How Mellow Corn Grew to become a Cult Whiskey Favourite

Within the hospitality world, there are “bartenders’ handshake” drinks, issues like Fernet Branca or Jeppson’s Malört. They’re not normally ordered by the typical visitor, however bartenders like to pour them for each other. A kind of “if , ” bottles is Mellow Corn whiskey, a licensed cult basic.

Crafted and aged in Kentucky by legacy distillery Heaven Hill, Mellow Corn is not any peculiar whiskey. In actual fact, it’s proudly not a bourbon, a reality pushed residence by the bottle’s distinctive label.

Like a vibrant yellow-and-green neon signal, Mellow Corn stands proud instantly on any again bar. Its quirky, old-school label seems to be nearer to a classic John Deere newspaper advert than a typical American whiskey.

“You pull out a bottle and persons are instantly like, ‘What’s that?’” says Jack Choate, Heaven Hill model ambassador and self-proclaimed No. 1 Mellow Corn fan in Southern California.

“At first, I refused outright,” says Rebecca Corson, bartender at Neat Bourbon Bar in Louisville. “I nonetheless keep in mind what I stated: ‘That label seems to be like one thing somebody’s grandpa designed within the ’70s. In the event that they haven’t bothered to replace the label, what does that imply for the standard of the juice within the bottle?’”

However behind the retro label is a stable, drinkable whiskey with a candy, grain-forward taste profile. It’s not the world’s most advanced whiskey, however it’s nice, uncomplicated, and better of all, extraordinarily inexpensive.

“It’s simply good whiskey,” says Jeffrey Morgenthaler, bartender, writer, and consulting companion at Pacific Normal + The Sundown Room in Portland, OR. “And, , generally it doesn’t actually transcend that.” 

For such an unassuming product, the admiration and respect for Mellow Corn amongst trade insiders is plain. It’s usually described in hyperbolic, glowing phrases.

“Mellow Corn is Heaven Hill’s brow kiss to bartenders,” says Jennifer Hathaway, bartender at Craft One Half in Mishawaka, Indiana. She’s not alone in her enthusiasm. To know the way it turned such successful, we should begin with what’s precisely in its iconic bottle.

What’s Mellow Corn, precisely?

If Mellow Corn isn’t bourbon, what’s it? 

Put merely, Mellow Corn is a straight corn whiskey. Its mash invoice is 80% corn, 12% malted barley, and eight% rye. It might qualify as a bourbon if not for one essential distinction: Mellow Corn is aged in used barrels.

“As a result of it’s aged in ex-bourbon casks, not new oak, it legally can’t be known as bourbon,” says Mark Mentzel, bar supervisor at Order of the Ace in Baltimore. “Ageing a whiskey in second-fill casks permits for extra grain and fewer oak on the palate, producing a taste profile distinctive from different four-year-old, bottled-in-bond whiskeys.”

Mellow Corn can also be bottled in bond, which implies it’s aged a minimal of 4 years in a federally bonded warehouse, bottled at 100 proof (50% ABV), and distilled in a single distillation season.

“​​The individuality of Mellow Corn is interesting to me. There aren’t another bottles available on the market prefer it. Straight corn whiskeys are, general, fairly uncommon as of late,” says Colette Dante, bartender at Judy & Harry’s in Asbury Park, New Jersey. “It’s actually fascinating to see what the higher-corn mash leads to. It’s extremely inexpensive and has a certain quantity of notoriety amongst bartenders. Why not maintain a bottle round?”

It’s distinctive, tastes good, and is surprisingly inexpensive. No surprise bartenders find it irresistible.

“As trade individuals, we see all these completely different ‘hype’ bottles getting all the eye amongst bartenders,” says Hathaway. “Right here’s the factor: Mellow Corn has the identical value level and doesn’t give your palate the eternal bitter style in your mouth. I’m you, Malört.”

How Mellow Corn turned a cult hit

Mellow Corn was as soon as relegated to the underside shelf. A couple of decade in the past, issues started to actually take off for Mellow Corn. “The cult of the Corn has grown exponentially since 2014,” says Choate.

“Its recognition emerged at a time when American whiskey was being taken so severely,” says Morgenthaler. “Like, we didn’t need to be treasured with [Mellow Corn]. You didn’t need to overly respect it. American whiskey received actually, actually snotty and stopped being a ton of enjoyable. And Mellow Corn is only a actually enjoyable American whiskey.”

Its greatest evangelists had been bartenders, who discovered the whiskey to be an nearly ironic novelty at first.

“The introduction and indoctrination [are] fairly common,” says Mentzel. He says it goes one thing like this:

“Ever heard of Mellow Corn?”

“No, what’s that?”

“Bottled-in-bond corn whiskey. It’s what you need. It’s what you want.”

“Signal me up.”

The model’s unfussy, relaxed demeanor and unpretentiousness additional endears it to drinkers.

“There’s a sure freedom that comes with having fun with a whiskey like this, a shedding of pretentious pores and skin,” says Mentzel. “I do know what that is. I do know who I’m. I’m not right here to carry out or put on a masks. I’m right here to be trustworthy. Anybody that poo-poos a bottle like this, I genuinely really feel dangerous for not permitting themselves to only chill out. Snobs needn’t apply.”

Mellow Corn’s rise in recognition is mirrored within the present store of Heaven Hill’s guests’ heart in Bardstown, Kentucky. A good portion of wall area is devoted to inexperienced Mellow Corn T-shirts and vibrant yellow hats emblazoned with the whiskey’s iconic crimson emblem.

“I attended the spring session of Camp Runamok [a six-day camp for bartenders] in 2024, and after we visited the Heaven Hill present store, we completely wiped their cabinets clear of Mellow Corn merchandise,” says Dante. “Everybody wished Mellow Corn stuff. It was essentially the most sought-after merch for all the session.” 

Although Mellow Corn is as unpretentious as a whiskey can get, the bottle is changing into an object of veneration all through the drinks trade. 

“As Mellow Corn has turn out to be extra related in the neighborhood, it has cheekily taken its place in unexpectedly outstanding areas in bars like ours,” says Corson. “We maintain it mere toes from a protracted row of Blanton’s. One other native spot retains it on prime of a can of creamed corn on their again bar.”

It might not be as flashy as bottles like Blanton’s and Previous Fitzgerald, however the subsequent time you see that iconic yellow label on a again bar, order a pour of Mellow Corn. You’ll probably earn your bartender’s respect. And, who is aware of, you would possibly find yourself transformed to the cult of Mellow Corn.