Iowa enjoys distillery boom: From grain to glass, these 8 makers produce top-shelf spirits
Iowa used to be one of the biggest distillery producers in the country, as people used the state's abundant corn crop to stoke their stills.
Back in the late 1800s, Iowa was known as one of the nation's top whiskey producers and housed more than 200 distilleries, according to the Iowa Distillers Alliance. Prohibition closed many of them.
A turning point came in 2005: Renewed interest in native distillers grew when Cedar Ridge in Swisher became the first licensed distillery in the state since Prohibition.
Now the 25 distillers across Iowa produce everything from vodka and rum to whiskey and gin, according to the Iowa Alcoholic Beverages Division.
Blue Ox Spirits Inc. out of Des Moines sold more than 28,000 gallons of spirits in 2022, the top producer in the state, followed by Dehner Distillery in Clive and Cedar Ridge, the division reported.
Cedar Ridge Vineyards topped sales in the state at $3.7 million in 2022, followed by Blue Ox at $2 million and Mississippi River Distilling in LeClaire at $1.4 million, the state agency reported.
Here are eight companies that represent all sides of the distillers' craft, from independent new innovators to well-established and internationally recognized brands.
Iowa Distilling Co.
Now in its second decade as one of the region’s most Iowa-supportive distillers, the Iowa Distilling Co. occupies a hard-to-miss century-old brick structure on a Cumming street corner.
Local farmers produce the corn that stokes the company stills and creates some unapologetically fiery products among its seven award-winning spirits.
The cinnamon-flavored Prairie Fire whiskey is a breakout hit that delivers the heat to homes and local bar menus, including Maggie's Rumble Room in Des Moines. The 1858 Vodka has become the official vodka of the Iowa State Cyclones and displays the football team mascot, Cy the Cardinal, on its label. Country Gal Moonshine, rum bourbon and also an apple pie-flavored infused option join a perennial favorite, the take-no prisoners Rocker Fuel spirit.
At the distillery's tasting room, which is a regular host of private events, food truck visits and live music bookings, guests can sample the wares. True to its lowa allegiances, much of the tasting room’s reclaimed wood furniture has been locally sourced.
Location: 4349 Cumming Ave., Cumming
Contact: iowadistilling.com
Revelton Distilling Co.
Located on 10 acres of farmland in the northwest corner of Osceola, Iowa, Revelton Distilling Co.’s tasting room stands out from the surroundings with its copper roof and blue paint scheme that are echoed within its handsomely designed tasting room.
Founded by Rob and Christine Taylor, the Revelton family of spirits is created with Iowa-sourced ingredients to create a “grain-to-glass” environment that produces elegant bottles sold and enjoyed around the region. The distillery currently produces eight products, including three gins, whiskey cream liquor, and an award-winning honey vodka. Custom creations include a barrel-rested gin prepared exclusively for the downtown Des Moines French restaurant Django as well as a mulberry-flavored gin.
Visitors can try out some of the liquors at Revelton’s tasting room, or take a 50-minute tour of the whiskey and gin production facility.
Location: 1400 W. Clay St., Osceola
Contact: reveltondistillery.com
Mississippi River Distilling Co.
True to its name, the Mississippi River Distilling Co. of LeClaire sits right on the bank of the waterway. A fixture since 2010, it has grown into a vibrant attraction.
Less interested in mass production than monitoring quality control, the family-owned-and-operated distillery produces its premium wares in-house, not outsourced, and spirits are bottled by hand.
Visitors can enjoy the popular on-site Cocktail House bar and sit out on the patio watching the river and shipping vessels drift by. Customers take home bottles from the wide selection of whiskies, bourbon, vodka, liquors and limited-edition creations produced under the Cody Road, Iowish, River Baron and River Pilot brand names. The warm wood cocktail lounge is a favorite for the $5 sampling choices featuring four quarter-ounce pours.
Location: 303 N. Cody Road, LeClaire
Contact: mrdistilling.com
Blue Ox Spirits
Promising “top-shelf taste that doesn't cost top dollar,” connoisseurs looking to support a locallyowned, up-and-coming distiller can turn to Blue Ox Spirits.
Located north of downtown Des Moines, the small manufacturer is gaining traction as a creator ofbottled vodka, rum and gin, and it's looking to expand beyond its home-state borders. Using Iowa-grown grains, its Blue Ox Vodka is quadruple-distilled to ensure maximum purity, while its gin features juniper, coriander, citrus peel and other natural botanicals.
Blue Ox’s canned cocktails, dubbed “Oxtails,” contain two shots per can. The Moscow Mule pairs ginger and lime with Blue Ox vodka. The Rum Punch is infused with tropical and red fruit notes, and a vodka lemonade continues the pledge to natural flavors.
