True Story Bourbon Review

By Richard Thomas

Rating: B

Following the sale of Angel’s Envy to Bacardi in 2015, it was only a matter of time before co-founder Wes Henderson departed and started over again. In conjunction with the purchase of the Kentucky Castle hotel, that new start has now been made in the from of True Story Whiskey. The new company, and its bourbon, follows a path already long familiar to Henderson: acquire a supply of quality sourced bourbon and put an interesting and complimentary finish on it.

In this instance, Henderson and his team (including much of his own family) has acquired some five to six year old bourbon from an undisclosed source and finished it in White Moscatel casks for six months. From its start, I described Angel’s Envy as “my life story in a bottle,” because at time I was a Kentucky boy living in Portugal. That personal true story continues, because in Portugal Moscatel is made in Setubal, due south of Lisbon. Those casks come from a place even closer to where I used to live than the ruby Port pipes used in making Angel’s Envy. It’s bottled at 90 proof.

The Bourbon
The coloring of the pour is so light amber that it borders on looking like golden raisins. I found the nose a blend of boozy fruit cocktail and musty old wood, plus a dash of nutmeg. The flavor profile presents brown sugar syrup and vanilla, accented by cinnamon and a rising note of nutmeg, that fulls rounds things out by the time one reaches the backside of the palate. That rolls right off the palate, however, as the finish opened with cinnamon and sandalwood, before turning to the same musty old wood from the nose.

The Profile
Expect to pay $55 to pick up this solid, jet black bottle.