The Rum Howler Blog

(A Website for Spirited Reviews)

  • Copyright

    Copyright is inherent when an original work is created. This means that the producer of original work is automatically granted copyright protection. This copyright protection not only exists in North America, but extends to other countries as well. Thus, all of the work produced on this blog is protected by copyright, including all of the pictures and all of the articles. These original works may not be copied or reused in any way whatsoever without the permission of the author, Chip Dykstra.
  • Cocktails and Recipes

    Click Image for Awesome Recipes

  • Industry Interviews

    Interviews

    Click the Image for Great Interviews with the Movers of Industry

  • The Rum Howler Interview (Good Food Revolution)

    Click on the Image to see my interview on Good Food Revolution

  • The Rum Howler Blog

  • Rum Reviews

  • Whisky Reviews

  • Gin Reviews

  • Tequila Reviews

  • Vodka Reviews

  • Enter your email address to subscribe to this blog and receive notifications of new posts by email.

    Join 1,066 other subscribers
  • Subscribe

  • Visitors

    • 14,376,913 pageviews since inception
  • Archives

  • Follow The Rum Howler Blog on WordPress.com

Posts Tagged ‘Wiser’s’

Review: J.P. Wiser’s 15 Year Old Canadian Whisky

Posted by Arctic Wolf on July 29, 2018

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. Today Wiser’s is distilled at the Hiram Walker Distillery in Walkerville, Ontario, and aged in their facilities at Pike Creek near Lakeshore Ontario. Through all of these changes the Wiser’s Brand has been recognized as a vital component of each company’s portfolio of brands.

J.P. Wiser’s 15 Year Old Canadian Whisky (bottled at 40% alcohol by volume) was recently released across Canada.

Here is a link to my full review:

Review: J.P. Wiser’s 15 Year Old Canadian Whisky

” … Smooth and yummy with a rich toffee-like flavour of wood and grain spices melded butterscotch and maple. Canned fruit as noted above is joined by light impressions of raisins and a very light cherry-like impression similar to red licorice (Turkish Delight). The vanilla has joined with the orange peel bringing impressions of marmalade. Rich tobacco and new leather with an underpinning of almond syrup …”

Chimo!

Advertisement

Posted in Canadian Whisky, Whisk(e)y, Whisky Review | Tagged: , , , , | Comments Off on Review: J.P. Wiser’s 15 Year Old Canadian Whisky

Rum Howler 2016 Top 50 Canadian Whisky Countdown: #20 – Wiser’s Small Batch

Posted by Arctic Wolf on December 5, 2016

rum-howler-top-50-2016Wiser’s Small Batch Canadian Whisky was released in the fall of 2008 replacing the Wiser’s Reserve. There were a few important differences in Wiser’s Small Batch which made it somewhat unique as far Canadian Whisky is concerned. First, it is made in small batches using traditional distilling methods, hence the name Wiser’s Small Batch, and secondly, the bottling strength is 43.4 % rather than the traditional 40 %. This slightly higher strength should allow the whisky to display more texture in the mouth and a more concentrated flavour and aroma.

small-batch-sam_2815Wiser’s Small Batch Canadian Whisky has not yet been re-branded into the new J.P. Wiser’s family of whiskies. Hopefully this is not a signal from the brand owner that the whisky is soon to be replaced as the Small Batch is a regular attendant in my annual top Canadian Whisky Countdowns. This year it is number 21.

Here is a link to my newly revised review:

20: Wiser’s Small Batch Canadian Whisky

“… Wiser’s Small Batch is soft and supple on the tongue with hot oak spices which carry a bevy of flavour along for the ride across the palate. I taste some fresh oak and cedar; some sweet caramel, butterscotch and maple; soft corn and spicy rye; some light impressions of honeycomb and tobacco, and some delicious canned fruit (marmalade, apricots and pears). As I let the whisky sit in my mouth a Demerara sweetness forms with brown sugar and spice combining with honey to present a richly flavoured toffee …”

Stay tuned as the countdown continues tomorrow with the number 19 Canadian Whisky.

Chimo!

_______________________________________________________

* You may follow my 2016 Canadian Whisky Countdown by bookmarking this link:

The Rum Howler – Top 50 Canadian Whiskies of 2016

 

 

Posted in Awards, Canadian Whisky, Extras, Whisk(e)y, Whisk(e)y Review | Tagged: , , , , , , , | Comments Off on Rum Howler 2016 Top 50 Canadian Whisky Countdown: #20 – Wiser’s Small Batch

The Rum Howler’s #3 Canadian Whisky of 2015 – Wiser’s Red Letter

Posted by Arctic Wolf on December 22, 2015

Red Letter SAM_1386Wiser’s Red Letter was re-introduced to Canadians in 2007 to pay homage to the 150th anniversary of John Philip Wiser’s distillery in Prescott, Ontario 1857 – 2007), as well as to the original Red Letter Whisky which Wiser’s produced in the late 1800s. In 2009, when I reviewed the inaugural 150th Adversary Edition (see review here), I was told by my contacts within Corby, that the spirit contained various blends of whisky which (although they ranged in age) were all ten years old or more. After these mature whiskies were blended they were then finished in virgin white oak barrels for 150 days. Once the final characteristic of flavour had been achieved, the Red Letter was bottled at 45 % alcohol by volume (non chill filtered). In developing the spirit, the folks at Wiser’s apparently researched the original J.P Wiser’s Red Letter 19th century recipe using it as a guideline to construct their celebratory whisky.

In 2013, Corby once again in a tribute to their founder J.P Wiser released Wiser’s Red Letter Whisky. As with the 150th Anniversary Edition the whisky was finished in virgin white oak casks and then bottled without chill filtering at 45 % abv..

Here is a link to the Rum Howler #3 Canadian Whisky of 2015:

Wiser’s Red Letter

“… The immediate nose is full of corn and bourbon-like smells rich in vanilla, maple, toffee and honeycomb. Corby’s Canadian Whisky Ambassador shared with me that the spirit is predominantly a corn whisky, and the nose certainly verifies this claim. As the glass sits the oak begins to make a larger presence …”

__________________________________________________________

You may read about the Top 25 Canadian Whisky Countdown here:

The Rum Howler 2015 Top 25 Canadian Whiskies

Posted in Awards, Canadian Whisky, Extras, Whisk(e)y, Whisk(e)y Review | Tagged: , , , , , , | Comments Off on The Rum Howler’s #3 Canadian Whisky of 2015 – Wiser’s Red Letter

#9 Wiser’s Very Old 18 Year (Rum Howler Top 100 Spirits)

Posted by Arctic Wolf on December 16, 2015

Wiser's 18 SAM_1885

In the early 2000s, Wiser’s 18 Years Old Canadian Whisky carried the moniker ‘Very Old, and it was usually my whisky of choice when I wanted a special treat. By the time my website had opened, the spirit had been re-branded as Wiser’s 18 Year Old Limited Edition as such I never reviewed the whisky from the ‘Very Old’ bottle. However, in my collection of rare spirits, I still have a few that I purchased from that time before I began to write reviews. When I began my tasting deliberations for this countdown, I decided to sample one of these older bottles (purchased in 2006) next to some of my current favourites. It turns out, that in 2006 when the spirit was called still Wiser’s Very Old , it was quite spectacular (at least the 2006 version was).

Here is the review for that particular bottle of whisky which arrives as the #9 Spirit in my Rum Howler Top 100 Spirits Countdown.

#9 – Wiser’s Very Old (18 Years Old)

“… as I waited for a moment, the nose coalesced into a deep dark rich baking spice aroma with dark brown sugars,  rich toffee, vanilla, and wisps of cinnamon.  It is a wonderfully rich aroma.  Behind the rich baking spices is a rich oak sap imparting a sturdy backdrop of oak wood and tannin.  This is the type of whisky aroma which makes my mouth water in anticipation of what is coming next …”

________________________________________________________________

You may follow my Countdown list of the 100 Best Spirits here: The Rum Howler 2015 – Top 100 Spirits

 

 

Posted in Awards, Canadian Whisky, Extras, Whisk(e)y, Whisk(e)y Review | Tagged: , , , , , , | Comments Off on #9 Wiser’s Very Old 18 Year (Rum Howler Top 100 Spirits)

# 25b Wiser’s Red Letter Whisky 2013 Release

Posted by Arctic Wolf on November 30, 2015

Wiser’s Red Letter was re-introduced to Canadians in 2007 to pay homage to the 150th anniversary of John Philip Wiser’s distillery in Prescott, Ontario 1857 – 2007), as well as to the original Red Letter Whisky which Wiser’s produced in the late 1800s. In 2009, when I reviewed the inaugural 150th Adversary Edition (see review here), I was told by my contacts within Corby, that the spirit contained various blends of whisky which (although they ranged in age) were all ten years old or more. After these mature whiskies were blended they were then finished in virgin white oak barrels for 150 days. Once the final characteristic of flavour had been achieved, the Red Letter was bottled at 45 % alcohol by volume (non chill filtered).

Red Letter SAM_1386 Two years ago, Corby once again in a tribute to their founder J.P Wiser released Wiser’s Red Letter Whisky 2013 Release. As with the 150th Anniversary Edition the whisky was finished in virgin white oak casks and then bottled without chill filtering at 45 % abv..

Here is a link to the review of the second #25 spirit on my Rum Howler Top 100 Spirits Countdown of the best spirits I have ever tasted.

#25b – Wiser’s Red Letter Whisky 2013 Release

“… The 2013 version has all the wonderful flavour and zest of the 2007, but (to me anyways) there seems to be an added layer of silky elegance this time around. I taste a firm presence of sharp wood spices and orange peel, however, this sharpness ( which I am sure is also due to the 90 bottling proof) is contrasted by the silky mouth feel of a luscious corn whisky. Honeycomb and maple flavours slide through the hot spiciness of the whisky, and soon the orange peel tastes more like marmalade, and the fine wood spices more like a nice spicy maple toffee …”

________________________________________________________________

You may follow my Countdown list of the 100 Best Spirits here: The Rum Howler 2015 – Top 100 Spirits

Posted in Awards, Canadian Whisky, Extras, Whisk(e)y, Whisk(e)y Review | Tagged: , , , , , , , | Comments Off on # 25b Wiser’s Red Letter Whisky 2013 Release

 
%d bloggers like this: