Forty Creek Resolve

Melissa Bernais is back with another guest review of a 2020 Forty Creek limited release. A fellow Niagara College distilling grad and experienced Forty Creek-er, she also contributed a review of Three Grain. I haven't tried either of these bottles yet (tragically), so no scores for now but I'll be sure to add them when I finally get my hands on some.

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Tasting Resolve alongside Three Grain, the line from then to now is impossible to miss! Fruit forward, lush spice...it's all here, but is also absolutely a unique thing unto itself.

Resolve is the 14th annual limited edition release for Forty Creek, and the final installment in Master Distiller Bill Ashburn's triptych exploring the effects of barrel finishes. Unity (2018) was finished with mocha-forward staves, Victory (2019) showcased the effects of vanilla-toned oak, while Resolve absolutely doubles down on spice. Like Unity and Victory, Resolve also includes a small measure of aged starboard wine - a fortified red, similar to port - that Bill made back in 1999, tying the three bottles together in an unmistakable way. 

Hands down, this bottle is my fav Forty Creek limited release (sorry, Confederation Oak!). While showcasing spice, the baking spice and pepper-heat are in no way overwhelming - they're complex and assertive, showcased and tempered by sweet, lush elements that make this bottle intensely sippable. I seriously would've sold a butt tonne of this to anyone walking through the door - and it's probably better that I'm not there anymore, because this is where all my tip money would go!

Forty Creek Resolve

43% alc./vol.

$80 at LCBO

Nose: Barley and barley.  Did I say barley? There's a lot of sweet cereal on that first sniff. It's quickly followed by a tonne of gorgeous, complex notes: Raisin and ripe plum. Vanilla, a little bit of cocoa, and caramelized sugar. Nutmeg and cinnamon. And more delightfully, a complex undernote of barrel char. 

Palate: Following its nose, the first expression here is a lush sweet cereal grain, followed quickly by peppery heat and baking spices. A deep, red wine lives in the heart of this sip, bringing lovely round, jammy notes. Vanilla asserts itself, with a nice little explosion of cinnamon, and a hot, complex spiciness that lingers, and swings back to say HELLO! again, just so you don't forget it (how could you, really, though?)

Yep, these two bottles. They're very, very good. You need them. Trust.

Characteristic: Spicy and Fruity

Man, I need to try this one! -Robbie

Forty Creek Three Grain (20th Anniversary Edition)

For today's review, we have a throwback release from the always-inventive Forty Creek team. And to share this buzzy bottling, we have a guest review from Melissa Bernais, a fellow Niagara College distilling grad and experienced Forty Creek-er. She's written today's review and will be back again with another 2020 special edition; Resolve. I haven't tried these bottles yet (tragically), so no scores for now but I'll be sure to add them when I finally get my hands on some.

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The past nine months have been a flurry of releases for Forty Creek; The Forager, Nanaimo Cream, and these two lovely little bottles here - Three Grain 2020 edition, and Resolve, the distillery's 14th annual limited edition release. Dang, that's busy! 

And having once been on the inside of it all - full disclosure, while enrolled at Niagara College's Artisan Distilling course, I worked at the Forty Creek retail store, walking customers through tastings and tours, and later on the bottling line - I couldn't be more delighted at the concepts and flavours finding a place on their shelves! Back in 2020, Forty Creek entered the whisky market with two offerings - Three Grain and Barrel Select. At that time, Canadian Whisky fans leaned heavily into the Barrel Select side of the family, leading the distillery to relegate Three Grain to the benches. Over the past two decades, it's made a guest appearance here and there in special, limited releases. 

The 2020 release will be Three Grain's final bow, 20 years after its first appearance on store shelves, in celebration of the place in the whisky market that Forty Creek has made for itself - and other Canadian disitlleries - in the world. Three Grain is a lush, barley-rich blend that stands up against new whiskies released to the delight of modern palates today. At the same time, it is, without a doubt, a Forty Creek whisky, with a delightfully fruit-forward aspect to it's flavour profile. It is nuanced and balanced, with lovely, surprising depths that make me wish consumers had been ready for it when it first came on the scene. I'm gonna hate to see this bottle emptied, knowing that there won't be anything coming along to replace it.

Forty Creek Three Grain (2020 bottling)

40% alc./vol.

$60 at LCBO

Nose: Sweet corn, warm barley, peppery rye. Vanilla and cinnamon. Ripe stone fruit.

Palate: Barley and rye ride throughout this sip, tying together sweet cereal notes with spicy pepper. A sweet, ripe cherry, and spiced milk chocolate heart. Vanilla, caramel and baking spices give live on the edges in your glass.

Characteristic: Fruity and Grain-forward

Canadian Club Barley Batch

Here's a really interesting expression from stalwart Canadian Club. Rather than releasing something entirely different like their single rye, this 160th anniversary special is a creative twist on their well-known blend. 

