Garrison Brothers Single Barrel Bourbon

The first impression here is sawdust, like someone just dumped some wood chips in carelessly. It's a far stronger flavor of that "huh?" nature than I.W. Harper 15 is. It's strong though and the barrel is nice. The price is absurdly high for the quality though. The nose is rich with some umami and sour flavor. It smells a bit like rancid meat. Some more spice comes out though, along with some sawdust. The palate indeed has that sour flavor, but it's not nearly as prevalent because there's a huge richness and sweetness with brown sugar and then sawdust taking over. The tartness remains to balance it, but is vastly subdued. There's quite a bit of spice and some smoke. The harshness hits home. It's sweet with a bit of a toasty flavor from the sawdust, but it doesn't have a toffee sweetness, not does it have any fruit or a great deal of complexity. It's a decent bourbon because of the richness and sweetness, but it isn't terribly complex and the way that the flavors don't quite cohere (what is that sour flavor doing?) and how the sawdust comes through suggest youth. With a few drops of water added, the sawdust becomes more complex with additional smoke and barrel flavors. For comparison, George Dickel Bottled In Bond has a much more complex and palatable nose, with toasty and fruity notes that pull me in. George Dickel has a less brazenly assertive palate with less wood and smoke, but it has more balance with some nice toasty flavor and juicy cherry. If you're going for the biggest kick, choose Garrison Brothers. For a balanced bourbon that has plenty of wood and toasty flavors with a mouth-watering mixture of baking spices, go for the Dickel. Yeah, this just isn't on the level of George Dickel Bottled In Bond. I kind of like the rich, sweetness - it tastes like a very good young bourbon. Still, it tastes like a young bourbon. I bet this would be really good at 8 years rather than 3.

Nose - black cherry, berry, buttered popcorn, sawdust, candy corn, butterscotch, vanilla, cream, nutmeg, dusty corn, leather, frosting, cocoa, brown sugar, sweaty oak, apple, moderate to high ethanol burn. Taste - cherry, rich caramel, sour berry, apple, wheat, black pepper, grape candy, spicy oak char, cinnamon red hot, allspice, powdered sugar, brown sugar, plum, sawdust, buttery corn, toasted marshmallow, moderate to high alcohol bite, finishing medium long with cinnamon red hot, spicy oak, caramel, and black pepper flavors. Hey! My first Garrison Brothers. The richness they’re able to get from a short amount of Texas aging is remarkable. You can almost taste the musty, sweaty wood. That said, there’s still some unmistakeable youthfulness, particularly in the palate. I’m fine with spicy, harsh bourbons, but would like to see a bit more complexity and depth of flavor to endure the burn. One interesting characteristic is this sawdust note a couple others identified, especially on the nose. I absolutely get that one as well, but it seems to morph between buttered popcorn and this dusty, powdered sugar, frosting aroma. Pretty cool. Overall, this is solid bourbon. Unfortunately, GB charges absurd prices for whiskey that’s not absurdly great. This can’t compete even with some bourbons close to half its price. Fortunately, I was very generously provided a sample of this by @ContemplativeFox, so I don’t have to buy the bottle.

Assessed in a Glencairn spirits nosing glass. Aroma - Neat - Distinctive and prominent rye bread arrival, oak, cherry lozenge, leather, tobacco and cocoa nib, quite a savory nose. Adding a splash of water . . . This has opened up a very faint and distant Smokey maple character. Taste - Neat - A bit on the thin side texturally - Quite oaky, mild brown sugar, extremely faint smoke and Prunes and dates on the exhale. Adding a splash of water . . . This hasn’t done the whiskey any favors in my Opinion. The aforementioned remains, but diluted. Final thoughts - I’m honestly a bit disappointed with this. The bourbon itself is actually pretty interesting in how savory it is, with few confectionary notes, but the overall flavors and smells you’re getting a just generally thin and require some hunting for. I would’ve rated this higher had it been, say, a 60 dollar bottle. But at 100 dollars a pop, you could do a lot better.

Garrison Brothers Single Barrel Hand selected by Master Distiller Donnis Todd Corn Variety: #1 panhandle white Corn Harvested: 2011 From Farms in Dallam County Distilled and Barreled in 2012 Barrel number: 3419 Bottle number: 30 of 57 Review#101 Glass: Glencairn, rested 15 minutes. Color: Dark amber. Nose: Caramel, bing cherries, other dark fruits. Basically a cherry pie. Palate: Some oak tannins and sweet clove. Finish: Medium length with medium heat. Splash: Oak and clove yield to leather and tobacco. Overall: 8.5/10 - The higher proof cask strength has a longer finish, but the notes are all here. This would probably stand up well to an ice cube or in an old fashioned. This bottle appears.to have been signed by the Master Distiller but I had to crack it open. UPDATE: Inscription reads "Thanks for drinking good bourbon in Connecticut. Salud! Dan Garrison and JD Anderson"

Next up from my short Vegas trip was this interesting pour from the Garrison Brothers. Heard good things about this Texas sourced bourbon. My first impression was the very different nose compared to their Kentucky and Tennessee counterparts. Lots of grass and earth up front with hints of honey and malts. The taste was fairly similar and accompanied further by notes of wood, syrup, peppery essence, barley, fruit, and some leather. Definitely not as sweet as most of the ones I've had over time. Which has most likely programmed my palate a bit and rate it somewhat lower than usual. Not to say this isn't good by any means. I sipped and finished 2 ounces of this without a problem. Curious to see what other variations these bros have to offer.

Single barrel selected by Brand Liquors. Nose is cherry, prunes, oily barrel spices, dry erase marker, raw untoasted peanuts, violets, bubble gum. That dry dust that is in every single Texas whiskey is also in here. Taste is so sweet. Starts as a pecan pie that burns going down the back of the throat, then turning into old lady perfume, red hard candy, and peanut brittle before the syrupy sweetness dies down and you're left with candied pecans. It then evolves into a Christmas potpourri and finishes as a pine forest. Texture is very thick. It's the set of "Dallas" turned into a whiskey. It's very tasty. It's very burny. Don't drink this with a sore throat. It's intense, too intense to be a comfortable daily drinker, personally.