Episode 25: The marriage of oysters and alcohol with Manya Rubinstein of Industrious Spirits Company

In this episode of OYSTER-ology Kevin interviews Manya Rubinstein, co-founder and CEO of Industrious Spirits Company (ISCO) in Providence, Rhode Island. ISCO is known for producing sustainably sourced vodkas, gins, bourbons, and experimental spirits, including the unique oyster-distilled vodka and gin. Manya shares her circuitous journey into alcohol distillation, inspired by regenerative farming and the community-building power of spirits. She discusses the distillation process, sustainability efforts, and the significance of sourcing ingredients locally. The episode explores ISCO's innovative use of oysters in their spirits, the distinct flavor profiles it creates, and the challenges of small-batch distilling. Manya also highlights the company's commitment to partnerships with ocean-focused nonprofits. The conversation is rich with insights into the artistry and science of spirit production, and the importance of storytelling in crafting unique alcoholic beverages.

00:00 Introduction 

00:43 Meet Mana Rubinstein: CEO of Industrious Spirits Company

03:24 The Journey into Alcohol Distillation

05:45 Regenerative Farming and Sustainability Practices

09:27 The Story of ISCO: From Concept to Reality

11:22 Innovative Distillation Techniques and Equipment

15:45 Oyster-Infused Spirits: The Unique Process

19:13 Challenges and Successes in Oyster Distillation

23:15 Hands-On Oyster Farming Experience

23:53 The Importance of Tagging and Transparency

26:03 Unique Ingredients and Flavor Profiles

29:35 Partnerships and Nonprofit Collaborations

33:16 Cocktail Recipes and Bartender Collaborations

40:27 Future Plans and Ocean-Based Inspirations

42:49 Conclusion and Farewell

Links:

Industrious Spirits website:   https://www.iscospirits.com/iscocorespirits

Ostreida Oyster Vodka:  https://www.iscospirits.com/iscoostreidaoystervodka

Sea Flow Oyster Gin:  https://www.iscospirits.com/isco-ocean-gin

Manya’s Ultimate Ostreida Bloody Mary: 

Link to The Matunuck Oyster Bar:  Matunuck Oyster Bar

Some non-profits supported by ISCO:

–  Billion Oyster Project

–  Blue Ocean society:

–  Maine Aquaculture Association

Please be sure to Like and Follow OYSTER-ology wherever you listen to podcasts, and tell others about it. Every positive mention of it helps more people find the podcast!

Transcript

The marriage of oysters and alcohol with Manya Rubinstein of Industrious Spirits Company

Bubbles Sound: [00:00:00] 

Manya: : One of our sort of not so secret missions is to help people remember that. like your food, your alcohol comes from somewhere. it's based on an agricultural product. And those products were grown in a certain way in a certain place and under certain conditions by certain people. even just a basic awareness of that, we think that's, something that's been lost and, and it's kind of important. It, it helps us feel connected.It helps us, you know, understand why Why we should be taking care of this place. Right.

Bubbles Sound: 

Kevin: Welcome to OYSTER-ology, a podcast about oysters, aquaculture, and everything from spat to shuck. I'm your host in the Foodwalker, Kevin Cox. My guest today is Manya Rubinstein, co-founder and CEO of Industrious Spirits Company in Providence, Rhode Island. ISCO, as it's loosely known, produces sustainably sourced vodkas, gins, bourbons, and experimental spirits, including the first ever vodka distilled with whole live [00:01:00] oysters.

Before starting ISCO, Manya ran an independent marketing consultancy, was a co-founder, publisher, and editor of an arts magazine, and worked at Google and with various Conde Nast publications with a BA from Brown University and MA from the European Graduate School and an MBA from Columbia.

Manya joins us to talk about her unconventional journey into the world of distillation and the liquors that Isco creates, including its unique line of oyster based spirits. She shares insights into the distillation process, sustainability practices, and the local community focused approach of her distillery, highlighting the convergence between land, sea, and shellfish into outstanding bottles of booze.

Oysters play a central role in Manya's priorities, and she describes the uncanny flavor profiles of her oyster gin and vodka, and the story that each of them tells. She also shares insight into the challenges of small batch distilling and labeling, the [00:02:00] importance of sourcing ingredients responsibly, and the joy of crafting cocktails that highlight the ocean's bounty.

Manya Rubenstein is a true artisan whose mission, in addition to blowing your socks off with great liquors, is to foster partnerships with ocean focused non-profits as part of the company's commitment to giving back to the community where its products are made. So sashay up to the bar and pull out your photo ID as we hear about the marriage of oysters and alcohol; the real meaning of regenerative farming; hanging live cold oysters in a warm copper still; the importance of keeping it local; the perfect bloody mary; how to make a great halfshell oyster even greater; and cocktail recipes which will stun your friends, with writer, publisher, photographer, and whole-oyster master distiller Manya Rubinstein.

Bubbles sound.

Kevin: Hi Manya. This is so great to have you here on OYSTER-ology today. You know, I met [00:03:00] you in New York at the Oyster Master Guild Educators Summit, and you were pouring some amazing alcohols that just caught my attention, not to mention my palate. And I'm just so excited to learn about what you're doing. You are the co-founder and CEO of Industrious Spirits Company, which I guess. Is loosely called ISCO, is that right?

