Category Archives: Canada

“O Canada!” Gooderham + Worts Four Grains Canadian Whisky 44.4%

Posted on by
Reply

When I was in Toronto in September 2017, I happened to pass by the old Gooderham  + Worts distillery from 1837, right in old downtown Toronto. While the original facility is no longer operational, Corby’s distillery has picked up the mantle to produce the blended whisky under the guidance of master blender Dr. Don Livermore.

Naturally that meant a bottle had to make its way back to India for an all Canadian whisky evening.

So what did we think?

Gooderham + Worts Four Grains Canadian Whisky 44.4% 

  • Nose – Quite closed, muted, powder, lemon, grains, dry dusty cereals
  • Palate – Sweet then bitter, oddly ‘flat’
  • Finish – Bitter
  • Water – Made it quite palatable, very sweet and revealed cinnamon candy

Hmm… we tried… we really tried… but this whisky just wasn’t talking to us.

What did I do? Offered it at a social occasion and it was a complete hit. Add a splash of chilled water, ice and voila! It was such a favourite I barely snatched it away before the last drop was drained…

So the verdict is? A good blend for social occasions.

What else did we have in our “O Canada” 150th Celebration?

You can also find Whisky Lady in India on:

“O Canada!” Crown Royal Canadian Harvest Rye 45%

Posted on by
Reply

When Crown Royal’s Northern Harvest Rye sky rocketed from obscurity to celebrity hood… it was hard to believe my home province of Manitoba produced a dram that flew off the shelves around the world.

While rumour had it the original idea was to have it be a ‘one time thing’ (though high volume), given its popularity it didn’t take long for Crown Royal to pump out more.

And this particular bottle? While I can’t guarantee its from the same batch that led to it becoming the World’s Best Whisky of 2016, it certainly is from around that time and purchased in Manitoba…

So what did we think?

Crown Royal Northern Harvest Rye 45%

  • Nose – Fresh honey, lightly roasted spices, a zest of lemon, tobacco, caramel, fresh polished furniture, pineapple (with a debate on whether it is more like tinned pineapple than baked or honey glaze roasted), candied orange, very sweet, beneath it all a bit of white chocolate
  • Palate – Initial swig was very rye, some wood, spice, a bit tingly, then started to take on other qualities like Japanese pickled ginger, it was clearly young but not the least bit harsh, and while a bit bitter, this simply gave it some character
  • Finish – Bitter cereal finish, then sweet
  • Water – Just made it even smoother, not needed but can certainly continue to hold its own with a splash

We hadn’t thought we would find this whisky so interesting – yet every minute the aromas shifted. We all found it most enjoyable… even those who tried Northern Harvest Rye previously were pleasantly surprised.

And as a start to our evening? A perfect pick!

Pst My father picked this up in Winnipeg for under $40.

What else did we have in our “O Canada” 150th Celebration?

You can also find Whisky Lady in India on:

“O Canada!” 150 years Whisky Celebration

Posted on by
Reply

Most folks know I’m Canadian… though I’ve called India home for more than a decade.

And with Canada celebrating its 150th anniversary, it seemed fitting to have an evening devoted purely to Canadian whiskies…. before it was the  end of 2017!

What made the final cut are two whiskies I’d tried before and two which were completely new to me!

Followed by a wee nip of Barrel of Sunshine Liqueur 30%, courtesy of our friend’s at Shelter Point.

So there we were, middle of December, Christmas lights twinkling, glasses clinking and merriment all around.

You can also find Whisky Lady in India on:

Speed Tasting – Crown Royal Northern Harvest Rye 45%

Posted on by
2

During monsoon, we had a remarkable experience “Speed Tasting” where we rated five different drams in the space of 15 minutes with approximately 2-3 minutes per dram.

We had no idea what we were sampling… This was my 2nd dram and merely known as whisky “B”…

Our first part was tasting in silence and rating

What were my hasty impressions?

