Decatur Distillery Ready to Release First Batch of Corn Whiskey
Decatur Metro | May 28, 2014 | 8:30 am
Legislative hurdles? Jumped. Corn? Mashed. Here we go, via the Atlanta Business Chronicle…
Four years in the making, Independent Distilling Co. recently launched in a small warehouse on East College Avenue in Decatur, just a few steps from Blue Tarp Brewing.
So far, it’s been a love of labor for founders Michael Anderson, a fundraiser for Zoo Atlanta, and Tommy Williams, an entrepreneur with a background in franchising.
But now the pair is preparing to ship out its first batch of corn whiskey. It’s named Hellbender after an endangered Georgia salamander.
The team also plans to produce rye whiskey and rum.
A love of labor?
Is corn whiskey the same as bourbon, but with out the 2 years of aging? I understand bourbon, scotch and rye rules.
re: the differences, from a link i that’s too much of a hassle to post:
1. Barrels. Bourbon, as most of us know, must be stored in new, charred oak barrels (well, technically it doesn’t have to be a barrel, but you know what I mean). Corn whiskey does not have to be barrel aged at all, but if it is, it can only be aged in (1) used oak barrels; or (2) new, uncharred oak barrels.
2. Corn Percentage. Bourbon must be made from a mash of at least 51% corn whereas corn whiskey must be made from a mash of at least 80% corn. So you can have a bourbon and corn whiskey that are the exact same mashbill (at least 80% corn), but they must be stored in different types of containers.
In the interests of providing too much information, there is no minimum age requirement for bourbon (an hour in new, charred oak barrels would suffice). Straight bourbon must be aged at least two years and the age must be on the label if aged less than four years, as well as meet other requirements to get the modifier “straight.”
Excellent news a local distillery will produce corn whiskey and rye whiskey. While I was back home in Kentucky for the holiday weekend I picked up a few local, small producer whiskies. It’s nice to see more smaller producers and the addition of one here in Decatur is welcome news.
In other news, Buffalo Trace Distillery is forecasting a shortage of bourbon as its popularity has outstripped supply. As Julian Van Winkle said in an interview I read a while back, [paraphrased], “in order to meet today’s demand, we would have had to have predicted it 20 years ago when we were struggling to keep the company afloat.”
what i meant to write was, . . .”have have had have to had have.”
Yawn. Wake me up when a local Jagermeister distillery opens.