Crown Royal Noble Collection: 13 Year Old Blender's Mash

August 28, 2018 Eric Burke

I realized today, that I was still paying for an Audible.com subscription. I found a deal before I went on my last trip where I could get two books instead of the usual one for my initial month. I thought that would be great as it would allow me to put on the headphones and drown out noises that the kids were making. Worked great! Except I forgot to cancel and I ended up with another credit for a free audiobook.

I'm a big fan of Ancient and Medieval Mediterranian History. Ancient Greece, Rome, Egypt, Carthage, and the Phoenicians, as well as the Later Roman (Byzantine) Empire. Huge fan. Like, I read scholarly works and textbooks for fun type of fan. That said, I've never read Gibbon's Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire. I know that he got some things wrong and that he had certain biases, but I always figured that I would get around to it one day when I'd read enough to allow me to see through the cracks of the 200-year-old, 12-volume text.

Tonight, since I had forgotten to cancel the subscription, I decided to get my money's worth for that unexpected credit and got the entire 126-hour, unabridged version of the book using my one credit. Not too bad for $16. And right afterward (since they allow you to keep access to your books even after you cancel) I canceled the subscription.

And speaking of getting my money's worth, I was very worried that tonight's whiskey was going to be the exact opposite of that. It is a 13-year-old Canadian Whiskey from Crown Royal. It is created from a mashbill of 60% Corn, 36% Rye, and 4% Malted Barley. It was aged in new, charred American Oak barrels. And if that sounds like a bourbon, know that if it had been distilled and aged 130 miles to the south, it would be. But after the fiasco of the Crown Royal Bourbon Mash release last year, they wisely chose to leave the word bourbon off of the packaging, calling it "Crown Royal Noble Collection: 13 Year Old Blender's Mash" instead.

So though it is not legally Bourbon, how close is it and is a 13-year old Canadian "bourbon-ish" whiskey worth the $60 I paid for it?

Crown Royal Noble Collection: 13 Year Old Blender's Mash

Purchase Info: $57.99 for a 750 mL bottle at Total Wine, Burnsville, MN

Details: 45% ABV. This would be bourbon if it were distilled and aged 130 miles south of where it was. 60% Corn, 36% Rye, and 4% Malted Barley and aged in new, charred oak barrels for 13 years.

Nose: Delicate and fruity with cherry Starburst® candy, mint and cinnamon.

Mouth: The first sip starts delicate, but doesn't stay that way. The second sip brings a nice, thick mouthfeel, caramel, cherry, baking spice and hints of mint and oak.

Finish: Medium length, but in a sneaky way. It fades quickly but then reappears a second or so later and hangs around for a bit with flavors of Cinnamon spice, mint and oak.

Thoughts: This is honestly the most "bourbon-like" Canadian whisky I've had. Which is why I keep stressing that this is bourbon in all but name. The price is higher than I would like but still lower than the prices of comparably aged bourbons these days. It has a good thick mouthfeel, complex flavors with nice spice and fruitiness. All in all, I like this one a lot and feel I got my money's worth on it. Maybe not as much as I did in the audiobook above, but this won't last 126 hours of constant use either.

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Crown Royal: Bourbon Mash / Blender's Mash

March 1, 2018 Eric Burke

I used to work with a guy that almost no one in the company liked. He'd been there forever and was extremely enthusiastic about the job and the mission of the company. I'm a bit embarrassed to admit that after a while his habit of going around the proper channels to get his pet projects done started to grate on my nerves as well. Especially since, though he had a lot of enthusiasm, he didn't have nearly as much talent as he thought he did. Unfortunately for him, everyone knew this fact about him, including the higher-ups. As such, he got shuffled from position to position until he was finally let go in the first of many rounds of layoffs that the company went through. Apparently, after he lost his job, he had a hard time of things and ended up taking his own life.

While he was still with the company, he had a piece of paper taped up in his cube where he and passers-by could see it. It had three simple words on it: "Assume positive intent." Something about that simple reminder to be empathetic made a big impact on me. It was a key point in adopting my "don't be a dick" philosophy. I wish I could tell him how big of an impact he has made on my life. I feel bad that after this long, I can't even remember his name.