  • Nose – Sweet, fruity, yoghurt, young and fresh, light spice, quite piquant, a bit of grass and a quality almost like agave, then shifted to sweet – like candy floss or bazooka gum or juicy fruit or banana candies or… (you get the picture!) –  returning later it was pure honey sweet
  • Palate – Much spicier than the nose indicated, almost harsh on 1st sip, peppery, then settled down and became sweeter and smooth
  • Finish – Holds for a bit but quite linear
  • Character & Complexity – Bright, young, and dropped its spice to become insanely sweet

Our 2nd part was brief discussion with a wee bit of guessing…

Impressions – most thought this may be rye. We also thought it wasn’t your ordinary rye and may be matured in something quite different – perhaps cognac cask.

None of us gave this top rating however it certainly wasn’t last.

And the reveal?

Crown Royal Northern Harvest Rye 45%

I’ll admit that I’m not so familiar with rye whiskies… and I certainly didn’t pinpoint this as Crown Royal’s Northern Harvest Rye, even after we were given a short-list of options. Admittedly, I’d had it only in passing with no proper tasting so far. What I remembered most was an almost ‘ginger ale’ quality which I didn’t connect with this experience.

And what did Jim Murray have to say in his 2016 Whisky Bible when awarding this dram?

  • Nose 25/25 – The rye is not just profound and three dimensional, but has that extraordinary trick of allowing new elements to to take their place: rarely does ulema honey and manuka honey link arms when rye is around, but they do here, yet never for a second diminish the sharpness and presence of the grain;
  • Taste 24/25 – Salivating and sensual on delivery, hardly for a second are we not reminded that rye is at work here. And it makes itself heard loudly through the stiff backbone from which all the softer, sugary notes emanate. Crunchy and at times bitter, though in a pleasant controlled way from the grain, rather than from a questionable cask.
  • Finish 23.5/25 – Quietens rapidly, though only for a moment or two before the spices begin to pulse again and vanillas take up their comfortable positions;
  • Balance & Complexity 24.5/25 – This is the kind of whisky you dream of dropping into your tasting room. Rye, that most eloquent of grains, not just turning up to charm and enthral but to also take us through a routine which reaches new heights of beauty and complexity. To say this is a masterpiece is barely doing it justice.

And the official Crown Royal tasting notes?

  • Nose – Baking spices, cereal, light wood spices
  • Palate – Gentle oak note, rich butterscotch, spiced vanilla, develops into soft peppery notes
  • Finish – Smooth and creamy

A few folks may know that Crown Royal is from my home province of Manitoba. Or that in 2016, I had the pleasure of touring their plant in the very picturesque Gimli with my parents.

Gimli (Photo: Clarina Taylor)

What were the other whiskies “Speed Tasted“?

You can also find Whisky Lady in India on:

Happy Canada Day!!

Posted on by
Reply

While I may live in India, I’m originally from Canada and the land of my birth is celebrating 150 years today!

In terms of whiskies, most of what is available in Canada isn’t to my taste. However a special treat from my June 2016 trip was acquiring a brand new fresh “hot off” the distillery barrel single malt! Shelter Point single-handedly brought Canadian pride to this Whisky Lady!

I first shared it with our Whisky Ladies of Mumbai in January 2017 followed by a shared nip before the International Scotch Day (by far the best whisky of the night!) and then a rather companionable evening with a fellow whisky lady after we drained the last drops of our Nordic samples.

It is one of those whiskies that just got better and better the more you sipped.

Each time I returned to it, I enjoyed it even more!

No surprise then that they sold out!

I can only hope that Shelter Point’s 1st batch from 2016 is the start of many more interesting and enjoyable whiskies to come!!

So on Canada Day – Cheers to you Shelter Point, eh?!

Shelter Point

Canadian whisky posts:

You can also find Whisky Lady in India on:

Whisky Archives – Cracking open the cabinet…

Posted on by
Reply

Another from the tasting archives… this time from Sept 2011. Rediscovering these notes brought a flood memories of my previous Mumbai flat… that had a fabulous cabinet in which all my whisky was stashed… now replaced in our current home by a larger storage space waaaaay up high in our kitchen pantry.

