Dan Garrison was the first person in the history of Texas to legally distill bourbon whiskey. When he founded Garrison Brothers Distillery in Hye in 2006 — the first legal bourbon distillery in Texas, the first outside Kentucky to produce what the distillery calls authentic, corn-to-cork bourbon — he did so against the conventional wisdom that said the Texas climate was no place for serious whiskey. He was proved wrong in the most satisfying way possible. The relentless Hill Country summers, which push spirit deep into the barrel stave at an accelerated rate that Kentucky's more temperate seasons cannot match, turned out to be not a liability but an advantage — producing bourbon of unusual depth and concentration in a fraction of the time cooler climates require.

The Ranch Reserve Series is Garrison Brothers' most ambitious new program: a collection of limited expressions that explore exceptional finishing casks through the lens of Texas bourbon, each beginning as the distillery's Texas Straight Small Batch Bourbon Whiskey aged four years in new American oak, then moved into character-rich finishing casks for another four years. The Oloroso Sherry Cask Finished is the inaugural dry expression in the series — the savory, structured counterpart to the PX's dark sweetness, built from Oloroso sherry casks sourced from a single producer in Jerez, Spain, aged oxidatively in contact with air to develop the deeper color, richer texture, and flavor profile of walnuts, tobacco, spice, and old wood that makes Oloroso a specifically natural pairing for a bourbon with Texas-sized structure.

"These two releases share the same Texas bourbon backbone and deliver two different sherry traditions," Master Distiller Donnis Todd said at the launch. "One dark and decadent and the other, savory and structured. These are beautiful in color and remarkable in taste." The Oloroso is the savory and structured one — walnut and baking spice forward, drier and more contemplative than the PX, letting the bourbon's Texas character speak clearly through the sherry influence rather than being subsumed by sweetness. Only 6,000 bottles. New bottle design with a leather band and walnut-colored wax dipping. Debuted June 27, 2026. Texas bourbon has arrived at Jerez.

Origins & Craftsmanship

Garrison Brothers Distillery was founded in 2006 by Dan and Nancy Garrison in Hye, Texas — the first and oldest legal whiskey distillery in Texas, and the first distillery outside of Kentucky to produce authentic, handcrafted, corn-to-cork bourbon whiskey. Every drop is made from Texas-grown grain, distilled and aged under the blazing Hill Country sun, proofed by pure rainwater, and bottled by hand at the ranch. Master Distiller Donnis Todd, who learned whiskey-making from his grandfather as a child and studied fermentation and distillation techniques during a decade of US Air Force service in Japan and South Korea, oversees production with the same founding commitment: no shortcuts, nothing sourced, everything made on site in Hye.

The Ranch Reserve Series, announced May 27, 2026, is Garrison Brothers' first dedicated foray into premium sherry cask finishing. Each Ranch Reserve expression begins as Garrison Brothers Texas Straight Small Batch Bourbon Whiskey — the distillery's core bottling — aged four years in new, toasted, and charred white American oak barrels. Select barrels that truly come together then move into 59-gallon sherry casks for a further four years of secondary maturation. Total age: eight years across two distinctly different cask environments. The Oloroso expression specifically uses casks sourced from a single producer in Jerez — a deliberate single-source decision that ensures consistency of sherry character and cask quality across the 6,000 bottles produced.

Oloroso sherry ages oxidatively — in deliberate contact with air rather than the biological aging of Fino and Manzanilla — developing deeper color, richer texture, and a flavor profile specifically associated with walnuts, tobacco, dried fig, spice, and old wood. Garrison Brothers notes that "those qualities make Oloroso a natural fit for a bourbon with Texas-sized structure" — and eight years in the Hill Country, half of them in 59-gallon Oloroso casks from a single Jerez source, produces exactly the bold, balanced, savory result the distillery intended. New Ranch Reserve bottle design features a leather band around the neck and walnut-colored wax dipping. Bottled at 55% ABV / 110 proof.

Critics Reviews

No published numerical critic scores are available — inaugural release, debuted June 27, 2026.

Garrison Brothers official tasting notes (Oloroso Sherry Cask Finished):
"Nose: Warm aromas of walnut, fig, and baking spices with deep sherry character and subtle savory richness. Palate: Bold oak and dark fruit balanced with vanilla and smooth Texas warmth, with walnut and baking spices layered throughout. Finish: Long and warming with lingering walnut, spice, and a refined dry sherry finish."

Garrison Brothers / Donnis Todd, Master Distiller:
"These two releases share the same Texas bourbon backbone and deliver two different sherry traditions. One dark and decadent and the other, savory and structured. These are beautiful in color and remarkable in taste."

Robb Report (confirmed):
"The Oloroso Sherry Cask Finished, also aged for four years in new charred oak and then another four in 59-gallon Oloroso sherry casks from Spain, is bottled at 110 proof. Official tasting notes describe walnut and baking spices on the palate."

Wooden Cork (confirmed characterization):
"The Oloroso edition runs drier and more savory, with walnut, leather, and a nuttier, more structured finish."

The Whiskey Wash (confirmed):
"The Oloroso Sherry Cask Finished bourbon rests in Oloroso casks sourced from a single producer in Jerez, Spain. Bottled at 110 proof, the brand's official notes highlight walnut and baking spices, describing it as a savory, structured bourbon."

Tasting Profile

Nose
Warm aromas of walnut lead the nose — the Oloroso's most immediately and the most specifically nutty aromatic contribution, the oxidative aging process having developed the sherry's characteristic walnut and toasted nut character over four years in the cask. Fig adds warm, concentrated dried fruit richness. Baking spices carry cinnamon and nutmeg warmth. Deep sherry character underlies everything with subtle savory richness — the Oloroso's most specifically structural and the most specifically dry secondary aromatic quality, drier and more contemplative than the PX's immediate fruit-bomb sweetness. The Texas bourbon base speaks clearly beneath the sherry influence: caramel, vanilla, and American oak carrying the foundation.

Palate
Bold and balanced — the Oloroso's drier, more structured character meeting the Texas bourbon's full-bodied richness in what the distillery specifically and most accurately describes as "bold, balanced, and built for slow sipping." Bold oak and dark fruit carry the primary palate character alongside vanilla and smooth Texas warmth. Walnut and baking spices layer throughout, the Oloroso's most specifically defining mid-palate qualities. Leather adds a savory, aged complexity. The bourbon speaks "in its own Texas voice" — the Garrison Brothers base's corn sweetness, toasted oak, and Hill Country character fully present and audible through the four years of sherry influence.

Finish
Long and warming — walnut, spice, and a refined dry sherry finish carrying the close most persistently. The Oloroso's dryness provides the most specifically savory and the most contemplative finishing character available in any Texas bourbon — a close that stays on the right side of the dry/sweet balance, letting the bourbon's Texas warmth and the sherry's structured nuttiness resolve together cleanly.

Quick Overview