Bayou Rum Wins Best Visitor Center Honor
Bayou Rum Distillery was recently honored as the best large-scale visitor center in the 2017 Distillery Experience Challenge by Drinks International.
The Distillery Experience Challenge rewards excellence in hospitality — whether it’s teaching how a spirit is made, the history of the distillery and its environment, conducting a tasting or hosting an event.
Drinks International, which is devoted to the global beer, wine and spirits industry, set out to find the best distilleries in the world.
Noted by the judges as one of the best entries, Bayou Rum was credited with creating such a comprehensive facility that it put the visitor center and the brand on the map.
Bayou Rum is the largest private rum distillery in the country. The Lacassine distillery has quickly become a travel destination for the Gulf South and beyond.
“We opened the visitor center at the distillery as a way for tourists and fans to truly experience, firsthand, the process of making Bayou Rum in the heartland of sugarcane farming,” said Trey Litel, co-founder and president of Bayou Rum, in a press release. “This honor reflects the accomplishments and daily efforts of our team to provide what we believe is the best visitor experience in our industry.”
Creating memorable, positive and hospitable experiences is key to driving continuous traffic and establishing a foothold in the competitive travel and tourism marketplace.
In addition to the state-of-the-art distillery and visitor center, the 36,000 square-foot Bayou Rum property features a gallery celebrating the state’s historic role as a sugarcane producer and rum distiller, a 109-year-old farmhouse, a tasting bar and a gift shop.
“From the beginning, we have set out to share the process, history and taste of Bayou Rum with everyone who visits us,” Lisa Cortese, who runs the visitor center, said in a press release. “We believe we have something special here, and we want others to be able to experience it alongside us.”
This is not the first time the Louisiana attraction has been recognized.
In 2016, the Louisiana Travel Promotion Association named the Bayou Rum Distillery Attraction of the Year.
Bayou Rum was founded in 2011 by brothers Tim and Trey Litel and longtime friend Skip Cortese. It is handcrafted on-site the Louisiana way in traditional copper pot stills using fresh Louisiana sugarcane.
The award-winning flavor has been recognized 82 times in tasting competitions across the globe.
In January of 2016, New York-based Stoli Group USA became the exclusive national distributor of Bayou Rum.