Some Oregon ‘Craft’ Whiskeys Distilled in Out of State Factories

Thursday, February 26, 2015

Annie Ellison, GoLocalPDX Reporter

Some of the small-batch artisan whiskeys sold by distilleries in Oregon's emerging craft whiskey industry are not actually distilled in Oregon.

Multiple start-up producers and distillers bottle whiskeys made partially from large batches of out-of-state spirits in order to alleviate the expenses of starting up a distillery in Oregon. This also ensures the company has a product on the market while waiting for the first batch to mature.

Rather than distilling the product in house, multiple Oregon distillers like award-winning Big Bottom Distilling, Indio Spirits, source their whiskeys from MGA Ingredients, a mass supplier of food and alcohol derivatives based in Indiana. While the process of sourcing whiskey is common, the practice is at odds with the craft brand promoted by proprietors of artisanal spirits, according to industry insiders, such as Los Angeles Whiskey Blogger Steve Ury.

“What makes it different today is that some of these companies imply in their marketing materials that they made the whiskey themselves when that's not true,” he said.

For example, Portland based Indio Spirits Distillery and Tasting Room, which distills none of its whiskies, blends and ages distillate -- the product obtained from grain mash used to make alcohol -- from MGA ingredients. Indio’s product is made on site, but not from scratch.

Indio’s James Oliver Rye Bootlegger’s Special whiskey comes with the story of James Oliver happening upon a steaming copper sill of whiskey in a cornfield, learning the art of whiskey-making, then venturing to the great Northwest.

The whiskey is bottled, aged and blended in Portland, but distilled in Indiana, which the company makes clear. Indio’s Snake River Stampede and James Oliver American whiskeys are bottled in Oregon, but it’s unclear where the whiskey is distilled.

“We use found spirits,” said Mark White, a distiller at Indio Spirits, who blends and ages whiskeys on site. He said the most challenging part of the operation is obtaining the distillate.

“It’s a hard thing to do, and a costly thing to do, a lot of people turn to large distilleries,” White said.

Startup costs

The investment in setting up a distillery is high, and takes several months to work through the paperwork, Matt Mount, co-founder of Merit Badge bar catering, and former staffer at House of Spirits Distillery, said.

“There’s so much capital that’s needed to create a longstanding brand,” he said. According to Mount, two of five grain-to-bottle distilleries in Oregon went under.

A distillery cannot begin producing until all related permits are approved, and distilling a batch of whiskey from grain to bottle took two years, at House of Spirits, Mount said. As a result of the lull, some small upstart companies outsource the distillant, and blend it or age it on site.

“If you look at a distillery that’s only been around for a year and they have a straight whiskey you know it’s going to be outsourced,” Mount said.

The practice is common. “People are very up front about it,” he said.

Mount argues it is still fair game for distilleries to call themselves craft, even if a key ingredient of the product is mass-produced off site.

Additonally, the fire and safety protocols required for distilling spirits is rigorous, which ups the costs and regulations of an operation. Home distilling, unlike cider, wine or beer, is not permitted.

“Distilled spirits are highly flammable and the process is more like producing gasoline than it is like producing beer or wine,” the Oregon Liquor Control Commission License Investigator Dan McNeal said. Any spirit made before obtaining a license is to be dumped out under federal regulations, McNeal said.

Labeling

Bull Run Distilling, which sources whiskey while waiting for the product made in-house to mature, discloses its Temperance Trader Whiskey is “conceived in Bourbon Country but born in the Northwest Territory.”

According to federal Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau guidelines, the label on a bottle containing spirits must indicate where the product was bottled.

Whiskey companies are required to disclose where the product was distilled, but the laws can be difficult to enforce.

A lawsuit against Iowa’s Templeton Rye arose when a longtime customer learned the company was not using the bootlegger recipe it marketed, but rather, MGP’s mass-distilled product from Indiana, following an expose by the Daily Beast.

No Craft designation

Craft spirits are not designated by any guideline or regulation, meaning there is no legal jurisdiction to qualify a spirit as “craft” or “not craft.” The Oregon Liquor Control Commission does not have a designation based on the size or output of the operation, said McNeal.

“Like a lot of guys do around town, they re-distill, there are not a whole lot of people doing grain-to-bottle distilling in Oregon,” White said.

White said Indio Spirits used to distill all of its products, but over time, the volume of sales outpaced production.

The amount of time it takes to bring a product to market holds Indio back from distilling in house, White said.

In Oregon, there are 89 locations licensed for manufacturing, distilling or tasting, but each distillery can have up to six locations. Ury compiled a list on his blog cataloguing whiskey brands and distilleries to educate consumers on where their whiskey is coming from.

The Northwest's premier spirits tasting event, TOAST, kicks off Saturday, March 7.

Related Slideshow: 6 Hangover Cures from Top Portland Bartenders

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#6

Hair O' the Dog.

Jeff Seymour, Interurban (4057 N Mississippi):

"[W]hen the day after can be wasted ... the only cure is to jump back on the train and deal with my hangover the next day. If it's a weekend, I'll head to Radar for a killer brunch and 2 or 3 mimosas and an Irish coffee for dessert. Then it's time to find all the rosé. It can be still or sparkling, I really don't discriminate. A few bottles later I'm right as rain."

