Crown Royal Reserve

Crown Royal Reserve 40% abv., no age statement, minimum is 3 years, said to be aged longer than regular crown. Plastic cap on a nice looking bottle. Aroma: minor to moderate sweetness, some rye notes, fruity/apples, faint oak Taste: moderate body, a little slick, minor oak on the back end, astringent, grainy, minor to moderate spice, maybe some minor char notes, a little brown sugar but less sweetness compared to regular crown. Overall I as expecting better from this whisky. But it has some astringency to it, minor odd notes with some decent notes, it was lacking complexity, boldness, and flavor in some areas. I could have gotten a bad bottle by chance and this one is hard to find. So I'm not sure if I will revisit. Overall it was high average at best from my sample. Cost: $39.99 plus tax for a 750 ml bottle Grade: C/C+

I am not a fond fan of canadian whiskies, and i really had only a handful of them so i am not a real source of knowledge in this field. As Canadian Club and the other two Crown Royals i have had (Black and "normal"). Bottled at 40%abv, tawny color. On the nose, it is so dim and not very fun. Honey, rye sweetness and some herbal notes. On the palate is easy drinkable, with honey and peanut butter notes. Aftertaste is simple with some tobacco notes and some spiciness, ginger and clove. Overall, my score for this dram is 76 over 100, its not my cup of tea, but there is nothing off-putting in it.

Bottle #2 of a 12 Days of Christmas Gift Set: Nose is pretty faint, with just a little apple and pear presenting. Palate is very smooth, and tastes so much of grape that it present more like cognac than whisky. After a few seconds, traditional flavors of caramel, vanilla and corn arrive, but don't last very long, and aren't very pronounced. The finish is short, slightly drying, smooth and pleasant. Not a bad drink by any stretch, but also not very challenging or complex. Light, fresh, and easy to drink, this could be just the thing to get that fence sitter started on the whisky trail.

Crown Royal Reserve. Crown Royal is always a safe bet, an easy go to. The Reserve steps its up just another slight step. Nose: Honey, toffee, syrup, almonds, malty, and slight peaches Palate: Honey, nuts, toffee, malty, apple, peaches Finish: Malty, toffee, honey, light fruits, and slight apple This is a beautiful dram on the nose. Very sweet aromas mix beautifully together with the fruity notes. However, the fruity notes are very light, almost drowned out by the sweetness, even on the palate. The finish is light and short, almost watered down, yet still delicious for a quick bite.

I'd call this really a 3.5, but I'm feeling generous enough to round up. This is a notable improvement on the standard Crown bottling - that extra age leads not only to extra smoothness, but more pronounced flavor. Not that you'd guess it from the nose, though, which is virtually nonexistent. Fortunately, the palate is full of brown sugar and spice, with that unique grain quality that I only seem to find in Canadian whiskies...must be the blending of 100% grain specific whiskies together. I don't know that I'd pay the $45-ish that I see this sell for, but it's pleasant enough.

The nose is rich with peaches, vanilla, grapes, and oak. The palate is very sweet with flavors of apple juice, spicy oak, caramel, and cinnamon. The finish is long and very mellow with a few subdued spices. The whiskey is certainly enjoyable, but not remarkable. I remember this bottle being about $35-$40 when I bought it several years ago, but it seems now the price has risen into the $50 range. At that price you can find much better whiskeys, in my opinion.