This Lychee liqueur barrel finished cask strength whisky is a premium product from Nantou Distillery. It sells for over two-thousand dollars a bottle. It’s a unique product to a region that's known for their lychees.
Read MoreThe Macallan Estate whisky is made from barley grown on the property. Where barely is grown, and the type of barley grown, matters.
Read MoreLot No. 40 Cask Strength is Canada’s version of George T. Stagg in rye format—it’s a powerhouse rye with plenty of peppery notes, deep new oak caramel flavours, and a wallop of herbal notes, orange citrus, and other complex flavours.
Read MoreGlenfiddich’s Experimental Series started with IPA, a whisky that surprised me. I thought it was a gimmick, but it turned out to be a winner in setting Glenfiddich in a new direction. The second release in the Experimental Series is Project XX (Pronounced: Project Twenty). Was this a clever marketing way to put the number twenty on the bottle? Perhaps, but the whisky inside has a clever story, and it’s a clever scotch, so let’s dive deeper.
Read MoreGlenfiddich IPA single malt scotch initially struck me as a gimmick. Perhaps it is, but it’s a tasty one. My internal monologue mocked it at first, though—why would the best selling single malt scotch in the world jump on a trend like IPA barrel finishing? Sure, IPAs are trendy, but will they sell more single malt scotch?
Read MoreElijah Craig is a wonderful example of why the obsession over age statements is currently overblown. Elijah Craig, made by Heaven Hill Distillery, is their darling premium straight bourbon product. In previous years, it carried an age statement of twelve years. As the demand for whisky increased, the stock of old barrels became an issue. Heaven Hill couldn’t keep the age statement and still continue to release Elijah Craig while also expanding the line into older age statements.
Read MoreIt’s time for blunt talk: Today’s whisky enthusiast is (generally) not a fan of Collingwood whisky. This is a whisky for a casual whisky drinker—the whisky drinker who has a few pours a month. The sort of whisky drinker that doesn’t need to describe a whisky in any other adverb but ‘smooth.’ This is a big market, and Collingwood deservingly sells plenty of whisky!
Read MoreJ.P. Wiser’s (or more generally, Corby’s) is the only big Canadian whisky company truly embracing today’s whisky drinker. Other whisky brands will argue the point, certainly, but J.P. Wiser’s deserves the credit. A decade ago, we had Forty Creek leading the Canadian whisky category. Five or so years ago, this category has grown with Canadian Club 100% Rye, Dark Horse, and Corby’s own Lot No 40. Barrels of whisky purchased from Alberta Distillers made big inroads, but were all sold under the US flag (Masterson’s & WhistlePig as an example). Last year we were left asking the question, who would take the next big leap?
Read MoreBefore vodka took over the spirits scene in the 60s, 70s, and 80s, Wild Turkey 81 didn’t exist. The only widely available Wild Turkey you could get was 101 proof (50.5% ABV). However, when the vodka era did take over, the market no longer wanted boozy whisky; they wanted tasteless spirits that went down easily. It was a dark time for whisky (and taste!).
Read MoreRussell’s Reserve is the high-end brand from Wild Turkey Distillery. It’s a little more expensive (but still affordable), with the focus on big flavours. This is one of the things I truly love about Wild Turkey Distillery; they have a simple quality chart. Wild Turkey Bourbon (formally 81) is the cheap stuff. Wild Turkey 101 is the good stuff. Wild Turkey Rare Breed is the fancy stuff. Russell’s Reserve is the posh stuff (insofar as bourbon gets posh, which let’s face it — it's not intended to be all that posh).
Read MoreIf you're a whisky enthusiast with a bourbon collection, you either have Old Weller Antique in your collection or you're waiting for the next shipment to your local liquor store. Weller bourbons have family ties with Pappy Van Winkle. Back "in the day," Weller was the bourbon sold by the family that was generally available, and Pappy was the rare stuff. Both products use the same recipe. Contrary to some beliefs, they do not taste the same.
Read MoreLaphroaig Select is a maddening combination of whisky. The core scotch is regular Laphroaig aged in previously used American bourbon barrels, that are "finished" for six months in brand new American oak barrels. The distillery then blended this whisky with other whiskies to create six different single malts. The Laphroaig fan club, Friends of Laphroaig, selected the winning blend from the six to create the Select.
Read MoreHibiki Harmony came into markets replacing the 12 Year Old variety. As a no-age statement whisky, it could be made available to a broader audience, but it also lives in turmoil with endless comparisons to the whisky it replaced. Removing age statements gives producers flexibility making whisky (why should 12 years be the minimum age in the bottle?), but it also creates a sense of distrust with the consumer accustomed to seeing a number on the bottle.
Read MoreIt's cliche, I know, to drink Writers Tears while writing. A cliche that I know I share with many writers in the whisky genre. A cliche that I endured while writing The Whisky Cabinet. And for that reason, it was hard to rate this whisky. When reviewing whisky, it's important to outpour ones feelings when writing about the whisky, but be void of attachment when rating the whisky.
Read MoreVirginia Black American Whiskey is the otherwise known as Drake's whisky. This whisky is bound to be polarizing: Drake is pop culture at its highest level, and traditional whisky drinkers are likely disregards his music as stuff "young people listen to." It's also a celebrity booze product, which nearly always gets negative reviews from critics.
Read MoreLaphroaig Lore is offers an unapologetic rush of flavors from a complex mixture of matured whisky. On paper, I would have called the concept behind this whisky a gimmick, but in tasting, the results are worthy of the ticket price.
Read MoreAuchentoshan American Oak borrows on trends from the past and future. From the past, Auchentoshan boasts about being a triple-distilled. Folklore will tell you that only Irish whiskey and vodka are triple distilled (neither is true). Generally speaking, the third distillation is likely to remove heavier molecules from the spirit. Some of these heavier molecules are unpleasant, some would naturally oxidized down during barrel maturation, others are flavors that scotch drinkers might enjoy.
Read MoreWhenever I go to Glenlivet tastings, the Glenlivet Brand Ambassadors recommends a half-whisky and half-water mixture for the Founder's Reserve. Already, there's a problem. I rarely water down my whisky, and Glenlivet Founder's Reserve is bottled at the minimum of 40% ABV.
Read MoreLarceny is in the category of a wheated Bourbon, a sub-brand of the Bourbon category that's glorified by big hitters like Maker's Mark, W.L. Weller, and of course Pappy Van Winkle. Most bourbons use a combination of corn, rye, and malted barley in their starting recipe. Wheaters use wheat instead of rye. It's still a bourbon, but a different take on bourbon.
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