Barley Batch involves, as the name suggests, the addition of six-year-old malted barley whisky (apparently from fantastic Alberta Distillers) into their standard 1858 blend. In a sense, this whisky is like an supercharged blended Scotch, with the grain component consisting of the surprisingly boisterous CC 1858. 

The whisky is packaged, at 42%, in a very attractive bottle that feels rather high end, and originally the price point matched. When Barley Batch was released in 2018, it sold for as high as $60 in some provinces, which put it in the range of some very good ryes. I don't know if it was doing strong sales but I suspect people were reticent to pay that much for what is primarily Canadian Club 1858. I personally felt it a bit overpriced then too, though I did find myself buying a couple bottles for gifting. Now though, the price has come down and in Ontario it can be had for as little as $32. At that price, this bottle represents exceptional value and should very much be on your list. 

At the very least, this bottling should be attractive to those exploring Canadian whisky; take a blend we know very well and add new flavours. At its current price point, it slots in exceedingly well against both blended Scotch and Canadian whiskies. As a limited edition, it's unlikely we'll see this bottling on shelves forever, so it's a good pickup for collectors. But I do hope Canadian Club will put out more Barley Batch in the future and build on the idea of subtly tweaking their recipe to invite new flavours to the party.

Canadian Club Barley Batch 

Limited Edition

42% alc./vol.

$32 at LCBO

Lots of fruit on the nose; the stone fruit and spice of 1858 but also apple, mango, and lots of vanilla. 

The palate brings more of the Canadian Club signature dark fruit and rising spice, but there is a pleasant grain-forward note. Spicy rye continues to grow as underneath comes the distinctive taste of Maltesers. Less sweet perhaps, but the combination of malt and a chocolatey note lead me to this description. Throughout there is the typical butterscotch and some sweet fruit, perhaps pineapple.

The finish is perhaps a bit less intriguing than the palate; I'm getting the typical bitter citrus of many cheaper blends but without the beguiling hot rye takeover from the 1858. There's also some sweetness and lots of barley character, which makes the finish more like a young single malt. 

In all, this is a welcome addition to Canadian Club, and one I hope we will see more of. At $50-$60, it would be hard to really love this bottle but in the low $30's, this is terrific. A departure from usual CC but with plenty of reminders, and in a really elevated bottle, this makes all too much sense as a brand extension.

This whisky competes with blended Scotch but you'll be hard-pressed to find a Scottish bottle with this much character anywhere near the price point. It's a shame (for producers, not buyers) that Canadian whisky can't fetch the premiums Scotch does, but now that this is quite affordable whisky, there's no reason not to get this bottle. 

Barley Batch doesn't venture too far into either rye or malt whisky flavours, but it brings balance alongside intrigue for explorers of the category. 

Heatseeker Score: 86

Category Score: 90

Characteristic: Balanced and Fruity

Alberta Premium Cask Strength

- UPDATE: This bottle was named best in the world in Jim Murray's influential 2020 Whisky Bible. How fantastic to see Alberta Distillers getting the credit they've long deserved, but good luck finding a bottle of this for $65 now! -

Calgary's Alberta Distillers should be famous amongst whisky enthusiasts as the world's foremost distiller of rye. The grain, though it flourishes in Canada, is generally considered the most difficult and expensive to work with. It's strong husk and low starch content make rye hardy enough for the worst weather, but also increase the amount of doing needed to mash and ferment it. It frequently gums up equipment and it's yields are quite low relative to other whisky grains. Of course, what it lacks in efficiency it more than makes up for by packing the most substantial flavour of any grain.

Because of the relative difficulty of working with it, Alberta Distillers are doubly deserving the praise their whiskies often get. However, because a great deal of their best distillate is shipped to the US to be bottled by independent American brands, the credit often passes Alberta by. This humble approach has benefitted consumers, though, as we pay a pittance when we pick up bottles of whisky worth way more than they retail for. 

Finally, though, we are seeing some of Alberta Distillers' best whisky bottled with their own name on the package. The much-loved Alberta Premium has benefitted from premium brand extensions in the past (the Dark Horse bottling and some limited well-aged releases) but today's most coveted bottle joins the 'cask strength' trend that's worked it's way over from Scotland. 

Cask strength bottling is a simple concept that, like everything in whisky, can't actually be described without great complexity. In short, cask strength means the whisky is bottled without any dilution; it is bottled at the strength it comes out of the barrel at. As with age statements, though, this doesn't actually tell you everything. There's no law about which exact barrel is referred to, whether it's the barrel it spent years in, a finishing barrel, or a marrying vat. Really, we don't know these things, but we do know cask strength means this whisky is substantially stronger than most bottlings.