Manya: That is correct, yes.

Kevin: So I'm curious, how did you get into alcohol distillation and spirit creating?

Manya: So the journey for me was kind of a circuitous one I guess in some ways. Um, I mean, I've always loved spirits, um, but I really got into this through two major threads. One was a deep interest in regenerative farming and trying to figure out some professional way I could somehow be associated with the cool things happening there. The other thread was the way that spirits really can bring people together and how they [00:04:00] can kind of bolster community as well as, you know, looking to do something really creative. Uh, we make all of our spirits on the side of an old steely yard in Providence, Rhode Island. Um, and we come out of a creative community that's grown up around that neighborhood. so that's always been a core part of what we do. And, making spirits really brought all of these things together for me, which has been pretty cool.

Kevin: So you're a true artisan company. 

Manya: Yes. 

Kevin: You're even surrounded art around other artisans. 

Manya: Right.. 

Kevin: That's very cool. Um, but this wasn't your background, right? Did you originally know you wanted to get into this kind of business?

Manya: Oh, no. No. Definitely not. Although, you know, now it's. It's now that I know what to look for, I can look back in my past and see the signs. I was always right. I was the kid who got kicked out of my mother's kitchen at some point because I would just open up all the cabinets and mix all the ingredients together and then stick it in the oven to see what happened. Uh, no measurement was occurring. It was just pure creative process. Or I love, you know, at, uh, somebody's birthday party, you know, putting all of [00:05:00] the different. Things I could find into the drink and giving it a stir and seeing if somebody would try my potion. So now when I look back, this all makes perfect sense. But Right, my background was more in marketing and sales, um, as well as in publishing. Uh, I really was a, a magazine gal for quite a while. that was a real passion of mine and that really carries through because I, I do think one thing that's really cool about spirits is that they're a great way to tell stories and get people excited about, the stories that are in the bottle.

Sometimes it can be hard because you don't have a lot of space on your label, so you really have to find other ways to communicate, but that's something that I still really love that carries through.

Kevin: So you really do get to exercise your marketing muscle. 

Manya: Uh oh yeah. Even, yeah. That's exciting for sure.

Kevin: Tell me a little bit though, about regenerative farming. I'm picturing sort of like a, a sustainable kind of grain to distilled alcohol

Manya: Yeah.

Kevin: To waste and feed cycle.

Manya: Yeah.

Kevin: But tell me a little bit about that.

Manya: Yeah. Eexactly. I mean, [00:06:00] that's exactly right. So, one of, one of our great joys is working with really cool, farmers and, aquatic farmers as well mm-hmm. Who are, are farming in ways where they're trying to not take more out of the system than they're putting back. I mean, that's regenerative farming at its, at its base is looking at the whole thing is an energy system and, and being cognizant of how you're affecting the system as a whole. So we love to work with products that are created in ways that. Engage with that. And then also for ourselves, we do everything we can to make sure that we're reusing and recycling best possible all parts of our process. So, that, is everything from, making use of, the solar panels to offset some of our energy usage and on our roof.  'Cause it does take a lot of energy to produce spirit. 

Kevin: I would imagine. 

Yeah. A lot of water too. That's a conversation for another time. Um, but we, uh, take all of the spent grains that, is a byproduct of distillation. Those all go to feed, pigs and cows on local [00:07:00] farms. Uh, we have a, a facility wide compost program. currently our oyster shells are actually, uh, go, they go to the compost where, where they don't. Really break down, but our nice compost company will take them for us. Um, we are now working with a really cool, company that's also in Rhode Island that is using oyster shells and other types of shellfish to create a building material and, um, like a furniture making material. And so we're trying to figure out if we can work with them moving forward so that they'll, you know, turn our discarded shells into like a table. That's, it should be really awesome. Really interesting. Be, I'm super excited about that. Yeah. That's, that's a new thing for us.

Kevin: So you really are, I mean, as much as you are, an alcohol distiller it's a, it's bigger than that. You're a whole kind of food system specialist.

Manya: Yeah, you know, I think that's something that's really easily lost with alcohol and when we first started out making our products entirely from scratch, everybody told us we were insane. Like the first product we made was [00:08:00] just a straight ahead, Sipping vodka. I mean, we're probably actually going to sunset this original product because people, that's not what they're really expecting from their vodka. And it's a huge and long thing to make. But gosh, it tastes good. And, you know, we really wanted to understand the entire process from start to finish. And one of our sort of not so secret missions is to help people remember that. like your food, your alcohol comes from somewhere. it's based on an agricultural product or many agricultural products. And those products were grown in a certain way or in a certain place and under certain conditions by certain people. You know, even just a basic awareness of that, you know, we think that that's, uh, something that's been lost and, and it's kind of important. It, it helps us feel connected. It helps us, you know, understand why mm-hmm. Why we should be taking care of this place, Right? So we, it makes sense. 

Kevin: Yeah, right. 

Manya: We think so. 

