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John Hall and Whisky: A Good Meritage

Posted by Arctic Wolf on February 4, 2011

Last month, Wednesday, January 19 to be exact, I was invited to attend a private luncheon at Bistro la Persaud, in Edmonton with John Hall, the founder of Forty Creek Whisky. It was a small gathering with only a few of us ‘media’ folk invited. The purpose of the luncheon was to allow the invitees to have an informal question and answer with Mr. Hall taking advantage of his attendance at the 2nd Annual Edmonton Whisky Festival and the launch of his new whisky Forty Creek Confederation Oak.

I kind of sat back and let the others (who are more experienced at this sort of thing) do the questioning and interjected only a few queries here and there. It seemed better just to listen than to speak…

You may read the complete story on John Hall and his unique Canadian Whisky by clicking the following link:

John Hall and Whisky: A Good Meritage

In case you are interested, I have reviewed a few of the Whiskies from Forty Creek and have provided links to these reviews below:

Review Forty Creek Barrel Select Whisky

Review: Forty Creek Portwood Reserve

Posted in Canadian Whisky, Extras, Howls, Interviews, Whisk(e)y, Whisk(e)y Review | Tagged: , , , , , | Comments Off on John Hall and Whisky: A Good Meritage

Rum Review: Spiced Jack No. 94

Posted by Arctic Wolf on February 2, 2011

Legend has it (according to the Spiced Jack Website), that in 1956 a certain roguish pilot, Lieutenant Jack Butler, who was stationed in Bermuda in 1956 developed a secret recipe for spiced rum. Of course after developing this “Top Secret” recipe he and his plane disappeared without a trace. Mysteriously, all of his rum disappeared too. Fortune would have it that he had sent his secret recipe to his brother shortly before he disappeared and now White Rock Distillers are able to bring this formulation forward as Spiced Jack No. 94 Spiced Rum.

The ’94’ is a reference to the bottle strength of this rum which is 94 proof. This is a higher than normal bottling strength for a spiced rum which should impart a little ‘kick’ to the tonsils when it is sipped. In spite of this implied kick to the tonsils, the Spiced Jack Website assures us that the rum will be smooth. In fact, not just smooth, it will be “courageously smooth”.

A friend of mine gave me this bottle in trade on New Years Eve. I had taken a few sips (after I had already sipped a lot of other rums and whiskies that night), and decided a new rum to add to my collection would be a good thing. I never had a chance to try the bottle again until a few days ago when I decided to put it through the paces of my review system.

By clicking on the following link you can discover what I learned about my New Year’s Eve Rum Swap:

Rum Review: Spiced Jack No. 94

Please enjoy the review, and remember that the aim of my blog is not to help you drink more spirits, it is to help you drink better spirits!

Posted in Flavouerd Rums, Rum, Rum Reviews | Tagged: , , , | Comments Off on Rum Review: Spiced Jack No. 94

Review: Canadian Club Classic

Posted by Arctic Wolf on January 30, 2011

Canadian Club Whisky or C.C. as it is known amongst its advocates was my father’s favourite whisky. He was quite happy when a family event like a wedding or anniversary would come around, and he could volunteer to supply the spirits for the event. Dad never paid much mind to which beer he chose, or which wine, or even which rum, vodka or gin; but… he always insisted on Canadian Club Whisky. In fact as he grew older he would often share a story where he remembered fondly the 25th Wedding Anniversary Celebration for Mom and himself. As the night was winding down many of the guests commented to him that he certainly didn’t shave off any corners with respect to the liquor. He served his friends the best; he served them Canadian Club. Dad was proud of the reaction his neighbours and friends showed him that evening, and he always cherished that night where he was universally recognized for his generosity and his good taste.

The Canadian Club Classic, which is the subject of my review is a whisky my Dad would certainly have enjoyed. It is a couple of steps up from his whisky of choice, the previously reviewed Canadian Club Premium.  ‘Blended at Birth’, the C.C. Classic Whisky is a mixture of rye, rye malt, corn. and barley malt spirits. These spirits are blended before being placed in white oak barrels where they age together for a minimum of 12 years. The Classic contains a higher amount of malted barley in the blend than its younger sibling the Premium, and the result is a slighter sweeter more rounded whisky with the smoother character that the longer time spent aging in oak provides.

You may click on the following link to read the full review:

“…The entry into the mouth is soft and creamy. That typical ‘dank’ Canadian Club flavour is muted in this expression, and the whisky finds more sweet butterscotch than spicy toffee at first tasting….”

