, eight out of its 19 employees work in the onsite gift shop and the just-opened coffee shop inside an old farmhouse that was built in 1903. “We have two more phases planned for the future,” Murphy adds. “It’s volume driven, so when we hit certain marks in sales, the next phase of the expansion kicks in. First, warehousing and increased bottling capacity. Then we will be increasing production capacity. This year our plan is to triple 2018 sales.” By all measures, the future looks bright for Louisiana Spirits and Bayou Rums. “Rum is starting to have its day in the limelight,” Murphy states. “Globally speaking, premium whiskeys and tequilas have been on the upswing over the last ten or fifteen years, and rums are again being recognized as a premium spirit. Rum is not all sandy beaches and umbrella drinks and people finally understand that rum can be as complex as bourbon and scotch. We’re focusing on the fact that we can make a great award-winning product here in Louisiana. We have a unique climate and soil characteristics that separate from the Caribbean. So, I think that our process may set us apart from most rums on the market. There’s no reason why every liquor store in the world can’t have a high quality, premium, Louisiana-made rum on the shelf. We think there’s enormous potential to take a bite out of that market and get our own niche going and be known as American’s rum brand.” PREFERRED VENDOR n Lallemand Biofuels & Distilled Spirits (LBDS) www.lbds.com www.lallemandcraftdistilling.com