With our Visitor Center now open to the public, there are several reasons to stop by! Last spring, we officially moved into our new distillery and since then we've . . .
Last spring, we officially moved into our new distillery and since then we've been busy designing and perfecting the experience for visitors to our distillery! In the short two months since we opened in November, we have already welcomed over 1,500 guests at our new location. We are excited to share upcoming opportunities for you to join us and experience what makes our Texas whiskies special!
Saturday, February 18th
2016 was a year of many firsts in the brewhouse. First silo delivery, first year to use more than one million pounds of grain, first time to climb into a mashtun and shovel about 10,000 lbs worth of grain…
Our fermentation size increased more than twelve-fold which brought about many process improvements in our handling of raw materials. In moving to the new facility, we are now able to mill whole grain on site and have much more control over temperatures as well as volumes for mashing and fermentation management. This level of control has led to the ability to experiment with variables that were not previously “tweak-able.”
In the first quarter of 2017, we look forward to using Texas Grown Malted Barley as well as Texas Grown Rye for the first time. Also, stay tuned for some nerdy fermentation details on our Rum production coming up soon!
We are also very happy to reveal that we are in the process of finalizing a new batch of our FR.OAK Texas Single Malt, which hasn't been released since 2014! A special release for this whisky is planned for later in 2017. If that isn't enough, we also have a tequila-finished variant on the way – stay tuned for more details on this one-of-a-kind whisky!
Our commitment to being truly Texan has always been a core philosophy at Balcones. We are always searching for new ways to incorporate local flavors and ingredients when possible. However, finding the highest quality ingredients is not always the easiest task. Recently, we partnered with Blacklands Malt to produce our first ever whisky distilled entirely from barley grown and malted right here in Texas. The first distillation took place on Friday, January 20th and will be matured in a few very special Texas Live Oak Barrels we have in house, another first for Texas. While it won't be ready for a couple of years, we are all eager to taste the first ever purely-Texan single malt whisky, distilled in Waco, and aged in Texas oak barrels!Finally, our warehouse crew is filling ten recently received Madiera wine casks with our Texas Single Malt. We are excited to see how these barrels, as well as several other R&D projects in the works, progress in the coming months.
Due to our second phase of expansion (read: more whisky!), the Distillery will be closed for tours during the months of February and March. To combat those winter blues, we will be open for tastings!
Tastings will take place on Thursdays, Fridays and Saturdays at 2pm, 3pm, 4pm, 5pm and 6pm and will last approximately 30 – 45 minutes. The cost will be $10 per person. Walk-ins only; no reservations or pre-booking accepted. We will have room for up to 14 guests per tasting.
The Distillery will re-open for tours on Saturday, April 1st. Tours are now on sale for select dates in April. New dates will continue to become available 3 months in advance. Book your future Tour & Tasting by visiting our site here.
Our online store is down for some much neededr&r, but should be back up and running in the next few weeks. Unfortunately, we cannot ship our whiskies, but all other merchandise will be available! Check our social media accounts for the latest update.
Waco, TX April 15, 2024—Today Balcones Distilling unveils its new campaign, “Whisky from a New Perspective,” inspired by the distillery team's artistic and fresh approach to whisky-making.
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