Glynnevan Double Barrelled

I’d like to thank Glynnevan for giving the Toronto Whisky Society a bottle of Glynnevan Double Barrelled to review. While we were given this bottle, please note that these reviews are my own, we keep 100% editorial power over them.

Well this is a little embarrassing. I completely forgot to write this review. Thus it’s out of place. Oh well, hard work and time to buckle down and get this written then!

In Guysborough harbour there lays a distillery. Glynnevan is fairly new, and upfront about sourcing their rye whisky from out west. That’s two bonuses in my book. Well not the fairly new, that doesn’t really factor in. The idea is to source the whisky, and then age it for some additional time in a new cask out in Nova Scotia. New Scotland is you’re naughty.

So we have their first whisky, Glynnevan Double Barreled Canadian Rye. It’s Alberta Distillers rye. Apologies, I’ve been informed that this is not Alberta Distillers Rye. Sorry for passing on false news.

What’s the second barrel? Not stated, and not told. There is a three barrelled version that has rum casks used as well.

However we do see a difference (on some level) with these ryes being aged in other places, so let’s see what happens in Nova Scotia.

Price: $48.15 CAD at the LCBO

Region: Canada

Abv: 43%

Colour: 7.5YR 6/8

Nose: Maple, alcohol, carrot

Quite a bit of maple and alcohol on the nose. There’s some earth here, and that gives us a sweet earth.

I think the alcohol may be too low on this one. Could have had some more complexity to it at 46%. That said, it may be too young at that point.

Taste: Maple, carrot, mint, molasses

More maple, more earth, and more sweetness. We have more of a bourbon note with the extra oak added, and any alcohol has gone down.

That said, it’s following a Canadian Whisky profile, so I’m going to dock some points for not going out there.

Finish: Maple, brine, oak, caramel, raw ginger

And more maple. Maple, maple, maple. You know we have maple trees up here? We do.

Joking aside, we have some raw spice and caramel here. It’s different, and the brine is certainly adding a nice note to the caramel.

In the end, while I joke about additional maple, the finish is what you drink this for. It’s the most interesting side of the whole thing.

Conclusion: For a first entry, this is different enough from other Canadian whiskies. I wish that we, as Canadians, could help these small companies to bring out a higher abv., or take more time in the casks.

This is an interesting entry. The finish is quite well put together. The rest? It’s earth and maple dominant. It’s going to have trouble competing on the global stage.

Would I buy this? Sadly no. I want them to take more time, use different finishes, and try some more different things. I hope they can do that.

69/100

World Whisky review #270, Canada review #95, Whisky Network review #1202