Fior Scotch Blends Passion with Representation in the Whisky Industry

Retired Marine Major Eric Dominijanni delved into the realm of the alcohol industry in 2023 with Fior Scotch. Coming from humble beginnings with roots planted in Queens, New York, he graduated from Mercy College before joining the Marine Corps in 1997.

The buoyant foodie has always loved to cook, so when he received a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to showcase his culinary talents, he obliged.

“In 2006, I was on ‘Throw Down! with Bobby Flay’ and won. I have been cooking since I was knee-high to a pit bull,” says Dominijanni. “Cooking has always been my life. I make my own sausage, wine, beer and ice cream. My kids don’t even eat ice cream unless I make it. I have always loved the kitchen and it is my church and temple.”

After serving 20 years in the military, he decided to pursue his greatest passion and graduated from Johnson & Wales University in 2019 with an associate in culinary sciences. “I did very well in culinary school because I have been cooking my entire life,” said Dominijanni.

“I studied cuisine in Thailand and Singapore. I was planning to go to Mexico to study some more cuisine, but unfortunately COVID-19 messed that up for me. I took a little delay and during that time I ended up creating Fior.”

The Development of Fior Scotch

In 2012, Dominijanni was in between deployments and stationed at Twentynine Palms, California, in the southern Mojave Desert. One weekend, he and a group of friends visited a bar where a gentleman offered to buy him a drink.

“He asked if I was in the military, offered to buy me a drink and thanked me for my service in the military,” states Dominijanni. “I took a sip and it was the most horrible drink that I have ever had in my life. I think it was Malort and it literally left a bad taste in my mouth.”

Disgusted that he could not obtain a quality drink, Dominijanni and his friends drove to Huntington Beach, California, and walked into a scotch bar filled with hundreds of different kinds of scotches.

He put his credit card on the bar and told the bartender to teach him. “The bartender started introducing all of these scotches and gave a tutorial about each one of them. I left there with a bug. I moved to Florida in 2014 because I was stationed in Miami. I worked for three years in Miami and retired from the military in 2017. I started my scotch collection and it got quite expensive. I began to think if I can make my own ice cream and beer, then let me try to make my own scotch.”

The serviceman has two great influences that he credits for learning how to create his own scotch blend.

“My uncle gets his own wine made from California with 52% of this ingredient, 25% of this ingredient and 15% of this one. They mail him a few cases of his own wine blend. My former boss does the same thing with cigars. So, because he created his own wine blend, I thought that I would create my own scotch blend. In 2021, I found my base of ingredients and ended up creating a scotch blend that I thought was amazing.”

Dominijanni initially did not plan to commercialize his new scotch-making passion. Instead, the plan was to make and store six cases or so that would be reserved for friends and family as well as gifts. However, when he turned to his friend Jim – whose family has been in the alcohol business for four generations – to duplicate the blend, things took a turn and two years later, in 2023, Fior Scotch was born.

The scotch enthusiast adds, “I created a perfectly balanced blend. This is not a $300 scotch, but it is a $40 scotch that I would be proud to drink. This is the first Black-owned scotch, first veteran-owned scotch, everyone loves it, and I can’t tell you how proud I am of this right now. I had to create something that everyone could enjoy and everyone is happy with it. I never thought that I would be here.”

Deciding the name for the new blend and was not an easy task. “I am half Black, half Italian and I thought about the name Fiore, which is the Italian word for flower. It is a Gaelic term that means pure. The name, Fior Scotch, was perfect.  I have lived a pure life for myself, my kids and I want the best life has to offer.”

Facts About Scotch

Scotch remains one of the most widely consumed spirits globally with fans who adore its unique flavor. “A lot of people will tell you that they don’t drink scotch,” says the founder.

Dominijanni shares that scotch is an intense spirit, and Fior Scotch is a graduate-level drink with the average age being 35 years old. He also enlightens us that the average woman’s sense of smell and taste is significantly greater or more refined than a man’s sense of smell or taste.

Because of this, he says, “So, when a stereotypical American woman, not from Scotland, takes a sip of one of those peaty, smoky or briny scotches, she is going to taste it four to six times greater. I might taste a little smoke, but she is tasting a charcoal briquette. Generally, that is the reason why women go more towards neutral spirits such as vodka, mixers or white wine.”

Blending Both Worlds

The founder has found personal and professional fulfillment by blending both of his passions: cooking and creating scotch, learning how to build infrastructure around his talents.

“I love cooking, and every weekend I have my friends over so that I can cook for them. Now that I have my own scotch, I can share that with them too.”

“I am new to the alcohol industry, and I am going off of what my buddies teach me. What has saved me is having a friend who has been doing this for 30 years. I am learning exponentially and every day I am learning more and more.

“In this state, Florida, as the guy who makes the alcohol, I can sell it directly to the consumer. In another state, I have to sell it to the distributor, who sells it to a store that sells it to the consumer. In another state, I sell it to the distributor and he sells it to the consumer. So, it is all of these little things and I am learning so much.”

Entering a realm where he aimed for the highest accolades, Fior Scotch’s honors entail double gold medals at the San Francisco World Spirits Competition and New York World Spirit Competition with a 93 rating. Fior Scotch scored a 91 with Sante Magazine, Ascot Awards and The Ultimate Spirits Challenge, solidifying his status and hard work.

Building into his entrepreneurial spirit, the alcohol expert donates a portion of the proceeds for every bottle purchased to Operation Gratitude, which supports veterans and their families.

Significance of Having Our Own

The trailblazer has broken the mold for creating unparalleled smoothness and stellar taste in a classy bottle. It is immensely important that we see Black entrepreneurs who inspire the masses and are living the American dream.

The Fior Scotch owner shared two stories that resonated with him about establishing a Black-owned scotch.

“I did an event for Taste of Black Spirits. When I started opening up the bottles and prepping them to serve, an older Black gentleman ran up to me. He pushed his way through and told me that he had been waiting on this the entire time. I poured him and others a drink and began telling them how I created it. He would not leave. He asked me, ‘How does a brother get into scotch?’ I told him. Then after 15 minutes, he picked up the glass and took a sip. He looked at me and said those words that every Black man needs to hear from his uncle, close friend or mentor. And in Denzel Washington fashion said, “My man.” I almost broke down crying. It was such a sense of I did it.”

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For his second story, he shares, “In addition, I go to the garbage dump on the weekends and I always see these guys there. I shared some information with them about my scotch. One of the guys said, ‘Wait a minute, you have your own scotch company?’ I said yes and he replied, ‘Wow, WE have our own scotch.’”

Dominijanni’s ultimate vision for Fior Scotch is quite compelling. He shares, “I want to see a Black man in a business suit have a bottle of Fior in his liquor cabinet. I want to see a White gunnery sergeant who just came out of the field exhausted drinking Fior, and I want to see that Asian guy who just had a baby raise a toast drinking Fior. I don’t want to see it abused. I want to see people celebrating with it.”

Fior Scotch can be purchased directly online. It is also sold in New York, New Jersey, South Carolina, Atlanta, Georgia and Texas. Follow Dominijanni and the brand on Instagram for updates on in-person tasting events, cocktails and more.

This story originally appeared in Cuisine Noir Magazine