👑 From Rickhouse to Royalty

The 12 Pours of Summer: #6 & #5
By Ethan “Neat” Whitmore

🌞 Statement:
Some pours rise with grace. Others swagger in boots.
This week? One tastes like dessert in velvet. The other, like tobacco and trail grit.

😇 A Tale of Sugar and Smoke

Let’s rewind to a summer in Louisville. I was touring Angel’s Envy, sipping slowly through their collection, when the guide handed me something with a wink. “This one’s different,” he said.

He wasn’t lying.

It was their Rye Finished in Caribbean Rum Casks. A 100-proof stunner with enough maple syrup and spice to make pancakes jealous. I took a sip, smiled, and thought, “This ain’t whiskey. This is supper.”

Now fast-forward to a long ride through the Montana backwoods. Dust on my boots, wind in my beard, and a bottle of Yellowstone Rum Cask Finish waiting by the fire. The cork popped like a six-shooter. One pour in and I knew—this was a cowboy’s nightcap.

Two whiskies. One refined. One rugged. Both crowned with character.

🥃 #6 – Angel’s Envy Rye Finished in Caribbean Rum Casks

AKA “Angel’s Farewell”

Style: Straight Rye Whiskey finished in rum casks
Proof: 100
Distillery: Angel’s Envy – Louisville, KY
Vibe: Dessert in a decanter, sugar-draped and spice-kissed

Tasting Notes:

• Nose: Maple candy, banana bread, and dark brown sugar

• Palate: Cinnamon toast, ripe banana, rum glaze

• Finish: Silky, sweet, and ridiculously long

Why it’s on the list:

This pour redefines rye. Sweet, smooth, and spiced to perfection—like a sugarplum whisper wrapped in silk.

Best way to drink:

Neat, preferably after dinner and before regret.

👉 Hunt this bottle down like it’s the last slice of pecan pie at a church potluck. 🥧

🥾 #5 – Yellowstone Rum Cask Finish

AKA “Old Trail Blaze”

Style: Kentucky Straight Bourbon finished in rum casks
Proof: 100
Distillery: Limestone Branch – Lebanon, KY
Vibe: Trail smoke, leather straps, and campfire swagger

Tasting Notes:

• Nose: Caramelized sugar, toasted oak, molasses

• Palate: Cocoa nib, cinnamon bark, sweet pipe tobacco

• Finish: Lingering and earthy, with sweet spice and wood tannin

Why it’s on the list:

Because it drinks like a weathered saddle—tough, smooth, and full of stories. This is bourbon made for frontiersmen and firelight.

Best way to drink:

One big rock. Boots up. Let the day melt down.

👉 Track this one like you’re chasing an outlaw with your favorite flask in hand. 🤠

🍹 The Art of Mixing: The Rum-Rickhouse Old Fashioned

A decadent cocktail where both bottles show off.

Ingredients:

• 1 oz Angel’s Envy Rye

• 1 oz Yellowstone Rum Cask

• 0.5 oz demerara syrup

• 2 dashes chocolate bitters

Instructions:

• Stir over a big cube in a rocks glass

• Garnish with an orange peel and a grin

Flavor:
Maple, molasses, and a little mystery. Like if Bananas Foster joined a campfire pow-wow.

🍽️ Flavor Pairing Picks

With Angel’s Envy Rye:

• Spiced bread pudding with vanilla ice cream

• Grilled pineapple slices with brown sugar glaze

• Maple-bacon donuts (yes, seriously)

With Yellowstone Rum Cask:

• Coffee-rubbed brisket

• Smoked gouda with fig jam

• Maduro-wrapped cigar with earthy, leathery tones

💡 Big Lesson

Whiskey’s not just about strength—it’s about presence.
One bottle leans sweet and sings high. The other goes low and smolders.
And both? Absolutely unforgettable.

🥃 Repeatable Proverb:

“Not all royalty wears a crown—some just pour better.”

📣 Let’s Keep It Pourin’

⭐ Star this if you love a pour that plays dessert
💬 Comment: Do you pour with polish or prefer your whiskey dusted and wild?
📤 Share this with someone who’s earned a damn good bottle

Till next pour—stay noble, stay wild, stay neat.
—Ethan “Neat” Whitmore

P.S. Next week, we’re revealing #4 & #3—two bottles that pour with riverside soul and porch-front swagger. You're not gonna want to miss 'em.