Good point, and hard to say. There are always two sides to the story. I have only heard second hand stories about this - and the frankly dramatic versions in the reporting. I suspect some PR from Balcones and investors to prevent brand problems.
Texas is better for having Chip Tate prove that small distilleries can succeed. His unique/crazy approach probably doesn't scale up that well, and even Garrison is having issues meeting demands. They seem to be moving much more deliberately however with the new still and moving to full size barrels... while maintaining a fairly consistent product. Balcones can take his processes and scale them, and leverage a successful brand... but to what success is to be seen.
Tate is known for his passion for quality and wacky personality but is a very good distiller. I hope his new venture is successful. As you point out, that may not contain an ounce of good common business sense. Still (pun intended) - I would count Balcones a success contributed to Tate to this point, and a good chance he will succeed in this next venture.