Angel's Envy Cask Strength Bourbon Finished in Port Wine Barrels (2019 Edition)

Season finale! This year for the holidays I tried a brand new whiskey every day in December. #lifegoalsweremet Dec. 31 I decided to end my new December mission with a new personal tradition: to crack open a limited yearly release at the end of its year. I’m thinking of this as one last “here’s to 2019,” to offer up one of the year’s finest (in theory) in celebration. I hope that one year from now I can still remember this is a thing. This distillery has sentimental value to me. It was the first bourbon distillery I ever visited, with a good friend who was both far wiser about whiskey and far less well-endowed. While at Angel’s Envy, I got to physically bottle my own port finish. There was a big ceremony, I signed a book. It was a whole thing. I tried my first Old Fashioned in their upstairs bar. They called their version the Henderson, in honor of the family who started the business. I walked into Angel’s Envy “not a bourbon guy,” and left with a bit of that chip removed from my shoulder. That was July of 2018, and shortly thereafter, bourbon stole my soul. I still have no regrets. The nose is deceptive. 61.2% should not be this easy to sniff. I enjoy this nose a bit better than standard AE and my current favorite port finish, Isaac Bowman. There’s cherry, grape, vanilla. It’s a predictable port finish nose, but it’s well done. It smells sweeter than it is dry, as in a well-made sangria. Very promising. Body does not hide the ABV, but I don’t mind. Cherry is the hero here. I can’t remember a whiskey deliver such a pure cherry flavor before. I get vanilla too, and a bit of tart orange. It’s delicious. Okay, the mouth feel on this finish is not going to be for everyone. My lips and gums feel like I’ve gotten a bunch of novocaine shots, and I’m only a handful of sips in. I actually enjoy it a lot, but it’s comically intense. Flavor transitions away from tartness and sweet fruit to vanilla, cinnamon, and a bit of leather. I can get dark chocolate too, but it’s less obvious. With ice: anything this hot I like to try tempered down a skosh to see what changes. From start to finish, a bit of ice takes away a lot of the sweetness. Before I could’ve convinced myself that this was not a barrel finish, just a really unique bourbon. The sweetness reduction makes the port influence harder to argue with, but it’s still a delicious drink. Per usual, you lose some notes with the ice, but the cherry and vanilla persevere. I don’t understand how extra ABV and room temperature can make something seem sweeter, but I can’t argue with science. This is a delicious bottle. $220 is steep, but for special occasions shared with friends, this bottle is worth it. There’s a lot to enjoy here. Will buy again if I can find. This December experiment has been a lot of fun. If you happen to be hoarding bottles like I was, I highly recommend doing something like this every now and then. I now have dozens of delicious bottles opened up (so no pressure pouring a delicious dram from my collection) and I’ve learned a lot. For instance, it’s against Distiller guidelines to start a review request for a liqueur. I don’t fully understand this, as liqueurs are a selectable category in the drop down menu during review requests, but whatevs. I learned that Booker’s are for drinking, not hoarding. I learned that my love for bourbon is likely contingent upon the fact that I’m an American. I now view this love as less of an objective fact about reality and more a subjective statement about regional availability. Next year, I hope to earn my stripes in the world of scotch. I really want to thank everyone who interacted with my nonsense over the past month. You’ve made this experiment all the more fun. If you find yourself in the Chicago area, tag me I’m a post and let’s go find a place to drink some whiskey. ‘Tis the freakin season!

Was lucky enough to do a side by side comparison of the 2019 and 2020 releases, both tasted neat in a glencairn. The nose of the 2019 was fairly flat especially in comparison to the 2020. The darker fruits were there but I really had to search for them, I kept coming back to the glass thinking I was missing something but to be honest I think it was just lacking. I did however at one point get a creme brûlée note. The 2020 however was a very fruit forward nose, the wine finish really showed itself and it was very inviting, no contest between the two. The palates were surprisingly different for me compared to what I was expecting, I thought they would be more similar than they were. Despite the obvious heat due to the ABV, the 2019 was quite a bit spicier than the 2020. The 2020 just seemed more complex. It started out dry and tannic but then the citrus fruit notes started taking over and balanced it out very nicely. When it came the finish, I got the slightest touch of smoke on the 2019 but for the most part it was a continuation of the palate. I didn’t get any noticeable different notes on the finish of the 2020. Both were mostly just a fairly long extension of the palates. Overall I think the the 2019 is a great pour by itself but my rating may have been brought down a bit because of the side by side with the 2020. Everyone has their own tastes and opinions but to me, the 2020 was the better pour here! I would give the 2019 a rating of 4 and the 2020 a 4.5.

I tasted this as a 2 oz pour neat in a glen cairn. What immediately stuck out to me was the nose. There is a sweet, cherry and oak marriage that is delightful. The palate is on the sweeter side but not overwhelming. There is an initial blast of heat and then a really nice berries and cream flavor followed by a butterscotch finish. A dash of water releases some nutmeg and allspice and enhances the oak. Nicely done. Overall- I was impressed. That said $200 is a hefty price to pay. I think that the nice wood box swallows up some of that. I appreciated the fullness and the sweetness balanced by the spice. Reminded me very much of some of the Barrel Proof Rye I enjoy- Michters Barrel Proof immediately came to mind. Price being a factor, it brings what would be a 4.5 for me down to a 4.0.

Poured neat. Nose was very mild which made it hard to pick the aromas. I did get some of the port wine and some oak, raisin and vanilla. Palate was vanilla and raisin but on the back end I catch a hint of the port wine barrel as the rye. The finish was short to medium length and warmer than I would have thought for an 86 proof. The finish brought back some of that port wine oak barrel and a lingering of leather. Not terrible but isn’t as good as I expected. Over hyped and over rated in my opinion. Edit: *After this bottle has sat in my cabinet for a while it has opened up and is better than when I first reviewed it.* Edited 8-7-2021

So the notes in here about it drinking a bit hot/harsh are spot on. I tend to like higher proof whiskeys as well, but this pour is a bit hot and unbalanced. Adding water mellows the heat, but overall it dilutes the character as well. Nose of maple syrup (classic AE), pear, caramel, white pepper, and a hint of rye bread. First sip reveals a full sweet smooth entry of vanilla/caramel that immediately gets demolished by heat, medicinal/astringency, green pepper, that then fades to a nice cashew and char finish, that is long and warm.

Simply spectacular. What's interesting is that, while I'm a big fan of the AE Rye (Rum Barrel) I'm not a huge fan of the standard Bourbon (Port Barrel) But this is on a different level. Deep sweet vanilla Aroma. Like a Creme Brule note in the Aroma (toasted sugar, vanilla and cream) Some coffee notes with some butterscotch and more vanilla in the flavor. So deep and the finish is fantastic. Several drops of water open this nicely. I will look for this and would openly seek a bottle. You would be wise to do the same!