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Posts Tagged ‘Canadian Whisky’

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#Top100CanadianWhiskies – #52 Collingwood Toasted Maplewood

Posted by Arctic Wolf on November 2, 2017

Collingwood Toasted Maplewood Finish is produced at the Canadian Mist Distillery in Collingwood Ontario.This is of course the Distillery which produces its namesake brand, Canadian Mist, which is one of the best-selling Canadian Whiskies in North America. Most of those sales are in the USA where over 4 million cases of Canadian Mist are consumed annually.

This is a premium brand which is positioned a little higher on the rungs of the whisky ladder so to speak. However, it would be wrong to think of Collingwood as a more mature or refined Canadian Mist. It is produced from its own recipe and finished in a manner which gives the spirit a unique twist. Once the whisky is mature and has been blended, it is left in stainless marrying vats where its flavour is enhanced with staves of maple which have also been added to those vats. This process is unique as far as Canadian Whisky goes, and promises to bring a new flavour component into the landscape of Canadian Whisky

Here is a link to the #52 Canadian Whisky of 2017:

Review: Collingwood Toasted Maplewood Finish Canadian Whisky

“… The spirit begins its traverse through the mouth with initial flavours of butterscotch toffee and sour fermented fruit. There is a nice spicy rye flavour rolling through which is chased across the palate by flavours of corn and dark spicy tobacco and licorice …”

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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, Whisk(e)y Review, Whisky Review | Tagged: , , , , , , , | Comments Off on #Top100CanadianWhiskies – #52 Collingwood Toasted Maplewood

#Top100CanadianWhiskies – #55 Stalk and Barrel Red Blend

Posted by Arctic Wolf on October 30, 2017

Barry Bernstein and Barry Stein own and run the Still Water Distillery, Ontario’s first micro-distillery which they founded in 2009. They not only manage the distillation and the blending of the Still Waters’ products, they also act as the distillery’s Chief Bottle Washers and Bottle Fillers. In fact, there is not a single aspect of their business that they do not either personally oversee or do themselves.

According to the producer’s website Stalk and Barrel Rye is:

” … created by using a high percentage of our aged single malt and rye, blended together with selected casks of aged corn. This extraordinarily smooth yet complex mix of sweet malt and plump Canadian rye is imbued with intense flavours, richness, and full body.”

Here is a link to the full review:

Review: Stalk and Barrel Red Blend

“… full of wood and dusty rye spices with grain building in the background. It really is quite nice. Soon vanilla rises out of the glass followed by wisps of butterscotch and maple. There is a light maltiness that comes through more clearly as the glass breathes and light indications of marmalade and almond …”

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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, Whisk(e)y Review, Whisky Review | Tagged: , , , , , , , | Comments Off on #Top100CanadianWhiskies – #55 Stalk and Barrel Red Blend

#Top100CanadianWhisky – #59 TAP 8 Rye (Sherry Finished)

Posted by Arctic Wolf on October 26, 2017

TAP 8 Rye (Sherry Finished) is a blend 8-year-old pot distilled Canadian Whiskies which are then blended with Spanish Amontillado sherry. According to its LCBO listing it is produced in Quebec by Maison Des Futailles. It appears to be distributed in North America by Prestige Spirits.

The moniker TAP 8 appears to be a play on words with the number 8 representing the 8 years of aging the Canadian (rye) Whisky is aged and TAP refers to the tapping of maple trees as the original TAP 8 357 Canadian Whisky was  flavoured with real maple syrup.

Review: TAP 8 Rye (Sherry Finished) 

“… nose is full of dusty rye with hints of pencil shavings and wood spice. It takes a while but some sweetness begins to arrive more like butterscotch than maple, as well as hints of raisins and canned apricots. As I let the glass breathe the impression of sweetness builds threatening to overtake the rye …

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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, Whisk(e)y Review, Whisky Review | Tagged: , , , , , , | Comments Off on #Top100CanadianWhisky – #59 TAP 8 Rye (Sherry Finished)

Davin De Kergommeaux: The Rock Star of Canadian Whisky

Posted by Arctic Wolf on October 20, 2017

Davin De Kergommeaux

Last night I attended a special Whisky Tasting presented by Canada’s very own, Davin De Kergommeaux, whom I affectionately name The Rock Star of Canadian Whisky. Davin might be a little (or maybe a lot) embarrassed by the title I have given him, but t is hard to argue the influence he has had upon the landscape of Canadian Whisky.

