Small Batch Dispatch: Herman Marshall Bourbon

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There isn’t a whole lot of whiskey made in Texas, but what’s there is solid. As Balcones and other Texas distilleries start to gain credibility in the broader world of spirits, enterprising whiskey-lovers are throwing their hats into the race. In Garland, Texas, a suburb of Dallas, Herman Marshall bourbon is being crafted at the area’s first distillery since Prohibition, and they’re already off to a running start. Especially considering that, when they first got started, neither of the brand’s namesakes, Herman Beckley nor Marshall Louis, really knew much about making whiskey.

The two met at a Starbucks in their neighborhood, where they both frequently stopped in for coffee. The occasional coffee turned into the occasional whiskey drinking session, and soon they decided that they would make their own whiskey — if only just for tasting among friends.

From there, it became a challenge to see who could make the best whiskey. The two new friends researched old bourbon recipes from the 1800s, and tweaked the proportions over time to suit their own tastes. Eventually, they culled together what they thought was the best tasting recipe for whiskey, developed their own unique strain of yeast for fermentation, and Herman Marshall Whiskey was born.

In addition to their bourbon, Herman Marshall produces two other expressions, a single-malt “Texas whiskey,” and traditional rye. “We’re the smallest of small-batch,” says Russel Louis, son of co-founder Marshall Louis, and he’s not exaggerating. The largest fermentation tank that the distillery uses is 500 gallons, which is miniscule compared to the 20,000+ gallon tanks used at major distilleries like Wild Turkey. The fermentation tanks that Herman Marshall uses are crafted from small swamp cypress, and hand-made over a period of one month.

The water that will eventually become Herman Marshall single-malt, bourbon, or rye, comes from a nearby natural spring, and is mixed with locally-grown corn. The mashbill for Herman Marshall bourbon is dominated by corn, of course, and only mixed with about 27% malted barley. Barley isn’t a crop that grows well in Texas, so the distillery must import the second portion of the mashbill from other states. After distillation, the spirit goes into new white oak barrels coopered at Black Swan Barrels in Park Rapids, Minnesota.

It is ultimately the weather that makes Texas whiskey a little different than its compatriots from across the country. Barrels of Herman Marshall whiskey are stored in a single-floor, enclosed rickhouse that is not temperature-controlled. The temperature in Garland, Texas frequently exceeds 100 degrees in the summertime, much higher indoors, which accelerates the aging process. “Long stretches of high heat are where the magic happens, and we’ve got a lot of that in Texas,” says Louis. “The big fluctuations in temperature that occur throughout the year here make it a really suitable environment for aging whiskey.”

As one might expect, Texas whiskey has a different flavor profile than that distilled in Kentucky, much in the same way that scotches from different regions of Scotland are different. Still, the Herman Marshall Bourbon has a flavor profile that any bourbon purist (read: snob) can certainly appreciate. It is smooth, especially considering that it is bottled just above 90 proof, and has a subtle sweetness with plenty of vanilla and corn flavor. The finish is gentle, with just the right amount of linger.

Now that Herman Marshall has gotten Texas addicted to its smooth, sippable whiskeys, they’re looking to take over bars and liquor stores in the rest of the country. At present, you can only find the distillery’s three expressions in Texas, but look for that to change soon. According to Louis, Herman Marshall should be making its way to liquor stores across the country within the next six to eight months.

If you don’t live close enough to Texas to pick a bottle up from the 1,600-plus liquor stores that already stock this stellar whiskey, go ahead and make note to look for it in the coming months. Or, you could always butter up a friendly Texan and ask them to ship you a bottle.

Amy McCarthy is Paste’s Assistant Food Editor. She loves finding new small-batch whiskeys to drink. Tweet her your faves @aemccarthy.

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