When is Canadian whisky not actually Canadian whisky? Twelve Barrels, the scrappy upstart rye, has a great story behind it but also answers that question in an eyeopening way.
The story of Twelve Barrels goes back all the way to 1853, at least in terms of inspiration. The recipe is inspired by Napanee, Ontario distiller John Meagher, who ran a gristmill and made a wheat-rye blend with surplus grain. His son, George, became locally famous as a figure skater, jumping over his father's whisky barrels on the frozen river.
Jumping ahead to the modern era, another young trailblazer is doing great things with whisky barrels. At age sixteen, Napanee's Cole Miller was caught by his parents making wine under his bed! He moved on to homebrew beer and eventually got himself a small still. Rather than settling for moonshining, Cole took his skills to Northwestern England and apprenticed at the Lakes Distillery. Coming home, he brought his knowledge of whisky to Dragon's Den, where he impressed investors with his passion (and his Dad dressed up as George Meagher).
Eventually, Mr. Miller found his product listed at the LCBO and gaining modest acclaim with drinkers. A great success story and definitely, as the label says, 'uniquely Canadian.' But how Canadian is it?
The answer to that is 75%. It turns out Twelve Barrels isn't technically Canadian whisky because the rye component is sourced from the United States before blending and bottling in Canada. But sourcing Canadian rye can be difficult these days, with demand so high. Perhaps Twelve Barrels had no choice but to use American rye, at least for the time being, to make ends meet on the balance sheet.
And, fair play to the brand, they are upfront about it on their website. Although the bottle cheekily conceals the 'rye spirit' designation, Cole breaks down the three components of his blend online in good detail. Inspired by the old recipes, the base for Twelve Barrels is wheat (rather than the now ubiquitous corn). Aged in ex-Bourbon casks, this adds a soft profile and comprises 40% of the blend. For sweetness, 35% is a corn whisky also aged in ex-Bourbon. And then the rye; 25% is American rye distillate aged in virgin oak. An educated guess as to the source of the rye would be MGP Distillery in Indiana, who produce a good deal of what goes into American straight rye whiskies these days.
So, we know where we stand now. Twelve Barrels technically isn't Canadian whisky, but you wouldn't know it to taste. The profile is that of a classic Canadian blend, light but flavourful, with a spicy rye kick. And with a great Canadian story behind it, we can agree this is worthy of a spot next to it's fellow Canucks.
Twelve Barrels
40% alc./vol.
$35 at LCBO
On the nose, sweet caramel is balanced by warm rye. Brown sugar notes are set against the heat of cinnamon. But there is also a growing herbaceousness; perhaps spinach. That 'brown' earthy note adds a bit of interest to the otherwise typical blended rye profile.
The palate starts off with very light, soft butterscotch and vanilla quickly joined by spicy rye. That rye component brings equal parts wood and the cinnamon from the nose. There is an almost-sharp fruity note alongside some citrus bitterness.
Into the finish, the bitter citrus grows beside the residual rye heat. The finish isn't overly long or complex but has a nice tannic drying character, probably imparted from the new oak component. It begs for another easy sip.
This is quite good as a midrange bottle. The flavours are mostly mellow, with the rye adding just the right pop of heat. Regardless of where it was distilled, the rye component works really nicely within this blend.
So, no matter the technicalities, this is a very Canadian-tasting rye that should please just about anyone who drinks it.
Heatseeker Score: 84
Category Score: 86
Characteristic: Subtle and Spicy
