Spotlight: La Crosse Distilling Co. - Organic Spirits, Local Roots

Meet La Crosse Distilling Co. — crafting spirits true to their Driftless roots, and the Seeing Green Solutionist of the Day for October 10.

In this Spotlight episode, we turn to spirits — an industry steeped in tradition yet increasingly ripe for reinvention. La Crosse Distilling Co., founded in 2018 in Wisconsin’s scenic Driftless Region, built its entire operation around local agriculture and renewable energy. Their goal: produce honest, organic, grain-to-glass spirits that reflect a sense of place while lightening their footprint.

From how they power their stills to how they source their grains, La Crosse weaves sustainability into every step — supporting nearby farms, reducing waste, and turning distilling into a force for regeneration. It’s a model that proves better spirits start long before the bottle — and that environmental stewardship can taste as good as it feels.

Transcript

Welcome to Seeing Green - Solutions for our Daily Lives. The podcast where we spotlight the brands, ideas and people making it easier to live sustainably every day.

Today’s episode is part of our “Spotlight” series – a deep dive into one of our Seeing Green Solutionists of the Day. And now… today’s solution.

Welcome everyone to episode 37 of the Seeing Green podcast.

Great to be back.

Today's episode is part of the Seeing Green Spotlight series where we take a closer look at the Seeing Green Solutionist of the Day

And the real solutions they bring to help us all be, you know, a bit healthier and greener in our daily lives.

Absolutely. And hey, if you enjoy this kind of content, please do subscribe to the podcast wherever you listen

And join our community. That's over at www.seeinggreen.eco.

Don't forget to follow us too. We're @SeeingGreenEco across social media.

So, today is Friday as we're recording this.

Which often means it's time to talk sustainable spirits, a favorite topic around here.

Definitely. Speaking of which, have you checked out the new Sustainable Sips area on the Seeing Green website?

I saw it. It looks great. Loads of cocktail recipes from brands we've featured before. Right.

Exactly. A really good resource if you're looking for ideas. Definitely check it out.

Okay, cool. Now, before we really dive in today, just a couple of quick reminders for everyone listening. First, if you like this topic, sustainable spirits, we've done deep dives before on Gray Whale Gym.

Oh, yeah. And Ellers Farm Distillery and Two Drifters Distillery, too. All worth checking out.

For sure. And second, the important one. Please make sure you're of legal drinking age in your location.

And always, always drink responsibly.

Okay, so with that said, let's get to today's Solutionist. We're focusing on La Crosse Distilling.

Right. Based out in Wisconsin. They got started back in uh 2018,

And they're really known for that grain to glass approach. Very committed to certified organic spirits.

Yeah. Small batch stuff. You might know their Fieldnotes Vodka or the Fieldnotes Gin.

And that Downtown Toodeloo Rock & Rye. Intriguing name.

It is. Their whole mission seems to be about making these premium spirits that are really rooted in their specific place.

Lots of local partnerships and sustainability is just baked into everything they do.

Exactly. Which is, you know, kind of a challenge in the spirits world.

Yeah. Let's talk about that context a bit. Why is making spirits sustainably so tough usually?

Well, distilling is just traditionally super resource-heavy. Think about it. You need tons of water, loads of heat for the distillation process itself.

Grain inputs, obviously.

Right. And then heavy glass bottles, shipping, it all adds up.

So, when we talk sustainability and spirits, what are the main areas we're looking at?

You've got a few key buckets. There's the farming and the ingredients. Where does that grain come from? How's it grown?

Okay. Then the actual production.

Yeah, the energy and water used in the distillery. Huge factors. Then packaging those bottles, the caps, everything else.

And finally, getting it to the customer, the shipping aspect.

Precisely. And consumers are starting to really ask questions now, aren't they? They want transparency.

They want to know where the ingredients are from, how it impacts the local community, the planet.

And that's where La Crosse Distilling comes in as such a great example. They're showing how even smaller producers can really drive change, challenging that reliance on big industrial, non-local inputs.

