View Full Version : Garrison Brothers Introduces Texas Straight Bourbon Whiskey
SB Friends,
Wanted to let ya'll know that the bourbon we've been working on since 2005 goes on sale next week. http://blog.garrisonbros.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/10/flagshipdarkcropped-sm.jpg
Hope you can get some. Hope you like it. Newsletter follows:
http://blog.garrisonbros.com/2010/10/28/texas-bourbon-news-fall-2010/
Kind regards,
Dan
DeanSheen
10-31-2010, 12:07
Congrats. Nice looking bottle.
Since it's unlikely that anyone outside of Blanco and Gillespie Counties, Texas, will get a bottle of this not a lot needs to be said. But based on some tastes I've been privileged to enjoy I hope the people who do score bottles will open them and drink the whiskey, because it is quite good.
smokinjoe
10-31-2010, 14:08
Friggin' Awesome!! Congratulations, Dan.
Friends, that's what they call "Walkin' the Walk".
:toast:
MissinER101
10-31-2010, 18:54
I have family in the Houston area, I'll have to see if they can score a bottle for me; looks interesting.
Good looking bottle. I want one.
birdman1099
11-01-2010, 06:04
I know the original post says "working on since 2005", but isn't this release a 2008 vintage? I though I read somewhere that the first release will be a 2 yr old bourbon?:skep:
Can someone throw me a bone???
2008-2010 = two years.
2005 - 2008 = figuring it all out (i.e., lots of experiments.)
wadewood
11-02-2010, 06:44
road trip time for me!
So, what would a good looking collectible bottle like that sell on eBay?
Thanks for the nice words ya'll! We'd love to host the next SB Get-together in Texas. I'm feeling guily that I don't have more to spare and want to try to make it up to ya'll.
Virus_Of_Life
11-02-2010, 13:16
Awesome news, I am very glad to see this is coming to fruition and cannot wait to taste some.... Is it safe to say some of our wonderful Texas members may have a bottle at the next get together? :grin:
trumpstylz
11-02-2010, 16:35
75$ for a 2 year old bottle of bourbon? That better be the best 2 year old bottle I've ever had!
They should price it lower to drive the buzz. If it was priced in the $30s, I would try to seek it out. At $75, I forget about it entirely, probably forever. When/if they ramp up production, the buzz won't be there due to the fact that most of us have already passed it by.
75$ for a 2 year old bottle of bourbon? That better be the best 2 year old bottle I've ever had!
They should price it lower to drive the buzz. If it was priced in the $30s, I would try to seek it out. At $75, I forget about it entirely, probably forever. When/if they ramp up production, the buzz won't be there due to the fact that most of us have already passed it by.
I'm not at all interested in a 2yr, let alone at $75.00.
At that rate the 4yo Jim Beam could go for $150.00.
doubleblank
11-03-2010, 10:41
Oscar, I presume you're assuming this 2yo bourbon tastes like a 2yo produced by the large distilleries in KY. It doesn't. It has been aged in smaller barrels in a different location and tastes nothing like one would expect a 2yo to taste like. Whether it's worth the suggested retail of $69.99 or whatever is up to the individual. If it tastes like what I "expect" it to taste like, I'm a buyer. If it doesn't, well.......
As for buzz, he doesn't need anymore at this time. It would only create an interest/demand that he can't supply right now. I wouldn't be surprised if it has already sold out today, the first day of retailing. Texans drink a lot of wheated bourbon. Just ask BT where their biggest market is by far.
Randy
I have no issue with the price. We have another producer of bourbon coming to market. It is a targeted tiny market.
Others will decide if it is worth the price point. Garrison Brothers, good luck. Get back in there and make more juice, sell it. Do it again, and again.
jburlowski
11-03-2010, 14:18
Put me in the skeptical column. Every under-aged bourbon I've tried (regardless of barrel size) lacks complexity and maturity.
I understand the economics facing the microdistillers but for the price they (have to) charge, the whiskey better be extraordinary. If it's basically just another bourbon, they can't hope to compete with the value proposition of the big boys. They've got to do something significantly different to survive / thrive.
smokinjoe
11-03-2010, 14:34
I have no issue with the price. We have another producer of bourbon coming to market. It is a targeted tiny market.
Others will decide if it is worth the price point. Garrison Brothers, good luck. Get back in there and make more juice, sell it. Do it again, and again.
Exactly my thoughts, as well.
