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I'll Drink to That! What is your favorite beverage to have with a cigar? Juice? Cola? Beer? Port? Single Malt Scotch? This room is for the discussion of beverages, especially alcoholic beverages that go well with cigars! |
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08-30-2009, 09:40 AM | #1 |
Managing Editor Emeritus
Herf God
Join Date: Apr 2003
Location: Montreal, Canada
Posts: 26,082
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Canadian whisky tasting
This morning saw me carrying out a side-by-each tasting of 8 Canadian whiskies, all of which were assessed in relatively rapid succession so as to maximize the direct-comparison aspect of the exercise. Here are my notes...
OFC 8 Year Old Brand : Schenley Nose : Fresh, light and clean. Grassy. Tinned pears. Palate : Very grain driven. Shredded wheat. Creaminess deftly counterbalanced by a dash of input from the rye. Finish : Soft and rather quick. Comment : Nothing exceptional, but nothing offensive either. Colour : Light gold ABV : 40% Order of Merit 15 Year Old Brand : Schenley Nose : Fruit salad in an oak bowl. Pineapple. Passion fruit. Toffee. Very composed. Palate : Lovely, smooth palate entry. Oak adds considerable weight from the mid palate onward. Excellent balance. Complex. Finish : Velvety, lingering finish with momentary flashes of brittleness. Comment : This is from a venerable bottle distilled in 1952 and bottled in 1967 (Canada's Centennial Year). Colour : Full gold with a touch of amber. ABV : Unknown Wiser's Reserve Brand : (Same) Nose : Apple. Wintermelon. Vanilla. Green tea with a dash of citrus. Palate : Some caramel evident at the outset. Then slightly more sharpness from the grains and oak. Juicy. This one has a tad more bite despite the caramel-toffee gloss. Not bad at all. Finish : Short to medium-length finish. Colour : Light to medium gold. ABV : 43% Gooderham & Worts Small Batch Brand : (Same) Nose : Somewhat reticent. Delicately conveyed oak and fruit. A hint of strawberry and blanched almonds. Palate : Really good. The fruit maintains a degree of freshly picked ripeness amidst the sparkling grains and oak. And the higher proof only adds to this effect. Quite salivating. Finish : Medium finish that makes you want to go for a 2nd. More impressive than I remember. Colour : Light gold. ABV : 45% Limited Edition Brand : Crown Royal Nose : Fruit, field grains and oak tightly fused. Gentle, come hither fragrance. Vibrancy combined with the added sophistication maturity brings. Palate : This is like the Crown Royals I recall from the 1960s and 1970s. Easy-going elegance. Quality oak and rye lend depth to the wheat, corn and malt. Perfect degree of maturity. Finish : Soft, glowing warmth at the finish. Colour : Tending to medium gold. ABV : 40% Special Reserve Brand : Crown Royal Nose : Very mellow, though the rye doing battle with the oak enlivens matters marginally. Palate : Pure silk. The oak and grains offer a demure petillance that, alas, doesn't quite survive to the finish line. Finish : Somewhat sedated. Comment : Lovely whisky. But I'll take the Limited Edition, thank you. Colour : Full gold with the merest hint of amber. ABV : 40% Cask No. 16 Brand : Crown Royal Nose : Wow! An almost Sauternes-like voluptuousness. Tropical fruit salad. Dry roasted nuts. A hint of vanilla. Palate : Crisp, clean attack leading to succulence. Honey dribbled on whole wheat toast. Pears. The spicy oak influence effortlessly intertwines with the bittersweet nature of the spirit, creating tiny ripples of rapier-like intensity that spread across the glossy textural surface. Finish : Long and calm. Comment : A cracker! Colour : Full gold tending to amber. Slightly deeper than that of the SR. ABV : 40% Sherry Cask Brand : Canadian Club Nose : Wine cask influence layered over (rather than entirely melded with) the intrinsic grain thrust of the distillate. Richly fruity. Lots of sultana overtones. Palate : Macallan meets M'Canuck. Yet a green, bitter aspect permeates the early stages despite the thick, sweet texture. It's as though someone threw dandelion greens into the raisins. Then, a brief interlude of real Canadian whisky taste before the lights go out. Finish : A weak suggestion of activity, but ultimately boring. Comment : This one has potential, but needs considerable time and effort at all stages from conception to the blending room. Colour : Amber gold. ABV : 41.3%
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My whisky adventure began at the age of nine. Good things DO take time! |
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