The Industrious Spirit Company (ISCO) announced that their smash hit 100% Blue Corn Blue Velvet Bourbon has been aged for over two years, making it a “straight” bourbon. It joins their mainstay spirit lineup of Ostreida Oyster Vodka, Structural Vodka, Ornamental Gin, Patina Bourbon Barrel Aged Gin and Gemma Crystal Vodka. Because ISCO makes its spirits from scratch, creating Bourbon takes time. Blue Velvet is just the start of several bourbons that are beginning to come online after nearly four years in business.
“Blue Velvet has been such a special project for us over the years and now it has earned the distinction of being aged long enough to be called a ‘straight’ bourbon officially,” said Dan Neff and Eric Olson, Head Distillers at ISCO. “From a distillery that cares deeply about spirits and the relationship to agriculture, we follow the flavor directly from the field to the barrel. By using corn grown for nutrition and deliciousness instead of yield, we give ourselves a leg up on spectacular flavor. Intentionally youthful, this straight bourbon still drinks “wise beyond its years.”
Blue Velvet boasts aromas of toasted brown sugar that give way to warm baking spices with subtle notes of chocolate and pepper, followed by a rich, robust caramel and roasted blue corn chip finish. Bottled at 90 proof or 45% alcohol by volume, the spirit will retail for $54.99 at select bars, restaurants, and liquor stores in Rhode Island this fall. It is best sipped neat, over rocks or in a Manhattan.
Blue Velvet is a unique marriage of cultures and places. The blue corn in the mash bill is sourced from the Midwest and Mexico, marrying an organic strain of indigo with a single origin and non-GMO landrace blue variety sourced from independent farming communities. After being cooked and fermented (fun fact: blue corn turns PINK when you ferment it due to a pH change that affects the anthrocyanins, the naturally occurring dyes with antioxidant properties that give blue corn its color!), the bourbon is carefully distilled in small batches before it rests in charred new oak barrels for at least two years—ISCO’s goal is to ensure the corns’ flavors remain the stars of the show.
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