Garrison Brothers Texas Straight Bourbon

A very solid all around great bourbon, but too expensive.

Rating: 14/23 N: Wood. Sawdust, actually. It's kind of sweet though with corn meeting brown sugar. There's something faintly tart and bitter and I get just a whiff of the alcohol. It's a decent nose, but it seems a bit young and uncomplex. P: Sawdust and light brown sugar are backed by alcohol and faint corn. There's a fair amount of char from the barrel too and I get the faintest bit of maybe tangerine or something, but it's faint. There's a bit of some sort of spice too, but I'm having trouble placing it. The spice is a little harsh, but not too bad. There isn't a ton of complexity here, but it's a tasty product with a unique flavor. F: The alcohol, corn, char, and sawdust linger the most. The brown sugar fades surprisingly quickly. As the finish progresses, it comes down to sawdust and char mostly. - Conclusion - This somehow strikes me as a bit more youthful than my single barrel cask strength bottling. It's kind of like that with a bit of Buffalo Trace mixed in. It generally strikes me as a bit better than Buffalo Trace (though not enough to justify the price difference). I think I underrated my single barrel cask strength bottle of Garrison Brothers at a 14 - It's probably more like a 16. With this being better than Buffalo Trace (a 12) and worse than the Garrison Brothers Single Barrel, I'm looking at a 13 to 15 here. Considering the price, it's hard to justify buying this with such a meager rating, but it is a fun expression that's different from your usual sour mash bourbon. I think I'm going with a 14. There are more complex and mature bourbons that I've scored a 14, but this is tasty and sippable in a way that I think earns the 14. It's not an amazing bourbon, but I find it so easy to come back to that there must be something pretty good about it. It's about on par with Old Tub, Wild Turkey 101, and Early Times Bottled In Bond. The only reason that isn't a big compliment to this is that it costs more than twice what any of those do.

My first Garrison Brothers was very good. Actually a bourbon that i will remember for a long time because of a good flavor and aroma profile. Their website says that it is Texas first legal bourbon whiskey. Bottled at 47%abv, a nice copper color. On the nose, super sweet and jammy. Strawberry jam, Cramberries, caramel, syrup, Marmalade, Maraschino Cherries, Strawberries and Coffee. Great stuff. On the palate it is very acid. Prunes and fruit acidity. A second sip gave me red fruits, jam and coffee beams. Aftertaste had a nice spiciness. Sugar syrup, chilli, wasabi, very dry and astringent. Overall, i really liked this dram. I believe that the sweet, acid and spicy profile is quite a nice combination. My score for it is an 85 over 100, but it surely feels like more.

It's actually smooth, despite the harsh smell.

This bourbon evolves while in the glass. Immediately out of the bottle, the nose and palate were all oak, with a haze of light pepper. Gradually, a corn profile emerged along with a satisfying spice in a lengthened finish. The corn is very distinctly corn too, not much vanilla. I wouldn't call it worth the MSRP but is still a relatively pleasant.