How does one follow a four-decade career developing whiskey for a corporate spirits giant?
By independently releasing a premium small batch bourbon, of course.
That’s the story behind Lincoln Henderson and Angel’s Envy, the newly released port barrel-finished bourbon that’s been garnering a steady buzz primarily because of Henderson’s cred in the business.
As the former master distiller at Brown-Forman, Henderson was the brain — and the taste buds — behind wildly successful whiskeys such as Woodford Reserve, Jack Daniel’s Gentleman Jack and Jack Daniel’s Single Barrel. That’s just a small sampling of the products he developed before retiring from that company at age 66.
Trying to leave the whiskey business with a sterling reputation can be tough, though, especially when living in America’s bourbon capital. The day Henderson retired from Brown-Forman, he was approached by Japan’s Suntory distilling group to consult. Soon, he was enticed by his son Wesley into investing in a new distillery, the Louisville Distilling Co. Their first product: Angel’s Envy.
“I have 47 years in this business, 40 of those with Brown-Forman, and we introduced a lot of new products,” Henderson, 73, says via telephone, “but I’ve never seen anything take off like this.”
The flavor of Angel’s Envy picks up where Henderson’s reputation leaves off. For now it’s produced by a regional bourbon distiller whose name Henderson won’t divulge. Aged for four to six years in American white oak barrels, the whiskey is aged again up to six months in port casks — one of its distiller’s trademarks.
Henderson was known to experiment with Woodford Reserve in various barrels, just for kicks. “I had a lot of space,” he says of his years at Brown-Forman. “They left me alone after I’d been there for so long. … There’s been a lot of work (in barrel aging) with the single-malt people, too. I’ve worked with Suntory and they’ve used old sherry barrels, brandy, port, etc. (to produce whiskey), but nobody in the bourbon business has done it.”
Until now.
The result is a sipping bourbon that’s as smooth as any that has been resting long enough to get there, but with a slightly sweet glint. It’s full-bodied, dangerously drinkable and should not be wasted on a cocktail. (At $45 per 750-ml bottle, it’d be a foolish financial move, anyhow.)
Perhaps because it’s still in its first expression, Angel’s Envy has the immense buzz of a limited release. Yet, given Henderson’s legacy, it’s likely to have staying power.
