Back in 2013, we began crafting small batches of rum. What started as a mere curiosity grew into a new fascination with one of America’s oldest spirits. Since then, we’ve released two unique and very limited editions of Texas Rum, both of which were met with critical acclaim.

Today, we are very excited to announce that our latest batch of Texas Rum is ready for release, just in time for Father’s Day. Bottled at its natural cask strength of 63% ABV, the blend contains some of the oldest spirit we have ever released. Batch 16-1 was composed of two barrels made from French oak, as well as one American and one European cask. This unique blend of woods gives our rum a big and robust flavor and aroma, accenting the sugary flavors of the spirit with toasty oak.

Those four lone barrels yielded only 650 bottles, most of which we have shipped to our distributor in Texas. Starting next week, they will begin arriving at retailers in Dallas and Fort Worth, followed by Houston, Austin, San Antonio and Waco. This will be an extremely limited, hard-to-find release, and we expect it to sell out very quickly. We regret that not all of our loyal fans will get their hands on a bottle, but if you miss your chance to pick one up, we plan to release several cases at the distillery at a distillery event in the future.

Balcones Texas Rum is crafted without compromise. Starting with a recipe of Barbados-style and blackstrap molasses, it is slow fermented, distilled in traditional copper pots, and matured in a variety oak casks.

Texas Rum 16-1 Tasting Notes

Nose: burnt sugar, fresh vanilla bean, nutmeg, grilled peaches, cheerwine, rock candy, sweet oak, smoke, wine reduction

Palate: full-bodied with brown sugar, pancake syrup, horehound soda, sweet oak, black tea, pink peppercorns, blood orange zest

Finish: coating oak tannins, citrus zest, light cinnamon, dry sherry

With only 80 cases in the entire state, Texas Rum will disappear quickly. It will hit shelves starting next week but might take up to two weeks to reach every major city in Texas. The release will be tightly allocated and, as a result, not every retailer will receive an allotment. The good news is that we finally moved into our new distillery in downtown Waco and we’ve significantly expanded our distilling capacity. Over the years we will produce more of these rare releases from Balcones, something that we’ve been focusing on diligently to ensure there’s a steady supply of our whiskies and spirits for many years to come. The new Balcones will be open to the public this summer, with tours and tastings available by appointment. We can’t wait to show you what we’ve built!