Kevin: I mean, you think about right now what's really big in the broad culinary world. it's farm to table. [00:09:00] when you get into the world of wine, everybody wants to know about the merroir and about, you know, the hillside, where the grapes grew and all of that kind of stuff. Why should spirits be any different?

Manya: Right, exactly. And that's, that's really the, the question that we kinda start with. And, um, you know, there, there are some, there are some reasons why, uh, I think it's, it's harder for spirits, But, but it's a mission that, that we're really dedicated to. So. You know, we're gonna, we're gonna keep doing it.

Kevin: What is the story of ISCO though? Yeah. How did you guys begin?

Manya: Yeah, so myself and one of our two head distillers, Dan, we have known each other for, you know, over 20 years as part of this creative community that I was mentioning earlier. I was trying to restart a consulting business that I had had previously, pre-kids. Um, and I wanted to focus solely on food and ag businesses and, and help them with marketing and storytelling and sales and things like that. And as I was sort of trying to figure out how this all would work and how I would get [00:10:00] paid if I was working with some of some of these producers.

Kevin: Yeah. That little detail. 

Manya: Yeah, that little detail. Um, I started working with Dan and, uh, truthfully, I thought I was just gonna, you know, help out my old friend, write him a business plan to, uh, you know, he had, um, had a background in distillation. Um, he was a, uh, a welder at the Electric boat company in Rhode Island and he was ready to do something different with his life and, mm-hmm. So I thought I was, you know, helping him just, uh, you know, get off the ground and, uh, start the first distillery in Providence since prohibition. But as soon as I started working on this with him, I realized that actually this business brought together all these different threads that were so important to me, and that spirits was an amazing way to tell these stories about agriculture, um, and a great way to bring people together and a great way to do these creative collaborations, which is really what feeds my soul. So, uh, soon Dan and I became partners and, went on a hunt to find other, other like-minded folks to fill out all the, the roles you need for a company, [00:11:00] including, my very important, co-founder and CFO, who makes sure the light stays on. And we kind of took it from there. We, we renovated a part of this old steel yard. it had been in, in the interim an artist studio, and we had to take the space down to the dirt. So it took us about a year to get the equipment and raise the money, um, and all that. And then, uh, then we were able to get things going.

Kevin: And, um, now I have heard that you have this amazing copper and brass Vendome. Yes. Still? 

Manya: Yes. 

Kevin: Tell me a little bit. 

Manya: It's very beautiful and an Excellent, excellent machine as well. Um, yeah, so we. We knew that, um, we wanted to get, an American made still. We you know, we don't, we don't make any agave based products and we don't make any rums. And part of that is we are really wanting to work with. Things that speak about the place that we're from. And so You know, that the still being from somewhere in the states kind of followed for that. So we decided to work with the Vendome Copper and Brass [00:12:00] Company, a family run business has been around for over a hundred years, and they make absolutely beautiful, stills.

You know, it was made completely to our specs. Um, it can do a lot of different things. Uh, it did not come with an instruction manual. Um, so, you know, you're, you're really, um. You know, I think a, a lot of knowledge was, was lost during prohibition and as a small, you know, now obviously there's tons of craft distilleries and there's, you know, a lot of resources, but really it's such a specific process that you're doing that is based on where you are and what the, conditions are that are happening around you in terms of, you know, temperature fluctuations and, humidity and whatever else. 

Kevin: Right. 

Manya: What, what natural yeast are in your air. Yeah. and so each piece of equipment really can be quite different, and you really do have to figure out the process that works for your specific piece of equipment in your specific space. So, um, it's, it's, it's really an art.

Kevin: It sounds like it, uh, an art and a science [00:13:00] all wrapped into one. 

Manya: Yes, that's right.

Kevin: Um, do you make all of your different products in that same still or do you have different processes that you use? 

Manya: We have, yeah, we have, we have a number of different processes that we use at this point, so, we use that still, for a number of different things. And then we also have a smaller test still, because you don't always wanna run a batch that's the size of a 500 gallon, Vendome. so we have a hundred gallon smaller test still that we run more like specific things on. Um, and then we have, a really tiny still for like an even earlier phase of the process basically, right? So we, we use lots of different tools.

Kevin: I, I love the fact that you don't do rums and you don't do agave based tequila type things. and you're really keeping it local. but what, what products do you produce there? 

Manya: Uh, we, so we make, um the vodkas and specialty vodkas, we make a number of different gins and we, we make a lot of things that fall into the category of, [00:14:00] you know, specialty spirits. Like the definitions are all really written out, somewhat specifically, and, and you have to go by the categorization that the government says, uh, we make a lot of spirits that, uh, defy categorization. And then we also do a lot of age spirits. So, we make, uh, primarily bourbons. we actually just released a really fun one, in honor of our fifth anniversary. we called it our coastal cask, and we took our. Four year bourbon, which is made from really beautiful regeneratively grown organic corn aged for four years. And we took that four year bourbon and put it into a barrel that we had filled with water from the Atlantic Ocean and basically salted the barrel. Then we removed the sea water and put the bourbon in and let the bourbon rest there. And it's one of my favorite bourbons we've ever made. It's, it's really, really fun. And, you know, the grain is from, upstate New York where we partner really closely with a farm there. I'm also from New York, so that's nice. Um, and then, you know, it's like our Rhode Island [00:15:00] coastline, and we're bringing those two things together and I love how this product tastes. Um, it's almost like a, like a salted, caramel as a, if it was a bourbon or something like that. It's really delicious. But I also love the story that it tells about, you know, where we got these, these ingredients from and how they all came together to make something really special.

