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#Top100CanadianWhisky #24: Masterson’s 12-Year-Old Straight Wheat Whiskey

Posted by Arctic Wolf on November 30, 2017

Masterson’s Straight Wheat Whiskey is distilled and aged in Canada, for a California company located in Sonoma, called 35 Maple Street. As a straight whiskey, the spirit must be barreled and aged in new American Oak; however this Masterson’s whiskey also holds the distinction of being perhaps the only Canadian whiskey which is distilled on a copper pot still from a mash of 100 % wheat grain. It is aged for 12 years, bottled at 50% alcohol by volume, and is apparently (like the rest of the Masterson’s line-up) named for the famous frontier lawman, William “Bat” Masterson.

Here is a link to the Rum Howler #24 Canadian Whisky in my list of the 100 Best of 2017:

Review: Masterson’s 12-Year-Old Straight Wheat Whiskey

Although there is an omnipresent flavour of fresh wood and spice which permeates the Masterson’s Straight Wheat Whisky, these oak flavours do not grow to such an extent that they dominate the other flavour nuances within the spirit. The whisky brings forward a subtle sweetness of yummy butterscotch flavours and oodles of dusty rye-like wheat spices which are melded into the oak character.

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Note: To follow the countdown list of the Top 100 Canadian Whiskies of 2017, you should follow me on twitter (Rum Howler on Twitter) using the hashtag #Top100CanadianWhisky.

Alternatively you can view the list as it grows by viewing my Reveal Page here on this website:

The Rum Howler – Top 100 Canadian Whiskies of 2017

The Reveal Page will be updated at as frequently as possible throughout the month of December.

Posted in Awards, Extras | Tagged: , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment »

#Top100Rums of 2017: #22 El Dorado Grand Special Reserve

Posted by Arctic Wolf on November 29, 2017

Last year El Dorado Rum announced the release of a new special edition rum which celebratesd the 50th Year Anniversary of Guyana’s Independence from Britain. This Anniversary Rum is produced from a blend of rums aged 33 to 50 years, and finished with a soupcon of aged pot still rums surviving from El Dorado’s heritage Double Wooden Pot Still and a since-discontinued John Dore Copper Kettle Still.

50YO Presentation box_retouched

The completed rum is bottled at 43 % alcohol by volume and presented in a distinctive crystal decanter adorned by an 18 carat gold collectible medallion. Only 600 bottles were produced, each individually signed and numbered by the El Dorado Master Blender.

Here is a link to the review for the Rum Howler #22 Rum of 2017 (one which is almost certainly going to be sold out by year’s end):

Review: El Dorado Grand Special Reserve Rum

“… The initial aroma is rich and intimidating with dark caramel and treacle aromas rising laced with the smells of oak sap, tar-like asphalt and gluey resin. Wisps of dry fruit (raisins and dates) and hints of licorice and menthol mingle within as do a impressions of vanilla, dark brown sugar, and cinnamon. As the glass sits the complexity builds with damp cigar tobacco, espresso coffee and sweetened canned fruit (peaches and apricots) …”

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We  have reached the top 25 rum spirits of 2017. I have reviewed and/or re-tasted each of these rums within the past three years. (All Rum reviews were based upon bottle samples either purchased by myself or provided to me by industry.)

You can continue to follow the countdown on twitter (Rum Howler on Twitter) using the hashtag #Top100Rums.

Alternatively you can view the list as it grows daily by viewing my Reveal Page:

The Rum Howler – Top 100 Rums of 2017

Posted in Extras, Rum, Rum Reviews | Tagged: , , , , , , , | Comments Off on #Top100Rums of 2017: #22 El Dorado Grand Special Reserve

#Top100CanadianWhisky #25: J.P. Wiser’s Union 52

Posted by Arctic Wolf on November 29, 2017

And now for something different ….

J.P. Wiser’s Union 52 Canadian Whisky is a blend of mature 16-year-old Canadian whiskies with an extremely old single malt whisky that was distilled in the Highlands of Scotland. (Eighteen barrels of this whisky had been stored and aged at one of the J.P. Wiser’s warehouses in Canada since 1964. Apparently, if you go poking around in the aging warehouses in Canada, you can find all manner of strange spirits lurking around.)

Dr. Don Livermore (J.P. Wiser’s Master Blender) is apparently the creative mind behind who developed Union 52. The results of his experimentation yielded a whisky blend which consisted of 52 year-old single malt spirit (4 % of the total blend) and 16 year-old Canadian spirit (96% of the total blend).