Worth is...what worth is. For me, I'll plunk down my $70 for a bottle, if I get a chance. We've followed Garrison Bros. here for a couple of years now, and it's great to see cooking, distilling, and aging come together in a bottle. Shoot, I'll even buy a T-Shirt! :D
:toast:
The challenge is not to produce a young whiskey that tastes like a fully-aged one--that's a fool's errand. The challenge is to produce a young whiskey that tastes good on its own terms. As I said here (http://chuckcowdery.blogspot.com/2010/11/big-news-from-two-of-my-favorite-little.html), Garrison Brothers and Lion's Pride are two that have done it. I'll throw Finger Lakes in there too.
wadewood
11-03-2010, 18:02
I made the road trip today and I'm sipping some right now. The comment was made it better be the best 2 year old bourbon I've ever had. The answer to that is easy - Yes it is.
For $75, I expect much more than the best 2 year old bourbon ever made. Dan has created what we all wanted somebody to create. A true micro distilled product that was crafted from day 1 to be a Straight Bourbon. Lots of others have put out barely aged whiskeys recently, but not many have gone the route of stating we are going to sell Straight Bourbon. As Randy noted, this was aged in smaller barrels and aged much quicker than normal KY bourbon.
I know the profile Dan was shooting for. One key element I detected was a butterscotch profile. This definitely has that. It also has some layers that are expected in a complexed aged bourbon. I'll leave my tasting notes as that for now and will post back after I tried it on a few different occasions.
Yeah, it's like smoked butterscotch. Totally original. And not just a hint of it. It's front and center.
All of the sudden, I'm interested again.
ILLfarmboy
11-04-2010, 10:26
Me too..................................
Anyone know if this is being sold anywhere that ships (if that is even legal in Texas)?
doubleblank
11-04-2010, 14:06
No, Texas retailers don't ship in general. There's only a handful of retailers getting this and all of them are near the distillery. None made it to the Houston market....except for Wade's road trip.
Randy
PS Don't even ask.:cry:
fishnbowljoe
11-04-2010, 14:18
No, Texas retailers don't ship in general. There's only a handful of retailers getting this and all of them are near the distillery. None made it to the Houston market....except for Wade's road trip.
Randy
PS Don't even ask.:cry:
But....but....but....:crazy: Oh well. (shrug) :slappin: Joe
camduncan
11-04-2010, 15:08
But....but....but....:crazy: Oh well. (shrug) :slappin: Joe
What Joe said :grin: :slappin:
Not that anyone asked, but I'd just like to interject that unlike beer and wine, the Big Boys of Spirits do do it better.
Not that anyone asked, but I'd just like to interject that unlike beer and wine, the Big Boys of Spirits do do it better.
Just because most microdistillery products haven't surpassed their macro cousins doesn't mean they never will. A couple are knocking on the door.
For anyone in the area, Dan Garrison is doing store visits tomorrow and Saturday.
• Western Beverage in Fredericksburg – Friday, Nov. 5 from 10 to noon
• Hill Country Liquors in Blanco – Friday, Nov. 5 from 12:30 to 2:30 pm
• Judy’s Liquors in Fredericksburg – Saturday, Nov. 6 from 4 to 5 pm
Dan doesn't know if those stores have anything left to sell or not, but if you already have a bottle and would like him to write something personal on it, he will.
I criticize companies that I think treat us like chumps so it seems only fair that I commend folks that treat their customers with respect.
Not that anyone asked, but I'd just like to interject that unlike beer and wine, the Big Boys of Spirits do do it better.
Respectfully disagree. Just as is the case with wine and beer, it's a mixed bag. The size of your plant has nothing to do with any of the three crafts, and the quality of the beverage delivered.
You just need to look around a little, is all.....
What did he say about the size of Oscar's plant?
macdeffe
11-04-2010, 23:53
Just to put things into perspective price wise
1. Other new craft distillieries outside USA has released new products the last years
2. Bourbon is blessed with the fact it actually is maturing faster so a young bourbon is something else than a young scottish malt. When a 2yo bourbon can be described as young, a 3yo scottish malt whisky is unusually and you could say exceptionally young
Kilchoman is/was around 50-60£ for their first/current bottlings
St George in England was /is around 35-40£ (The cheap one!)