In this case, we get whisky presented at a whopping 65.1% , a great deal more potent than the standard 40% Alberta Premium. This means the same Alberta Premium flavours are massively amped up, without any dilution. But it can also be difficult to discern some of those flavours in the face of so much hot alcohol. For that reason, many choose to add water to cask strength whisky, but depending on the water used, the flavours can change in the glass. Reverse osmosis or distilled water would be the most "correct" to preserve flavours without adding minerals, but the most fun thing is to try and pair the whisky to water from its local area. Personally, I enjoy cask strength rye at cask strength, with no added water. Perhaps it's a mix of pain and pleasure, but so is much of drinking spirits. 

At this high strength and limited availability, this bottle is significantly more expensive than its standard Alberta Premium brother. Still, it's about the best deal on cask strength whisky anywhere, as you might expect from this distillery. Similarly potent bottlings from Scotland or Kentucky can easily run into the hundreds of dollars so at under $70, this is a real bargain. To pass savings on to us, the distillery packaged it in the standard Alberta Premium bottle, albeit presented in a cardboard box featuring tasting notes. It's a wollop of flavour that will only be appreciated by enthusiasts but wow, what a treat it is for us!

Alberta Premium Cask Strength Rye

65.1% alc./vol.

$65 at Co-Op World of Whisky in Calgary

First, a note of warning for those trying their first cask strength whisky: small sips! There's a lot of hot, hot alcohol here and this isn't a drink to quench your thirst. You've been warned!

Now, on the nose, the warmth rises up to greet with loads of oak, vanilla, and black pepper spice. The rich breezes seem almost to suck you in with their fullness.

Taking the first tentative sip, the first brief hit is maple sweetness for an instant before the heat begins to rise. Yeeeeooouuu that's a slap of hot rye! It's not just spice, though, like drinking hot sauce. It's an actual warming sensation on the tongue that almost takes your breath away for a moment. Now a new oak flavour profile comes in with lots of tannic influence, causing a drying sensation in the mouth. Here's some cinnamon coming in. Now the heat keeps building with a crashing wave of salt. The wave sweeps toward the back of the palate with blackberry, banana, and nutmeg. As the heat peaks, a new set of dill and caraway flavours arise along with fresh baked bread. A dollop of tobacco arrives late and, when combined with the heat, gives the feel of smoking a cigar.

The finish is, as is to be expected, lasts ages. It's still quite hot, but moreso puckeringly tannic. There's a rising bitter citrus and more caraway, all yielding eventually to some green apple sweetness, maple, oak, and grainy rye. And still lots more heat!

Well, basking in the lingering warm afterglow, it's time to try and decode the rollercoaster ride of this cask strength whisky. The heat is there, of course, but is perfectly complimented by the dusty, hot rye. It's complex heat rather than just ethanol like in most vodka. 

Like all cask strength whisky, there's tremendous potential for flavour and its all there. This whisky doesnt have any age statement and doesn't have the complexity of longer-aged drams, but it's not anything approaching simplistic. Like other cask strength whiskies, it demands respect. It must be sipped tentatively because it delivers its waves of flavour with tremendous force. Alberta ryes are rarely subtle even at 40% and here, even a half finger's pour can provide an hour's sipping. The enthusiast will enjoy the massive flavours but will also relish the opportunity to mentally deconstruct the experience of sipping, allowing for a healthy dose of amazement at how much flavour can exist in so little liquid.

The most notable aspect of this dram is its structure; the heat washes over the palate, growing as it marshals an orderly parade of sweet, salty, spicy, fruity, and doughy. Coupled with a great finish, this cask strength version of Alberta Premium is a world apart from its standard sibling. It shares the trademark extreme value of so many whiskies from this province, though, and is a fantastic choice for the rye lover looking to reach a new level of flavour altogether.

Heatseeker Score: 93

Category Score: 94

Characteristic: Spicy

We're reviewing five different ryes produced at Alberta Distillers as part of a series. We invite you to check out the other reviews and find your favourite.

Alberta Springs 10 Year

Canadian Club 100% Rye

Snake River Stampede 8 year
Alberta Premium (standard bottling)

Bearface One Eleven Series: Oaxaca

The 9.09% rule; perhaps the most misunderstood and controversial element of Canadian whisky regulations. Some whisky drinkers in Scotland and the US (and far too many Canadians) slag off the whole style with mistruths surrounding what has also been called Canadian whisky's superpower. It also isn't used nearly enough, perhaps for fear of reprisal, but as Canadian whisky continues its elevation to premium status, this is perhaps the most exciting area for creativity and innovation. 

