St. Augustine Port Finished Bourbon

My wife and I visited the distillery over a holiday weekend, so I sampled their two whiskies: the standard Double Cask Bourbon and a special Port Finished Bourbon. This special edition is prominently displayed in the distillery's shop and sells well, even at a high price: $40 for a 375 ml bottle and $80 for a larger size. The port influence creates wonderful aromas of cherry and strawberry, plus richer, darker syrup notes. The taste resembles the Double Cask Bourbon that serves as the base for this release, but the addition of sweetness from dates and raisins makes it a more enjoyable spirit. It has a moderately long finish with vanilla and dried fruit. Unlike the Double Cask, which is quite harsh, this felt like it could be an everyday sipper, though the cost would make that difficult. This dram shows more promise than other spirits I've tried, but like its base, it needs more aging. Especially considering the asking price! This is a good spirit, but I'm rating it slightly lower due to the cost.

This is a full-bodied Bourbon Whiskey from St. Augustine Distillery in Florida. It's made with 60% Florida corn, 22% barley, and 18% Florida wheat. It was aged for at least 3 years in American white oak barrels and then finished for 6 months in San Sebastian port wine barrels before being bottled at 51% ABV. The initial scent offers notes of grains, wood, dried fruits, flowers, nuts, herbs, and spices. The rich body then presents flavors of corn, dark cherry, plum, salted caramel, fig newton, cornbread, honeysuckle, and unripe honeydew melon. The finish is somewhat creamy, medium in length, with hints of pepper, oak, chocolate, caramel, coconut, and leather. May 2024

This port-finished bourbon has a coppery amber honey color. The nose has corn and rye, with a dominant oak presence, plus vanilla, chocolate, caramel, and walnut. It finishes with dark dried fruit notes, like fig and raisin. The taste starts with sweet corn and oak, then vanilla-oak takes over in the middle, leading to a long nutty finish. It's young and has a bit of a bite, but it's very smooth and can be enjoyed neat for its age. It's impressive to see this type of product coming from Florida!

Nose: initially grain-forward with hints of dark fruit, leather, and licorice that eventually give way to buttered popcorn Palate: buttered popcorn is the first note to appear, followed by dried fruit, and some black pepper spice toward the end Finish: the spice lingers pleasantly, accompanied by the buttered popcorn note that was present throughout

My assessment differs significantly from the official description: This liquid carries the scent of an aged wooden chest and tastes similarly. Notes of cedar, bitterness, and a touch of sweetness (likely from the port influence) precede a brief, intense ethanol finish. It's not undrinkable, but I would choose a room-temperature Boone's Farm over this.

The aroma features San Sebastián port, figs, and syrup. The palate presents some char and dark fruit, with the port subtly coming through alongside hints of vanilla. It's young, so oak and char are not abundant, but the port returns on the finish, accompanied by pleasant spice and warmth that lingers.