So, let's get into their green story. How exactly are they walking the talk? Why are they our Solutionist of the Day? Let's start with sourcing.

Okay. Yeah, this is impressive. They get their organic grains from farms often within like 20 miles of the distillery.

20 miles. That's hyper local.

It really is. They partner with specific farms in the Driftless region, places like McHugh Farms and Meadowlark Organics.

And these aren't just any farms, right? They're using specific methods.

That's key. They're certified organic, non-GMO, and really rooted in regenerative agriculture principles. Think low till or no till farming.

Why is that so important in that particular area, the Driftless region?

Well, the driftless area is unique geologically. It wasn't flattened by glaciers like a lot of the Midwest.

Okay. So, the soil's different.

Yeah, it's more varied, maybe more sensitive. So, these regenerative practices are crucial for maintaining that specific soil health. It connects environmental responsibility directly to the quality and the character of the grain.

So, the local regenerative sourcing isn't just good for the planet, it actually impacts the final spirit.

That's the idea. It tastes of the place.

Okay. Sourcing covered. Now, the big one, energy. Distillation needs heat. Lots of it. That's usually the biggest energy hog.

Absolutely. And this is where La Crosse gets really clever with their engineering. They lean heavily on geothermal energy.

Geothermal. Okay. I know that for heating and cooling buildings, but how does it work with the high temps needed for distilling?

It's integrated direct into the process, particularly through a preheating system. It's quite smart.

Go on.

They tap into the water table of the Mississippi Valley drilling down about 50 60 ft.

Okay.

Down there, the water stays at a really stable temperature around 50 55 degrees Fahrenheit all year round.

Right. Constant temperature underground.

Exactly. So, they use that naturally stable, relatively warm water to preheat the mash water before it even gets to the main boiler.

Ah. So, instead of starting with really cold water, especially in Wisconsin winters.

Precisely. They're giving it a significant head start, maybe 30° warmer, using free stable heat from the Earth.

That must make a huge difference to how much energy the boiler needs.

Huge. They estimate it cuts the boiler energy demand by up to 30% compared to a standard gas boiler system.

Wow. 30%. That's a massive saving in running costs and emissions.

It totally is. It shows sustainability isn't just an add-on. It's boosting their operational efficiency. 

And water. Besides the preheating.

They also use the region's glacial aquifer water directly for their main process needs, which helps reduce the need for energy-intensive mechanical chillers for cooling.

Okay. So, smart energy, smart water use. This all kind of sets the stage for tackling waste, right? Particularly the spent grain, the still.

Yeah, that's often the biggest headache for distillers. It's heavy, it's wet, it's bulky. Getting rid of it is a real logistical challenge.

And expensive, I imagine. Hauling all that wet stuff away. Exactly. For many distilleries, especially larger ones or those not near farms, recycling it just doesn't make economic sense.

But for La Crosse, because their grain suppliers are only 20 miles away.

The return trip is viable. The reverse supply chain actually works. It makes economic sense to send that waste back to the farms it came from.

Creating a closed loop. What kind of volume are we talking about?

It's pretty staggering. They repurpose about 1.8 million pounds of this waste annually.

1.8 million pounds.

Yeah. Achieving something close to 95% recovery of that material. That's way above the industry standard, which can often be half that or even less.

Can we break that down like weekly?

Sure. Every week it's roughly 10,000 pounds of the solid spent grain.

Okay.

And about 18,000 pounds of water that was part of the mash. So yeah, 28,000 pounds of material going back each week.

How do they manage the cost of trucking that back? Doesn't that eat into the energy savings?

That's the clever part of the hyper local model. Because the farms are so close, the transport costs are managed. And crucially…

Yes…

The farmers want that spent grain. It's fantastic high protein animal feed.

Ah, so La Crosse isn't just dumping waste. They're providing a valuable input back to their farming partners.

Exactly. It turns a waste stream, a cost center into a valuable part of their local circular economy. It benefits the farms, too.

