The Stillhead Distillery, founded by the Colebank Family, began operations in October of 2017 in Duncan British Columbia with a vision to distill the essence of Vancouver Island into their brands. They do this by adding distinct Vancouver Island ingredients to their products showcasing their home in every bottle.
Stillhead BC/QC Whisky Maple Syrup Cask Finish (that’s quite a mouthful) is the latest addition to the Stillhead whisky Portfolio. It is a 100% British Columbia rye grain whisky first aged in ex-bourbon casks for 3 to 4 years, and then it was finished in whisky barrels which had recently aged Grade A 100% pure, organic and unblended Maple Syrup from Cosman & Webb in Quebec.
This is, I believe, the first Maple Syrup Cask whisky I have tasted and reviewed. You can find my full review using the link provided below:
Review: Stillhead BC/QC Whisky Maple Syrup Cask Finish
I hope you enjoy this review which concludes with a nice suggest cocktail, The Barrel Rider.
Chimo!








Signal Hill is the name of a relatively new Canadian Whisky partially owned by Canadian actor Dan Aykroyd, the Blues Brother who also owns a stake in Crystal Head Vodka.
Last Mountain Single Cask Single Malt Whisky is produced in small batches at the Last Mountain Distillery in Lumsden Saskatchewan. I have been following the progress of this distillery since it first came to my attention when they opened their doors as Saskatchewan’s first micro-distillery in August of 2010. Back then, the Last Mountain Distillery was run by its two principals, Colin and Meredith Schmidt, the husband wife team who co-founded the operation. They began by selling vodka and whisky, and I was fortunate enough to be able to taste and review some of their earliest offerings.
Laird of Fintry Single Malt is produced in small batches at the Okanagan Spirits Craft Distillery. This whisky came to my attention when I was acting as a juror for the 2022 Canadian Whisky Awards. I ear marked my blind sample (No. 28 by the way) as one which stood out in its grouping and after the judging was complete and the whiskies were unblinded, I decided I should take the remainder of my sample and write up more detailed tasting notes. I was not surprised that Okanagan Spirits Craft Distillery was named 2022 Canadian Whisky Awards Craft Distillery of the Year based on the strength of this and the other whiskies in their growing portfolio.
The Shelter Point Farm and Distillery was established in 2011. It is located on 380 acres in Oyster River, BC, about halfway up the eastern side of Vancouver Island. The farm and distillery contains 2 kilometers of oceanfront, a natural mosaic of streams, a salmon-bearing river, wetlands, forests and fields which are all shared with native wildlife. This land has been farmed for generations and remains one of the last seaside farms on the Island.