Mispronouncing Yazoo doesn't mean you've had too many

There's a good chance you might be pronouncing the name of one of Nashville's most popular local brews incorrectly.

Twelve years after its launch, Yazoo Brewing Co. has taken to T-shirts to correct customers' most-asked question: How do you pronounce the brewery's name?

For the official record, it's yeah-zoo, not yah-zoo.

It's a name that's close to the heart for owner Linus Hall: He and his wife, Lila, grew up in Vicksburg, Miss., where the Yazoo River joins the Mississippi River. He also had a black Labrador retriever during his childhood named Yazoo.

"It was one of those things that we just settled on the name really early on, and never really gave it a second thought. It was a good Southern Delta name, and that's how we wanted the feel of our labels and everything," Hall said.

Yazoo Brewing Company opened in 2003. Last year, the company produced 23,500 barrels of beer, which is distributed in Tennessee and Mississippi.

As the company grew, Hall quickly realized many customers were saying yah-zoo, not yeah-zoo. He said it became an inside joke with Yazoo Brewing employees, and they thought it would be fun to print T-shirts with the pronunciation.

"Once we started the brewery and were selling beer and out promoting it, we realized maybe it was a Mason-Dixon Line kind of thing, but the further north you go, people would pronounce it yah-zoo instead of yeah-zoo," Hall said.

But Hall is quick to say he doesn't correct people, noting it's just a different way of saying it.

"I will never correct people because people are asking for our beer one way or another, so that's the important thing. …We're definitely not trying to make people feel bad for saying it the other way," he said.

The shirts are available at Yazoo's taproom at 910 Division St. Hall said Yazoo-branded items are popular sells after guided brewery tours.

"We get a lot of people from out of town and they think it's fun to pick up something," he said.

Reach Lizzy Alfs at 615-726-5948 and on Twitter @lizzyalfs.