My sugar mash had a yeast flavor what's did I do wrong?

[Blackgrub79]

This was my sacrifice brew so it's a learning moment did not expect it to come out right the first time. So what did I do wrong? I used this red star champagne yeast It's what I had on hand. Did I use the wrong yeast or did I not filter enough of the yeast out before I distilled? Last thing I thought of is that made the sugar mash about three weeks ago not sure if that played apart also?

I only got about a 8% ABV is there a way to get a higher ABV? My guess is add more sugar next time