Kevin: That's fascinating because, you know, you hear about bourbons and also wines where, they'll toast the heads of the barrel to impart a smoky kind of flavor. And what you've done instead it sounds like, is soaked it in salt water. So you get, a briny kind of touch.

Manya: Yep, exactly. 

Kevin: That's amazing. But unfortunately, as much as I, can't wait to taste that bourbon and love bourbon. 

Manya: Yeah, you'll have to, 

Kevin: We are here to talk about oysters, so, 

Manya: Yeah. indeed. Let's talk about oysters.

Kevin: Tell me a little bit about you make two different oyster infused or, I, I don't know that that's the right way.

Manya: We express it two different We do if you, if you, we'd say oyster [00:16:00] distilled actually, because we actually run the oysters through the distillation. So, yeah, we make, Two products, Ostreida, which is the, the OG here. And that is our oyster vodka. Um, and then we also make Sea Flow Gin which is sort of our follow up to Ostreida.

So both of those are made with oysters. So, starting with the Ostreida, we sort of couldn't believe this. So like We love oysters. I mean, oysters are amazing, right? and one of our favorite pleasures, here in Rhode Island known as the ocean state, is to hang out and, have some delicious oysters.

So, the story goes that we were, I. You know, basically celebrating our first year in business because we opened in March of 2020 and it was a little bit of a weird time to start something new. so we were, celebrating, like making it through year one. And we were down at, um, the Matunuck Oyster Bar in Rhode Island, which uh, Perry Rosso runs it as pretty well known in the oyster community.

They actually just had a terrible fire there. Um, but anyway, we were down at Matunuck, which is an [00:17:00] amazing place, and I'm sure they will rebuild it better than before.

Uh, and we were having some oysters and we were having some cocktails and we were like talking to each other, being like, wait a minute. How come nobody ever put these things together? Like this is like, a martini with your oyster, like, delicious. But why, why don't, why isn't there an oyster vodka?

And so that was kind of the genesis of the idea for us. And we went back to the distillery and we started running tests. We got a bunch of oysters, from local farms and you know, we started trying to. Try all these different ways and we finally hit upon a way that was great, which is basically we go through a two month long process to make our, our neutral spirit that base, um, out of this, you know, beautiful organic corn.

And then on the very last run through the still, we call it like a finishing run. We actually take a bag of these oysters and we hang them in the still. And so. you know, our, our liquor heats up, you know, turns into vapor. It steams the oysters open, they drop their liquor into our liquor.

Everything gets kind of [00:18:00] mixed together. So it's, you know, shells, meat and all, everything. and everything kind of gets combined when it's in this vaporous form. molecularly speaking, And then on the other, you know, when we condense things coming out the other end, um, to turn it back into liquid, the liquid now has a delicious brininess and minerality and like, uh, it's, it's not like an overwhelming, hit you over the head, like too much oyster, but you also don't have to wonder if we use them because you get this beautiful oceanic freshness in the spirit that is, you know, talks to your palate about the ocean, right? So it's, it's really simple in a lot of ways. Um, but like a really beautiful expression of, again, of like land and sea. So that's what the oyster vodka is.

Kevin: Well, you are making my mouth water. It's a little early for me to start hitting the booze, but I'm ready.

Manya: indeed.

Kevin: What I find so interesting is, you know, I've seen a few breweries that are making oyster stout beers. In New Zealand bespoke gins is a really big thing right now. but they only [00:19:00] use the shells and it's almost like a filtering process. 

Manya: Yes. 

Kevin: What I find so fascinating is that use, you're using the entire oyster.

Manya: Yeah. 

Kevin: The meat, the liquor, everything. Yeah. Do you ever have any issues with. spoilage or, what happens if there's a bad oyster in the batch?

Manya: Yeah. Well, I mean, we, we, the way that we deal with that is a, we use super fresh oysters, like mm-hmm. These are not, you know, sitting out on a dock in the hot sun for a while before we use them.

Kevin: Right. 

Manya: You know, they get basically hauled from the sea Right. Into our still. Yeah. Um, we work with. Farms that, we know and trust. and the other thing is, you know, imagine like we're cooking the heck out of these oysters. That's true. I mean, these are, that's true. We're not, we're not, you know, dropping them raw into our distillate and letting them sit there. I mean, people will often ask, oh, can you eat them after we're like, 

Kevin: I was just gonna ask that question. 

