Basil Hayden’s Dark Rye

Thanks to my buddy Rob who poured this (and the original Basil Hayden) as part of a recent whisky tasting we had (we all socially distanced and stayed outside and were all fully vaccinated). Experimentation is a good thing. I can frankly say that as someone who lives in Canada, where you can experiment and […]

High West Double Rye! K&L Exclusive Pineau des Charentes Finished

I have this weird thing for whiskies in Pineau des Charentes casks. I have no explanation for it at all. I was drinking Teeling, as I like to do, and one of them used the cask. Then my mother called me up from a friend’s house and they were talking about it. Does that mean […]

William Larue Weller (2018) / Thomas H. Handy Sazerac Rye 2017

I’m pretty damn lucky to have had these. Let’s not kid around here: The current state of the Buffalo Trace Antique Collection is insanity. Prices aren’t going up, lines are getting longer and longer, and people are flipping these for small reliable if gently used automobiles. So right off the bat, yes. I’m lucky. I’m […]

High West Midwinter Nights Dram – Act 6 / – Act 7

Thanks to /u/EvilAFI and /u/smoked_herring for these samples. Also thanks to Whiskey Consensus for the bottle pic. So far I’ve had each of the MWND. I originally tasted it solely for the following reasons: A friend had a bottle I’m a fan of High West interesting whiskey finishes I used to be a drama nerd and love Shakespeare Did […]

Lot 40 Cask Strength Third Edition & Pike Creek 21 Oloroso Finish

Each year we receive the Canadian equivalent of the Buffalo Trace Antique Collection, called the Northern Border collection from J.P. Wiser’s. Sadly this year I couldn’t go to the tasting that typically happens to try them. Luckily, as part of a tasting, there were two of the whiskies hanging out as open whiskies ready to […]

Alberta Premium Cask Strength

Thanks to /u/devoz for sharing this dram with me. Alberta is currently a hot topic in Canada. There’s some history there which I won’t be getting into. I won’t be opening that particular can of worms here. That said, it is the origin and part of the name of the whisky I’ll be reviewing today, Alberta Premium Cask […]

Shelter Point Single Malt Kensington Wine Market Pick / Shelter Point Single Cask Rye

I’m always looking for a “next distillery”. Something that makes a whisky that I’ll enjoy. And while I typically enjoy Scotch, I do want other countries to make cool stuff too. Enter Canada, get cold, go home, realize home is a little crazy (unless you’re part of Germany or a country that’s less crazy), come […]

J.P. Wiser’s NHL Alumni Whisky Series

I was able to try each of these through the Toronto Whisky Society, which was given the chance to try them by Wiser’s themselves. Special commemorative editions of things, especially mashups of two different fandoms, are always something to question before buying: Why are you buying it? For the Wiser’s Alumni Whisky Series, you could tell […]

Booker’s Little Book Chapter 2: Noe Simple Task

Thanks to /u/devoz for this dram. Canadian whisky is allowed to still be called Canadian whisky and keep its age statement assuming that less than 1/11th of it is made up of spirits that have been aged at least two years or non-spirit (or wine) added. This was so that we could add in American whisky to […]

Knob Creek Cask Strength Rye

We’ve all been there. You just came off the Big Time batch that was much beloved, but you’re out of it. And trying to get to the top of the ryes, as AC/DC stated, is a long way. And many an empty pocket. But then you find out about an alternative: Knob Creek Cask Strength Rye. […]