Today we’d like to introduce you to Houston Farris.
Hi Houston, thanks for sharing your story with us. To start, maybe you can tell our readers some of your backstory.
I moved to Houston in 2002 to attend Rice University. My education is actually in Religion, so after school, I worked in a few churches in professional ministry at all levels for several years. To help make ends meet, I jumped into bartending. I had always been fascinated by barcraft and the meeting of the social with the creative. The craft cocktail movement was in full swing and it was a great time to push the envelope using fresh, local, quality ingredients.
In 2012, I was creating a menu at a boutique hotel downtown where I wanted to feature spirits from the new Texas distilleries popping up. Yellow Rose Distilling, in particular, had just launched their first whiskies to market and they found a welcome home on my back bar. Soon, this hotel bar was one of the most important accounts for the young distillery. In 204, the CEO of Yellow Rose invited me to their new location, the first legal distillery in the city limits of Houston, and invited me to join their team as the brand mixologist. I would create new cocktails for the distillery’s tasting room as well as working alongside the marketing team to build menus for potential large accounts. They couldn’t pay me much, so I told them they could teach me to make whiskey when they were ready.
I started learning the process in the Fall of 2015, making malt whiskey and bourbon from raw grains to the barrel. Gradually, the production team gave me increasing responsibilities to the point where I could be trusted to do the entire process unsupervised. I, essentially, was a distiller while also managing my mixologist duties and pulling my shifts behind a quality cocktail bar downtown, The Pastry War. During my two years at The Pastry War, I learned so much about the lives of artisanal spirits producers in Mexico, even getting sent on a trip to Tequila to experience the craft first-hand. From that point on, I was set. I needed to step out and pursue craft distilling full-time.
The bar world and I parted ways amicably and I direct myself to studying any and every book I could pick up on the topic, regardless of whether it was whiskey, vodka, gin, rum, anything. I had to know how it all worked, but the books could only go so far. In Louisville, Kentucky, there is a highly regarded education program for the distillery industry. Members of large companies and small craft outfits attend. This is the world famous Moonshine University. I’ve been several times, but my first class was a week-long exposure to production, marketing, and legal matters. With this experience in hand, I was able to return to Yellow Rose and offer them my service to continue to build this brand.
In 2017, I became the Head Distiller, a creative and technical role responsible for day-to-day production of bourbon from grain to barrel. During this time, I’ve worked on experimental one-offs, refinements to existing products, and even saw the release of a new bourbon recipe I took from concept to grain to still to barrel, and finally to bottle and market. Now, I work with a team to build the future for this brand and Texas whiskey as a whole.
Can you talk to us a bit about the challenges and lessons you’ve learned along the way. Looking back would you say it’s been easy or smooth in retrospect?
There was a lot of uncertainty on whether I could even find a home at a distillery to begin with. There weren’t many of them locally at the time, and while I had set my sights on Yellow Rose for sure, there just wasn’t an opening for me within the timeline I had hoped. I was essentially unemployed for 6 months as I pursued this dream, which can be scary when you jump out of a safe job on faith, and you still have your young family to take care of. With savings, we had built and an extremely devoted wife, we were able to manage a somewhat shaky time. I still held on to the belief that all will be well and, in its own time, an opening allowed me to join the team at Yellow Rose.
Craft distilling is its own rough sea too. You truly don’t have decades of tradition to rely upon. A general target, the tools you can afford, and determination are your navigational means. The equipment will fail you at the worst times. People will toss unkind criticism your way. You will always discover things you didn’t know. But if you can work the problems calmly, persist in the face of opposition, and be humble enough to learn, then you can keep showing up each day, maybe to even do it better than before.
Thanks – so what else should our readers know about Yellow Rose Distilling?
Yellow Rose Distilling was established in 2010 by three neighbors and friends with little experience in the beverage industry, but having a desire to break free of the grind and do something disruptive. The first distillery was permitted not long after and built in Pinehurst, just outside of Tomball and Magnolia. In 2012, the first batches of whiskey shipped from this location onto store shelves, quickly selling out. With demand on the rise and a new law allowing Texas distilleries to hold tours coming, Yellow Rose made the move into the big city, Houston. After navigating municipal regulations and helping to establish new ones, Yellow Rose Distilling became the first legally permitted distillery within the city limits of Houston in 2013. From there it’s been growth and expansion. New domestic markets quickly opened up and soon we were on the radar of international interests.
In 2017, Yellow Rose Distilling joined the brand portfolio of The Zamora Company, a family owned wine and spirits outfit headquartered in Spain. With these new resources, the distillery was able to increase production, expand the brand’s line-up, and thrive during the on-going COVID-19 pandemic. 2021 has been a break-out year for the brand with new product launches and a presence in 27 states and dozens of international markets, including the European Union, Australia, and South Korea.
As a brand, Yellow Rose Distilling is Texan to the core. Texas-grown grains form the base for our bourbons and the Houston climate, with its high heat and humidity, is a unique and inimitable environment to mature whiskey in. Our flavors can not be faked. We are proud to produce a range of styles to appeal to any consumers. Our Premium American whiskey is sweet, mellow, and easy to sip or mix. The Rye is an anchor for any classic or modernized cocktail. Outlaw Bourbon, our flagship whiskey, is rare at 100% Texas grown corn and has a big, bold smoky oak character. And, finally, Harris County Straight Bourbon is a high rye recipe with balance sweet and spice. We are also always experimenting with barrel finishes and other quirky ideas, which are then released in much more limited volumes.
In 2021, Yellow Rose Distilling also joined the Texas Whiskey Trail. We are open to the public most days of the week with tours and tasting available. Our new distillery experience center is a comfortable place to relax with cocktail or hold events. Come in, see how we make the magic, and take home a bottle or two!
What sort of changes are you expecting over the next 5-10 years?
Texas distilleries are popping up all over the place now. Whiskey, in particular, is hot and has no sign of slowing down. Already, we are starting to see Texas whiskey spin-off a category of its own (like Tennessee whiskey or Kentucky whiskey) due to the special influences our region has on how whiskey expresses itself. Our connection to Texas agriculture will only open up more opportunities to play with flavors and ingredients unavailable elsewhere. As whiskey in Texas continues to mature for many more years, all under that umbrella will be reaping the benefits as Texas earns the recognition as a true whiskey epicenter. We Texans are unlike anyone else. We live in a place unlike anywhere else. So we will make whiskey unlike anyone or anywhere else can make.
Pricing:
- Yellow Rose Outlaw Bourbon – $50
- Yellow Rose Harris County Straight Bourbon (high rye) – $46
- Yellow Rose Rye Whiskey – $39
- Yellow Rose Premium American Whiskey – $31
Contact Info:
- Email: houston.farris@zamoracompany.com
- Website: www.yellowrosedistilling.com
- Instagram: www.instagram.com/yrd.distiller
Image Credits
Yellow Rose Distilling
