Garrison Brothers Is Releasing Its Annual Hazmat Cowboy Bourbon
The hazmat whiskey trend shows no signs of slowing down—on the contrary, it seems that even more of these high-proof flamethrowers are being released these days. The latest comes from Texas distillery Garrison Brothers, which just announced the 2026 release of its annual Cowboy Bourbon, and this time it clocks in at a rip-roaring 141 proof.
Garrison Brothers is located in Hye, Texas, which is about an hour outside of Austin. It was founded in 2006 and released its first bourbon four years later, making it the oldest legal whiskey distillery in the state. The distillery is known for making a very assertive style of bourbon which is very different from what you will find coming out of Kentucky. That’s because of the climate in which the whiskey is aged—the intense Texas dry heat gives the bourbon a pronounced oak presence and a deep, dark color. In addition to that, the distillery uses a range of different barrel sizes to mature its whiskey, so the smaller casks accelerate the aging process by giving the whiskey more surface area to interact with.
The distillery makes one thing and one thing only—bourbon, and specifically wheated bourbon that uses wheat as the secondary flavoring grain instead of rye, the same style that brands like Maker’s Mark and Pappy Van Winkle produce. And sometimes that bourbon reaches hazmat levels, which is often the case with the annual Cowboy Bourbon release. The 2026 expression is the twelfth to date, aged for a minimum of eight years and bottled uncut and unfiltered by master distiller Donnis Todd and his team. This year’s release, as mentioned before, was bottled at 141 proof, which is very, very strong. Compare that to last year’s release which came in at a truly hefty 146.4 proof, the 2024 release bottled at 140.2 proof, and the 2023 release at 140.9 proof.
We did not get to try this year’s release yet, but Todd assures you it’s still very enjoyable to drink even at this very high proof. “It comes on strong at first, but the depth of flavor quickly draws you in,” he said in a statement. “A lasting flood of warmth gives way to layers of dried fruit and toasted marshmallows, creating a bold Texas finish that keeps you coming back for another sip.” Additional tasting notes include burnt wood, gun smoke, dried stone fruit, and caramelized sugar.
If you want to get your hands on a bottle, the first thousand of this 16,000-bottle release will officially go on sale at the distillery on September 12 starting at 8 a.m. (SRP $250). There will be an all-day event that day where you’ll find coffee and food at the distillery’s Whiskey Shack, as well as live music, bottles signings, tastings, and tours. A very limited allocation of just 279 bottles will then be available at the Garrison Brothers e-commerce store starting September 18.