In short, the rule allows for up to 9.09% of a rye to include other spirits aged at least two years, or wine. The origins of this admittedly actually lie in American tax regulations; Canadian distillers used to be able to get a break on American duties if they blended in some American whiskey to their exported bottles. Aside from a tax break, though, it also gave distillers leverage to do unique things with other spirits as part of their blends. It doesn't mean blenders can just add anything to their whisky, though, in spite of what many uneducated commentators might sneer.

There are rules; only aged (2+ years) spirits or wine can be blended in and the whisky must still possess the flavour characteristics of Canadian whisky. So, despite what bourbon and  Scotch snobs might suggest, no one is blending in vodka or orange juice or anything like that. 

There are some great examples of the 9.09 rule being used well; Alberta Premium's beloved (but sadly discontinued) Dark Horse used Old Grand Dad bourbon and sherry while Wiser's Union 52 added 52-year old Scotch!  In practice today, if this rule is employed it tends to be done so sparingly, rarely with more than a percentage or two of added liquid. 

Finally, though, this quirk is getting it's due as the blender's superpower thanks to a truly innovative bottling from buzzy whisky house Bearface. With the smart title 'One Eleven Series,' which corresponds to 9.09% as a fraction, they are proudly and conspicuously taking advantage of this rule.

For their first One Eleven release, Bearface teamed up with mezcalero Pedro Hernandez to add two-year old Mezcal. Tequila's trendy, smoky cousin is rarely aged this long as the smoky flavours can take over the subtleties of the agave base. In this case, though, the smokiness makes for a truly unique sipper. Not everyone will enjoy this - it's definitely not your run of the mill "smooth" blend, but for the explorer, this is the next frontier.

Not a tonne is shared about the base of this whisky. The irony isn't lost coming from a brand whose motto is "hide nothing, fear nothing" but I digress. We are fairly certain it's distilled in Collingwood at Canadian Mist and that the casks are transported to B.C.'s Mission Hill winery for finishing. The bottle claims to be single grain, and we can assume, based on cost and origin, that means corn. 

The barrel aging regime is, as with Bearface's flagship 7 year old, thoughtful. With their winery background, the Bearface team gravitated toward rich, fruity, spicy French oak casks. Two different toast levels give both rich spicy notes and a sweeter profile. These are blended with the Mezcal, which spends it's two years in vanilla forward ex-bourbon barrels. The result leaves the base whisky earthy and floral, but the smoky mezcal makes this whisky truly unlike any other.

Bearface One Eleven Series: Oaxaca

45% alc./vol.

$50 in Ontario, Alberta, BC

The nose starts off fruity, as might be expected of aged corn whisky. Dark fruit becomes more floral than anything, with hints of allspice and clove. 

It's the first sip, though, where things get delightfully weird. It becomes immediately clear that this doesn't taste like any whisky you've tried before; dry oak starts but quickly gives way to strong black and chili pepper, cumin, and an oily character. The French casks impart lots of drying tannins, but vanilla from the American oak is also detected. The earthy, smokiness is what takes over, though. 

The Mezcal also brings loads of acidity and pungent earthy flavours. I'd compare it quite strongly with Mexican adobo sauce. The cask tannins and Mezcal acidity lend some bite, not unlike the white heat you find in some rye forward whisky.

On the finish, more of the same. Earthiness, smoke, and a return to dry oak. There's so much going on here, and it's so unlike any other whisky, I find myself a bit confused as to flavour descriptors. I even find it very difficult to score, it simply doesn't taste like any other whisky. There's no point of comparison in the category and I'm not even sure this blend accomplishes what it set out to do, whatever that may be. You could argue the Mezcal comes in way too hot and fast and that everything else is thrown off kilter. But you could also argue that this is the kind of devil-may-care approach needed to smash down everyone's preconceptions. One thing is absolutely certain though, this is not a subtle dram by any stretch. 

This is a crashing, acidic, smoky bonfire of a whisky that is a radical departure from everything next to it on the shelf. Many will find it unpalatable but it could also steal many a cocktail show. For the adventurous, sipping this is a must. What an ideal gift this would make for the whisky drinker, or fans of agave spirits. It's a conversation piece in and of itself. Not everyone will want a bottle but absolutely everyone should try a sip. There is truly nothing like it out there but that won't last; no other whisky style has the ability to create something like this. It's inevitable that the Canadian category will make legions of new fans as it dives headfirst into a newfound embrace of the 9.09 - or better yet the 1/11 - rule. 

This is a category defining whisky that not everyone will love, or even understand, but everyone should try. If we one day look back on the present renaissance of Canadian whisky, the moment Bearface released this bottle will undoubtedly be one of the highlights. 

Heatseeker Score: 85

Category Score: 85

Characteristic: Smoky

*Please take these scores with a grain of salt. This whisky is in a flavour category entirely on its own; it's all but impossible to score it in relation to any other bottle presently on the market. The only thing is to try it and decide for yourself!