That's really integrated thinking. What about other waste -- packaging?

They're tackling that, too. They use beeswax for sealing caps avoiding plastic there.

I touch.

And inside the distillery, like in their tasting room, things like straws are compostable or recyclable. Plus, they have that on-site restaurant.

Right, which generates food waste.

Yep. And they divert about 500 pounds of that from landfill every week through composting.

Okay. That's comprehensive. You mentioned the restaurant. Does that tie back into the loop somehow?

It does beautifully.

Yeah.

But first, let's talk barrels. That's another place they turn potential waste into value. 

Okay. Aging barrels. What do they do differently?

Well, you know how many big bourbon distilleries use a barrel only once?

Yeah. Legally, they have to for bourbon, right? Yeah.

New chart oak.

Right. But Lacrosse upcycles their barrels. They might use them up to three times.

Three times. For what?

So maybe first use is for bourbon. Then they might use that same barrel to age an apple brandy, for example.

Okay. Picking up some residual bourbon notes.

Exactly. And then they might even use that barrel a third time to finish their Fieldnotes Gin.

Whoa. Gin finished in an ex-bourbon, ex-apple brandy barrel.

Yeah. So, it avoids wasting the barrel. Plus, the gin picks up these incredibly complex background notes. Maybe hints of caramel, apple, smokiness.

That's not waste reduction. That's flavor innovation driven by resourcefulness.

It's a perfect example. It proves that sustainability and creating a premium characterful product can absolutely go hand in hand.

It really does. So, when you step back and look at the whole system -- the local farms, the geothermal, the waste going back, the barrel reuse…

It creates this really powerful local circular economic engine right there in the Driftless region.

Keeping money in the community.

Absolutely. Studies suggest these kinds of integrated local food and beverage systems generate way more jobs locally compared to standard wholesale models like maybe 32 jobs per million in revenue versus only 10 or so.

And you mentioned the restaurant closing the loop.

Yeah. So the spent grain feeds local animals and then the meat or produce from those same local farms or others nearby ends up back on the menu at the Distillery’s restaurant.

Field to glass to table. Literally.

It's the full circle.

So, what's the big takeaway here for someone listening? The so what?

I think La Crosse Distilling really demonstrates that sustainability and high-quality craft production aren't opposing forces. They actually reinforce each other.

It's not a compromise.

Not at all. It delivers character, flavor, local pride. It shows that investing in greener production actually improves the products in integrity and authenticity. It's not just about doing less harm.

Yeah, I read they started sourcing from just 60 acres but had ambitions to grow that footprint significantly, like aiming for 600 acres.

Right. Their model isn't just about shrinking a negative footprint. It's built to actively grow its positive impact on the local economy and environment as the business scales.

It really flips the script.

So maybe the question to leave people with is, when you pick up a bottle that talks about sustainability, are you just paying a sort of green tax? Or, are you actually investing in a fundamentally smarter, more efficient system, one that actively benefits its community and environment? La Crosse suggests it can definitely be the latter.

A really powerful example. If people want to learn more about them…

To learn more about La Crosse Distilling, you can visit them at lacrossedistilling.co.

lacrossedistilling.co.

Got it. And just one more time, please remember, drink responsibly.

Always. Well, this has been a fantastic deep dive from the Seeing Green Spotlight Series.

Really interesting story.

Yeah. If you enjoyed learning about innovators like La Crosse Distilling who are dedicated to creating a greener world, please subscribe to this deep dive wherever you get your podcasts

And definitely visit our website. Join the Seeing Green community. You can sign up at www.seeinggreen.eco

And follow us @SeeingGreenEco across the socials.

Don't forget those other sustainable spirits deep dives to Gray Whale, Ellers Farm, Two Drifters.

Right. Good reminder. Okay, I think I am going to check out that Sustainable Sips page on the website now. Need some ideas for the weekend.

Sounds like a plan. Thank you everyone for joining us for this episode of the Seeing Green Spotlight Series podcast. Until next time.

Until our next deep dive.

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