Davin is a certified Malt Maniac and trained sommelier who has been analyzing, writing, and talking about whisky, as an independent commentator, for nearly two decades. I encountered Davin soon after I began writing about and reviewing spirits in 2009. Davin reached out to me because of a common bond, a love for Canadian Whisky. He recognized from my reviews and commentary that we both believed our National Spirit deserved to be placed on an equal footing with the wonderful Single Malts from Scotland and American Bourbons.

Davin not only believed this, he intended to do something about it. This began with Canadian Whisky, his website dedicated to not only reviews, but also news and well-aimed commentary regarding the industry in Canada and its failure to promote its spirit worldwide as a world-class whisky. He also created the independent Canadian Whisky Awards carefully choosing a wide cross-section of whisky judges from differing backgrounds and from different regions of Canada to help him as jurors and to promote the Awards not only in Canada, but across North America. His Canadian Whisky Awards have become the most prominent signal bearers of excellence in the Canadian Whisky industry.

Davin’s next step was perhaps his boldest. Armed with his extensive knowledge of the raw materials from which whisky is made (he spent six years in university studying the grains from which whisky is made, barley, wheat, rye and corn) as well as with his notes from his personal experiences visiting whisky distilleries across Canada, De Kergommeaux (in 2012) published his award-winning book, Canadian Whisky: the portable expert.

The impact of his book has been huge as Davin lampoons the critics of Canadian Whisky by undermining the myths that permeate their arguments. Not only did his critics take notice; but the entire Whisky Industry took notice as well. It is now not unusual for Davin to be invited to the largest distilleries in North America to discuss the production of Whisky with the World’s best distillers and Master Blenders. Crown Royal even asked Davin to select one of the first barrels for their 2015 release of Crown Royal Hand Selected Barrel, one of the first single barrel releases in the history of Canadian Whisky.

And all of this finally brings me to the point of my essay and the reason that Davin is touring the country like a rock star. That book that Davin wrote that is revolutionizing the way that Canadian Whisky is being viewed on the world stage; it has just been revised and updated, and once again Davin has knocked it out of the park.

Canadian Whisky The New Portable Expert – Second Edition is once again the most complete story of Canadian Whisky ever written and it includes very important new information regarding the new micro-distilling revolution that is taking place across North America. As a reference book alone, Davin’s book will be invaluable to any student of whisky, Canadian or otherwise as within its pages is a treasure trove of information about the production and history of spirit we call whisky. However, much more importantly, Davin has remembered that the story of Canadian Whisky is just that,  a story. And that story is fascinating. Frankly, once you pick it up, The New Portable Expert is hard to put down.

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Canadian Whisky The New Portable Expert – Second Edition is available in bookstores across Canada. It can also be ordered online (here).

Posted in Books, Extras | Tagged: , , , | Comments Off on Davin De Kergommeaux: The Rock Star of Canadian Whisky

#Top100Canadian Whisky of 2017: #66 Stalk and Barrel Rye

Posted by Arctic Wolf on October 19, 2017

Barry Bernstein and Barry Stein own and run the Still Water Distillery, Ontario’s first micro-distillery which they founded in 2009.

According to the their website Stalk and Barrel Rye is made 100 % from locally grown Ontario rye grain distilled by hand in small batches in the distillery’s small copper pot still. The whisky is matured in ex-bourbon casks 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% alcohol by volume.

Here is a link to my review of the Number 66 Canadian Whisky of 2017:

Review: Stalk and Barrel Rye

“… dusty grain and wood spice & rye. Fine wood spices build with light butterscotch and grassy tobacco. Chaff and straw, grain stubble …”

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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, Extras | Tagged: , , , , , , , | Comments Off on #Top100Canadian Whisky of 2017: #66 Stalk and Barrel Rye

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