Distilling

Anyone wanting to make bourbon must follow a tight rule, whether in Kentucky or Texas. The spirit may not exceed 80 percent alcohol as it leaves the still. It may enter the barrel at no more than 62.5 percent. This is mandated by federal code 27 CFR Part 5, and Texan distilleries follow it to the letter.

Balcones in Waco uses four copper pot stills from Forsyths in Rothes, Scotland, for its single malt. They're handcrafted, following the same model as many Scotch distilleries. The copper binds sulfur compounds from the spirit and makes the whisky smoother. The finished Texas Single Malt "1" is not chill-filtered. It keeps all the fatty acids that the cold would otherwise strip out.

Ranger Creek in San Antonio takes a more technically demanding approach at the mashing stage: the step-mash method. Here, the mash is heated in several temperature stages instead of just one. This releases more fermentable sugar from the grain, but it's harder to control than a simple mashing process.

Texan heat already interferes at the fermentation stage. Yeast works faster at high temperatures, but also less predictably. Distilleries therefore have to cool things down, something Scottish operations barely need to consider. It costs energy, but in Texas, it's just part of the routine.

Garrison Brothers distills and ferments entirely on its own ranch in Hye, from Texan grain to finished spirit. It's the same sun that will later mature the barrels.