I thought of this tonight when I was doing a little research on tonight's whisky. This one received a lot of flack from the self-proclaimed "consumer advocates" of the whisky community. See, the TTB originally approved the label for this whisky even though it was in clear violation of the standards of identity (§5.22 (l)). I will be kind and assume that these "consumer advocates" really think they are doing a public good by going after these companies. And they probably are having a positive effect. But from the outside, it sure does seem that they love the "gotcha" moment, appearing to assume that every company is out to pull a fast one and that the regulators are corrupt, stupid, incompetent, or some combination of the three.

I will, however, choose to "assume positive intent." The description on the label is technically correct. It is a Canadian whiskey distilled from a bourbon mash. The fact that it is also a prohibited use of the word bourbon? Sure, it may have slipped past someone on a bad day. Hell, people make mistakes. Even marketing people. (If I got fired from every job where I made a mistake, I'd have never kept one.) That the TTB then came back to Diageo and revoked the approval and asked them to surrender it makes it a non-issue to me. So Diageo gets to sell it for a year based on the agreement with the TTB. Then it goes away and becomes a piece of trivia for hardcore whiskey nerds. And a collector's bottle for those who think it will become a collector's bottle.

But now on to the important question: How does it taste?

Crown Royal Bourbon Mash

Purchase Info: $26.99 for a 750mL bottle at Savage Liquors (Hy-vee), Savage, MN.

Details: 40% ABV. Non-age stated (but to be called whisky Canadian whisky has to be at least three years old).

Nose: Delicate. Caramel, vanilla, mint and almond.

Mouth: Thick, almost syrupy mouthfeel. Tingly spice. Nutty sweetness.

Finish: On the short side of medium. Gentle spice. Lingering notes of nuts and cocoa.

Thoughts: This is alright. Not great, not terrible. It splits the difference between a bourbon and a Canadian whisky. Unfortunately, when I'm in the mood for a bourbon, I want a bourbon, and when I'm in the mood for a Canadian whisky, I want Canadian. That said, this is fine, but it doesn't really have a place on my shelf.

Wiser's 18 Year Old

January 16, 2018 Eric Burke

I've been on a bit of a Canadian Whisky kick the last week or so. Luckily, I try to always keep some of my favorite Canadian Whiskies on hand for just such an occasion.

The one in my glass tonight is another product that spent almost two decades in the barrel. Wiser's 18 Year Old is an 18-year-old whisky, distilled at the Hiram Walker and Sons Distillery in Windsor Canada. I last purchased the Wiser's 18 back when I was first becoming interested in Canadian Whisky. I was trying to decide which I preferred, 18 or Wiser's Legacy. Luckily for me at that point, I liked both the taste and the price of the Wiser's Legacy more.

But that said, I remember enjoying the bottle I picked up. So I thought that now that Wiser's Legacy is no longer available, I would go back and give 18 another shot. And I thought I should probably do it while I still could, as I am seeing less and less of it on the shelves these days.

Wiser's 18 Year Old

Purchase Info: $62.99 for a 750 mL bottle MGM Wine & Spirits, Prior Lake, MN.

Details: 40% ABV. Aged 18 years.

Nose: Cotton candy, mint, cherry, and almond.

Mouth: Oak, mint, almond, and baking spice play with a nice heat in the mouth.

Finish: Warm and on the longer side of medium. Lingering oak and spice which fade to cherry candy.

Thoughts: This is a delicious whisky that has many of the same notes you would find in a Bourbon. The fun thing is that it tastes almost nothing like bourbon. Each note is expressed differently. The oak is more refined and is very well integrated. The cherry and almond almost merge into the same note. Wiser's 18 Year Old is a masterpiece of the Whisky Blender's art.

I really like this and if you see it on the shelf at your local, pick it up and enjoy exploring both the differences and similarities between this and the bourbons you are used to.

Orphan Barrel: Entrapment

January 11, 2018 Eric Burke

I state in my Statement of Ethics that if I accept a review sample, I will disclose it at the beginning of the article. Please consider it disclosed. I’d like to thank Taylor Strategy for providing this sample to me with no strings attached. As always, all thoughts are just my opinion and should be taken as just that.

Yes, I know that the name of the site is BourbonGuy but from the beginning, I've had a focus on North American whiskey, which includes bourbon, rye and yes, Canadian. Longtime readers know this, but I've been seeing a lot of new names popping up in the comments so I thought I'd reiterate it. I count myself to be a Canadian Whisky fan. I've enjoyed releases from little known (in the US) names such as Danfield's and Highwood Ninety and from the staples such as Canadian Club and Crown Royal.

