Meet: Cask finishing bourbon with Angel’s Envy Master Distiller

Co-founded in 2011 by former Brown-Forman Master Distiller Lincoln Henderson and his son Wes Henderson, what began as a passion project has grown into a globally recognised brand known for its cask-finished bourbon whiskeys. Earlier this year, recently appointed Master Distiller Owen Martin visited Australia to support the brand’s official launch across local liquor channels. Ashley Pini caught up with Martin during his stay.

Ashley Pini: What are you hoping to achieve from your time here in Australia?

Owen Martin: I lived here about 14 years ago, but my drinking habits were a little different back then, so I didn’t really have a sense of the spirits landscape. I’ve always followed Australian distilleries, but it wasn’t until preparing for this trip that I realised bourbon is the second largest spirits category here after vodka, so there’s a lot of opportunity. I also found out that around 70 per cent of that bourbon is consumed with cola, which is a little less exciting, but still presents an opportunity to encourage people to trade up. That’s really the idea behind the trip. We’re already positioned in the premium space in the US, so it’s about understanding what the Australian appetite for that looks like.

AP: Angel’s Envy is a relatively new player in bourbon. How are you finding expansion into a competitive market, and what are your focus regions?

OM: As you would expect, North America is still the heartland of bourbon. We also completed a similar trip last year across European markets, including London, Paris and Berlin. Australia is a major focus for us this year and likely for the next few years as we assess consumer demand. What has stood out is how different each market is. Even between Melbourne and Sydney there are noticeable differences. In Europe, every city had its own identity. Paris was heavily focused on Scotch and neat pours, with less emphasis on cocktails, while Berlin and London leaned more towards cocktail culture.

AP: How would you compare Melbourne and Sydney?

OM: Melbourne reminds me a lot of the Pacific Northwest in the US, places like Portland or Seattle. It’s very craft-focused across coffee, beer and spirits, and there are a lot of producers. Sydney, on the other hand, feels more like a global city, with a stronger presence of hotel bars and larger venues. Neither is better, just different.

AP: Angel’s Envy differentiates itself through cask finishing. Does that position it to take share from Scotch or Australian whisky? OM: It’s interesting. Because we use port finishing, which is more common in Scotch and Irish whiskey than in American whiskey, we can approach it from both angles. For someone who has only had Jack Daniel’s or Jim Beam, we use finishing to explain how we’re elevating a familiar base. For drinkers who lean towards Scotch or Australian whisky, finishing provides a point of familiarity that helps introduce American whiskey more broadly. In the US, we still spend a lot of time educating people on what finishing is. Internationally, it’s often easier because consumers already understand it, which allows us to go deeper into the category.

AP: Is it more difficult to impart flavours through cask finishing in bourbon compared to other whisky categories?

OM: It’s not harder to impart flavour, but it can be harder to balance. Scotch, Irish and Australian whiskies are typically matured in used barrels, whereas American whiskey must, by law, use new charred oak. That brings a lot of caramelisation and sweetness into the base spirit. When you then introduce finishing in dessert wine casks, you’re adding more sweetness and body. That can work well in other categories, but in bourbon it can clash if not handled carefully. So the challenge isn’t getting the flavours in, it’s achieving balance.

AP: Angel’s Envy was founded by Lincoln Henderson and Wes Henderson in 2011. How has that influenced the base spirit?

OM: We use what I’d describe as a fairly classic mash bill. Lincoln spent 40 years at Brown-Forman and worked on brands like Woodford Reserve and Gentleman Jack. He took some of those learnings and applied them to Angel’s Envy, then layered in finishing to create differentiation. Our mash bill is 72 per cent corn, 18 per cent rye and 10 per cent malted barley.

AP: Is it challenging being a newer brand in the category?

OM: In the US we talk about ‘liquid to lips’. If someone tastes it, you can usually win them over. If the product is strong, it should speak for itself. What’s been interesting is that brand perception has often outpaced the brand’s age. The finishing is a key differentiator, but even the bottle design stands out on shelf, especially in a crowded bourbon market. That’s worked in our favour. We don’t have the heritage of a brand that’s been around for 100 years, but we’re also not constrained by that. It gives us flexibility.

AP: Is there anything happening in the US that may make its way to Australia?

OM: We’ve just launched our first distillery-exclusive range, including our first unfinished bourbon. It’s a small release, around 30 barrels, but it gives us a platform to experiment. Historically, we haven’t released new products quickly, as we’ve focused on establishing the core range. But with my background in product development, I see opportunities to move a little faster, not to the point of constant releases, but perhaps more regularly when it makes sense.

AP: Does your focus on cask finishing make it easier to experiment?

OM: Definitely. I’ve been with the company for less than two years, and while my title is Master Distiller, I function largely as a blender. Finishing allows me to take mature bourbon and create something new within a shorter timeframe. If we’re talking about new grains, fermentation or distillation, that’s a much longer process, five to ten years before you see results. Finishing gives us a way to innovate now while those longer-term projects develop in the background.