Angel’s Envy Kentucky Bourbon – the OU Kosher certified version!

Kentucky Bourbon finished in OU Kosher certified Port casks from the Kedem Winery – $48

Well, after what was a fine celebration of Rosh Hashanah 5773 (for you gentle Gentile readers out there, Rosh Hashanah is the Jewish new year and according to how the rabbis count the years, it’s year 5773), I decided to take a look at what I should review and I personally thought that the OU (Orthodox Union) certified version of Angel’s Envy would be a good candidate.  Truthfully, I reviewed this a a short time ago but am just now posting my thoughts to you, the whisk(e)y hungry public.

As I write this, I decided to revisit this whiskey and am so happy that i did!  It truly is a fine one and one that is quite different from what you might come to know as a bourbon. The port cask finishing makes for such a difference!

This version of Angel’s Envy is different from the Angel’s Evny I previously reviewed, the initial launch of the product.  What’s different?  Well, the good folks from Angel’s Envy decided to use OU certified port casks to finish this version.  Also, being that this whiskey is from different stock/different casks, one should expect it to taste a slightly different anyway.

Let’s have a taste, shall we?

On the nose — Intensely sweet.  It actually almost noses like some 1st fill/fresh bourbon casks of single malt Scotch whiskies I’ve had (thinking Arran or Aberlour here – both distilleries seems to use some very active casks, at least in my experience).

Loads of butterscotch combined with a rock candy sweetness.

Sweet pepper relish.

Some wood spice and pencil shavings as well as unsalted corn nuts (this was a difficult one to pull out based on the sweetness of this whisky).

This is whacky, just whacky whiskey.  (Whacky good, that is!)

On the mouth — Much softer and shy than expected (given the somewhat aggressive and flamboyant qualities on the nose).

Still quite sweet with a focus on creamed corn topped with Rainier cherries.

Now some of the more bourbon-standard notes kick in. (nutmeg, vanilla, pencil shavings, etc…).

A soft cereal influence here, too.  All the flavors are playing quite nicely together.

Finish — A medium butterscotched finish.

In sum —  The nose showed amazing promise mainly as, for a bourbon, it revealed true character and individuality in the bourbon category.

While still interesting and highly enjoyable to taste, I wonder if a slightly higher ABV would have given it the kick I was expecting/hoping for; it ended up being a bit more shy and soft than expected.

While I do prefer the initial launch of Angel’s Envy, I enjoyed this greatly and find it just amazing that a bourbon bottler that cares enough to pay attention to the kosher keepers out there that they made a special bottling just for them.  Kudos and thank you!!

Special thanks to WH for the ample sample!