And it was that last one that got me excited when I saw that I'd be getting a review sample. The newest release in the Orphan Barrel line is a 25-year-old Canadian whiskey that was initially intended for Crown Royal. It was left over and set aside. In this case for quite a while. I like Crown Royal, though I find it to be a bit overpriced and overrated.

Let's see how the leftover bits fair.

Orphan Barrel: Entrapment

Purchase info: This sample was kindly provided by Taylor Strategy. The suggested retail price is $149.99 per 750 mL bottle.

Details: 25 years old. 41% ABV. Mashbill of 97% corn and 3% malted barley. Distilled in Gimli, Manitoba. Bottled in Tullahoma, Tennessee.

Nose: Cinnamon candies, caramel, dried lumber.

Mouth: Very polite. And by that, I mean so gentle that you could honestly hold it in your mouth for minutes before you start to notice it. At that point, sweet and fruity notes combine with a nice nuttiness.

Finish: Gentle and short with cinnamon and nutty notes.

Thoughts: On the surface, there isn't a lot to this. The nose is very good, but you almost have to swallow your sip before the flavor starts to show up. When the flavors arrive, they are also very good. Though, I don't think I would say they are $150 good. Especially when they only show up for the second act. Yeah, this is pretty meh for me.

And that disappoints and irritates me. There are a ton of delicious, full-flavored, Canadian whiskies on the market. Even the oldest ones are less than half the price of this. I'm terrified that someone will buy this and think that because it was so expensive, that this must be the best. That all Canadian Whiskies are this mild. I worry that in that mythical person's mind all Canadian whiskey will be dismissed. And they shouldn't be.

Danfield's Private Reserve 10-year old Canadian Whisky

August 25, 2016 Eric Burke

I like hardware stores. My wife likes to pretend that I am a handy guy so I make roughly a couple visits per month to replace that one screw that I just stripped or a blade for a saw that I was too lazy to replace after the last project. When I’m there, I sometimes just wander around and look at things. I may go in for a bolt or a box of nails, but I’ll often see a tool or something on the plumbing or electrical shelf that I had no idea even existed. I try to squirrel these ideas away for future projects. Because when you own a home, there are always future projects.

I take the same approach to liquor stores. I may go in for beer, but that doesn’t stop me from taking a quick trip down the spirits aisles just to see what’s there. Sometimes, when it is something that I hadn’t seen at other stores, I squirrel that bit of info away for the future.

Which is how I found myself picking up Danfield’s Private Reserve 10-year old Canadian Whiskey. In this particular store, the Canadian whisky section sort of blends into the bourbon and rye section. As I would go there over the years, I noticed this whisky just sitting there. I’d had the older expression, it's my wife's favorite Canadian whisky. I brought multiple bottles of Danfield’s 21-year old whisky back from Canada the last time I’d visited and I also liked it quite a bit. But except on that store shelf, I had never seen a mention of the 10-year expression.

I can’t tell if this is a dusty or just something that not many stores in my area have bothered to stock. Knowing that the 21-year old isn’t available here, it could be either I suppose. Even doing a Google search mostly brings up mentions of the 21-year old variety. As far as I can tell, this is made at the Black Velvet distillery in Alberta, Canada.

Danfield’s Private Reserve 10-Year Old

Purchase info: $22.99 for a 750 mL bottle at Blue Max, Burnsville, MN

Details: 10 years old, 40% ABV

Nose: Delicate with predominantly sweet floral notes of brown sugar and apple blossoms.

Mouth: Sweet brown sugar back by floral and apple notes along with a little oak.

Finish: Medium length with lingering floral and brown sugar notes.

Thoughts: This could easily be called a one-note whisky (if you couldn’t count to two). It isn’t terribly complex, but what is there is going on full force. This whisky fills the mouth with sweet and floral flavors. Until now, my wife’s favorite Canadian whisky has been Danfield’s 21-year old. But she likes this 10-year expression even better. I also find it quite tasty, but would probably still grab my Wiser’s Legacy first. If you can find it near you, I’d recommend giving it a try.

