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Archive for the ‘Whisky Review’ Category

#Top100CanadianWhisky – #82 Twelve Barrels

Posted by Arctic Wolf on October 3, 2017

Twelve Barrels Canadian Whisky is the creation of Cole Miller of Napanee, Ontario. Although the whisky is produced by a third-party distillery, Cole apparently based his recipe upon the whisky produced by a local whisky making legend, John Meagher who began making wheat whisky on the shores of the Napanee River in 1853. Soon thereafter he began he learned of the robust flavour of Canadian rye and added that grain to the mix. (The recipe also contains corn.)

The moniker for the whisky (Twelve Barrels) is apparently derived from another Napanee legend, George ‘the Jumper’ Meagher, (son of Whisky Maker, John Meagher) who was a locally renowned hockey player and the 1896 World Figure Skating Champion. Besides being a World Champion, George’s other great claim to fame was that he, while skating, was able to leap over an amazing twelve whisky barrels.

Here is a link to the # 83 Canadian Whisky of 2017:

Review: Twelve Barrels Canadian Whisky

“… The initial nose brings a combination butterscotch and almond with vanilla and hints of burlap. As I let the glass sit dusty rye and wood spice notes develop with hints of orange peel zest … “

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Note: As indicated earlier, I will not be creating a posting for every whisky in my countdown on this website; but I am going to try to highlight every Canadian spirit that I have not reviewed previously.

To follow the countdown list on a daily basis, 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:

The Rum Howler – Top 100 Canadian Whiskies of 2017

The Reveal Page will be updated at least weekly through September, October and November and then daily in December.

Posted in Canadian Whisky, Whisk(e)y, Whisky Review | Tagged: , , , , , , | Comments Off on #Top100CanadianWhisky – #82 Twelve Barrels

#Top100CanadianWhisky – #88 J.P. Wiser’s 35 Year Old

Posted by Arctic Wolf on September 28, 2017

John Philip (J.P.) Wiser, purchased a distillery in Prescott Ontario in 1857, and began to produce Wiser’s Whisky.  In fact, it may have been J.P. Wiser who first used the term “Canadian Whiskey” on a whisky label when he introduced his spirit to the World at the Chicago’s World Fair in 1893. From the beginning J.P. Wiser established his brand as a quality whisky with high standards of production.

Recently, J.P. Wiser’s released their oldest production Canadian Whisky, J.P. Wiser’s 35 Year Old. The whisky is part of their new Northern Border Collection and is constructed from a mix of well aged corn and rye grain whiskies (predominantly corn). The spirit was released with remarkably little fanfare across the country just before the Christmas gift giving season.

Here is a link to my full review:

Review: J.P. Wiser’s 35 Year Old Whisky

“… Then some lovely deep smells of maple began to build with vanilla and lush baking spices (cinnamon, brown sugar, with hints of both nutmeg and cloves.) Nutty almond impressions began to give way to marzipan and alongside were fruity smells of canned apricots and marmalade. As the glass sits the rich aroma continues to deepen …”

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Note: As indicated earlier, I will not be creating a posting for every whisky in my countdown on this website; but I am going to try to highlight every Canadian spirit that I have not reviewed previously.

To follow the countdown list on a daily basis, 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:

The Rum Howler – Top 100 Canadian Whiskies of 2017

The Reveal Page will be updated at least weekly through September, October and November and then daily in December.

Posted in Awards, Canadian Whisky, Extras, Whisk(e)y, Whisky Review | Tagged: , , , , , , , | Comments Off on #Top100CanadianWhisky – #88 J.P. Wiser’s 35 Year Old

#Top100CanadianWhisky – #91 Shelter Point Artisanal Single Malt Whisky

Posted by Arctic Wolf on September 25, 2017

The 10th spirit revealed in my Rum Howler 2017 Top 100 Canadian Whiskies Countdown is Shelter Point Artisanal Single Malt Whisky which is distilled in small batches on Vancouver Island (British Columbia).

To make their single malt whisky, Shelter Point uses a single grain approach, and the Canadian barley used for distillation is grown right on their own family farm (in Oyster River) and never blended with other grains. The water source is the spring water that comes from the mountain-fed aquifer directly beneath the Island.

Perhaps the only things that aren’t sourced locally are the oak barrels, which were sourced from Kentucky bourbon distillers, and the massive copper pot stills which came from Scotland.

Here is a link to my full review:

Review: Shelter Point Artisanal Single Malt Whisky

“… The nose contains a light punky corn scent which indicates fresh bourbon barrels used to age the spirit. Alongside the corn I notice maple and wood spice, some musty burlap, almond and a few tinges of sour fruit. There is an herbal tinge in the air which hints at anise and licorice as well as a few hints of mint and menthol …”

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Note: As indicated earlier, I will not be creating a posting for every whisky in my countdown on this website; but I am going to try to highlight every Canadian spirit that I have not reviewed previously.

