The Rest of the Story

Jacob Peraza
Head Distiller - BENDT Distilling Co.
Lewisville, Texas
September 2025

Background & Inspiration

What first inspired you to become a distiller?
My San Diego roots gave me a front-row seat to the rise of craft beer on the West Coast. I watched as people not only geeked out over styles, hops, and brewing techniques, but also built identities around their favorite breweries. Those breweries quickly became third places where families gathered, friends celebrated milestones, and came together in both joy and grief. Seeing how much meaning people attached to those spaces showed me the power of craft to connect people and create culture. 

Brewing beer was exciting, but it lived within a fairly defined set of rules and traditions. Distilling on the other hand felt like the next frontier in alcohol production, where fermentation, flavor, and technique could be pushed endlessly further. The idea that you could take the same creative energy and community spirit I saw in the breweries and apply it to something even more limitless was inspiring.

How has your heritage influenced your journey in whiskey-making?
I was raised with a respect for the land and taught that nothing it gives us should be wasted. Everything has value if you look for it. That mindset of resourcefulness and turning what others might overlook into something worthwhile is central to how I approach distilling to find flavor, character, and purpose in every step of the process.

What does being part of the Texas whiskey community mean to you?
Being part of the Texas whiskey community is belonging to a network of makers and achievers. People who don’t just talk about ideas, but roll up their sleeves and bring them to life. It’s a collective of highly ambitious individuals who aren’t afraid to experiment, push boundaries, and take risks in pursuit of excellence. 

Bourbon & Craft

What makes Texas bourbon special in your eyes?
There’s a spirit of collaboration as much as competition. Everyone wants to make the best whiskey they can, but we also recognize that everyone’s success strengthens the broader identity of Texas whiskey. That sense of shared ambition and pride means we’re not just making great spirits, we’re building a legacy and shaping a culture that didn’t exist a generation ago.

Do you have a favorite bourbon you’ve helped create—and what makes it stand out? 
One of my favorite bourbons is just as much about experience as it is flavor: our Unbendt Bourbon Straight From The Barrel. It’s special because it represents a complete Texas story. Made with 100% Texas-grown grain and malt. Mashed, fermented, distilled, aged, bottled, and ultimately enjoyed right here in Lewisville. There’s something enriching about knowing every step of the process and every ingredient is rooted in our hometown.

What makes it stand out is the raw, unfiltered experience. We fill our barrels at 125 proof and then bottle at whatever proof the angels leave behind that day. That means every barrel tells its own story. No two bottles are exactly the same, and when you taste it you’re getting bourbon in its purest form. It’s bold and unmistakably Texan which is exactly what we set out to capture.

What’s one behind-the-scenes detail about distilling bourbon most people wouldn’t expect?
A behind-the-scenes detail that surprises a lot of people is just how radically different each barrel can be after maturation in our Texas climate. You can take two barrels filled with the exact same white dog minutes apart, and age them side by side on the same rick or pallet and years later they’ll taste like completely different bourbons. That’s the effect of our environment. The frigid winters and harsh summers in North Texas push the spirit deep into and back out of the oak, over and over again, in ways you just don’t see in milder climates. It’s a reminder that even with the same recipe and the same process, nature has the final say in what each bourbon becomes.

Personal & Cultural Connection

How do you see your culture and traditions reflected in your work as a distiller?
The importance of hard work and working together. Whiskey making is not a solo craft. It’s constant problem-solving and the dedication of a whole team moving in the same direction. My heritage instilled in me the drive to work hard, lead by example, and treat the team as family. At the end of the day the whiskey in the glass reflects not just ingredients and technique, but also the effort, resilience, and spirit of the people who made it.

What does celebrating Bourbon Heritage Month alongside Hispanic Heritage Month mean to you personally?
Celebrating Bourbon Heritage Month alongside Hispanic Heritage Month just gives me another great reason to raise a glass and celebrate. For me it’s an awesome way to honor the past, and recognize the Hispanic influence and contributions to culture and heritage here in the Southwest US. It’s about respecting the hard work of the farmers who grow our Texas grain and then carrying that forward into the next step—turning it into Texas whiskey. It’s a reminder that heritage isn’t only about looking back, but also about building something for the future.

If you could share a glass of bourbon with anyone from your heritage, past or present, who would it be? 
If I could share a pour with anyone, it would be with the people who haven’t yet had the opportunity to try Texas whiskey. There’s no better time to be making bourbon in our state. We have farmers growing incredible grains and a community eager to embrace something bold and local. Every pour connects the past, present, and future of Texas whiskey so I pick the present!

Fun

Neat, on the rocks, or in a cocktail—what’s your go-to pour?
This time of the year is my Fall Old Fashioned; Unbendt Rye Whiskey, black cherry syrup, dash of holiday bitters, dash black walnut bitters, smoked orange slice. Sit by the campfire

Favorite food to pair with Texas bourbon?
Al pastor tacos. The smoky sweetness of the marinated pork, layers of spice, pineapple, and char, plays perfectly against the bold caramel, oak, and vanilla notes in bourbon. 

What’s one word you’d use to describe Texas bourbon? 
Unmistakable – No two regions make whiskey the same, and Texas bourbon has a fingerprint all its own. From the grains grown here to produce our juice, to the unforgiving climate & the oak it rests in, everything about it speaks of place. When you taste it, you know immediately it’s from Texas. Bold and Distinctive. It doesn’t try to copy Kentucky or anywhere else. It stands on its own.

Photos by Blackall Photography - Lewisville, Texas