To celebrate two years in business, Distillery 98 is hosting a two-day anniversary event on Sunday, May 29, and Monday, May 30.
Their second-annual Dune Laker Paddle Boil event will kick off with a crawfish boil and local live music celebration at the distillery followed by a Memorial Day paddleboard race around Western Lake to benefit Gulf Therapy.
The community is invited to the local distillery, located at 835 Serenoa Road in Santa Rosa Beach, from Noon-5 p.m. on Sunday, May 29, for an all-you-can-eat crawfish boil by Sports to Geaux, cocktails, local beer, and wine, Swell Pops popsicles, Sweet Henrietta’s sweet treats and local live music from Cadillac Willy and Boukou Groove. The event is free to attend and open to the public. The distillery will be auctioning off a YOLO paddleboard during the event and relaunching their Martin Migration vodka. This limited-time, specialty spirit is infused with satsuma oranges, Meyer lemons, blackberry, hibiscus, and a Register Family Farms Tupelo honeycomb. Food and drinks will be available for purchase. Guests are encouraged to bring chairs and blankets to sit and enjoy the afternoon event.
Then, on Monday, May 30, guests are invited to Grayton Beach for a YOLO Board paddleboard race on Western Lake sponsored by Visit South Walton, YOLO Board, Hotz Coffee, and Modus Photography. Those participating will check-in beginning at 7 a.m. at Hotz Coffee, located at 63 Hotz Ave, then drop their boards off at the Grayton Western Lake access on the corner of Hotz Ave and Banfill, just east of Tribe Kelley and The Red Bar. The one-mile race will kick off promptly at 8 a.m. The race is free to participate in, and all entrants receive a free coffee from Hotz Coffee. Awards will be given to the first-place male and female finishers, as well as last place and best dressed male and female. Participants are asked to bring their own board or boards will be available to rent on-site by YOLO Board.
Donations to Gulf Therapy are encouraged. Distillery 98 will also be unveiling their new, Half Shell Vodka, an oyster shell filtered vodka bottled in an eco-friendly, disposable bottle.
Last year, Distillery 98 donated $4,500 from their inaugural Paddle Boil event to Gulf Therapy, a local organization that hosts a bi-monthly event to connect people to the salt water and its therapeutic qualities, along with supporting those who may need additional layers of therapy by collaborating with local mental health and wellness specialists. To match and beat the donation from last, the Distillery asks those planning to attend the two-day event to donate to Gulf Therapy in lieu of purchasing tickets.