Manya: No, a hundred percent no. Like, they gave all their goodness. To the liquid and what is left is, [00:20:00] I hope it becomes a table, but it's definitely not something you would want to consume. so, so yeah, that's not something that, that we've been, um, terribly concerned about. But, and I don't know if I mentioned also, one thing that's really pretty cool, it's for each batch that we do, we're able to focus , you know, the same way that. A different oyster, tastes different. We weren't sure if this would be the case. like, will those differences in flavor come through the final product? And as we started to experiment, we found out that they really did, it really changed. I mean, not, not that you'd be able to taste the liquor and identify which oyster it was, but it does change the flavor significantly depending on where the oyster is from. And so we started working with specific farms. So for example, when we're sending oyster vodka to New York, we always use, uh, Fisher's Island oysters because We feel like that's a really cool way to regionalize the product and uh, we just started selling in Maine and we're using Glidden Points. and, it's just, again, it's a really like neat way to [00:21:00] send a product somewhere that talks about the place that it's, that you're, you're gonna be consuming it. Um, so that's been a really fun thing for us.

Kevin: Merroir is such an important thing and the water in which the oysters grow and the salinity and the algae and all of that imparts different flavors, even though you can have the same eastern oyster species, but it tastes and even looks completely different.

Manya: Yeah. 

Kevin: How did you decide what oysters worked? I, I'm trying to picture. the development process of this, because oysters can be a delicate flavor for a lot of people especially with the Brineness, I imagine there was a lot of trial and error in your development of just the right product. Yes. Tell me a little bit about that. 

Manya: Yes,for sure. Um, yeah, we haven't had oysters that make a bad product. But we've had oysters that like we've had just like intense variations. So, you know, one thing that we actually did over time, was we would, [00:22:00] we would do only oysters from that place for the product because that was sort of, you know, the pure way to go about it. The problem was that the fluctuations were too broad. So, you know, the oyster vodka from, one region like really was. So distinct from the other one that we felt like it didn't feel like the same product. So we felt like we had to kind of, come up with a base that was recognizable as Ostreida and then so what we do now is we use more of the featured oyster on top of that. So it's a way to make sure that the product stays somewhat consistent, but also we're able to feature the place that it's going to. We're always dealing with things like this in, the process right? I mean we are a small batch distillery, but we still wanna have products that are somewhat consistent and recognizable. Yeah. And you know, so you have to kind of weigh some of these things out sometimes to figure out the best way forward. Um, but I can't think of an oyster that like, made a terrible [00:23:00] product,

 We're, we're working with great farms and just kind of going where. we had relationships or wanted to have relationships or, you know, people whose work we admired already. Um, and we've had, we've had a lot of fun. you know, we did a, we did a whole tour with Fox Point oysters they’re our oyster partner in New Hampshire and uh, Laura who runs that farm is totally amazing. And, you know, we're able to like bring our. You know, distribution team through to, to learn how an oyster farm works specifically in, Portsmouth in New Hampshire. And, you know, stand out in the rain with these guys and, you know, um, I won't digress yet.

Kevin: I love the fact that you're so hands-on and have been that way from the very beginning with the development of this and actually going to the oyster farms and, experiencing the product in its raw, natural state. And then figuring out how to incorporate it into your product.

Manya: Yep. Yep.

Kevin: It's fascinating. the whole notion of tags that you mentioned Yeah. I think is very interesting because tagging, as you know, with [00:24:00] oysters is. Very, important. Yeah. In terms of where the oysters came from. Yeah. When they were harvested and all of that. And you know, the idea of you having tags showing where the oysters in your products come from, kind of goes back to the whole storytelling thing that you mentioned earlier.

Manya: Absolutely. It's, it's for sure, it's, it's a way, to. call out that this is made from something from somewhere. Right. And, now there's all these conversations going about what you'll, you know, list, , but often.

You know, sometimes when you try to write on your liquor label what is in it, you can't, like, I can't tell you how many times really you get a label like kicked back to you. Um, 'cause everything we do is highly regulated. It has to get approved. Mm-hmm. And you know, we, we made a whiskey where we used a Mexican blue corn. We couldn't say Mexican blue corn on it because they thought that was confusing, you know, so there's like. All these, because it wasn't made in [00:25:00] Mexico, but it was made with Oh, I see. Even when it said made with Mexican blue corn, it was still, it still violated some confusion rule. I don't know. But so there's like, a lot of, it's, it's very, it's weirdly difficult to be transparent at the moment. We care a lot about the ingredients that we use and we're always trying to source, as Sustainably as possible and, you know, as locally as possible and all of that. but yeah, sometimes it can be hard to put that, directly on the label so you get a little more leeway with, a little tag that isn't actually attached.  I think we'd be able to write all this on our label as well. But, you're, you're constantly looking for ways to augment, what you're able to do with such a small space, on the bottle itself.

Kevin: Yeah. And you could put QR codes that take you to the farm, that take you to, you know, all of the sources.

Manya: totally. Exactly. Yep.

Kevin: I think that there really is a story behind specialty-made alcohols like, what you're doing, and, people want to hear that story. People wanna know what they're drinking. Just like people more and more wanna know what they're [00:26:00] eating and where it came from.

Manya: Yeah, for sure.

Kevin: So, I love gin and tonics, and I love martinis, so I'm trying to, get a sense of. What kind of flavor profile I'm gonna have? I would assume it is predominantly a gin flavor, juniper. But tell me how the oysters. Change that and modify the, the flavor profiles.