Now grab something and hold it
Here in Denmark we have seen 5 distilleries startup the last years. Only 2 of them have released products. Mind you, its very small productions
First one to produce a whisky sold the first botttles of the first cask for a price of approx 140$, when they sold half of them they doubled the price
2nd Distillery to produce a whisky choosed another path. They presold the first cask for approx 550$ a bottle at the day of distilling. You got an empty bottle a 3 years wait time for that
Newer bottlings are now 140$ ish
3/4 distillery to release bottlings have announced a price of 200-300$ a bottle
I recall seing an east coast american distillery with similar prices
I tasted the product of the first dansih distillery. I read reviews of the 2nd one. I bet Garrison's Bourbon tastes better than those :-)
Steffen :slappin:
macdeffe
11-05-2010, 03:25
It was Nantucket Notch Whisky (single malt) from Triple Eight Distillery in Massachussets
The distillery's name gives away the bottle price :bigeyes:
Steffen
Had a buddy pick me up a bottle of this this weekend (he is from Fredericksburg), and finally had a chance to have a few glasses tonight after work. Though a bit pricey, it is a very unique bourbon, unlike any I have tried. It has a very intriguing flavor profile, definitely worth trying if you can.
I had a chance to meet Dan and take the tour back in July, and I was very impressed with the operation. I plan on visiting a few more times for sure. Dropped him the last few inches of my van Winkle Rye as a thank you for giving me the tour.
If any one would like a sample, I'd be willing to trade a few ounces if you PM me.
doubleblank
11-09-2010, 05:38
I finally opened a bottle last night and here are my impressions.
The nose has the graininess (sp) I have experienced with young whiskey with some wood notes too.
The graininess softens on the palate where typical bourbon sweetness begins to show. The butterscotch is there but not the butterscotch bomb I was expecting. The finish is very long where the oak and graininess reappears.
All in all it is a very balanced young whiskey and a nice first release from Dan.
Randy
I finally opened a bottle last night and here are my impressions.
The nose has the graininess (sp) I have experienced with young whiskey with some wood notes too.
The graininess softens on the palate where typical bourbon sweetness begins to show. The butterscotch is there but not the butterscotch bomb I was expecting. The finish is very long where the oak and graininess reappears.
All in all it is a very balanced young whiskey and a nice first release from Dan.
Randy
Randy, I am not trying to be a jerk, but let me ask you.
Do you have a bottle of Mellow Corn BIB?
If so do a side-by-side tasting with this Garrison for us.
doubleblank
11-09-2010, 13:37
What's the point of that Oscar? Mellow Corn has a corn-oily mouthfeel and flavor to it to me. Completely different animal except that they're both youngish. If you don't want to buy any of Dan's whiskey (or any other micro), that's OK.
Randy
Like I said, I'm not trying to be a jerk, I just thought I'd get a little chit-chat going.
Hey like they say on the hardfloor, no blood, no foul.:cool:
I agree with Randy. No comparison. Mellow Corn is aged in used barrels whereas Garrison is aged in new charred barrels, aged in the hot, dry climate of the Texas Hill Country and the result is really remarkable, in terms of how much flavor the spirit has absorbed from the wood. Mellow Corn not so much.
Dan reports that all of this release has been sold. None of the stores have any. However, most of the bars and restaurants around Fredericksburg have plenty if you want a taste.
Garrison Brothers has just announced a Spring 2011 release of about 4,300 bottles, all in Texas, of course. Let the stampede begin. Hide the kids, hide the wife.
bcrossan
03-10-2011, 19:43
This one will actually be sold in populated areas. Austin and San Antonio are supposed to get some
birdman1099
03-10-2011, 20:06
This one will actually be sold in populated areas. Austin and San Antonio are supposed to get some
Do you have your case ordered yet????:grin:
i'm supposed to get a bottle soon from this release. looking forward to seeing what it tastes like.
It's out now. Hurry before they are all gone.
They're having a launch event in Chicago on April 11.
They're having a launch event in Chicago on April 11.
See Chuck I'm not crazy or too full of bourbon :grin: , I did read it here! However hold your horses fellow Midwesterners, this was meant for the Angel Envy thread and we will still have a long time coming for any Garrisons to make it up this way.
Good catch. No, definitely no Garrison coming to Chicago. Angel's Envy has the 4/11 launch event.
I am bringing 2 bottles of Garrison's to the Bardstown social at the end of the month.
I will be on Doug's porch Friday evening if anyone wants a sample.
Gregg
wadewood
05-12-2011, 07:03
Dan Garrison did an interview with a local Houston food show called Southbound Food that airs on AM 1560 The Game. Here is the link to the podcast:
http://www.1560thegame.com/media/?cat=34 5-7-11 PT2
His bourbon should be in Houston by this Nov.
He is doing another bottling late Sept. and Oct.
G.H.Adams
06-11-2011, 21:30
I am looking forward to getting a bottle once he gets enough stock to at least get it to Lubbock which is an easy drive for me or Abilene where my daughter and son-in-law live. For those that have tasted it what are your opinions of it?
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