St. Augustine Port Finished Bourbon

My wife and I visited St. Augustine Distillery over MLK weekend, so I had a chance to try the distillery's two whiskies, their standard Double Cask Bourbon and a limited edition Port Finished Bourbon. This limited edition is prominently featured in the distillery's gift shop, and seems to sell well even at some super-premium pricing:  $40 for a 375 ml half-bottle, and $80 for a handle.  The port influence creates some spectacular aromas of cherry and strawberry, along with darker, richer syrup notes.  The taste is reminiscent of the Double Cask Bourbon which forms the base of this release, but added sweetness in the form of dates and raisins make this a more pleasant release.  It has a moderately long finish of vanilla and dried fruit.  Unlike the Double Cask, which is pretty rough, this felt to me like it could be a daily sipper, although it'd be hard to afford placing this bourbon in that role.  This dram is more promising than what I've tasted from Angel's Envy but, like its base, it needs more time in the barrel.  Especially at the prices that they're asking! This is a solid 3.5-star bourbon, but I'm rounding down a little because of the price point.

Total Wine Coral Springs store pick

This port-finished bourbon has an appearance of coppery amber honey, with a nose of corn and rye, with oak predominance, vanilla, chocolate, caramel, and walnut and a dark, dried fruit finish reminiscent of fig and raisin. The taste is early sweet corn and oak with vanilla-oak predominating the middle and a long nuttiness in the finish. It's young with a bit of a bite, but for something so young it's very smooth and drinkable neat. It's exciting to see something like this coming out of Florida!