We broke with tradition and merrily abandoned all pretense of blind tastings… instead settled down for a sampling of various bottles. It became a  popularity contest between different regions and geographies as small pegs of multiple whiskies were sniffed, swirled, swallowed, savoured and yes – much discussed!

Samplings from earlier sessions - all quaffed at one occasion!

Speyside‘s dominated the evening with:

  • Aberlour’s cask strength Abu’nadh batch 32 (sampled earlier) and batch 31 were compared. Batch 31 was a clear winner and a hit of the evening! Bold yet with an extraordinary warm finish… with layers to discover and enjoy.
  • Aberlour 10 year held its own with slight smokiness and butter, however was overshadowed by it’s cask strength cousin.
  • Cragganmore 12 year was softer on the palate and a nice contrast to the Abelours
  • Glenrothes 12 year (also sampled earlier) gained appreciation for its smooth fruity aroma, sherry note and oak, medium slightly spicy finish.

Islay‘s were represented by a few familiar friends:

  • Bunnahabhain 12 year 40% is a regular favourite with several folks
  • Caol Ila is also well-known and after the last drop of one bottle was polished off, another was opened… Need one say more?
  • Lagavulin 16 year was also a familiar friend but neglected with all the other options…

Highland

  • Dalwhinnie from the highest distillery in Scotland was a delightful gentler ‘everyday’ favourite

Japan

  • Suntory’s Hakushu 18 year…. In a class of its own with hints of forest, moss, nuanced, with a divine finish – simply exquisite. It remains one of my favourites!

Canada

  • Crown Royal from Gimli, Manitoba (my home province) certainly added a different element with rye, however alas outclassed by single malt companions

Naturally what’s expressed here is only one interpretation based on snippets of conversation and personal bias. Would love to hear others opinions on any of these whiskies…

Slainthe!

You can also find Whisky Lady in India on:

Whisky Ladies of Mumbai Welcome Canada’s Shelter Point Single Malt Whisky 46%

Posted on by
2

First in our “out of the ordinary” North American evening was a whisky I’ve been impatiently waiting to try – Shelter Point‘s Single Malt.

Shelter Point is a new distillery based in Campbell, British Columbia, Canada. They consider themselves an artisan distillery with a local-first philosophy – growing and distilling their own barley on-site.

We sampled their inaugural batch of Single Malt, courtesy of Patrick Evans, founder of Shelter Point.

shelter-point

Shelter Point Single Malt 46% (2016 inaugural batch)

Here is what we found:

  • Nose – Honey maple, fresh hay, lots of cereals, subtle flowers, crisp green apple then shifted and became less sweet, dash more spice, slightly musty, grass morphing into malt, then chestnuts, flirting back to light florals
  • Palate – Light, cereals, heat at the back then so so soooo smooth, flirtatious spice, salty peanuts, hint of chocolate
  • Finish – Light spice, subtle bitterness

We loved how it started so fresh, bright, and sweet then became a bit spicy and nutty, shifting back and forth between lightness and substance.

Overall, it is most enjoyable. Exceedingly easy to drink. And quite impressive for a 1st foray into the world of single malt whisky.

There are too many new distilleries impatient to put out their single malts before they are ready. In this case, though young, it had none of the harsh, raw elements often found. Instead it had a subtle approach with enough interesting going on to keep us engaged. What a delightful dram to kick-off our evening!

One of whisky ladies shared her memories touring their distillery before this whisky was launched and sampling their many experiments. We both were quite pleased with the results and had a proud Canadian in India moment.

I only read the inaugural batch tasting notes after our sampling and would agree:

Experts tell us that the inaugural batch of Shelter Point Single Malt Whisky has a very nice spice with good barrel sweetness, fruit and floral notes and some chocolate on the nose. It’s nicely finessed with a good balance of complexity and delicateness. Translation? It goes down very, very smoothly.

