Review: ISCO Spirits Coastal Cask and Pumpkin Ale Bourbon
When most people are asked to name American towns long intertwined with distillation, the conversation almost always turns to Bardstown or Lynchburg. Their reputations are well-earned. Yet few would instinctively point to Providence, Rhode Island — a city whose past is steeped just as deeply in spirited enterprise. In the colonial era, Providence operated as one of the country’s leading rum-making centers. By the 1760s, more than twenty distilleries lined its busy waterfront, a number surpassed only by neighboring Newport. Merchant dynasties — most notably the Browns—converted steady streams of Caribbean molasses into rum sought across the Atlantic world. Rhode Island rum had a reputation for refinement, often outshining the better-known Medford output from Massachusetts, and it became a crucial engine of the notorious Triangle Trade.
The politics of rum shaped the region’s revolutionary spirit as well. British duties on molasses and rum stirred agitation throughout the colony, culminating in the 1772 destruction of HMS Gaspee just south of Providence. Many of the men involved had ties to the rum trade, and their actions marked one of the earliest armed challenges to British rule. After independence, Providence’s rum houses continued to work, but the industry slowly receded as global trade routes shifted. By the early Republic, many of the former distilling sites along the Providence waterfront were repurposed for the textile machinery and cotton-processing equipment that helped position Rhode Island at the forefront of America’s Industrial Revolution.
Prohibition added another colorful chapter. Rhode Island refused to ratify the 18th Amendment and never enacted strong local enforcement measures. As a result, Providence and Narragansett Bay became favored entry points for contraband liquor. Yet once national Prohibition ended, legal distillation in Rhode Island went quiet for decades.
That long silence finally broke when The Industrious Spirits Company (ISCO Spirits) began taking shape in 2016 and launched production in 2020. Their opening marked the first permitted distillery in Providence since 1933, and the team has chosen to honor the city’s heritage not by copying the past, but by charting their own path. ISCO Spirits generously shared two expressions with Drinkhacker — Coastal Cask Bourbon and Pumpkin Ale Bourbon — each starting with the same house flagship bourbon before moving into unique finishing casks.
Their base spirit is built on an unconventional foundation: a mashbill composed entirely of organic corn cultivated through regenerative farming methods. More unusually, 90% of that corn is raw and 10% is malted—an ingredient rarely used in high proportions because corn malt offers far less enzymatic strength than barley malt. Its limited ability to convert starches, along with its high gelatinization temperature and notoriously adhesive mash, makes it a demanding choice. Nearly all of ISCO’s grain is grown specifically for the distillery by a partner farm in Hudson, New York.
To ensure harmony between grain and water, ISCO collaborated with FermSolutions in Danville, Kentucky to identify a yeast strain tuned to their precise profile. The selected yeast ferments cleanly and swiftly, keeping the spotlight on the grain rather than generating loads of esters. Fermentation runs 5 days in closed-top tanks, yielding a corn mash between 8.5% and 9% ABV. Distillation takes place on a 500-gallon hybrid pot-column still from Vendome, with the resulting spirit coming off the still at roughly 135–140 proof before initially barreling at 120. Primary maturation takes place in #3 char, 53-gallon casks from Kelvin Cooperage. For Coastal Cask Bourbon and Pumpkin Ale Bourbon, each finishing vessel received bourbon from a single barrel drawn from an initial six-barrel batch.
From this shared starting point, the two finishing casks set off on divergent paths. The underlying bourbon is already unique in character; adding finishing barrels with such non-typical character raises the question: what happens
when a distinctive foundation meets equally distinctive cask influence? Something memorable and well-wrought? Or simply novelty dressed in interesting oak?
ISCO Spirits Coastal Cask Bourbon Review
Coastal Cask begins with the distillery’s flagship bourbon, aged from 4 years 7 months to 4 years 11 months. The selected barrels were blended at 122.7 proof before being transferred to the “coastal cask” for secondary maturation. This 53-gallon barrel was treated with a saline solution made from Atlantic sea salt. Using a brined solution increases a barrel’s permeability and extraction rate by breaking down hemicellulose and lignin more quickly, allowing more wood compounds to be drawn out in a relatively short period. The bourbon rested in this cask for 6 months and was harvested at 113.6 proof.
The aroma opens with salted caramel and roasted peanuts, followed by sea-salt dark chocolate and unsweetened chai tea. The influence of the saline treatment is noticeable, though it manages to fit within the overall profile. On the palate, the sea-salt dark chocolate returns, shifting toward bitter black tea and chalk dust. As the sip develops, a character akin to thin, hard, less-sweet oatmeal cookies appears. The mouthfeel leans dry and slightly bitter, and the absence of any fruit character stands out. For me, the mix of bitterness and salinity is not especially appealing.
The finish continues along the same lines, adding ocean water, intensified dark chocolate, barrel char, and chalk dust. I respect the experimental approach behind this release, and ISCO Spirits clearly achieved their goal of producing a bourbon centered on grain influence with minimal ester presence. Still, the combination of that grain-heavy profile with the saline-seasoned barrel isn’t something I would choose to revisit. It ends up feeling like a one-time curiosity rather than a bottle I’d return to. 84 proof. B- / $65
ISCO Spirits Pumpkin Ale Bourbon Review
Pumpkin Ale Bourbon begins with ISCO Spirits’ flagship bourbon, aged for 4 years and 1 month. For secondary maturation, the distillery sourced a 53-gallon barrel from their Providence neighbor, Narragansett Beer.
Narragansett has worked with whiskey producers before — its Baltic porter cask was used by Wheel Horse Whiskey for a 2025 release—but this project is notably different. The barrel chosen for ISCO once held Gourd Reaper, an English-style ale brewed with spices and real pumpkin, for 12 months.
At first glance, it may seem like another beer-finished bourbon aimed at fall drinkers. But after checking the TTB database and crowdsourcing information, I could not find another documented example of a legitimate pumpkin beer barrel finish in American whiskey. While there are flavored products on the market — often using spices, sweeteners, and lower proofs — none appear to be genuine finishes. In a category overflowing with creative cask types and an overall culture fixated on pumpkin spice, it is surprising that no one tried this sooner. ISCO filled the pumpkin ale barrel with bourbon in early April 2025 at 116.8 proof and let it rest for 6 months.
The nose presents spiced pumpkin bread followed by oatmeal cookies with walnuts, and later, a focused hit of ground ginger. Based on aroma alone, the concept shows real promise for the season. The palate begins with a sharp punch of ginger that feels abrupt, but it quickly gives way to pumpkin puree. Once that note settles, the expected pumpkin spice trio — nutmeg, cinnamon, and a calmer ginger — takes shape. The result recalls a dense, well-browned, spice-forward pumpkin pie without drifting into artificial territory. Although the opening bite is a brief setback, the palate finds its footing and improves steadily.
The finish delivers a short flash of dark chocolate and slightly burnt pie crust. As with the Coastal Cask Bourbon, a chalk-dust note appears before things close on mild nutmeg. In the end, this is an enjoyable bourbon and an easy bottle to share. The pumpkin ale cask complements the base bourbon, though the grain-forward house profile doesn’t align perfectly with the finish. Even so, it is something I plan to bring to my family’s Thanksgiving gathering. I would like to see another producer with a more traditional bourbon profile take a turn with a pumpkin ale cask — perhaps partnering again with Narragansett’s Gourd Reaper. Distillers like Southern Tier or Town Branch, who also brew barrel-aged pumpkin beers, might be ideal candidates. 116 proof. B / $75
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