Newly introduced Traigh Bhan is the second core range Ardbeg with an age statement. The first, the ten year old, was introduced almost two decades ago. This is, in the Ardbeg world, a big deal.
Read MoreIn 2016, Glenmorangie started a new line of single malts named after their featured warehouse; The Bond House No. 1 Collection. Glenmorangie Grand Vintage Malt 1990 was the first release of this set. It has, as one can tell, a very grandiose name! It’s listed at about $600 US. Some have said this is the best Glenmorangie ever released, and I was fortunate enough to get a sample from Bry Wilson, the Canadian Brand Ambassador for the distillery.
Read MoreCanadian Club continues to move forward to fifty years with their Canadian Club Chronicles series with this year’s release; the 42 year old. The Canadian whisky industry is a blender’s paradise, and this is another great example of what can happen with ingenuity. More importantly, the allotment of barrels this whisky comes from is probably one of the oldest allotments available at quantities to produce a collectable product of this magnitude.
Read MoreI was recently listening to a podcast that outlined all the weird riders that rock bands have had over the years. Many included whisky; usually something from Tennessee or Kentucky. I briefly thought, what would be on my list? I didn’t have an answer because I always want to drink something a little different. Would I be in a mood for an oaky bourbon? A smoky scotch? A rye spicy Canadian whisky?
Read MoreIn this year’s vintage release of the Northern Border Collection (Canada’s version of BTAC), Pike Creek 21 Year Old is finished in Oloroso Sherry Casks. Aged Canadian whisky comes with a heavy fortitude of flavours, and this rich sweet Oloroso casks compliment those rich char and caramel notes perfectly.
Read MoreWinter Storm is the third of Glenfiddich’s Experimental releases (which includes IPA, and Project XX). This one has a Canadian twist, and it starts with Canadian Brand Ambassador Beth Havers. It was Beth that suggested Canadian ice-wine casks as a potential finishing barrel. Brian Kinsman, malt laster for Glenfiddich, ran with the idea.
Read MoreCanadian Club joined the 2017 party of great Canadian whisky releases. This was an LCBO-only release at $250 a bottle, and it sold out within minutes. It’s apparently a hot-commodity in after-market trading. There are a few things not commonly spoken of when making Canadian Club 40, and it reflects in the flavour.
Read MoreThere are a few misconceptions around Scotch whisky that I still hear today. First, I often hear how scotch is ‘smoky’ with strong iodine notes, and therefore a big turn-off for whisky drinkers. In truth, most scotch sold contains very little in terms of smoky notes. The second misconceptions is, only Islay distilleries make peated whiskies. In truth, peat was a main fuel source up until the 1950s in many parts of Scotland and was commonly used in the whisky making process.
Read MoreWhere as most scotch is a blend of many (hundreds!) of barrels to even out any imperfections, a single cask needs to stand out on its own. It’s an opportunity to taste a barrel without any alteration.
Read MoreI was one of ten judges scoring the Canadian Whisky Awards for 2017. Masterson's Straight Rye 10 Year Old (Batch PSA3-0035) scored as my the best Canadian whisky, and it also averaged as the best overall Canadian whisky from the judges narrowly beating Gooderham & Warts Four Grain and Lot No 40.
Read MoreThe Single Barrel line-extension is an example of a product intended for whisky enthusiasts. It's rare that single malt scotch is released in the single barrel variety--most are a blend of tens, if not hundreds, of barrels of whisky. When one blends multiple barrels of whisky to create a single malt scotch, the complexity of the whisky comes from the blending process. When a distillery bottles an individual barrel, this demonstrates the confidence distillery owners have in their whisky. You can't blend the faults away.
Read MoreDoes one ever forget their first sip of Booker's? My first taste goes back many years. Booker's was one of a dozen or so whiskies featured during an LCBO media event at their tasting lab. The proof levels of the whiskies kept increasing throughout this self-paced tasting.
Read MoreMany bourbon lovers rightfully obsess over Four Roses.*
The distillery uses five different yeast strains (yeast matters), and two mash-bills to create a total of ten different variations of high-rye bourbon. This allows for a lot of micro-variation and complexity in the blending process.
Read MoreOld Rip Van Winkle 10 represents the raw youthful bloodline of the Van Winkle line. This would be a whisky that’s easy to write-off in one sip, but with that branding, few would. It takes time to build a relationship with Old Rip Van Winkle 10 and experience the uniquely charismatic and sharp flavours.
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