Ysidro Launches Second Flavor

When Ysidro launched in 2021, the Montecito-based canned sake spritz brand came out with just one flavor. That was a bold move for founders Alex Dessouky and Monica and Seth Epstein, as most other ready-to-drink, or RTD, companies start with at least a couple of different flavors, if not a half-dozen or so. 

But it also conveyed confidence in their grapefruit-and-sea salt combo, which flavors the bubbly base of California-grown Junmai Ginjo sake. The drink was indeed good — tasting very real in an RTD sea flooded with fake — and their strategy paid off, as Ysidro found its way into top retailers and restaurants across California. 

Five years later, Ysidro is finally releasing a second flavor: Cara Cara Orange with Black Pepper & Cardamom. Packaged in an eye-catching orange-pink can with a large silver oval around St. Isadore, the patron saint of farming, the cocktail very much feels related to the original concoction, but embarks on a somewhat juicier, spicier adventure. They unveiled the beverage at the Santa Barbara Sailing Center on Tuesday, September 1, where a small group of well-dressed friends and fans toasted Ysidro’s second chapter with an afternoon cruise on the Double Dolphin. 

“It’s kind of nerve-wracking trying to come up with the next flavor, after a pretty successful flagship flavor,” said Dessouky, who’s worked in wine marketing for decades and also runs an import/distribution company. “But blending is part of the job that I enjoy the most.” 

That’s because he’s worked with winemakers who must blend different components from every vintage to produce a consistent product. “The same is true with Ysidro,” said Dessouky. “We just have a different toolbox.”

He explained that the cara cara orange was discovered at Hacienda Caracara in Venezuela in the 1970s. “It’s in the navel orange family, but it’s way sweeter,” he said, noting that it also has less bitter pith and a redder flesh. They added black pepper for a tingly note and cardamom for a floral pop, finding that those elements lifted the flavor like a pinch of salt complemented the grapefruit in the original. 

“It drinks very different, but it still has the same cycle,” said Dessouky. “You get a really nice pop of fruit and a little bit of spice on the nose, a super nice, orangey, juiciness on the front, and the umami character of the sake and that little cardamom finish.”

Monica is relieved by the release. “Doing the second drink, I was super stressed out about it because the original was so good,” she said, explaining that many RTDs are just alcohol, juice, and carbonation. “Adding spices really makes our RTD a real cocktail.”

She loves the evolved packaging, specifically the unique pink-orange color combination and how the saint image increased in size. “I love the silver saint,” she said. “To me it looks like a diamond when the sun hits it.”

The new flavor feels like a major step. “Creating one drink is a story,” she said. “Creating two drinks is working to define the path and the direction we’re moving.”

See ysidro.com and @drink_ysidro.