Brady McKellar, managing director and brewmaster at Vermilionville, pours a Le Caucheniar beer Wednesday, August 7, 2024, at the folk life park in Lafayette, La. Pine needles, ginger and persimmons may not be the first ingredients that come to mind when it comes to brewing beer. And yet, those are ingredients and flavors from historic recipes used at the Vermilionville Brew-House, located on the banks of the Bayou Vermilion in Lafayette.
Vermilionville is a living history museum that uses original structures and historical interpreters to share what life was like for the people of southwest Louisiana through the 19th century. True to Vermilionville's mission, the beers brewed on-site are crafted in honor of the past. Its brewery is the latest addition to the area's ever-growing craft brew scene.
Brady McKellar, Vermilionville managing director and head brewer, says the process starts with researching what people were gathering, brewing and drinking in the area from about 1760 to 1890. Three beers made at The Vermilionville Brew-House, Le Cauchemar, from left, Les Tatailles molasses brown ale, and BoukiÕs Biere De Gingembre, are pictured Wednesday, August 7, 2024, at the folk life park in Lafayette, La. "There's a lot of very cool, very new, very forward-looking kind of beer in the area," says McKellar.
"What we're doing is creating a very backward-looking beer — and so it's a very, very different taste." So far McKellar has crafted three different brews based on historic .