Garrison Brothers, Texas’ first legal bourbon distillery, released their rarest and most coveted expression, Laguna Madre, on Saturday, July 22, 2023, at a special distillery event in Hye, Texas. This exclusive expression yielded 2,100 bottles for 2023, with one thousand bottles of the beloved whiskey taken home by aficionados and dedicated fans at the release event.
A full eight years of maturation makes Laguna Madre the oldest bourbon released by Garrison Brothers—and the oldest made in Texas. It is aged four years in white American oak barrels and another four years in Limousin oak casks. It is the first bourbon ever finished in the extremely expensive and rare casks imported from France. The result is vanilla content that is simply off the charts. The 101-proof bottle features tasting notes such as root beer, vanilla bean, hazelnut, saltwater taffy, chocolate gems and an “adults only” candy bar finish.
The 2023 release will continue the tradition of supporting worthy causes as it is being used to drive awareness and recognition to the non-profit organization FlatsWorthy. FlatsWorthy, Inc., a 501c3 non-profit organization, is a coalition of diverse anglers practicing mutual respect while sharing the same resource. Formed in 2015 in Aransas County, Texas, the organization focuses on Texas’ coastal area with reach state and south-wide. They accomplish their mission through public awareness and education, participation in habitat restoration, and involvement with state and federal agencies in resource protection.
Ahead of the release, in June 2023, the Garrison Brothers Distillery team joined forces with FlatsWorthy for a three-day fishing trip on the Texas Gulf Coast in the very waters for which the bottle was named – the Laguna Madre. The organization is in the heart of Garrison Brothers’ Master Distiller Donnis Todd, especially as his son Calvin is a proud FlatsWorthy volunteer.
On release day, FlatsWorthy had an informational tent set up at the distillery with founding members Chuck Naiser and Billy Trimble in attendance.
Each Garrison Brothers Laguna Madre bottle is housed in a custom-built wooden display case, framed by a photo of the Texas Gulf Coast and accompanied by informational assets about FlatsWorthy. All bottles are hand-signed and numbered by Master Distiller Donnis Todd.
Laguna Madre will be available at limited bars, restaurants and retailers by the end of July 2023. The suggested retail price is $349.00.
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