Angel's Envy Bourbon Finished in Port Wine Barrels

My wife drags me to a lot of wineries, and port has become a friend. Putting good bourbon in port barrels is a great idea, and most importantly, it works. On the nose i pick up familiar bourbon smells, vanilla and caramel, but also has notes of the port. I like to leave small amounts to absorb on the front of my tongue before swallowing. Good stuff. The sweetness hangs all the way to the end, making you want another sip. Will this appeal to all bourbon drinkers? I doubt it, but this bourbon lover loves it.

Great, will buy again. Love on the rocks.

I like this bottle alot. Off the nose maple & vanilla with a subtle oak finish the taste follows with a very oily start followed by hints of maple and vanilla creme. Overall very sweet, light bourbon that goes down smooth.

Continuing to work through whiskies in my collection that I’ve yet to review. I didn’t even have this one listed in my collection here on Distiller, so I just added it. I’ve been tasting quite a few Elijah Craig Barrel Proof releases over the past few days, and since AE is a much lower proof, my review may be influenced by that. Color is a deep and clear orange amber, close to Pantone 144. Nose pales in comparison to several previous days’ worth of the ECBP, as mentioned, but it does show quince, dry cinnamon stick, caramel, vanilla, and a dusty element. Palate also comes across as tepid compared to previous days: mouthfeel is thin, quickly showing some charred oak which morphs into some oaky tannic bitterness and some very light vanilla on the short finish. I’ve had Angel’s Envy on numerous occasions, and have never been overtly disappointed with it. This double negative sounds like something of a backhanded compliment, and it is. While Angel’s Envy was one of the first bourbons to use finishing casks of port or sherry, continuing the common practice in Scotch whisky, bourbons like Rabbit Hole Dareringer do a much better job (albeit with PX sherry casks). While AE can be readily found for under $45, and the Dareringer is more like $70, there’s no particular reason to pay $45 for an 86-proof bourbon which doesn’t differentiate itself, whereas the Dareringer does (I should do a showdown between these two). Would I buy it again? No. 3.0 on the Distiller scale. 86.6 proof. NAS. Batch 87V. Bottle #1107. N.B.: All spirits tasted neat in a Glencairn glass.