Here is a link to the Rum Howler #25 Canadian Whisky in my list of the 100 Best of 2017:

Review: J.P. Wiser’s Union 52 Canadian Whisky

The dominant flavours of the whisky are oak, vanilla, caramel, baking spices (cloves and cinnamon) and dark fruit (dates and figs) with hints of peat. I also taste black licorice, toasted walnut, and an herbal component which brings forward green sawgrass, willow and hints of menthol.

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Note: To follow the countdown list of the Top 100 Canadian Whiskies of 2017, you should follow me on twitter (Rum Howler on Twitter) using the hashtag #Top100CanadianWhisky.

Alternatively you can view the list as it grows by viewing my Reveal Page here on this website:

The Rum Howler – Top 100 Canadian Whiskies of 2017

The Reveal Page will be updated at as frequently as possible throughout the month of December.

Posted in Awards, Canadian Whisky, Extras, Whisk(e)y | Tagged: , , , , , , , | Comments Off on #Top100CanadianWhisky #25: J.P. Wiser’s Union 52

#Top100Rums of 2017: #23 Ron Matusalum Gran Reserva 18 Rum

Posted by Arctic Wolf on November 28, 2017

Ron Matusalem prides itself on being a Cuban style of rum with a history in Cuba they trace back to 1872 when two brothers, Benjamin and Eduardo Camp, together with a partner, Evaristo Álvarez opened a distillery in Santiago de Cuba. According to the information I found last April on the Matusalem website, the rum they were producing began to win acclaim by the first quarter of the 20th century. The distillery apparently operated until the 1960′s when due to the Cuban Revolution the Álvarez family was exiled, and the rum they made disappeared from the landscape.

The brand was resurrected by Claudio Álvarez Salazar, who is the great-grandson of Evaristo Álvarez. Of course, it was not possible, given the political situation in Cuba, for Claudio to produce or bottle the rum in Cuba. Apparently, it is produced (presumably by a third-party as Ron Matusalem does not own a distillery) in the Dominican Republic, and then bottled in Lawrenceburg, Indiana by Proximo Spirits.

Here is a link to the review for the Rum Howler #23 Rum of 2017:

Review: Ron Matusalum Gran Reserva 18 Rum

“… I taste bitter-sweet caramel turning to treacle in my mouth with a light layer of vanilla keeping the rum smooth. A somewhat peppery, somewhat pungent oak spice is apparent which brings impressions of nutmeg, cloves and cinnamon to the fore with just a touch of spicy wood sap melded in …”

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We  have reached the top 25 rum spirits of 2017. I have reviewed and/or re-tasted each of these rums within the past three years. (All Rum reviews were based upon bottle samples either purchased by myself or provided to me by industry.)

You can continue to follow the countdown on twitter (Rum Howler on Twitter) using the hashtag #Top100Rums.

Alternatively you can view the list as it grows daily by viewing my Reveal Page:

The Rum Howler – Top 100 Rums of 2017

 

Posted in Awards, Extras, Rum, Rum Reviews | Tagged: , , , , , , , | Comments Off on #Top100Rums of 2017: #23 Ron Matusalum Gran Reserva 18 Rum

IWSC Names Flor de Caña the #1 Rum Producer in the World

Posted by Arctic Wolf on November 28, 2017

Here a Press Release I thought I should share today:

Flor de Caña, the premium rum brand from Nicaragua, was named Global Rum Producer of the Year by the prestigious International Wine and Spirit Competition (IWSC) in London. The IWSC is the most respected organization focused on awarding excellence to spirits worldwide, with over 400 global experts judging products from more than 90 countries.

This distinction, the highest within the global spirits industry, is the most powerful endorsement of Flor de Caña’s quality and excellence. Flor de Caña, a 5th generation single family estate rum, is naturally aged without sugar, additives or artificial ingredients, enriched by an active volcano and distilled with 100% renewable energy.

CLICK HERE TO WATCH THE VIDEO!

About Flor de Caña Rum

Flor de Caña, Nicaragua’s #1 exported brand, is present in over 40 countries worldwide and is one of the fastest growing premium rum brands in the United States. With more than 125 years and 5 generations of family tradition, Flor de Caña has been recognized as the world’s best rum in prestigious international competitions in London, Madrid, San Francisco and Chicago. Flor de Caña, the leading premium rum in Central America, is manufactured and distributed by Compañía Licorera de Nicaragua, S.A. (CLNSA).

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My Hearty Congratulations!

Posted in Howls | Tagged: , | Comments Off on IWSC Names Flor de Caña the #1 Rum Producer in the World

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