Canadian Club 100% Rye: the U.S. Release Compared to the Canadian Release

August 9, 2016 Eric Burke

Canadian Club 100% Rye from the U.S. and from Canada

About a year and a half ago, I reviewed a bottle of whiskey that was only available in Canada. I thought it was a good, but not great whiskey and mentioned I probably wouldn’t make a trip to Canada (a six hour drive for me) specifically to pick up another bottle.

Almost exactly a year ago, I happened to cross the border into Canada while sightseeing in Northern Minnesota and decided to give that whiskey another shot. I bought a bottle at a Thunder Bay LCBO location. A bottle which sat in my closet until I had almost forgotten about it.

A couple of months ago Beam Suntory was kind enough to bring the whisky to the United States and I decided to run to Total Wine to pick up a bottle of the US release too. A bottle which spent two months in my closet until I made room for it on the Canadian Whisky Shelf.

Of course I’m talking about Canadian Club 100% Rye (or Chairman’s Select 100% Rye in Canada). I picked it up mostly because I was curious to see if there was any change to the product when it crossed the border and entered a new market.

To my palate, there was no change. When we did our tasting this weekend, I got the same notes from both bottles and both were pretty close to what I got the first time around. So if you loved this whisky in Canada, you should love it in the US. If you were like me and thought there were better options in both the rye and Canadian whisky categories…well…there still are.

I kinda like the Canadian version of the bottle shape a little better though. It takes up less room on the shelf.

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Crown Royal Black

July 19, 2016 Eric Burke

Every so often, I'll be in a liquor store and I'll feel the need to buy something...else. I'm buying bourbon and maybe beer. But then something will catch my eye that I just have to have. One time it was a miniature bottle of Phillips Gin-Ka, a gin-vodka blend that I have no intention of drinking, but whose packaging was too hilariously cute to pass up. Once it was brandy in a bag that was on clearance because...brandy in a bag. (Come to think of it, those might have been the same time...). Hell, one time it was even be a bottle of "individually barreled" bourbon (see the previous post).

But occasionally when this happens, it is something perfectly normal that catches my eye. Something so normal and so ubiquitous that I just never bothered to try it before. Something like Crown Royal Black. I saw this sitting in a bucket near the register at a local liquor store and bought it on a whim. It's been sitting on the shelf for a couple months now, as I keep turning to other products that are new and exciting. But since I finally noticed it on the shelf, let's get down to it.

Crown Royal Black is available almost everywhere. And although I've had some very good products with the Crown Royal name on them, I've also had some real snoozers. The Black version is their run at bourbon drinkers. On their website, they claim it has deeper oak notes on the nose and bourbon notes on the finish. It is bottled at a higher proof then the original release.

Crown Royal Black

Purchase Info: I really have no idea what store it was at, but it was probably a buck or two for each 50 mL bottle.

Details: Canadian Whiskey, 45% ABV

Nose: Brown sugar, cedar, baking spices.

Mouth: Peppery without being too hot. Black pepper, dried fruit, brown sugar, baking spices and oak.

Finish: Medium length. Cinnamon spice candy which transitions into mint.

Thoughts: If anything can be said to "taste Canadian" it would be this. But unlike your stereotypical Canadian whiskey, this has enough spice to keep you interested and enough sweetness to make you want another sip. And it's fine. Nothing special, but I like it. If your choices are between this and the regular Crown, this is an upgrade. Other than that though, this would probably almost never be my first choice of pour. I mean, don't get me wrong, if someone was nice enough to pour me a glass, I'd be happy enough to drink it. I just doubt that I'll be picking up a full bottle anytime soon.

The Worst American Whiskies I've Had

March 1, 2016 Eric Burke

A Great Big Frowny face because I dislike all of these.

I’ve said it before. I don’t review a lot of bourbon that I don’t like. You might think I am too Minnesotan and don't want to say anything mean or that maybe I don’t have a discerning palate. You might think that I’ve been bought off or that I’m hoping to get free whiskey. You might think a lot of things, but unless you are a long time reader, you’d probably be wrong.

You see, there is a very simple explanation for why I don’t review a lot of bourbons I dislike. I buy almost all of the whiskey I review and I really don’t want to spend money on things I’ll dislike. I’m experienced enough at buying American Whiskey that I kind of know what I like and what I don’t. Of course, that doesn’t mean I haven’t had a stinker or two slip through. And just because I didn’t buy it doesn’t mean that I haven’t tried it.