To follow the countdown list on a daily basis, 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:

The Rum Howler – Top 100 Canadian Whiskies of 2017

The Reveal Page will be updated at least weekly through September, October and November and then daily in December.

Posted in Awards, Canadian Whisky, Extras, Single Malt Whisky, Whisk(e)y, Whisk(e)y Review, Whisky Review | Tagged: , , , , , , , | Comments Off on #Top100CanadianWhisky – #91 Shelter Point Artisanal Single Malt Whisky

#94 Canadian Whisky: Stalk & Barrel Single Malt

Posted by Arctic Wolf on September 22, 2017

Still Waters proudly proclaim themselves Ontario’s first Micro-Distillery. They commenced operations in the fall of 2009 and produced their first new-make spirit just two months after they received their custom German-made pot still. In 2014, the Still Water’s Distillery began bottling their first batches of their own 100 % Hand-Crafted Canadian Single Malt Whisky an I was able to sample and review the whisky from their first two casks. (See here and here)

According to the information on the Still Waters Website their Single Malt whisky is:

“Made from 100% Canadian two-row malted barley. We mash, ferment, and distill by hand in small batches in a copper pot still. Our whisky is aged in ex-bourbon casks on site for a minimum of three years. Each barrel is bottled individually as a single cask offering in individually numbered bottles, offered at either cask strength or at 46% alc./vol. No additives nor colouring and no chill-filtering.”

Here is a link to my full review:

Review: Stalk and Barrel Single Malt 

“… The initial nose is full of wood and grain spice with additional cigarette tobacco, dusty chaff, indications of almonds and some sweet and sour fruit …”

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Note: As indicated earlier, I will not be creating a posting for every whisky in my countdown on this website; but I am going to try to highlight every Canadian spirit that I have not reviewed previously.

To follow the countdown list on a daily basis, 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:

The Rum Howler – Top 100 Canadian Whisky of 2017

The Reveal Page will be updated at least weekly through September, October and November and then daily in December.

 

Posted in Awards, Canadian Whisky, Extras, Whisk(e)y, Whisk(e)y Review, Whisky Review | Tagged: , , , , , , , | Comments Off on #94 Canadian Whisky: Stalk & Barrel Single Malt

Oh My: The Rum Howler – Top 100 Canadian Whiskies of 2017

Posted by Arctic Wolf on September 15, 2017

Tomorrow, I will begin to reveal my largest ever round-up of Canadian Whisky, The Top 100 Canadian Whiskies of 2017.

That’s right, the best 100 Canadian Whiskies in the nation!

When I published my first such list for Canadian Whisky in 2013, I was only able to include 25 spirits. Even then, I remember one person commenting on my website that they didn’t even know that there were 25 different Canadian Whiskies. Things have really changed. Most major distilleries in Canada have broadened their whisky portfolios by added new whisky brands. We may have lost some brands (for example Highwood Distillers have recently discontinued their Century 21 Reserve and Lot1525 Reserve); but many more brands have been added. In addition to the new brands available from Canada’s major distillers, we have had a sudden influx of new Micro-distillers (some like Shelter Point in British Columbia are not so micro) across the Country who in the last few years have began to market and sell their whisky regionally and across Canada.

As well as being the largest such list I have ever compiled, this list is also current. All of the Whiskies on this list are available in Canada at this time. I have also tasted and reviewed all of these whiskies within the past three years. Most of the reviews were based upon full bottle samples provided to me by industry; however, in order to include many of the new regional whiskies, and the new spirits from our young Micro-distilling industry, I also have included whiskies which I tasted and reviewed based upon the samples and tasting notes I generated as a juror for the 2017 Canadian Whisky Awards. (Davin De Kergommeaux does a great job with these awards, and last year in particular he did a fantastic job in discovering new Canadian Whiskies for the judges to rank and score.)

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Unlike other years, I am not planning to reveal every whisky with a front page posting (I will be revealing each whisky one at a time on Twitter instead.) However, I will be providing a front page post whenever the countdown reaches a whisky which I have either not reviewed before or a whisky whose character has changed such that a new review is needed. Additionally, when I reach the final 25 to Canadian Whiskies in early December, (just before Christmas), I will reveal those best spirits in a daily countdown as I have in years past.

This means that to follow the entire list on a daily basis, you should follow me on twitter (Rum Howler on Twitter). And then in December follow my postings here of the Rum Howler Blog.

Another easy way to follow the countdown is to view the list as it grows by viewing my Reveal Page:

The Rum Howler – Top 100 Canadian Whiskies of 2017

The Reveal Page will be updated at least weekly through September, October and November and then daily in December.

This is my largest Canadian Whisky Countdown ever, I hope you all enjoy it!
( PS: use the hashtags  #Rumhowler  #Top100CanadianWhisky)

 

 

Posted in Awards, Canadian Whisky, Extras, Whisky Review | Tagged: , , , , | Comments Off on Oh My: The Rum Howler – Top 100 Canadian Whiskies of 2017