Angel’s Envy Releases Second Cellar Collection Whiskey

By Jonah Flicker February 3, 2020

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Angel’s Envy is known for doing basically one thing, but doing it very well — sourcing bourbon and rye (until the new distillery has enough aged stock of its own to release) and finishing it in different cask types. So far that’s included rum, sherry, and port barrels. The newest release in the distillery’s Cellar Collection series is a different version of the latter type of finish. Angel’s Envy Kentucky Straight Bourbon Whiskey Finished in Tawny Port Wine Barrels will be available this February in a limited release of just 5,400 bottles. The whiskey is a 10-year-old bourbon that was finished for ten months in tawny port barrels and bottled at 111.6 proof. This older bourbon packs quite a flavor punch, with notes of rye spice, maple syrup, candy lozenge, and maraschino cherry all coalescing into a hot but pleasant finish.

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“My dad always used to say, ‘Taste is never an accident,’ and when we first started dreaming up what Angel’s Envy could be, we knew we wanted to explore and push the boundaries of bourbon,” said chief innovation officer and co-founder Wes Henderson in a press release. “Our tawny port finish embodies exactly that. When you combine the mellow finish from the tawny port barrels with the profile of our 10-year-old bourbon, you get a richness and complexity that I think our fans will really enjoy.”

There are a few ways to get your hands on one of these pricy new bottles. Starting February 8, select retailers in Kentucky, California, Florida, Illinois, New York, and Tennessee will have the whiskey in stock for an SRP of $250. The downtown Louisville distillery itself will have bottles as well available for purchase. Or you can join the 500 Main club, and starting on January 31 bottles will become available for pre-purchase.

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Jonah Flicker is a freelance writer who covers booze, travel, food, and lifestyle. His work has appeared in a variety of…

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hudson whiskey relaunch 1

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Little Book Chapter 4

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Like all the past chapters, this fourth installment is a blended straight whiskey (no neutral grain spirits here, folks). The components in this edition are: a 4-year-old Kentucky straight brown rice bourbon, an 8-year-old Kentucky straight "high rye" rye whiskey, and a 7-year-old Kentucky straight bourbon. I had a chance to taste through the components and the final product with Freddie a few weeks ago, and he had a lot to say about picking these particular whiskeys. The brown rice bourbon is the base of the blend, and on its own it really stands out from other Beam-distilled whiskeys. Freddie said that rice is a soft grain to work with, containing lots of starch, and it converts well. The resulting whiskey drinks beyond its four years, with dry spice and an underlying flavor that's almost like a sherry cask finish. The next largest component is the 7-year-old bourbon, which is actually a younger, cask strength version of Knob Creek. Freddie brought Knob Creek aged between seven and nine years to his dad for a blind tasting, and the elder Noe chose this one. There's a touch of astringency in this liquid, but it's still got those deep vanilla and caramel notes that make up Knob Creek. Finally, the last whiskey in the blend is a "higher rye" rye. At about 65% rye, that's definitely more of the grain in the mash bill than other Beam rye whiskeys. According to Freddie, this whiskey was made using the same mash bill as Booker's Rye, but he said it really hasn't been used for any Beam products before this Little Book release.

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Angel’s Envy Releases Special New Mizunara Cask Whiskey

Mizunara Cask Whiskey

In celebration of the tenth anniversary of Angel's Envy's Founder's Day on August 19, the distillery released a new bourbon finished in Japanese Mizunara oak casks. This blend of four-year-old and nine-year-old whiskey spent an additional two years in these new charred oak casks, made from 200-year-old trees, during which it picked up a bouquet of floral notes including sandalwood, coffee, and a bit of smoke. "We chose this release for the tenth anniversary because my dad, having taken on several consulting roles in Japan during his career, always had a deep appreciation for the country and its distilling community," said cofounder and chief innovation officer Wes Henderson in a prepared statement. "This release, finished in Mizunara casks made from this rare, 200-year-old wood, felt fitting for such a special milestone for Angel’s Envy.”

This is a first for the distillery, and it really stands out in terms of flavor from its core range that is finished in port and rum barrels. "When we set out on this project, we knew where we wanted to end up, but we also knew we might not wind up there," said Henderson in a recent Zoom meeting. His son and production manager Kyle detailed the difficult and lengthy process of getting ahold of these barrels, which he said are extremely limited and tightly controlled by the Japanese government. It took about five years in total to procure them, and 18 months of that time was spent on a waiting list.