Providence, RI One year after our daily reality changed seemingly overnight due to the pandemic, The Industrious Spirit Company (ISCO) is celebrating a year in business with the release of Kismet, a barrel aged specialty spirit.
Kismet was developed when ISCO and the Narragansett Beer Company joined forces a year ago to make hand sanitizer amid COVID-19 shortages. To make the sanitizer, ISCO distilled the Narragansett Beer Company’s About Time IPA—but only the beginning of a spirit run can produce a high enough alcohol content to kill germs and viruses. Once a certain threshold is reached, the remains of the run are no good for sanitizer—but perfectly good for consumption and it was “Kismet” when ISCO discovered that the distilled IPA also had a unique flavor profile, reminiscent of a single malt scotch. They barreled the resulting spirit for nearly a year, and it is now ready for release just in time for their one year anniversary.
Kismet is the alignment of the best flavors of new American oak, clean and fresh raw spirit, and bright, zesty hops. With a hint of vanilla and caramel from the oak, this naturally colored and non-chill filtered spirit has a pleasantly herbal, minty kiss of hops in the finish. Suitable on its own over ice, Kismet is great with your favorite tonic and a slice of lemon, or in our favorite—a modified Negroni made with equal parts Kismet, sweet vermouth, and bitter aperitif. Created from the added skills of ISCO’s distillers and Narragansett’s brewers, Kismet is much greater than the sum of its parts.
In addition to Kismet, ISCO recently released an experimental spirit called Meteor, a cinnamon-based liqueur that also features organic ginger and honey from RI based Bailey Beattie Apiaries. Another top-secret specialty aged spirit will be released in April, and the company has others in the works for the coming months. All specialty spirits are available in special edition 4-ounce bottles from their Tasting Room patio only, and showcase both the company’s creativity as well as their passion for great flavor and great stories.
“Our first year has definitely been one for the books—perseverance and flexibility have definitely shaped who we are becoming as a company,” said Manya Rubinstein, CEO of ISCO. “We opened our doors—or window, rather— right at the start of the pandemic. We are continually expanding production of our three main products, but are also always trying to innovate and work with local producers on creating new limited run products. While of course there have been some challenges, we are so excited for what the future holds.”
When faced with the trials of closures, restrictions and social distancing ISCO showed its ability to be agile and creative, reaching their customers through new methods including the “We Wish We Could Window” from which their first sales were made. Additionally, their expansive outdoor space came online much earlier than planned—they had always intended to open the indoor tasting room first, and though the indoor space remains closed there are plans in the works to open it as the COVID19 environment in Rhode Island improves.
The Industrious Spirit Company (ISCO) is the first distillery in Providence since Prohibition. Inspired by our creative community and our passion for making, we hand-distill vodka, gin and bourbon. Since flavor comes first, we use only the highest quality ingredients and are diligent about our process—unlike many other small distilleries, we laboriously make everything from scratch. We care about all aspects of our business— from our sustainably-sourced regional organic grains to the farmers that feed our “waste” product to their pigs and cow- we want to be part of a virtuous cycle of regeneration and repair—and delicious things, of course!