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Posts Tagged ‘Beam Spirits’

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Review: Red Stag by Jim Beam

Posted by Arctic Wolf on January 23, 2011

For the past two weeks I have been reviewing some bourbon whiskey which I  received in a collection of sample jars from the personal collection of  J. Leslie Wheelock, (a member of the Alberta Beam Global team), which spanned an impressive range of unique whiskies from Canada, Scotland, and the USA.  This week I dipped into the samples and chose Sample Jar # 14, Red Stag  Black Cherry Flavoured Bourbon.

Red Stag Flavoured Bourbon is a black cherry flavoured, 4-year-old, Jim Beam Bourbon. It appears to be intended primarily for the mixing of cocktails and bar drinks although it has been suggested that it can be enjoyed as a sipper as well.

For the purposes of the review I broke the process into two parts. The first part of the review process involved five independent taste sessions (about one ounce each) consumed neat and with ice, and I drew my tasting notes from that part of the review process. I then constructed a few cocktails including two which I found on the Red Stag Website (The Brass Buck and Red Stag and Cola).  I used these cocktails to round out the review with ancillary information regarding the suitability of the flavoured Whiskey for bar style cocktail drinks.

You may read the results of my research here:

Review: Red Stag Flavoured Bourbon

And please remember that the intention of my blog is to help you drink better spirits, not more spirits!

Please enjoy the review and the cocktails which follow:

Posted in American Whiskey, Cocktails & Recipes, Flavoured Whisky, Whisk(e)y, Whisk(e)y Review | Tagged: , , , , | Comments Off on Review: Red Stag by Jim Beam

Whisky Review: Canadian Club Premium

Posted by Arctic Wolf on January 19, 2011

Hiram Walker was the visionary American entrepreneur (born in New England), that immigrated north to Ontario and set about creating a most distinctive brand of Canadian Whisky which became known as Canadian Club. Although he began his distilling days in Michigan, he perfected his craft north of the American border in what would become Walkerville, Ontario. The whisky which Hiram Walker created was unique. He utilized methods of production which were not just unusual, but actual contrary to common whisky practices of the day, and his Canadian Club whisky is even today made in that contrary fashion being the only major whisky brand in the world to be blended before being aged in oak barrels, (Blended at Birth).

Canadian Club Whisky is now the oldest (and probably the most influential) Canadian Whisky brand in the world.  It is found in over 150 countries, with sales in Canada that are unmatched by any other whisky brand. The company has been granted numerous Royal Warrants from Queen Victoria to Queen Elizabeth and it has been reported that Canadian Club was the whisky of choice when Al Capone smuggled thousands of Cases of Canadian Whisky into the USA during prohibition.

Today Canadian Club Premium is the flagship brand for the company. It is aged for a minimum of 6 years in white oak barrels and bottled at 40 per cent alcohol by volume.  Still ‘Blended at Birth’, the whisky affectionately called C.C. by its adherents is practically a Canadian Institution.

Here is a snippet from my review:

“….The flavour is full of damp tobacco and fermenting fruit flavours. The C.C. whisky is spicy too, with oak tannins disguised as orange peel zest heating up the mouth. Caramel flavours seep in and out as does an impression of vanilla….”

My full review may be read here:

Review: Canadian Club Premium

As is my usual style I have included my favourite Canadian Club cocktail at the end of my review.

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

Whiskey Review: Jim Beam Kentucky Straight Bourbon

Posted by Arctic Wolf on January 15, 2011

Two weeks ago I began a series of reviews based upon a collection of whisk(e)y samples provided from the personal collection of J.L. Wheelock, a member of the Beam Global team here in Alberta. Part of the sample set of whiskies were a selection of Bourbon Whiskeys from the Jim Beam Distillery.  I was not given a sample of Jim Beam Kentucky Straight Bourbon as part of this sample group; however, I happened to have a small 375 ml flask of Jim Beam on hand  so I thought that I would provide a review of the flagship whiskey of the Jim Beam brand as part of this series of reviews.

The Jim Beam distillery was founded in 1795,  and it has been operated as a family run business for seven generations.  Currently Jim Beam Straight Kentucky Bourbon is produced at the Clermont Distillery in Frankfort, Kentucky, and (according to the Jim Beam Website) is the best-selling bourbon in the world.  The spirit is aged for 4 years in white American oak barrels and bottled at 40 % alcohol by volume.

The bottle I am reviewing is the 375 ml flask style bottle pictured to the left.

Here is an excerpt from my review:

“…The aroma from the glass is one of rough timbers freshly cut. A waft of vanilla rises with the timbers, and deeper down we have some dank corn and oodles of raw honeycomb.  Waiting for a minute or so I also catch some toffee aroma building in the glass as well…”

You may read the full review here:

Review: Jim Beam Kentucky Straight Bourbon Whiskey

As well I have included my version of a nice cocktail called The Kentucky Margarita. Please enjoy the review.

Posted in American Whiskey, Cocktails & Recipes, Whisk(e)y, Whisk(e)y Review | Tagged: , , , , | Comments Off on Whiskey Review: Jim Beam Kentucky Straight Bourbon

Review: Maker’s 46 Kentucky Bourbon Whiskey

Posted by Arctic Wolf on January 11, 2011

I mentioned a week ago that I had received a collection of sample jars from the personal collection of  J. Leslie Wheelock, (a member of the Alberta Beam Global team), which spanned an impressive range of unique whiskies from Canada, Scotland, and the USA.  This week I dipped into the samples and chose Sample Jar # 13, Maker’s 46 Kentucky Bourbon Whiskey.

Maker’s 46 Kentucky Bourbon Whiskey begins where Maker’s Mark Straight Kentucky Bourbon Whiskey ends. Bill Samuels, Sr. is credited with creating the first version of Maker’s Mark in 1954. After a few years of practice the folks at the Maker’s Mark Distillery have been producing this whiskey the same way since 1958. The process begins with pure limestone fed spring-water; follows with yellow corn, red winter wheat, and natural malted barley; continues with a unique milling, cooking, and fermentation process; and ends in a small batch distillation and moving (eg; rotating) barrel aging process. Of course the final result is tested and tasted to make sure it is just right.

In a recent display of innovation, Master Distiller Kevin Smith, began a sort of ‘trial and error’ series of experiments to come up with a new twist on the Maker’s Mark. In December 2009, Maker’s 46 was born. (click on the link to get the full story right from the Maker’s Mark Website.)

In a nutshell, fully aged Maker’s Mark is removed from its barrel, ten seared wooden staves are then placed inside of that barrel. (The staves are seared to caramelize the sugars in the wood.) These wooden staves are basically flat  panels of wood each about 4 inches wide and 12 to 18 inches long.  The aged Maker’s Mark is then put back into the barrel and aged several more months. When the proper taste profile is achieved, Maker’s 46 is removed from the barrel, bottled, corked and dipped.

I admit that after reading a little bit about Maker’s 46, I was eager to give my small sample a few tasting sessions and write down my impressions. Here is an excerpt from my review;

“….Maker’s 46 is surprisingly soft as it enters the palate, and I want to call this creamy  in spite of the rush of wooden timbers and heavy toffee that quickly builds. Things are not as sweet as the nose would have implied however, and impressions of drier fruit, tobacco and cocoa seem to take hold at mid palate with the oak spiciness expressing itself as cloves and cinnamon….”

You may read my full review here:

Review: Maker’s 46 Kentucky Bourbon Whiskey

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


Posted in American Whiskey, Whisk(e)y, Whisk(e)y Review | Tagged: , , , , , | Comments Off on Review: Maker’s 46 Kentucky Bourbon Whiskey

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