You might be prolonging--and amplifying--the inevitable, but Jeff's words offer a tempting solution to a New Year's Day downer. Along with some savory eats, alcohol's beautiful, empty calories level out our post-binge blood sugar crash. Still, you can run but you can't hide--you'll do well to plan for a more permanent salve.

And remember, the folks serving you on a national holiday might well be feeling the hurt themselves. Whether or not the mimosas are bottomless, your bartender's meager savings are not. So tip well and stay happy!

For your hangover-numbing relief, Interurban opens at 3 pm New Year's Day. The rosé will be flowing.

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#5

Water, Protein, Water. Repeat.

Jordan Felix, Multnomah Whiskey Library (1124 SW Alder):

"My hangover cure often goes in 3 steps:

1) San Pellegrino Sparkling BIG bottle & a Vita Coco coconut water. Both tend not to fail me but if they do, a Campari & soda with no citrus helps immensely.

2) Grab a Steak & Egg sandwich from Meat Cheese Bread on SE 14th & Stark. I don't know how they do it, but this sandwich is a miracle.

3) A litre of water and a Boylan's ginger ale. It's all about hydration!"

Time-honored advice for a reason--alcohol is well-documented to cause dehydration. And, while many pro drinkers swear by greasy carbs the next day, protein--especially the amino acid cysteine--may hold the key to replenishing your sapped reserves.

So drink and eat up, Portlandians, and by that we mean agua and steak. And if you're vegan--well, you can still have a protein shake.

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#4

Burn, Baby, Burn.

Lucas Plant, Barlow (737 SW Salmon):

"My hangover cure is heading to Minizo, in the food carts on Mississippi next to Prost. Try the Shoyu Ramen and ask Ken to go all in--his kimchi and garlic paste will sweat out last night's bad decisions, and get you ready for round two."

Savvy bartender at Barlow and co-founder of Bull in China--Portland's premier craft barware shop and recent darling of the NY Times--Luke knows how to spice things up on either side of an epic night out.

You may want to avoid extreme remedies like habaneros or the infamous ghost chili pepper--not to mention Eeyore plushies and a swift kick in the nuts (Seriously, a pretty decent Youtube vid that gets GREAT around 2:30--a hangover helper in itself).

But fermented foods like kimchi replenish your body's "good" bacteria, and garlic, high in the amino acid cysteine, cleanses your rotting gut of all the debris.

No stranger to herbal digestifs--or professionally perfect timing--Luke added, "Totally forgot. After the ramen, a Fernet seals the deal!" Booze out. Booze in. Repeat.

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#3

Grease the Wheels.

Jesse Leo, Nightlight Lounge (2100 SE Clinton):

"Grease, man. Something that'll make me tired. Gravy! You been to Tabor Tavern? They have a breakfast sandwich called the rev, and it will--it'll blow your mind. Crispy fried chicken, bomb-ass pepper gravy, cheese--it's amaaaazing."

While not exactly supported by science--greasy food can clog up an already-taxed liver, and deliver few of the nutrients your body actually needs--Jesse's folk wisdom resonates with what's become a solidified part of Portland's culinary canon. At the very least, a rich, heavy breakfast will stick to the ribs, putting you--and those sudden flashes of last night's drunk texting--right back to bed.

While Jesse can be found most Saturday nights happily spinning up Nightlight's seasonally-rotating specialty cocktails, you don't have to wait for the cure: Nightlight is offering up a special New Year's Day brunch from noon to 3--moderately priced, adults-only (mmmimosas!), and exceptionally crafted. Sure, there're vegan options, but c'mon. You know you want gravy.

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#2

Potassium! Okay, and Maybe a Shot.

Daniel Osborne, Teardrop Lounge (1015 NW Everett):

"For summertime, Teardrop's Piña Colada is all fresh ingredients. Coconut cream, pineapple juice, pineapple gomme. A very good source of potassium!"

But Ptown's chilly winters call for something slightly more...bold.

"My go-to tequila is Olmeca Altos Blanco. It's a very good source of alcohol!"

As for Piña Coladas, I have to admit, as a former bartender, that no matter where I worked, the blender was somehow always broken...just right now...just for you. It's a safe bet that Daniel and the staff at Teardrop are a tad more hospitable.

In contrast to the Piña Colada's sweet, creamy blanket, tequila is not for the faint-of-heart--nor the faint-of-gag-reflex. But it remains, for the faithful, an unstoppable cure--not, we might argue, just for hangovers, but for modern guilt, deep insecurities, and those graceful good manners your friends thought you had. Proceed with caution, young Jedi.

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#1

The Big O.

"Orgasms! I'm being serious. It creates blood flow and oxygen intake."

This from Beckaly Franks of Clyde Common (1014 SW Stark), whose attractive bar staff and inventive cocktails make for a seductive experience on their own.

While we might not all be so lucky as to have, um, help with this cure, Beckaly's observations are right on point. A recent study of migraine sufferers by German neurologists found that a majority found relief through sex, with many experiencing "moderate to complete" alleviation of the monster headaches.

Men, too, experience increased brain activity during orgasm. One study even suggested the effects are similar to heroin, which makes sense to those who've experienced major post-coital stupor right after the big moment.

Ah, well. Naptime is good for hangovers, too, right?