Alberta Premium Cask Strength Rye (2021 Release)

Rating: 16/23 N: There's a real richness here. There's a big sweet layer as well. I get cherry and malt and spearmint and light baking spices and vanilla and just a nice core layer. P: Rich, full, decadent. Lots of cherry flavor, but also a ton of burn It tastes high proof, not harsh. Some malty richness and hints of dark chocolate. An interesting note of mushroom earthiness that reminds me of Noah's Mill, but in a good way. This is decadent, but not all that exciting. F: This is a bit bitter and flat and lingering, but there are some flavors to consider here. Cherry is clearly present, but it seems like there's some orange to trade off with an existing bourbon. - Conclusion - This doesn't quite come together, but it is quite decadent and needs something to tie it together a bit. I'm finding it to be comparable in quality to Whistlepig PiggyBack (16/23). There are some similar stark rye vibes, which I appreciate, though this goes a more decadent, less complex route. If anything, I'd be inclined to give the win to this one, so it could be a 17. Pikesville (16/23) has a sweeter body with some nice character from other grains, but it's missing that pure rye purity that this has. Still, I'm not finding this to be better than the Pikesville. Russell's Reserve Single Barrel rye (17/23) is also in the same ballpark as this quality-wise. Both focus on the richness. Sigh, this seems like another 16 Rye. It could be a 17 though. I have a lot, so I'll review it again later, but it's a 16 for now.

COLOUR: Old copper still. LEGS: Thin clothesline; micro-beads consolidated into bigger drops on the line; a long time later, they gently and very slowly rolled down the glass like Empress Carlotta's necklace; they took forever to fully drop -- I lost patience and went on to the nose. NOSE: Moderate (3/5); sweet, spicy & grassy; vanilla, honey & maple syrup; sour green apples & citrus; slight acetone (Sharpie marker); herbal, hay & oak. WITH WATER (10 drops into 15mL): perhaps slightly sweeter and dustier. Score 7/10 TASTE: Very thick and rich; oily, wet drying; powerful (5/5); very sweet, very spicy rye; vanilla, caramel & honey; pepper, cinnamon & leather; herbal & oaky; some hints of salt towards the end; WITH WATER: much juicier, sweeter, creamier, and dustier; way better; I bumped up the score by half a point. Score 8.5/10 FINISH: Long and sweet, with lots of hot rye spice; a little dusty grains at the end on the burp. WITH WATER: longer and sweeter. Score 7.5/10 OVERALL: Quite strong and harsh without water; very sweet and delicious with water. Excellent in a tumbler with an ice cube, but be sure to drink it all down before the ice cube fully melts and dilutes the rye too much. Weighted Score 8.0/10 IMAGERY: I'm browsing a small-town candy store, smelling all the candy dust in the air.

The nose gives you immediate heat, too much if you're not careful, but brings with it floral rye, caramel apple, and a bit of charred oak and leather. It is unmistakably rye and gives you the impression that it is very robust and at a sweet spot with its age. The palate is dry yet chewy and immediately coats the mouth with intense baking spices mixed with a bit of dark chocolate. Sweet caramel apple comes out as you chew, giving you very nice fruity notes on the back end. This whiskey stays strong as it breathes, remaining intense and full flavored without any worry of it leaning out. The nose does carry over to the palate pretty straightforward and while the flavors may seem rather simplistic, it is the intensity of the flavors which makes this shine. The finish is long, but not too long with the intense spice giving way to lingering green apple which feels almost refreshing. The rest of the palate can be coaxed out with some chew, making this an almost never ending experience. This is absolutely remarkable when it comes to floral, rather than earthy, rye.

120-GEV014, 2021, 63.7 abv, $75, Wake County, NC. Golden brown and thinner legs in the glass. Burnt brown sugar, grape must, and grassy spicy notes, and some ethanol on the nose. In the mouth, super sweet burnt sugar and then light dill pickle with a good ethanol rush, but not over powering... for 128 proof. Sweet, sour, grassy, chocolate, and a fair bit of pepper and baking spice. Finish is chocolate, sweet grass, and spicy mint tingle, and then gone quickly. Has that thin Canadian mouthfeel overall, light oak, little tannins, and compact finish. Clean flavors and narrow profile. Ice cools the ethanol, tamps down the sweet and sour, rounds the rye grain flavors, and enhances the chocolate and mint notes. Going to keep tasting and thinking about this. Not really a fan of the Canadian whisky style generally, but this one is worth considering.

Wow! This bottle really surprised me. I tried the first batch and wasn’t a fan. So I came into this bottle with low expectations and no tasting notes. First impression was that the packing was a little low end with plastic wrap and a plastic screw top. But on we go. I let the whiskey open up for 15 minutes before nosing. Nose: Slow approach to into it I picked up sweet melon, then vanilla, apples, and as I got deeper into it I got hit with heavy cinnamon. Great nose. Taste: vanilla, apples, cinnamon, nutmeg. Finish: long warming finish dominated by baking spices. I didn’t want to like this whiskey because i hate Canadian whiskey. But this is unreal value for a cask strength Rye. I wish more Canadian whiskeys could be like this.

One of my favorites, my second venture into Candadian whiskey. Significantly better than a brand that rhymes with thistle rig.