PS Many thanks Patrick Evans, founder of Shelter Point, for sharing a bottle from your inaugural batch – it is a privelege to have it in Mumbai!

What else did we try in our “out of ordinary” American evening?

You can also find Whisky Lady in India on:

Whisky Ladies “Not your ordinary North American” whiskey – Shelter Point, Westland + AD Laws

Posted on by
3

Our Whisky Ladies of Mumbai are no strangers to North American whiskey… we’ve had other evenings checking out offerings from both Canada and the US.

What distinguished this evening is that we eschewed big brands to opt for newer  players…ad-laws

What did we try?

shelter-point

Other American themed evenings:

You can also find Whisky Lady in India on:

Sake whisky – Togouchi Kiwami 40%

Posted on by
Reply

We’ve tried whiskies before that have a decidedly rummy character, an extra anejo tequila with a whisky-like aspect, but a whisky with a clear unmistakable sake stamp? This was a first.

This was also my first foray into Togouchi whiskies and what a surprise. While blended in Japan and clearly catering to the Japanese palate (plus the demand for whiskies from Japan globally), the new make spirit is not actually Japanese.

Instead, the whiskies are a blend of distilled Canadian grain and Scottish malt which is imported to Japan, then aged in primarily ex bourbon casks, diluted with water sourced from the Sandankyo National Park and blended by Chugoku Jozo‘s master blenders in Hiroshima prefecture.

What adds to the mystique is most (apparently not all!) Togouchi whisky is aged in barrels stored in a 361 meters long tunnel that was built for a railway in the 1970s but never used. This unique warehouse near the town of Togouchi boasts that it can maintain an optimal constant temperature around 14°C and 80% humidity.

As for the whisky we sampled, ‘Kawami’ means ‘supreme’ (or ‘height’) and was created as a limited edition non-peated expression for the French market.

Togouchi Kiwami

Togouchi Kiwami 40%

What did we find?

  • Nose – Very mild, think camomile tea or flowers, soft and gentle
  • Palate – Not nearly as smooth as the nose suggested, had a raw ‘new make spirit’ feel yet oddly solid for a whisky that had such a light, bright nose. Some found the in your face ‘alcohol’ content a bit off-putting. For others the grain element was simply too pronounced.
  • Finish – Was there one? We certainly didn’t find any

As we debated and attempted to distill the character of this unusual blend, we kept thinking of sake. No surprise, the Chogoku Jozo folks are better known for their sake and shochu with the Kawami specifically, in our ever so humble opinion, coming across as a whisky masquerading as sake.

In fact, when we were ready to move on to our next whisky, a few knocked it back like a shot and went “Wow!” Declaring this is THE way to have Togouchi Kawami.

PS… our host admitted to being a bit disappointed with the Kawami and pulled out a different Togouchi expression (suspect it was the Togouchi Premium) that was silky smooth, soft and an utter delight.

Want to learn more?

Other whiskies sampled during our far east evening in Mumbai:

You can also find Whisky Lady in India on:

Road trip anyone?

Posted on by
3

An exciting development with my Canadian trip is an opportunity to go on a whisky distillery tour.

After a year of writing about whisky many folks are surprised to learn that I’m a distillery tour ‘virgin’. Yup!

2015-Gimli-ClarinaTaylor-image3

I received confirmation the tour is set up and they shared a wee list of ‘guidelines’… which sounded vaguely familiar to Inver House’s global marketing head Karen Walker’s fashion advice to Mumbai’s Whisky Ladies!

  • Close-toed shoes
  • No skirts
  • No large pieces of jewelry
  • Please bring your ID
  • No photos are allowed on the tour

As for where we are going?

Let’s just say I’m proud to share that my first tour will be in my home province of Manitoba, Canada… and delighted to be hopping in the car for a little road trip from Winnipeg…

Gimli (Photo: Clarina Taylor)

Gimli (Photo: Clarina Taylor)

Those who haven’t figured it out yet don’t know their whisk(e)y!

PS Photos all courtesy of a dear friend living in Gimli – Thanks Clarina!

Related posts: