Whisky Neighbour

It has been a great year for whisky in my house in 2017. Most of the expressions I’ve had or picked up have been modest and actually quite affordable, so my list reflects this. Everything I pick here is available for under $80.00 Canadian. However, I would hold up this list against many, more expensive expressions I’ve tried and each one here is a bottle I have enjoyed and so has company. Consider this an easy shopping list if you have not tried these yet! Here are a few short tasting notes. Top Irish : Redbreast 12 Cask strength rating: ✮✮✮✮✰ Subtle nose with some caramel or toffee sugar, the palate is smooth with a bit of nuttiness, more caramel and some pepper, the finish has a bit of oak and vanilla, not long. Strong, but easy to drink this. Top Scotch : Wilson & Morgan Barrel pick of Caol Ila 12 year rating: ✮✮✮✮✮ This expression has smoke that goes on for days. When I pour this, my wife always knows! On the palate there is balanced peat, oak spice, and some hon...

What a lovely way to finish off my Canadian Rye head to head comparisons. Today I pour a dram of Masterson’s 10 year straight rye and Lot 40 12 year Cask Strength. These are two amazing whiskies and if you are looking for a great rye, either is a solid choice. Here are my thoughts from today’s tasting. Masterson’s 10 year is distilled and aged by Alberta Distillers in Calgary, Alberta. I was not able to find out if the rye is unmalted, malted or some percentage of each. I do know it is 100 % rye and that it was aged for 10 years in new American Oak. That is an important detail. It turns out Masterson’s released a 10-year straight rye aged in Hungarian Oak, French Oak, and American Oak. I have only sampled the American Oak, but others who have tried each have agreed the American Oak is the best. Price in my area reflects that too with the Hungarian or French around $110.00 and the American Oak has jumped up to $173.00! The batch I am trying today is PSA3. On the nose this is light...

Canadian Club Chairman Select 100% Rye has been bringing up some solid scores and positive reviews lately. Earlier this year the Canadian 2017 Whisky Awards gave out a gold medal and the title “Sippin’ Whisky of the Year” to JP Wiser’s Double Still Rye. When I sat down to think of some good Canadian rye to put Head to Head, these two came quickly to mind and I’m very glad I did. I enjoy both of these expressions, but find them fairly unique from each other while still providing interesting rye notes. When I approach Canadian Club 100% Rye I find the nose inviting, but subtle. The grain notes are soft, the wood is hardly there, but there are a few sweet notes. Although it is not very floral, there is a little spice and it is interesting enough to start to think of how it might taste. On the palate I find this smooth with a little sweetness of vanilla. The baking spices are there, but also not overwhelming. With time they can become more interesting but if you only have one dram, you...

A quick Friday review of Knob Creek Straight rye. I have had this bottle around, unopened for a while but with all the rye coming out in Canada I thought I better open it up and give it a chance. I do not know that much about Knob Creek rye, but I have enjoyed some of their other bourbon expressions. The distillery is part of Beam Suntory group and produced at the Jim Beam distillery. I have found various sites claiming to know the mashbill, but I do not have any official knowledge was what the gran mix is here. We do know it is aged a minimum of two years in charred new American oak barrels and has a minimum of 51% rye. Likely this is aged much longer and I would imagine it is in the 6 to 8 year mark. On the nose I find this rye gives a light floral note, some sweetness of corn, and a hint of oak. On the palate it is spicy and the sweet notes continue to move toward caramel and vanilla, not fruit. The fruit I do pick up is muted and hard for me to pin point. The finish is medium l...

Today I pour an interesting rye from Alberta Distillers. In Canada this bottle is released under the name “Dark Horse”, but in the US it is labeled “Alberta Rye Whisky Dark Batch”. I have seen this bottle on shelves for a while, but for some reason, I had not picked it up. A friend at work mentioned it might be going away so I picked one up, and have poured a few over the last couple of weeks. Alberta Distillers makes amazing rye. They have released their own older expressions years ago, but also sell an excellent product to companies like Whistle Pig or Masterson’s. This bottle is a mix of their own rye and a few other ingredients. Before I get there, maybe I’ll just give my impressions when pouring, nosing and tasting this whisky. The colour of this liquid is exquisite. I really like the dark amber almost red tone of the bottle. Moving it around in the glass and letting it sit shows off some nice legs on the side and promises a great experience. On the nose I find this sweet and...

This was a great weekend to love whisky. Corby finally released the antique expressions of their northern border collection. This would include JP Wiser 35 yr, Pike Creek 21 yr, Gooderham & Worts 17 yr, and Lot 40 12 yr cask strength rye. Since each of the regular expressions in this collection are superb, I can only imagine these longer aged versions will be spectacular. In this show I open up the Lot 40 cask strength. Immediately on the nose this Rye bursts with dark fruits and rich sugars. There are hints of oak and a little bit of dill or grass notes playing around too. I am surprised that the alcohol does not come up strongly since this is bottled at 55%, but it must have been smoothed in with age. On the palate this is a full, spicy, peppery Rye. Not too sharp though. Instead the oak or wood notes create an excellent counter point and smooth out the flavour. The mouth feel is rich, but not too oily. In the finish, I am left with a drying sweetness that also leans toward w...

To get things moving I decided to review a very special Canadian Whisky. J.P. Wiser's One Fifty. They only released 7,827 bottles which corresponds to the number of weeks since confederation. each bottle is numbers and the week it represents is clearly marked on the front. One note I need to add here is that this whisky was aged in new oak. during the YouTube recording I could not remember and I misspoke. It is new oak. This release is a wonderful way to celebrate Canada's 150! I enjoyed this smooth whisky on July 1st and picked up toasted sugars, a bit of vanilla and balanced oak. I generally find Wiser's a bit sweet, but this expression had a longer finish and and fuller mouth feel than a few of their other offerings I have had. Coming back to it now in October, I do notice some spicy notes, but they are well balanced with age or blend, so they are interesting, but not overpowering. If you can still find a bottle I would definitely go out and pick one up. This is an e...