Texas’ Red River Whiskeys Drift Into National Expansion

There are a lot of niche brands across the US one does not hear about all that often, maybe even if you are in the state of origin from which they emerged. One such brand may very well be Red River, a line up of whiskeys out of Texas that, until recently, were just regional in nature. Shaw Ross International Importers, the overseers of Red River, now have plans to take it on a nationwide expansion.

What’s been dubbed as the “re-launch” of the Red River portfolio, according to those behind it, will see the four whiskeys under this label expand initially into the northern and western states. What’s specifically in this portfolio is as follows:

• The Texas Bourbon was awarded a Gold Medal and 94 points at the Ultimate Spirits Challenge.  It is a proprietary blend of corn, rye and barley fermented and distilled to 82.4⁰. It is aged in new, charged American oak barrels and then finished in Napa Valley Pinot Noir casks. Suggested retail is $39.99.
• Texas Rye is made from a mash bill of 95% rye and 5% malted barley. Aged in new, charred American oak barrels and finished in Red River bourbon barrels. Suggested retail is $29.99.
• The Red River Blended Whiskey is a proprietary blend of Red River Whiskeys. Suggested retail is $29.99.
• The Red River Texas Single Barrel Bourbon is a proprietary blend of corn, rye and barley and bottled at 96.8 proof.  It is aged in new, charred American oak barrels.  Suggested retail is $49.99.

It is not immediately clear if these were actually distilled in Texas or somewhere else. Whatever the case, it is said the packaging of these whiskeys “has been created to emphasize authenticity to its Texas roots. The pearl-snap top is designed to mirror the look and feel of a button on a Western pearl-snap shirt, while the point of the white coating on the bottle reflects the point on the back yoke of a Western pearl-snap shirt.”

“The U.S. Bourbon category has been experiencing exceptional growth and for the past few years we have been actively looking to add a high-quality whiskey brand to the Shaw Ross Portfolio,” said Bruce Hunter, Managing Director, Shaw Ross International Importers, LLC, in a prepared statement. “While we’ve had discussions with various suppliers, with Red River we have found a quality brand that meets the discerning standards our customers demand.  It is ripe for explosive growth.”