Biagio Varisco was five years old when he moved to Bryan with his mother to join his father in 1907. Over the years, Biagio, who went by Brazos, along with his brother, Guiseppe, would purchase thousands of acres of fertile Brazos bottom land and a cotton gin. The “white gold” grew the family’s wealth alongside a burgeoning Downtown Bryan business district. Brazos opened The Varisco Building in 1948 with seven stories, including a penthouse and a basement. Stories linger to this day.
In 2024, the Late Deco-style building has come full circle as home to a new family of entrepreneurs, who chose the building to grow a business around a storied beverage.
Whiskey was used historically when actual dollars and cents were hard to come by. Often a daily drink — to start the day, complete a deal or even as a prescribed medicine — it is a fitting venture for the storied building.
Hush & Whisper Distilling Co. is a grain-to-glass distillery that aims to be a one-of-a-kind experience. Before you first walk through the double doors, the Late Deco architectural design of The Varisco Building immediately catches the eye. The tour and tasting area on the first floor has an industrial feel, which embraces exposed architectural elements such as pipes, bricks, concrete and an open floor plan.
The distillery harkens back to the past by buying the grain it transforms into whiskey from local farmers. Guests are encouraged to sign up for a tour where a guide will walk you through how sour mash is made. Tasting at three stages of the fermentation process is encouraged, where the visitor’s impression of the mash goes from tasting like nothing to tasting like nothing but with a hint of alcohol.
Tour Experience
Tours run at the top of every hour and start in the tasting room, where visitors get a taste of the fermentation process and the building owner’s storied past. The name Hush & Whisper is a nod to the Varisco Building’s bits of lore, says tour guide Will Ashworth.
“We came to hear stories and little tidbits when we made sure this building had everything we needed to house our distillery,” he says.
While sampling the grain alcohol at three stages of fermentation, visitors can imagine the dance floor Brazos installed outside his penthouse to entertain guests. Another story Will shares is one of the Bryan movers and shakers Brazos regularly hosted included the legendary Bear Bryant.
“We met with the title office, and they told us Mr. Varisco actually lost the deed of the building in a game of cards,” Will says. “He lost on Friday, but fortunately won it back on Sunday before the opposing party could take the deed to the title office.”
Hush & Whisper is a name that also nods to the many secrets of the whiskey industry. “If you go to Twin Liquor[s] or Total Wine & More and pick up a bottle of whiskey, it’ll say blended whiskey,” Will says. “Blended whiskey by volume is only 20% whiskey and 80% other grain-neutral spirits, which we think is disingenuous. That’s why here, we are 100% whiskey.”
The production facility where Hush & Whisper makes sour mash — a collection of grains used in the fermentation process — uses 2,000 pounds of grains per cook, and the bourbon mashbill uses 1,400 pounds of corn, wheat and malted barley, Will says.
“After the mash is done cooking, it’ll go into the fermentation tank,” he says. “After three days in the fermentation tank, it’ll go into the beer well where an agitator will stir up any leftover grain chunks so it doesn’t get caught in the still.”
The stills are in the tasting room. “Our 30-foot continuous column still is manufactured by Vendome,” Will says. “The mash starts in the beer heater; we then pump steam, which causes the alcohol to rise and the grain and water to go down into the spillage tank.”
Last, the guests see the doubler, which Will says doesn’t actually double the proof of the alcohol.
“Before [the alcohol] goes into the doubler, the industry refers to it as ‘low wine,’ which is just an unfinished
product,” Will says. “After, it becomes ‘high wine,’ which is ready to be barrelled.”
In the the near future, Hush & Whisper plans on selling its spirits only at the distillery, Caleb Clanton, Hush & Whisper’s co-founder and manager says. In the meantime, people can stop by and try the different cocktails the distillery has to offer. “It’s difficult to find something so authentic,” Caleb says. “We’re happy Hush & Whisper can provide an amazing place where you can have amazing cocktails.”
About Hush & Whisper
Hush & Whisper chose Bryan/ College Station for the distillery’s location in 2018 when the distillery was first starting up, Caleb says. He wanted to create a place with drinks that can’t be found anywhere else in the area.
“We identified [The Varisco Building] as a key location,” Caleb says. “We didn’t think we’d be successful if we didn’t generate the buy-in from the community; we can generate that buy-in by being here in a place that is interesting and people want to come and visit.”
Hush & Whisper is currently supplied by the Denena family, who are located in the area, and plan to partner with local businesses and farmers.
“I’m really happy with what they’re able to provide us,” Caleb says. “Some things we can’t get locally are rye and barley — those just need weather and a climate you can’t find here in Texas.”
In 2020, a study by UTSA discovered that Texas distilleries chipped in about $209.8 million to local suppliers who provide grains, machinery, glass containers and transportation. The same study revealed distilleries didn’t stop there — they added almost $2 billion to the state’s economy and created nearly 4,900 jobs in the same year. Hush & Whisper isn’t just making spirits — it’s also making a significant impact on Texas.
About 90% of Hush & Whisper’s production goes towards bourbon. Caleb adds that bourbon is the most difficult to make as it has to spend at least four years in a white oak barrel after it is fermented and distilled. “Next year, we’ll probably make 3,000 barrels of bourbon,” Caleb says. “We’ll probably be around that for the foreseeable future.
“I love our bourbon,” he says. “I’ve tasted samples of how it’s developed so far, and I’m super excited about it.”
As a grain-to-glass facility, Caleb says visitors can go in and try gin made just a week earlier. He adds that everything behind the bar — including the gin, white whiskey, vodka and triple sec — is made in-house.
“If you have a gin and tonic, the only thing that doesn’t come from this building is the limes,” Caleb says.
Hush & Whisper Distilling Co. is located in The Varisco Building in Downtown Bryan at 219 N. Main St. and is open Thursdays through Saturdays from 11 a.m. to 9 p.m. For more information or to schedule a tour, visit HushAndWhisper.com.