Manya: Yeah, absolutely. So, so for the gin, we go actually fairly light on the juniper. it's more of a modern style gin. So kind of more balanced amongst all the botanicals of which I guess you could call the oyster a botanical, I'm not sure. Um, an "Oystertanical". Right.

Kevin: There's a new word to be created there, there, and I think you're gonna come up with it.

Manya: Uh. So you, we use, a lot of citrus, so it's really bright, which is really nice. Um, we use pea flower, which is what gives this gin its beautiful light blue hue. So, so initially we wanted to use [00:27:00] blue-green algae because we thought that would be a super cool, you know, sea-based product. But it turns out you cannot use, blue-green algae in anything over 20% alcohol. So you can make, blue-green algae wine or beer, but, but not spirits. I, I do not know why. If anybody knows, please tell me. 'cause I'm so curious and I haven't been able to figure it out. But, uh, so pea flower was a nice land-based alternative, that was still natural. Uh, there's not a lot of natural blue colorants. And then, we use oysters and then we also use, kelp from Stonington Kelp, and then we also use sea lettuce from Atlantic Sea Farms in Maine. And so the oysters and the kelp together kind of give almost like a smoked kombu umami-ness to it. So it's, it's bright, citrusy gin, but it's also got this savory note at the same time and a bit of a hint of salinity as well. So you get like on the nose still that oceanic freshness that you get with the oyster [00:28:00] vodka. So it, yeah, it's. It's amazing in, Collins and a fizz, you know, any of your classic gin drinks, um, obviously in, a martini. It's, it's really fun. It's really versatile and, uh. We love it.

Kevin: It sounds, like it would make what I think maybe I would call a, a “dirty ocean martini” or something like that. 

Manya: Yes, a hundred percent. Absolutely.

Kevin: I love the idea of kelp. I assume it's like sugar kelp or something like that.

Manya: That exactly. Mm-hmm. 

Kevin: And then the, the sea lettuce, adding that oceanic umami that you described. Sounds amazing.

Manya: Yeah,

Kevin: Now is your Ostreida vodka a bigger seller right now for you than your, oyster based gin?

Manya: Yes, it is.

Kevin: What kind of comparison do you have in terms of your general sales of your oyster based products versus other products that you produce.

Manya: I mean, Ostreida is one of our best sellers.And it's probably the product that we're [00:29:00] known best for, um, that, that may change because we just introduced, uh, pizza vodka.

Kevin: Pizza vodka! 

Manya: Yes!

Kevin: Oh boy. We gotta have a whole ‘nother podcast episode now. 

Manya: We have whole of podcast about that. but yeah, Ostreida is actually one of the things that, that we're, we're known best for. it's been a great one for us and it, you know, it, it really encapsulates a lot of, I think, what we're trying to do as a company. Um, so I'm really happy to have it as, as kind of our, front runner and like flagship. product, it's, it's a easier one to go into a new market with. we know who we wanna talk to, we know who might be interested in this. 

And, another thing that I haven't mentioned is we, we partner with a different nonprofit in each region that we're in.

Kevin: Tell me about that.

Manya: So on, on these little tags, it tells you where the oysters are from, but it also tells you, who we partner with in that place. So in New York, it's the Billion Oyster Project. And so we donate a portion of proceeds from every bottle we sell in New York of oyster vodka and Sea Flow [00:30:00] gin to the Billion Oyster Project and, um, we, do as much other work with them as we can and, try to support events and things like that because, we just love what they do. 

And what's really cool is there's like, incredible ocean-based organizations all over the place. And so it occurred to us at, at first we just had, one nonprofit partner. But then as we started regionalizing the oysters for each new, place that we were expanding to, we realized that, you know, there was no reason we couldn't work with a different nonprofit in each place too. Um, so that's been really fun and, uh, just a cool way to stay engaged with some of the work people are doing.

So it's everything from the Maine aquaculture association, which I believe is one of the oldest associations of aquaculture farmers in the country, um, to, the Blue Ocean Society in New Hampshire, which I believe started as a whale watch organization and now leads always also beach cleanups and does a lot of education.

They're super cool. Um, we have partnered with [00:31:00] GreenWave out of Connecticut. They do a lot around, kelp and popularizing kelp and helping farmers, add this business line. and then there's some other ones as well that, we have in the hopper and some relationships we're still working to build.

But it's just been a really neat way to have the company give back, and then also just be involved in, in helping to tell the stories of these other, amazing organizations that are doing really good work to, protect, sustain, grow coastal economies. every, everything along those lines, um, you know, put, put a billion oysters back into New York Harbor. Cool stuff that we're, we're psyched to get a chance to talk about and boost as well.

Kevin: I see this amazing through-line. You really have a priority of. Sustainability, regenerative farming, keeping it local, dealing with great producers of products, giving back to other even perhaps less directly related organizations. There's a through line there, which I think [00:32:00] makes you very special and, a little bit more than just a, liquor producer,

Manya: Yeah. Well I think things are richer with layers. You know, I, I think the more components you can kind of pull into whatever it is you're creating, if that's like, a beautiful bottle of liquor or, a great event or you know whatever it is that you're producing, like the more. Uh, you know, you don't wanna do too much. And sometimes I been guilty of that because I just get really excited. but, it makes it a, it makes it a more engaging story and experience and, um, it's more fulfilling to produce. So yeah, that's, that's what we're, we're trying to do.

