BR rum distillery delayed, hopes to break ground by end of year

Cane Land Distilling Company, a new startup that will distill rum from its 1-acre site at River Road and Oklahoma Street near downtown, is hoping to begin construction on its 29,000-square-foot distillery before the end of the year. The company—which put up a sign last week on its property depicting the planned facility—had originally hoped to be in operation by now, but ran behind schedule for a variety of reasons, including the inherent challenges of building along the River Road. “You’re only allowed to build along the river at certain times of the year, depending on how high the water is,” explains Walter Tharp, who co-owns Cane Land with partner Jim Massey. Plans for the distillery call for a two-story building that includes the distilling and barrel storage areas, as well as a 1,300-square foot tasting room/bar and retail area that will sell bottled products and promotional merchandise. There will also be an outdoor space for events. Cane Land announced plans for its new business in mid-2013, not long after acquiring the River Road property for $140,000. The property abuts the 28-acre site that was later announced as the site of the Water Campus. Tharp, whose family owns Alma Plantation in Pointe Coupee Parish, says the property—with its proximity to the cane fields just 17 miles away—is ideal because one of Cane Land’s signature products is a rhum agricole, a special type of rum made with fresh-pressed cane juice rather than molasses. When completed, the distillery will have a production capacity of 50,000 cases. Republic National Distributing Co. has agreed to carry the product, Tharp says. See a rendering of the distillery. —Stephanie Riegel