Roulaison Distilling Co, New Orleans

Cuisine Type: Rum Distillery
Most popular offering: Amer Rum Liqueur
Kid-friendly: No
Parking: Parking lot
Handicap Accessible: Yes
Pro Tip: Make a day of it. After visiting us, head to the chocolatier next door or to the brewery or cidery.

Q&A with Andrew Lohfeld, Co-founder & Head Distiller

In your own words, how would you describe your menu?
We offer a variety of rums fermented, distilled and hand-bottled all on location, using local molasses and unique yeasts to create distinctive and robust flavors not often seen anymore in the world of rum. Our rums are made in a pre-industrial style - how rum was made before industrialization - when the focus was on the quality of flavor, not the quantity produced.

What made you want to work with food? When did you first develop that passion?
Roulaison Distilling was founded with ingenuity and passion in mind. While co-founder Andrew Lohfeld was working at the bourbon whiskey producer Kings County Distillery, he noticed that whiskey was prospering with the resurgence of craft spirits, but rum wasn't receiving the same treatment. Not may producers were focusing on rum and those that weren't exploring the more interesting, flavor forward styles. With that in mind, Lohfeld with co-Founder and Louisiana native Patrick Hernandez decided to start their own distillery and focus on making unique and inventive rum.

Décor can say a lot about the type of food a restaurant serves. How does your décor inform or reflect your culinary practice?
Our location's purpose, first and foremost, is manufacturing. With its open floor plan, visitors are able to get an inside look at every step of the process of making rum. Barrels upon barrels line the walls of the facility and the heady aromas of molasses and rum waft throughout the facility. Visitors enter through our tasting room, where vibrant pops of color and lush flora accent a quaint space to start off tour and for sampling rum, as well as to pick up bottles and merchandise.

Is there anything else you want to add that we didn't cover?
The Roulaison (pronounced rōō-lā-ZÔN) - the French-Creole term for the sugar cane harvest - was an industrious time for all of southern Louisiana. It was the region's largest harvest, but along with it came one of the largest harvest celebrations - where the excess molasses from the sugar-making process meant there was also an abundance of rum to be had for numerous festivals, weddings and holidays. Roulaison Distilling Co's rum embodies the rich history of New Orleans and celebrates the role the city played in shaping our local rum culture. Unlike any of its modern counterparts, our rum honors its pre-industrial heritage by using only alembic pot stills and a 100% Louisiana molasses that comes straight from the mill. It's full flavored, with notes reminiscent of fruit and spice, and stands out in a cocktail or on its own.