Kevin: I would imagine that some of our West Coast oyster eater listeners are a little bit jealous that you're only doing eastern oysters.

Manya: Oh man, I want so badly to make a West Coast, version of Ostreida, but we do not distribute yet on the West Coast. So,

Kevin: And the flavor profile of  Pacific Oysters and also some of the Japanese [00:33:00] strains, like the Kumamotos and stuff, I mean, are so different than the virginicas that you're using.

Manya: Yeah, totally..

Kevin: I would think that it would give a whole different kind of profile.

Manya: I would agree with you, and I think it would be absolutely delicious. And I really hope we get a chance to, uh, to do some of those experiments.

Kevin: One of the things that I love about your website, which is a beautiful website, is it gives, literary descriptions of your products, and it also includes cocktail recipes. Which is huge.

Manya: Yes.

Kevin: Because when you're using something that's so unique, like having an oyster or an oceanic kind of flavor to it, you want to know what you're doing with it. For sure. Before you surprise any unwitting guests. So I'm trying to picture you and your team sitting around with these amazing distilled products and coming up with recipes and figuring out what works, and probably some of those sessions turned into unexpected parties from time to time. How did you come up with your different cocktail recipes?

Manya: [00:34:00] Oh, with the help of amazing bartenders.

Kevin: Really? 

Manya: Yes, absolutely. I mean, I have a lot of respect for folks that are, you know, incredible at making cocktails. I, I do not claim to be one of those humans myself. Um, but I have a deep appreciation for the art. I mean, I certainly can make a cocktail at this point. But, um, They understand sort of like the canon and then how to riff on it. And I think that that's a lot of what it's about. You know, it's about seeing like flavors and things and figuring out how to amplify those and play off of them and, you know, what goes with what.

Um, but there's a lot of really awesome applications and we have some really simple recipes too, of just like one part this, two parts that, because I think, sometimes you want something more complicated, but often, you know, the at home, uh, consumer just wants something that's easy to pull off, that they're not gonna mess up, that they can impress their friends with.

So, we try to do both things. Um, but, for the oyster vodka, it [00:35:00] really, it. go's great in like martinis and dirty martinis, things like that. Amazing. in bloody Mary's, um, you know, incredible oyster shooters. You know, every, everything in sort of that savory realm, like you're good.

But also the thing that people don't realize often is because it's got all that nice salinity to it and like a really beautiful body to the spirit. You can also use it the same way, you know, the way. Put, sprinkle a little salt on your food to wake up those flavors. You know, bartenders will often do a drop of saline to wake up the flavors in a cocktail, and so Ostreida kind of functions that way as well. And mixing it with any kind of tropical or citrus juice you know, a cocktail that plays up those flavors. It goes great in those as well. It really like takes it from, you know, ho hum to, you know, your like a greyhound, you know, just with grapefruit juice saying like, ho hum to sublime. Like suddenly you have something special, right? So, right. Um, so there's some really easy things you can do with it that are absolutely delicious.

Kevin: [00:36:00] When I shuck oysters for friends and family, one of the things I do is I keep a couple of little glass eyedropper bottles, Uhhuh. Little hot sauce in one.

Manya: Yeah. 

Kevin: Maybe a little, mignonette in another. And then a little bit of Bombay Sapphire, Star Of India, which has kind of Asian aromatics in it. And I've always told people three drops of that Uhhuh in a fresh oyster,

Manya: Oh yeah.

Kevin:  just elevates it to heights previously unknown. I'm now thinking, my goodness, with an oyster based uhhuh gin or vodka. 

Manya: Oh yeah. 

Kevin:  That's gotta be amazing. 

Manya: It's amazing. 

Kevin:  I'm gonna try that. 

Manya: It'samazing. I, I, yes. We, um, we once did a recipe for, uh, dirty martini oysters, and it's about, you know, 50 50, like really high quality, extra virgin olive oil mixed with our gin.

And oh, you know, that on top of the oysters is absolute like. What, the first time I [00:37:00] had that, my mind was legit blown, like, how have I not known that you should do this to your, because like, I wouldn't have thought necessarily like olive oil, but Oh my God, I wouldn't have either. It's, I'm gonna send you the recipe we get off.

Kevin: We'll put it, we'll put it in our show notes. Yeah.

Manya: It's unbelievably delicious. And yeah, and I'm gonna actually do an event this coming weekend, with, Oyster Bliss out on Long Island. who was at the event that we, that we met at, um, and people are gonna be walking around and shucking and we got these really cool holsters for the shuckers belts that hold a bottle of the oyster vodka or the oyster gin. And after people finish their oyster. If they're interested in an oyster chaser where they're gonna be able to pour just a little bit of the gin or vodka right into the oyster shell so they can do a, do a little chaser right there.

Kevin:  Oh, that sounds incredible. 

Manya: So I think that should be a lot of fun too.

Kevin: I can't imagine a better way to do shots Yeah. Than, uh, with an oyster liquor out of an oyster shell. 