Review: Canadian Club Classic

Please enjoy the review and the great new cocktail I have included called the Classic Canadian Ice Storm.

Posted in Canadian Whisky, Cocktails & Recipes, Whisk(e)y, Whisk(e)y Review | Tagged: , , , , , | Comments Off on Review: Canadian Club Classic

Rum Review: El Dorado 21-Year-Old Rum

Posted by Arctic Wolf on January 27, 2011

Ed 21 Served Neat

The Master Blender for  Demerara Distillers Ltd. , (DDL) is credited with the creation of El Dorado 21-Year-Old Special Reserve Rum which uses a selected blend of rums from their world-famous stills, the Enmore (wooden Coffey still), the Versailles (single wooden pot still), and the Albion (Savalle still). All of these rums in the blend have been aged in oak for a minimum of 21 years, making this one of the oldest production rums in the world.

The rum is part of a family of luxury cask aged rums which also includes a 12-year-old rum,  a 15-year-old rum and a 25-year-old Rum. According to the DDL website…

“El Dorado rums are blended selections of different ‘vintages’ or batches of rums from different stills – aged in oak barrels. Importantly, the age statement specifically indicates the youngest rum in the blend, even though the oldest may be many years older. This rule is the same as the one for Scotch Whisky and is used for rums produced in English-speaking countries…”

This age statement is quite different from those rums which feature a solera style age statement which highlights the oldest rum in the blend and usually includes a high percentage of rum which is much younger in the blend. In my opinion, this sets the El Dorado 21 Year Old Rum apart from its peers and it is very hard to find many comparably aged rums in my marketplace.

Here is an excerpt from my review:

“…The mouth is heated up with oak spice, and my first impression is that I am sampling a yummy oak and toffee extract filled with rich brown sugar. The oak is at the center of the flavour, yet the tannins do not inhibit the other flavours in the rum from forming and delighting me.  Raisins, prunes, and dates give the rum an almost smoky quality while the impressions of nutty elements adds softness to the mouth-feel. Cinnamon and brown sugar weave throughout and the rum is an absolute marvel of complexity and balance…“

You may read the full review here:

Rum Review: El Dorado 21-Year-Old Rum

Please enjoy the review and remember that it is my aim to help you drink better rums not to help you drink more rums!

Posted in Dark Rums, Howls, Rum, Rum Reviews | Tagged: , , , , | Comments Off on Rum Review: El Dorado 21-Year-Old Rum

The Edmonton Whisky Festival Wrap-Up

Posted by Arctic Wolf on January 25, 2011

The 2nd Annual Edmonton Whisky Festival in support of the MS Society of Canada was a huge success. I helped a bit with the festival by blogging and telling everyone I could about the event. But the real force behind the Festival was the guys at Vines-Riverbend Wine Merchants (2331 Rabbit Hill Rd, Edmonton 780-434-9444).  They did all the work, and  volunteered their time and their knowledge and produced a fantastic event!

Some of the highlights of the event included the attendance of a few whisky dignitaries from home and abroad.  John H. Hall the Owner of and Whisky Maker for Forty Creek Whisky poured so much of his new Confederation Oak Canadian Whisky that it was gone by 9:00 PM.  Andrew Gray of Bruichladdich Distilleries was pouring a few of the new Laddies from Bruichladdich’s impressive line-up and seemed to have a large crowd around him at all times throughout the night.  James Robertson, The International Sales Rep for Tullibardine, was in attendance as well.  I chatted briefly with Mr. Robertson having met him at last year’s festival and at other whisky events over the past two years. His enthusiasm is infectious and I had more than one dram of his wonderful Tullies. I also saw Jamie MacKenzie, the Regional Manager (North America) for Morrison Bowmore Distillers tempting everyone with the whiskies from Bowmore and Auchentoshan.

Of course all that name dropping is just to get those people who did not attend a little jealous so that they get their tickets next year to support the MS Society.  The event raised over $10,000.00 which was a full 60 % more than last years efforts.

I offer my hearty congratulations to the fellows at Vines in Riverbend who were the driving force behind the festival!  You did great, and you can count on my continued assistance in this worthwhile venture.

The Crowd at the festival was impressive, as everyone seemed to thoroughly enjoy themselves!

 

Posted in Howls | Tagged: , , | Comments Off on The Edmonton Whisky Festival Wrap-Up

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