Premium pre-made cocktails have their place in the whisky world. Imagine arriving at a friend’s party, and bringing a bunch of Old Fashioned or Manhattan cocktails that just need to be poured over ice. It’s so sensible.
Read MoreMike Brisebois, the Canadian brand ambassador, handed me a sample of this scotch noting it’ll really “screw with my palate.” The direct quote is less family friendly. And it did, it really did.
Read MoreSick of Black Friday yet? LCBO is joining the Black Friday craze. I’m highlighting my personal favourites from the list of whiskies. Use the promo code BFCM2019 at check-out to get these discounts. Shipping is free for orders over $200.
Read MoreOnly 1,000 of these unique Black Glencairns are being produced. It’s a limited run product that’s completely sold out, but there are still chances to win a pair through various partners (including this website) that Glencairn is working with.
Read MoreNewly introduced Traigh Bhan is the second core range Ardbeg with an age statement. The first, the ten year old, was introduced almost two decades ago. This is, in the Ardbeg world, a big deal.
Read MoreWriters are sometimes fans of the obvious. In the case of Writers’ Tears, it’s the Irish whiskey you’ll find on many desks while writers plow away at words. I really enjoy Writers’ Tears at regular proof, and I love cask Strength whisky, so this seems like something I’d easily enjoy.
Read MoreThe Irishman at Cask Strength is a limited run vintage release. In the year of 2018, only 3716 bottles were produced, and it’s being sold in limited markets. There aren’t many cask strength variations of Irish Whiskey that make it to North America.
Read MoreFall is, for many in the whisky industry, known as whisky season. This season accounts for a majority of whisky sales for the year. That also means, the LCBO has plenty of whisky offerings to satisfy gift buying consumers. Let’s have a look at some of the best buys at the LCBO as of today! This is issue 1 of 3 or so, coming to you weekly.
Read MoreI’ll stand out on a (not so high) limb and say that Nikka Whisky from The Barrel is the best Japanese whisky that you can both find, and actually afford. There are lots of issues with Japanese whisky, and as far as drinking, this is one of the few solutions available to those that want to explore the category.
Read MoreMiyagikyo Distillery makes both malted barley and grain whisky for the Nikka lines of Japanese whisky. The pot stills used to make this single malt are plentiful, large, and heated slowly to focus on floral notes.
Read MoreThe beginner’s guide to Japanese whisky can be summarized with five big issues, and one big draw:
Issue #1: It’s complicated. The Japanese whisky world is complicated. It’s very complicated. The legal definition of Japanese whisky is a lot more complex than the cultural expectations. But basically, to be called Japanese whisky, the whisky doesn’t need to be made in Japan. Trusting the producer is the first critical step. Buying second-hand single malt scotch whisky blended with Japanese spirit at inflated Japanese whisky prices is possible.
Read MoreA lot has changed since I got my first book deal, and wrote The Whisky Cabinet all the way back in 2013. The most famous bourbon, Pappy Van Winkle, was just getting discovered. The Macallan had yet to sell a single malt whisky for over a million dollars. We could buy a bottle of Elmer T. Lee on a whim! Japanese whisky was still available. Collecting whisky was just starting to become a thing.
Read MoreMark Reynier and the Waterford team have launched a whisky terroir project with the intention to prove terroir. Along with the results of this three year study, they plan to release their first bottles of whiskies in early 2020. These whiskies will be terroir focused, with each brand coming from one specific farm. Later, they’ll release the cuvée style whisky that’ll be a mix of many farms from a specific vintage.
Read MoreThere’s a tongue-and-cheek nature to Diageo’s Orphan Barrel Collection that often places them in conflict with whisky geeks. The original concept included barrels from distilleries that have long-since stopped producing whisky. At least, that was the concept. But whisky geeks quickly sought after the origins of the whisky, and found that sometimes they weren’t orphaned, and sometimes they weren’t accidents.
Read MoreIn 2016, Glenmorangie started a new line of single malts named after their featured warehouse; The Bond House No. 1 Collection. Glenmorangie Grand Vintage Malt 1990 was the first release of this set. It has, as one can tell, a very grandiose name! It’s listed at about $600 US. Some have said this is the best Glenmorangie ever released, and I was fortunate enough to get a sample from Bry Wilson, the Canadian Brand Ambassador for the distillery.
Read MoreArdbeg’s annual special releases come in two flavors: Regular, and Committee Release. The latter is typically a few points higher proof, and distributed specifically to the Ardbeg’s fan club and select stores.
However, sometimes a bottle apparently sneaks through into retail. Back in 2017, I was able to pick this one up in Kentucky the day of its official release. I also seemed to have purchased it at the regular non-Committee Edition price. Miracles do happen!
Read MoreAlberta Distillers has new limited released out—Cask Strength Rye and a 20 Year Old. And I got samples! Like many of Canada’s large distilleries, Alberta Distillers is an enigma of delicious whisky.
Read MoreCanadian Club continues to move forward to fifty years with their Canadian Club Chronicles series with this year’s release; the 42 year old. The Canadian whisky industry is a blender’s paradise, and this is another great example of what can happen with ingenuity. More importantly, the allotment of barrels this whisky comes from is probably one of the oldest allotments available at quantities to produce a collectable product of this magnitude.
Read MoreWhat’s with the *e* in whisky?
When noting American and Irish whisky, a sense of tradition obligates writers to add the extra vowel. But how traditional is the extra letter? The truth is the use of the *e* has less to do with tradition and more to do with marketing.
Read MoreGooderham & Worts 49 Wellington demonstrates two rarely used components from Hiram-Walker Distillery that hint at where future product development is going. First, the whisky is partially matured with red oak inserts. Second, the four grain blend includes whisky matured in barrels made from 100% red winter wheat. Both these elements are a look into the exciting products that’ll be coming out from the distillery in the future.
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