This Texas Whiskey Is Ranked Among the Best

Thirty-five years ago outlaw country musician Terry Allen declared himself as big a Texan as anyone, evidenced by his trunk “full of Pearl and Lone Star.” Unfortunately, at the time his album Amarillo Highway was released, he wasn’t able to mention a Texas whiskey among his favorite local libations because until recently, Texans looked to Kentucky and Tennessee for their bourbon (though certainly not their barbecue). And, as they say, we’ve come a long way. The first bottle of legally produced Texas bourbon sold in 2010, and this year the state has a winner in the whiskey business: the tenth edition of Jim Murray’s Whisky Bible recently named Garrison Brothers’s Cowboy Bourbon as its American Micro Whisky of the Year.

Based in Hye, the Garrison Brothers distillery is the first of its kind in the state, and its limited-edition concoction is listed among the few other American whiskies in its category in the Whisky Bible.

Culled from the ten best bourbon barrels among only 900 bottled barrels to date, this cask-strength bourbon (136 proof!) stretched out to a mere 600 bottles. Those lucky enough to find it had to shell out as much as $169 per 375ml bottle. Yep, even the bottles are micro.

If this makes you thirsty for a taste of the elusive liquid brown gold, you’ll have to wait until next year, however, as the 2013 release is sold out.

Dan Garrison, proprietor of the brand, made a dig at early naysayers in a blog post shortly after the announcement was made, writing:

“This blog is dedicated to all the ‘professional investors’ who, in the early 2000s, told me I’d never be able to make my own bourbon in Texas and should just buy it from a large producer like everyone else does. You sons-of-bitches will never know the pride I feel right now.”