Late in October, of 2012, I was able to have a one on one meeting with Hiram Walker Distillery Master Blender, Dr. Don Livermore. It was supposed to be an interview, but instead, it morphed into an information session where Dr. Livermore began to teach me about all things pertaining to Canadian Whisky with a particular emphasis on how they do things at the Hiram Walker Distillery.
One of the many things we talked about was the re-release of Lot No. 40 Single Copper Pot Still Canadian Whisky (2012 Edition). Dr. Livermore, told me the whisky was first released in the 1990’s as an upscale connoisseur’s whisky for the North American market. Alas, timing is everything, and according to Don, the whisky never really caught on as the market wasn’t quite ready for such a new style of Canadian Whisky. With the new upsurge of interest in Canadian Whisky across North America (and in particular at the premium end of the market), Corby (the owner of the Wiser’s Brand), was optimistic that the time for this whisky has finally arrived.
And I guess you could say that I agree, as it is the #60 spirit on my Rum Howler Top 100 Spirits Countdown.
#60 – Lot No. 40 Single Copper Pot Still Canadian Whisky (2012 Edition)
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You may follow my Countdown list of the 100 Best Spirits here: The Rum Howler 2015 – Top 100 Spirits
Although the naval tradition of the daily tot had ended, in 1979 Charles Tobias obtained the rights and the blending information for the British Naval Rum, and formed Pusser’s Ltd. on Tortola in the British Virgin Islands. His company produces their Pusser’s Rum following the blending information and the traditions of the Admiralty, including producing the rum from wooden pot stills just as the had been the tradition for over 200 years.
The ages of the various XO Borderies eaux-de-vie which make up the blend must be (by law) a minimum of six years of age, although to achieve the desired flavour profile, it would not be unusual for some of the specific Cognac in the blend to be aged much longer, in fact some of the Cognac for the CAMUS XO Borderies may be aged as for long as 30 years.
Ron Millonario Solera 15 Reserva Especial in particular, is produced from a 4 stage Solera process with the final stage bringing the oldest rum in the blend to 15 years. (Based upon the information sent to me by the brand owner, the youngest rum in the blend would 8 years.)
In 2009, Single Barrel bottlings from 1998 began to appear in the Alberta marketplace. The particular 1998 vintage bottle that caught my attention was bottle number 413 which was set in oak on September 9, 1998, and bottled April 18, 2008.
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