The 8 Best Texas Bourbon Brands

Texas and bourbon go together like Friday nights and football. The Lone Star State is filled with live music, rodeos, football games, and late-night bonfires—all of which pair nicely with a glass of bourbon. While Kentucky and Tennessee may be on the map for their world-renowned distilleries and massive rickhouses aging whiskey in the southern sun, Texas has distilleries that are making a name for themselves in Texas and beyond.

From legends like Garrison Brothers and Balcones to new up-and-comers such as Nine Branded Whiskey, these distillers are looking to put Texas on the map when it comes to bourbon. After all, what’s better than a glass of Texas bourbon under a clear night sky by a fire in the Lone Star State?

Garrison Brothers

Tucked away in the Hill Country outside of Austin sits a small ranch, home to Garrison Brothers Distillery. The distillery, founded in 2010, has the honor of producing the first legal bourbon whiskey in the state. Garrison Brothers only produces straight bourbon whiskey and is the first distillery outside of Kentucky to produce authentic, handmade bourbon whiskey. Garrison Brothers uses a sweet mash bill aged in custom barrels designed to withstand the hot Texas sun. The result is a rich, dark, and fuller bourbon that has developed a highly dedicated fanbase. Both Garrison Brothers Lady Bird and Single Barrel Cask Strength Bourbon were Double Gold winners in the New York International Spirits Competition (NYISC) and Garrison Brothers Distillery was named the NYISC Texas Small Batch Distillery of the Year in 2024 to highlight the esteem it has justifiably earned.

The Small Batch whiskey along with the limited 2024 Cowboy Bourbon highlight the flavorful expressions that Garrison is currently creating. To meet the growing demand for its whiskey, as well as increased visitation, Garrison completed an expansion project in April which doubled its production capacity with an additional 4,500 square feet for Master Distiller, Donnis Todd, to work with. The project also included a new 25,000-square-foot rickhouse. In addition to lining up for new releases, the public is invited to work the bottling line as volunteers.

Balcones

Known for its American Single Malt whiskeys, Balcones has the distinction of being the first distillery to sell whiskey in Texas post-prohibition. The distillery, located in Waco, opened in 2008 and was named Texas American Single Malt Distillery of the Year and awarded a double gold for Lineage in 2024 by the NYISC. Balcones’ craft whiskies, such as Cataleja, mark the distillery as a trailblazer in the emerging American Single Malt category. Head Distiller, Jared Himstedt started as a home brewer before diving into the world of distilling and blending whiskey. Today, Balcones is known throughout Texas and the country for its grain-to-glass model for American Single Malt whiskey.

Brother’s Bond

Out of Plano, Texas comes Brother’s Bond, best known for its Regenerative Grain Bourbon, which only uses grains cultivated through regenerative agriculture. The whiskey is good to drink and good for the environment. Founded in 2021, Brother’s Bond Bourbon has grown quickly and is now available in 49 states. Its Bottle-In-Bond. Brother’s Bond uses the classic American Bourbon traditions for distilling and aging its spirits with 120-proof cut aging in virgin American white oak barrels, with the barrel staves with #4 char and the barrel heads with #2 char. Borther’s Bond Straight Bourbon won double gold in 2024 at the NYISC.

Maverick Distilling

Samuel Maverick Texas Straight Bourbon Whiskey

Maverick Distilling is San Antonio to the core and features the famed Alamo on its marketing and bottles, adding some Texas history to each bottle. The family-owned distillery is in the heart of downtown San Antonio in a location that has also served as home to a brewery and restaurant. Founded in 2017 by Kenneth and Amy Maverick, the distillery is on the old Maverick homestead, and Texas history is steeped in the whiskey.

Maverick Distilling’s Samuel Maverick Private Reserve Bottled in Bond Bourbon is an example of the fine whiskeys they are producing. It is a grain-to-glass whiskey that uses Texas corn, rye, and barley. Texas to the core, it is distilled in bank vaults below the distillery. It is produced in accordance with the 1897 Bottled-in-Bond Act and is 100 proof. Maverick Distilling honors those who died at the Alamo with each glass of rich bourbon.

Milam & Greene Whiskey

Milam & Greene Unabridged Straight Bourbon Whiskey

Located just outside of Blanco, Milam & Greene distillery sits amid a grove of oak trees where the tasting room resides. The CEO and Master Blender, Heather Greene, named the 2023 Master Blender of the Year, launched this Texas distillery in 2019 and has been producing some of the state’s great American whiskey. The distillery’s Master Distiller, Marlene Holmes, also is making a name for the distillery as she received the honor of the 2024 Master Distiller of the Year by the Women of Whiskey Awards.

While the award-winning staples from Milam & Greene include a triple cask, port cask, and a single barrel, one of the highlights that the distillery is producing is its Unabridged series, which refers to an unedited book, or cask-strength and non-chill filtered with respect to these bottles. Unabridged Volume 3 just came out this year, and at 118 proof, delivers rich deep vanilla and crème brûlée notes.

Still Austin Whiskey Co.

100 percent Texas-grown grains go into each bottle of Still Austin whiskey. As the name implies, this distillery is in the state’s capital of Austin and has been making whiskey since 2017. The distillery was founded by the father-son duo Cleveland and Chris Seals, who make sure the bottles they produce are Texas to the core thanks to Texas-grown grains and aging in the Texas Hill Country. The bright labels on their bottles stand out as the distillery is proud to produce bottles for the masses such as the “Musician” or Still Austin’s straight bourbon whiskey. The high rye mash-bill at 25 percent creates a sweetness akin to the white corn tortillas made from the same corn used in the whiskey.

Nine Banded Whiskey

Nine Banded Straight Bourbon photo credit Thomas Park

With a focus on good bourbon at a good price, this Austin distillery has a name that pays homage to a Texas icon—the armadillo. Nine Banded Whiskey started in 2014 and has MGP blended American whiskey with three main products—straight, wheated, and cask strength bourbon. Rick Guerrero, the CEO of Nine Banded Whiskey, has shared that the wheated option has been a great addition for the distiller, and is a differentiator as it helps educate consumers. The bottle has a sweeter taste with hints of maple and oak along with trademark vanillas. At 90 proof the bottle won the young distillery a Silver Medal at the San Francisco Spirits Competition in 2020.

Devil’s River Whiskey

Another San Antonio distillery, Devils River Whiskey, is home to self-taught distiller Mike Cameron, who is the co-founder and president. The distillery’s namesake is the same river where the limestone-filtered water is used to cut the whiskey. This is what Cameron says contributes to the “sinfully smooth” whiskey the Distillery bottles and sells around the country. The flagship Devils River Bourbon Whiskey comes in at 90 proof and is a high-rye bourbon with double the rye and half the corn. The end result is the peppery rye paired with caramel and vanilla flavors. There are also some creative expressions coming out of Devils River such as the Coffee Bourbon and Agave Bourbon.