Hello, Great Beer Now readers! This is the second in a multi- part series highlighting the Great Beer Now Boozy Bayou Beer Tour 2018, a beer and booze excursion that took me on a journey through the Lake Charles, Louisiana region and southeast Texas. It’s an area rich in local culture and customs and also home to some great breweries and distilleries. Cheers, and have fun following me on this Cajun- style adventure!
Louisiana is a state known for its culture. Tourists often visit Louisiana specifically to feast on Cajun food, listen to zydeco music, and otherwise soak up the unique culture so prevalent in the state. Louisiana is also known for at least one specific agricultural product, and that is sugar cane. And one business that utilizes this locally grown commodity to the fullest is Yellowfin Distillery, located at 1716 E. Burton St., Sulphur, Louisiana, just outside Lake Charles.
How Sweet It Is
Yellowfin Distillery is a small operation housed in a warehouse- style building. Walking through the main entrance, you find yourself facing the small tasting bar as soon as you make your way indoors. The distillery area is around the corner.
Vodka is the only distilled spirit produced at Yellowfin at the moment and while vodka can be distilled from many things, Yellowfin Distillery uses sugar cane that is locally sourced. Louisiana is one of only four U.S. states that grows sugar cane on a commercial basis and, given its importance to the Louisiana agricultural economy and its significance to the culture, Yellowfin pays tribute to its native land by using sugar as the main ingredient.
Yellowfin is distributed only in Louisiana right now. The business is still in its formative stages and plans to increase its distribution footprint once it has grown to sufficient size.
Pour Some Sugar on Me
Yellowfin Distillery is a small but enjoyable place located close to Lake Charles. I spent a few days in this area of Southwest Louisiana with the goal of visiting area breweries and distilleries. There aren’t many, but there are a handful and if I’m not mistaken, Yellowfin Distilling is the youngest in the bunch and the only one dedicated to the neutral spirit we all know and love as vodka.
Yellowfin Distillery presently distills only vodka but it is quite unique among vodkas. As many are aware, vodka can be distilled from just about anything and wheat, corn, and rye, are probably the most common choices. Yellowfin goes against the grain (tsk, tsk!) and instead uses sugar cane. Yes, it does impart a certain degree of sweetness to this vodka and yes, it does make it unlike most anything you’ve likely ever tried. It is quite delicious too, I must say, and it isn’t too surprising that Yellowfin has a slushy machine, right there in the tasting area, loaded with a sweet, cold, fruity drink made with Yellowfin Vodka. Of course, the taste is actually good for any type of drink calling for vodka, but it seems especially well- suited to a sweeter mixed drink or cocktail.
Talking with the owner/founder of Yellowfin, Jamison Seth Trouth, I learned that he has had an active interest in opening up a distillery for a long time. Locally raised and educated, he started to seriously consider the idea more than a decade ago. His dream was fulfilled when Yellowfin officially opened for business in 2017. It has taken much hard work to reach the level that Yellowfin has reached and the owner and his staff seem determined and ready to face future challenges as they transform the Louisiana distilling industry.
Beer is and will likely always be my adult beverage of choice, but I do appreciate a tasty distilled spirit, especially one produced with quality and care. Yellowfin Vodka is one such spirit and my only regret is that it is not, as of yet, distributed to my home state of Texas. With quality this high, I have no doubt that Yellowfin Vodka will one day cross the Sabine and I will be able to buy it in local liquor stores, but until that day arrives, it can only be enjoyed in Southwest Louisiana. So pay a visit to Yellowfin Vodka the next time you’re in the Lake Charles, Louisiana area. And tell them Great Beer Now sent you.
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