So in the name of helping you to avoid the stinkers, and because I do get asked this on occasion, tonight I’m presenting you with my list of the 5 worst American Whiskies I’ve had. To qualify, I had to have had it and I have to have wished I hadn’t.

My 5 Worst American Whiskies

(as decided by me and in alphabetical order.)

Hayes Parker Reserve: Terre Pure bourbon aged at least six months. I made the mistake of picking up two minis of this. I think my wife’s comments sum it up perfectly: “You can’t make me put more in my mouth.”

Masterson’s Straight Wheat and Straight Barley Whiskey: These are technically a set of Canadian whiskies, but since they are sold by a US company I’m going to include them here. When these were released, I made a comment about buying them and these are so bad that I had someone in another country volunteer to send me a sample of each so that I didn’t waste my money on them. To this day, I consider that lady to be a very good friend. I tried my samples in nosing glasses in a nice hotel room while feeling very relaxed. A good set up for being forgiving to a whiskey. It didn’t help. I struggled through half a sample of each before dumping them out and finding something tastier to get the flavor out of my mouth.

Rebel Yell: I bought this bourbon as part of the Bottom Shelf Bourbon Brackets the first year I did them. It lost in the first round to Old Crow Reserve. At the time, I said I didn’t know what I would do with the bottle because I wasn’t going to drink it. I’ve tried blending it, I tried cooking with it. Nothing worked. Eventually I did find a use for it. It became “Prop Bourbon.” When I need to take a photo for a review, but already finished the bottle, I pour my prop bourbon into the empty bottle for the photo. Afterward I dump it back into the Rebel Yell bottle and stick it back in the closet.

Town Branch Bourbon: I have never purchased this bourbon, but I’ve given this a shot on numerous occasions. I keep thinking that it must just be me. But no matter how many times I come back to it, I just don’t like it. It’s a very pretty bottle, but what’s inside I find repugnant.

Woodford Reserve Master’s Collection Double Malt Selection: This release was two different Malt Whiskies that needed to be purchased separately. I had them at a friend’s house in Louisville. We were both extremely excited to try them and well…he dumped his out. I tried to be polite and finish mine, but was convinced to do the same. This might be the worst thing Woodford has ever released under their name.

Dis-Honorable Mentions

These were also very bad whiskies, but for one reason or another I decided to drop them out of the main category. Either they weren’t quite as bad as the ones above or they are no longer available or available in such limited quantities that they won’t be much help to anyone.

11Wells Rye: This is a small craft distiller here in the Twin Cities. I tasted this at a local retailer along with a group of friends after an event. I also tasted it again at Whiskey on Ice, a local whiskey festival. It’s…not good. Hopefully after some time it will get better but I’ll need to be convinced of that when it happens.

Fleischmann’s Straight Rye: Only available as a plastic handle in Kentucky and Northern Wisconsin, this is not a whiskey to seek out. In fact, it’s not available even in those two places as a “straight” whiskey anymore, that part of the label having been changed. When I bought it, it was less than $12 for a 1.75 L bottle and it was over priced.

Woodford Reserve Master’s Collection Sonoma-Cutrer Pinot Noir Finish: This is bad. If the Double Malt is the worst thing that Woodford ever put their name on, this is the second worst. I’ve had people tell me I’m crazy, but I found this to be terrible.

Yellow Rose Bourbon: I had this at a tasting event that was held at a local chain a couple years ago. My notes at the time mentioned musty, wet corn flakes. And unfortunately, the $70 price tag on a bottle won’t let me give them another chance. There is very little chance you’ll be seeing this on the site as a full-blown review.

So there you have it. Your list will probably be very different. We all taste things differently and we all like different things, but for me these are the worst American whiskies I’ve ever had. What about you though? What’s the worst you’ve had? Let me know in the comments.

UPDATE: So, after fourteen hundred and some odd days after I first made my opinion known on Rebel Yell, I finally got around to trying it again. Here are my updated thoughts: Rebel Yell: Revisited.

Blog

Crown Royal Noble Collection: 13 Year Old Blender's Mash

Crown Royal Bourbon Mash

Wiser's 18 Year Old

Orphan Barrel: Entrapment

Danfield’s Private Reserve 10-Year Old

Crown Royal Black

My 5 Worst American Whiskies

Dis-Honorable Mentions