European Oak – Exceptional Flavor, Exceptional Value

ISC sources oak logs from all over the world to make our world class spirit barrels. The most popular selections come from a multitude of states here in the U.S. and from several different forests dotted throughout France.

A Lesson in Heat Transfer

“Assume a spherical cow”
Before I came to ISC to study spirit maturation, I was in the field of engineering. I graduated with a degree in Mechanical Engineering and for the first five or six years out of college, I was strictly focused in that area.

First Barrel Experiment Rolls into the Boswell Family Warehouse

Over the next four years, students at the University of Kentucky will be able to monitor the progress of eight barrels resting inside the Boswell Family Warehouse and learn about the complexities of oak maturation from the liquid that they themselves will gather and then analyze

Esters: The Unsung Heroes of The Single Barrel

Esters are fascinating little compounds in the sense that they are responsible for some of the more distinguishable and potent aromas that most of us run into on a frequent basis, not just in our glass of favorite whiskey or wine.

Climate Study

Visit a distillery anywhere in the world and you’ll likely hear your tour guide talk about the influence climate has on whiskey maturation. While there has been much speculation on the effects, I was not able to find any hard data or documentation of a proper barrel experiment aimed at studying this variable, so we decided it was time to lay the groundwork and begin our own barrel experiment.

Gifts for the Whiskey Nerd

So, you have a whiskey nerd in your family or circle of friends and it’s your turn to buy them a gift this year. As simple as this may sound, the task can be somewhat daunting. It seems easy on the surface – just hop over to the liquor store and get a bottle of their favorite bourbon. Then you start thinking…

The Lifecycle of an Experiment

At Independent Stave Company, we feel it is necessary to be on the forefront of barrel innovation. We try our best to deliver new and innovative barrels for our distilling partners on a near constant basis. The process of developing a new type of barrel takes quite a bit of time. Before we release a new type or offer a new variation on an existing barrel, we will test the idea in what we call a commercial barrel experiment.

Sensory Evaluation for Aging Spirits

Sensory evaluation is one of the best parts of my job. It is as enjoyable as it is interesting and most importantly, it is absolutely necessary for quality assurance and new product introduction. Any person or any business involved with food or beverage production, whether it be alcoholic beverage production or not, should have a sensory protocol in place for evaluating experiments.

Extractive Concentration Changes During Maturation

Our last post about aging whiskey on different levels of a warehouse sparked some questions from our readers about how the results we receive from our chemical analysis relate to the overall quality of the whiskey being tested.

Warehouse Experiment

Whiskey barrel warehouses come in a variety of different styles and configurations. Palletized, dunnage, traditional rick, and all kinds of variations within. Here in Kentucky, the most common style you see is traditional rick warehouses or otherwise known as a rick house.

Single Malt Whisky Collection

Peat is one of the more interesting ingredients in the whiskey making process. The use of peat goes back centuries when it was (and still is) used to heat homes and cook food. However, peat has carved out an interesting place for itself in the spirits world as the source of one of the most interesting and versatile flavors in the category of malt whiskey.

Peat Smoked Barrels

Peat is one of the more interesting ingredients in the whiskey making process. The use of peat goes back centuries when it was (and still is) used to heat homes and cook food. However, peat has carved out an interesting place for itself in the spirits world as the source of one of the most interesting and versatile flavors in the category of malt whiskey.

Second Annual James B. Beam Institute Conference

It has been a long year, but here we are preparing for the second annual James B. Beam Institute Industry Conference. This year’s conference will take place March 10-12 and will be a virtual event.

Wave Stave Experiment Results

A little over four years ago, we began to experiment with a barrel now known as our Wave Stave barrel; named for the unique wave-like pattern on the interior surface of each stave. Depending on the goals of an experiment, we usually monitor the maturation for a period of four years.