Location: 1631 N.E. 55th Ave., Des Moines
Contact: blueoxspirits.com
Cedar Ridge Distillery
Cedar Ridge Distillery in Swisher is the first and oldest distiller in the state since the fall of Prohibition and a must-visit stop for seasoned or casual sippers,
Nestled in acres of greenery that resemble a slice of Napa Valley dropped into the heart of Iowa’s grain belt, Cedar Ridge is not only an award-winning home to spirits, but also an equally famed Midwest winery. Proprietors Jeff and Laurie Quint and their team store and mill the grain on-site to create bourbon and whiskey revered by a legion of fans. They use four, European-engineered stills to produce other spirits, including an 8-year-old, barrel-aged Lost Pirate rum, Bagger Vodka, premium dry gin and a small batch fruit brandy.
The distillery even makes a line of four whiskeys for the Des Moines-born metal band Slipknot.
Cedar Ridge's refined beverages can be purchased for home consumption, or enjoyed in cocktails and by the glass inside the venue's dining area, tasting room and outdoor patios. Menu items include wood-fired pizzas, sandwiches, smoked pork ribs and flights of wine and whiskies. The restaurant also serves a Sunday brunch.
Location: 1441 Marak Road, Swisher
Contact: cedarridgedistillery.com
Dehner Distillery
This boutique enterprise in Clive from Joseph Dehner doesn’t have the space for personal tours but is focused on a concentrated inventory that is attracting statewide attention.
Dehner oversees the Gotcha brand of whiskey, gin, vodka and rum, which the company describes as a “premium product at a value price.” Distilled with 100% Iowa corn, Gotcha’s rum and vodka is promoted as being gluten-free. Copper Cross is its hybrid whiskey, a blend of bourbon and rye, that generates a taste of oak, tannins, warm toffee and caramel, with a touch of pepper from the rye. It also manufactures a Premium Triple Sec, an orange-flavored liqueur that is popular in margaritas.
But it is the distillery’s latest creation that is fast becoming the main attraction: a candy corn whiskey flavored with cane sugar and notes of vanilla, nutmeg, almond, oak, allspice and lavender. Dehner blends it only in small batches, now available at retailers year-round.
Location: 7500 University Ave., Suite E, Clive
Contact: dehnerdistillery.com
Iowa Legendary Rye
Behind the doors of a faceless, nondescript building in Carroll lies a colorful 90-year-old backstory and a passion for creating internationally recognized, Iowa-born whiskey.
Iowa Legendary Rye’s reputation is built on secret recipes handed down from Carroll County’s Lorine Sextro, who secretly distilled 100 percent rye whiskey as a surreptitious side hustle during the Prohibition era. Family members now continue the legacy of the bootlegging grandma and have refined the process within its 23-gallon pot stills. The smaller size stills aid the monitoring of the small-batch process from “sprout to finish.”
The distillery curates three spirits, the smooth 100-plus proof Gold Label Rye; its Black Label Rye, which closely follows grandma Sextro’s 1920s formula; and the company’s crown jewel, the Purple Label Rye, double-distilled and aged twice in charred American white oak barrels. Team members also have experimented with a moonshine and Prohibition-style vodka.
For the serious aficionado, the company sells a 15-gallon barrel, filled with enough refreshments for 60 bottles and a sure-fire way to become the envy of your friends.
Location: 707 N. Main St., Carroll
Contact: iowalegendaryrye.com
Foundry Distilling Co.
Foundry Distilling Co. in Historic Valley Junction shares its building with a German-style beer hall. But for the stronger stuff, devotees head to the Foundry’s tasting lounge next door.
Using two giant, Iowa-manufactured stills, the company is perhaps best known for its collaborations with individuals, or nationally recognized brands, to help choose a bottle, cork it and ultimately place their own label on Foundry’s inventory of refined spirits. The distillery produces vodka, whiskey, bourbon, botanically infused gin, and even a bottled, barrel-aged Manhattan cocktail.
If your family owns a farm, operators also provide a unique service: Customers can deliver 15 bushels of corn to the distillery. Workers will ferment and distill the grains, and within two to three years, the farm will have its own limited batch of estate bourbon.
Location: 111 S. 11th St., West Des Moines
Contact: foundrydistillingcompany.com
Susan Stapleton is the entertainment editor and dining reporter at The Des Moines Register. Follow her on Facebook, Twitter, or Instagram, or drop her a line at sstapleton@gannett.com.
This article originally appeared on Des Moines Register: Where to find holiday spirits: Here are 8 top-shelf Iowa distillers
