Garrison Brothers Balmorhea Texas Straight Bourbon

Thich, maple overtones

The corn comes through too heavily for my taste.

Like the saying goes, everything’s bigger (and bolder) in Texas! The nose is just a little bit young but after sitting for a few minutes, brings oak and vanilla with some stone fruit mixed in. The palate is bold with lots of salty caramel, toffee and vanilla. The finish is very long (surprising given its age) and intense with baking spices and a hint of mint

Garrison Brothers Distillery was founded by Dan Garrison in 2006 and was issued their federal permit in 2007, but technically he has worked on getting it started since 2001. He credits Bill Samuels Jr, Maker Mark's Master Distiller, as being his mentor. His prior employment was as a marketing executive for a tech company until he was laid off in 2008. Originally called Lone Star Distillery, the company had to change the name because Busch Brewing insisted it was too similar to their Lone Star Beer brand. Located in Hye, Texas, Garrison Brothers benefits from big temperature swings in helping them age their whiskey. Some good friends visiting from Texas gifted us this bottle as I have personally held off picking it up due to the $130 price for a full sized bottle. According to their conversation with Dan Garrison, out of all the whiskey the distillery produces, this is the one he's most proud of, and after tasting it he has every right to be. While the initial batch was aged slightly differently, Balmorhea is now aged 4 years and then transferred to another new charred barrel for another one year. It is named after a park in the area with a spring-fed lake. Jim Murray named this "The American Micro Whiskey of the Year" in 2018 with some rather poetic description. Mine is is rather more simple. On the nose caramel, burnt brown sugar, oatmeal, vanilla, and a bit of ethanol. On the palate chocolate fudge and molasses that give way to heavy charred oak flavors with leather only to be replaced with honey and fresh cut wood notes. Finishes extremely long with more heavy oak, burnt brown sugar, and buttered toast and cinnamon spice. If the color indicates what to expect in flavor, this is probably the darkest whiskey I've ever seen and the flavors reflect that. Saving up money for a full bottle!

Dark, lingering, caramel finish. Oak and toffee for days. Lovely.