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About Portland observer. (Portland, Or.) 1970-current | View Entire Issue (Oct. 4, 2017)
Page 24 Minority & Small Business Week October 4, 2017 Ethnic Roots Flavor Craft Brewing Scene Family-owned Vinn Distillery makes popular Chinese spirit by Z aChary s enn t he p ortlanD o bserver Vinn Distillery is bringing a unique and delicious prod- uct line to Portland’s vibrant craft distilling scene. The fam- ily-owned business is the only U.S.-based distiller of baijiu, a popular Chinese grain spirit. The Ly family has been making the liquor for more than seven generations. Vinn Distillery serves up tasting flights and Asian-in- spired cocktails at their tasting room in the Central Eastside, and at several area restaurants. Their flagship baijiu product is sold at liquor stores through- out Oregon, as well as in select parts of Washington and Cali- fornia. The Ly family, who formerly owned the Wok Inn Restaurant in Wilsonville, first became in- terested in bringing their dis- tilling traditions to the U.S. when Michelle Ly’s father couldn’t find baijiu to use for cocktails in their restaurant. Many years later, the fam- ily sold the restaurant and be- gan the process of establishing their Portland distillery. Michelle Ly says that they set up manufacturing in the back of her mother’s house after four years of preparation and filing paperwork through state and federal liquor control commissions. “It’s rent-free, which is fan- tastic,” Ly told the Portland Observer. Michelle, four of her siblings and her mother are all actively involved in the business’ daily operations. Baijiu also played a role in the family coming to the Unit- ed States 37 years ago. Ly says that she and her siblings were born in a village in North Viet- nam, where they were forci- bly relocated by that country’s communist regime. “Because of our Chinese heritage, we were kicked out photo by Z aChary s enn /t he p ortlanD o bserver Michelle Ly and her family-owned Vinn Distillery bring a unique and delicious product line to Portland’s vibrant craft distilling scene. The Vinn Distillery Tasting Room is operated on weekends, located in the central industrial eastside at 222 S.E. Eighth Ave. of the country. They put us in a village in southern China,” Ly said. Her father’s sun-darkened skin attracted attention in the village, however, where the locals learned that he had pre- viously worked as a fisherman off Vietnam’s coast. “It’s very rare to find some- body who knows how to navi- gate the seas,” said Ly. “They invited him over to dinner, got him drunk on baijiu, and talked him into escaping.” The family fled China by boat with the rest of the vil- lage’s escaping residents, Ly says. “We escaped, 70 people piled into this fishing boat that the whole village bought,” she said. “Our ticket on the boat was our dad’s ability to sail the ship.” The family eventually land- ed in Wilsonville, where they were sponsored by a local church. Ly says that they have felt incredibly welcome in Or- egon, and have spent the past three and a half decades estab- lishing their family in the state. Since selling their first bottle seven years ago, the family has been working hard to increase the liquor’s name recognition. Despite its lack of rapport in the United States, baijiu is actually the most widely con- sumed spirit in the world, with more than 5 billion liters sold worldwide in 2016. “When we first started back in 2010, if you said the word baijiou, 98 percent of people were unfamiliar with it,” Ly said. “It was really challeng- ing.” She says that the alcohol, which is traditionally con- sumed at room temperature with food, makes for great cocktails and possesses a flavor that blends with the more com- mon consumed liquors. “The flavor profile is really different,” said Ly. “It’s a mar- riage between sake, tequila, white whiskey, a little bit of vodka, a little bit of gin and a little bit of rum.” Vinn Distillery operates a tasting room at 222 S.E. Eighth Ave. Hours are Fridays, 1 p.m. to 4 p.m.; Saturdays, 12 p.m. to 5 p.m.; and Sundays, 1 p.m. to 5 p.m. Private group tastings are available with advance notice. For more information, you can call the business at 503- 807-3826.
