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Balcones wins prestigious award; Rumble Cask Reserve release imminent
Lots of news trickling out of Balcones Distilling in Waco this month.
The distillery, known locally for its cutting edge spirits, has added another national accolade to their already crowded awards shelf. They won Whisky Magazine’s Craft Whiskey Distillery of the Year award in the Icons of Whisky - America awards, held in Louisville last week. The Icons of Whisky awards are designed to “celebrate the people and places behind the great whiskies of the world.”
They’ve also been nominated for a Good Food Award (alongside local brewery Independence Brewing). The second annual Good Food awards honor food and beverages that are “exceptionally delicious,” that also support “sustainability and social good,” from five regions in the U.S. Winners will be announced in January.
Finally, very exciting news for those diehard Balcones fans out there — a very limited release of Rumble Cask Reserve will hit stores within the next week or two.
The new spirit is a cask-strength version of the Rumble, a liquor that defies categorization made of Texas Wildflower Honey, Mission Figs, and Turbinado Sugar.
For those not familiar with the term, cask-strength means that the spirit was drawn straight from the barrel, typically without any dilution to bring it down to a drinkable level, and bottled at that proof. With the Rumble Cask Reserve, the liquid comes out in the high 76-78 alcohol by volume range, which according to President and Distiller Chip Tate is “mouth numbingly-hot. I could pull your teeth using it and you wouldn’t feel any pain.” So he dilutes the liquid to an ABV in the low 60s before bottling. In the 120 proof range, the spirit still packs a lot of heat, but is remarkably palatable.
The flagship release is composed of two different blends, aged in Balcones signature small-sized barrels for around two years. Chip Tate describes the cask-strength reserve as, “if a 15 year old Armagnac had a fling with a really awesome rye whiskey, the Cask Reserve would be their children. It’s rich and spicy. The fruit characteristics are very much like overripe peaches, very round.”
That being said, don’t expect to find the exact same prominent flavors in each bottle. Tate explains that the plan is for each blend to be different. “With the two bottlings that we are releasing now, one is much more of a spicy rye whiskey profile with medium-old Armagnac flavors, and the other one has more Highland malt whisky characteristics.”
Only approximately 320 bottles will be available to purchase, once they roll out to local stores. This is a tiny release, even for Balcones, who normally produce upwards of 4,000 bottles a month. “We have extremely high standards for everything we blend. I expect fireworks. I expect magic. If I’m not feeling it, we do it later. I would like to put a lot more out, but I’m not going to put out anything that isn’t perfect,” Tate said.
I sampled an early version of the Rumble, and if this release is anywhere near as delicious as the younger batch, fireworks would be an apt description. If you’re interested in finding a bottle, don’t wait for it to hit the shelf. Call your local liquor store and ask if they have a waiting list, because chances are it won’t be long before they’re all scooped up.
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