Manya: Exactly, I think it's gonna be great. So, super excited.

Kevin: So how did you become. [00:38:00] Interested in oysters, or I guess I could ask the general question and that is: Why oysters? I mean, what, what are some of your oyster memories that might have led you into this direction?

Manya: I mean, just like every sort of, happy, delightful moment sitting out in the sunshine, somewhere coastal. Enjoying an oyster. I just, I've always loved the flavor of them and I think when I started learning about all of the, you know, that it's, such a incredible, low input to grow source of protein. And, all the ecosystem services it can provide. it's just an incredible creature. I, I think, you know, my adopted home state is Rhode Island where. That, as you may know, tiny. So the idea of like this tiny thing that actually, could have an outsize impact or we sort of relate, to the little underdog. I think a oyster's kind of like that a bit. Uh, so, they're just special in that way. And I mean, I just, I, I love the ocean. You know, I became a. A surfer in my, you [00:39:00] know, late in life, like in my mid thirties, I started surfing and became totally addicted. Um, and just, you know, feel my best when I'm near or in the water. So I think something, working with something from the ocean just made so much sense. 

Kevin: And you just found that oysters were the right, answer for that, right? 

Manya: Yes. People have asked us like, oh, are you gonna do what, oh, a lobster one? I'm like, no, that one doesn't sound that good to me. I don't know. I like lobster, but I, I don't know. Maybe not. Um, yeah, it's oysters. 

Kevin: So I love Bloody Mary, as you mentioned that earlier. And, we make them with, um, Clamato. 

Manya: Yes. yep.

Kevin: And I'm thinking like Oyster-based Bloody Mary. Oh yeah. Um, so adding yours to, a clam based tomato juice sounds amazing. 

Manya: It's, it's delicious. I can verify.

Kevin: Now, how do I garnish that? Do I garnish it with like, 

Manya: Go wherever way you want. You can go crazy. You can, uh, there's, I'll, I'll, I'll also send you, we have a great recipe [00:40:00] for how to do your bloody with Ostreida and it has a huge number of potential options, for, for various things. But I think, you know, go big or go home. Uh, you know, you throw, throw all kinds of things on there. So pickl-y things. I'm thinking some, you know. 

Kevin: Yeah. Maybe a crispy fried oyster on top of the little stick. 

Manya: Absolutely. Anything goes. 

Kevin: I think I've just modified my weekend plan. So. Where do you go from here? You're doing amazing stuff. And, what's your expansion plans or what's the next step for ISCO?

Manya: Yeah, so we're, continuing to grow the company and grow where we can distribute. So right now. you can order our products online through our website, and as a consumer and they can get, they ship to like 42 states, I think, the ones that basically allow alcohol shipping. but we're working on expanding our distribution footprint, for liquor stores and bars and restaurants.

Right now. we're in Rhode Island, [00:41:00] Mass. Just getting started in Maine, as well as New Hampshire. Uh, we're in. Connecticut, we're switching over to, Southern Glazer's as our distributor in New York, so about to make a much bigger push there. Um, and then we will, we'll just keep, we'll keep going from there. So, you know, we can, we'll work our way out to the West coast so we can make that other oyster vodka.

Kevin: You gotta get down to Virginia too, because 

Manya: Yep. We're, we're coming. We're coming. 

Kevin: So, uh, what kind of production do you have right now in terms of how much, how many bottles? I don’t know if it goes by cases or what that you're producing.

Manya: Yeah. A lot. 

Kevin: A lot of cases. So that's good. You're, you're a small organization, but you're producing plenty of product.

Manya: Yes, exactly. Yeah. But enough, enough product to, uh, to service everywhere we are and, um, the ability to continue to scale. So.

Kevin: Any other ocean based ideas in the works that you can reveal?

Manya: You know, we, always go back to the ocean as a source of inspiration. Every year we make a [00:42:00] different aquavit for. release in January. We have a winter Blues Be Gone party. Our other head distiller of, Swedish descent, so, it's a sort of in the product in his honor. But but we do a different variation on it each year. So we're actually in process discussing what we're gonna do for this year and they're definitely some ocean based ones in the mix, so we never talk about anything until it's in the bottle, uh, specifically, but. it's always a source of inspiration.

Kevin: Well, Manya. I can't thank you enough for telling me about you and what you guys are doing at ISCO and your storytelling approach to this amazing, liquor that you're creating. in our show notes, we will have links to your products, your website so that people can find you easily and order these products.

Manya: This has been great. Thank you so much for having me.

Kevin: Thank you.

Well, that's it for this episode of OYSTER-ology. Thanks so much to my guest. Manya Rubinstein of Industrious Spirits Company.

Links to ISCO's website, which include killer cocktail [00:43:00] recipes, profiles of their oyster distilled spirits. and the nonprofit partners that were mentioned, are included in the show notes along with the transcript of this episode. So be sure to check it out. And please follow OYSTER-ology wherever you listen to podcasts. The more followers we get, the more others will discover us too. And if you like this episode or want to say anything about it, please leave a comment to let me know. Thanks so much for listening, and be sure to join us again next time when we pry open the shell of another interesting OYSTER-ology topic.

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