Wendel Clark 100% Rye

As Canadian whisky's upmarket revolution continues, no large distiller has made as strong an effort to keep enthusiasts engaged as J.P. Wiser's. Far from content with their old-school blends, Wiser's have introduced a growing roster of unique, rye-forward brands for the avid drinker. 

In addition to Lot 40, Pike Creek, and Gooderham and Worts, themed limited editions celebrating NHL alumni have hit shelves over the past few years. Though somewhat contrived, there has been an effort to match the flavour profiles of each release to the playing style of the namesake players. In today's review, the bold and tenacious Leafs legend Wendel Clark gets a big 100% rye with his name on.

The liquid is an 11 year old blend of pot- and column-distilled rye aged in both ex-Bourbon and charred new oak casks. To an extent, this is an older brother to Wiser's Triple Barrel Rye, which has a similar distillate profile. 

To honour Toronto's 416 area code, and perhaps for some slightly bigger flavour, this whisky is bottled at 41.6%. It was originally released for the 2018-2019 hockey season but there are still bottles to be found in the Wiser's online boutique, with shipping available across Ontario. If you can find a bottle, I recommend picking it up, this is terrific rye at a great price point.

J.P. Wiser's Alumni Series - Wendel Clark

41.6% alc./vol.

$45 at J.P. Wiser's online shop

On the nose, the Bourbon cask influence is pronounced. There's sweet corn and lots of oak. Bright fruit notes, particularly red apple come up with dry grain and spice notes; caraway and dill foreshadow the palate. I also find some subtle dry fruit, particularly apricot amidst the smooth oak and grain.

The palate is the grainy, herbaceous type of rye rather than the white hot spice you might expect from the 'bold and tenacious' description on the label. The much-loved rye bread (or akvavit) profile of caraway and dill from Lot 40 are prominent, with the spice restrained underneath. There is a pleasing, acidic sourness like fermenting bread. Herbaceous flavours continue; black liquorice, molasses, and a very subtle bitter citrus. This is like drinking a loaf of bread - delicious and without any discernable off-notes or rough edges.

Restrained spice rises on the medium-long finish along with pronounced mint. There is rich tobacco, oak, and loads more rye bread as the finish slowly fades. 

What a fantastic sipper. Though I wouldn't necessarily call it tenacious, this rich, quite flawless whisky tastes like a trip to the bakery with its big grain profile. Making liberal use of Hiram Walker's grainy column still rye distillate, this is the liquid equivalent of a freshly baked loaf. 

Of course you want to drink this as a Leafs fan, but the quality and big, grainy flavours will be enjoyed by any whisky drinker. This is quality rye at a great price, and a champion on any bar.

Heatseeker Score: 88

Category Score: 93

Characteristic: Grain forward

Stalk and Barrel 100% Rye

Despite its name, Vaughan, Ontario's Still Waters Distillery has been making waves since they first fired their still in 2009. Run by the 'two Barry's;' Barry Stein and Barry Bernstein, this distillery forged the trail toward craft brewing in Ontario through dogged determination. As one of the first craft distillers in the province, they ran headlong into the web of outdated regulations surrounding distilling and alcohol sales. And while far too many of those regulations continue to hamper Ontario distillers, the tireless work of the Still Waters team blazed a path that is slowly getting clearer. 

The distillery is now also home to a large contract distilling operation for some well known vodka and gin brands, and proprietary 'Purtrak' software they've developed is employed by numerous other Canadian distilleries. 

In terms of their whiskies, though, they're already a decade into doing special things. Their single malt has won loads of plaudits and their cask strength ryes the same. Initially, these high end single cask releases were augmented by two classic Canadian blends, but they helpfully added this single rye at a lower strength and price point. A recent switch to a less weighty bottle design helped the distillery bring prices into the range where you could casually pick up a bottle for everyday sipping. And this whisky brings quite a bit to the table when compared to its shelf mates at under $40. 

It's still bottled at an elevated 46% which notably allows for the use of non-chill filtration. This is a less invasive filtration method in terms of preserving subtle flavour complexities.  There's also no added colour, so what you see us what you get, and the flavour isn't unduly diminished. The liquid itself is a mix of malted and unmalted rye aged for a little over three years in ex-bourbon barrels. 

Stalk and Barrel 100% Rye

46% alc./vol.

$36 at the distillery

The nose on this whisky - incredible! Waves of new oak and hard, dry rye spice wash over deep, jammy red wine. Dried apple rings, green grass, freshly dried hay, they're all here. There's some maple hiding underneath alongside honey, prunes, sultanas, and oatcakes. There's also underlying bitterness and sliced almond. The oak influence is massive and pulls you into the glass yet brilliantly balanced with the spice and deep sweetness. Wow, if you could bottle the scent it would be a great perfume. I simply want to keep sniffing this but my mouth is watering.

The palate doesn't have the same complexity, but is pleasingly tannic. The bourbon influence from the cask presents first with a sweet, corn profile. There's lots of oak alongside, though it's held in nice balance, without overpowering the grain. Throughout, a pronounced citrus bitterness grows and persists into the finish.

The higher bottling strength yields a rich, oily mouthfeel and there is a fulsome warming character even though this isn't a particularly spicy dram. What spice there is comes from a youthful, slightly alcoholic heat. Though that heat isn't too overpowering, it does momentarily drown out some of the grain character and subtlety. As the heat subsides, there's some dry straw and also mint, not unlike Lot 40. Lovely grainy rye and spices - caraway and clove - round out the palate. 

The finish is very clean and 'foresty.' Lots of mint and resinous, earthy pine. There's a bit of spice at the start as well as the bitterness, but what lingers for some time is the very clean, green spearmint profile, alongside the grainy rye. This is quite pleasing; the oaky warming sensation on the palate has been replaced by a profoundly fresh cooling sensation on the finish. I feel as though I've just had some mouthwash and everything is light and clean. 

Quite a nice dram at this price. The nose carries such tremendous complexity that the palate can't entirely match (though it is quite good in its own right), but all is redeemed by the wonderful warm-cool progression.

I'm very excited by the thought of trying this whisky, and it's cask-aged siblings, as they age some more. The intriguing green, almost alpine freshness through the finish is delightful; a departure from expectation. At its sub-$40 price, this is a very, very smart buy. If nothing else, it's a great after-dinner mint, but when tasting this whisky you'll feel you're drinking something in a higher price range. It's easy to see why this distillery has garnered so much praise in its first decade.

Heatseeker Score: 87

Category Score: 92

Characteristic: Fresh