The Spark - October 2014
Avery Island, Louisiana.

The morning was heavy with heat, the kind of fall day where the air itself feels seasoned with oak and salt from the Gulf. Chris Puckett leaned over an old bourbon barrel, still perfumed with charred wood and sweet smoke.
“Man, that smells good.”

It was an offhand remark, the kind you might forget—except this one unlocked something bigger. Why had no one in the family, with its generations of craftsmanship, tradition, and enterprise, ever taken up distilling? His cousin, John Reily Thomason, thought for a moment before answering:
“I think one of our ancestors used to make rum.”

That single spark set the cousins on a hunt for truth. Days later, the family archivist confirmed it: yes—an ancestor named John Craig Marsh had once been in the rum trade.

In 1818, John Craig Marsh left New York and journeyed south to Louisiana, where he established a homestead on Petite Anse Island—a lush rise of land surrounded by marshes. Where others saw wilderness, Marsh saw potential. He cultivated sugarcane and built one of the island’s first family enterprises, laying the groundwork for what would later become Avery Island.

Yet the story didn’t end with sugar. Recently uncovered family ledgers reveal that Marsh also turned a portion of his cane into small batches of rum—quiet, handcrafted experiments that captured the spirit of the island itself. Though nearly forgotten for generations, these entries prove that rum was part of the Marsh family’s story from the very beginning.

Suddenly, a forgotten past felt alive again.

Chris and John Reily immersed themselves in the world of spirits, tracing history while imagining a future. Not long after, a chance meeting in New Orleans—with a respected figure in the rum community, over daiquiris in the French Quarter—added fuel to the fire: “You have to do this,” the man urged.

By the end of that night, excitement spilled into dinner at Galatoire’s. Over oysters and French 75s, Chris shared the idea with his closest friends. One of them, Ben Hamawy, was in by the next morning. Together, they built a business plan, later bringing in Brett Dougall to shape the brand’s creative vision.

But a name was still missing—until they looked homeward. Marsh House: the family’s historic gathering place on Avery Island. A house filled with generations of stories, laughter, and tradition. More than a name, it became a bridge between past and present—honoring the spirit of John Craig Marsh and ensuring that his legacy continues as Marsh House Rum: the spirit of Louisiana.