Forty Creek Confederation Oak Reserve

Ok, I'll admit it. I like Canadian whisky. Perhaps some context is in order. I popped over to Total Wine for a "look" to see if they had anything interesting or new in stock since the new year. The bottle selection was pretty much the same, but I had noticed that the prices on my favorite Scotches had gone up an average of $10. Damn tariffs. I noticed that the Diageo products (Talisker, Lagavulin, etc.) had gone up considerably. How kind of them to pass those on to us... In light of this, I'm taking a renewed focus on some categories I've neglected in the last few years, namely Canadian whisky. I feel like it deserves a second look. Here's why. Rumor has it (and YouTube confirms it) that Canada keeps most of the good stuff for themselves. I can't find a shop anywhere that sells J.P. Wisers 23 Year Cask Strength or Lot 40 Cask Strength. Some folks carry the Forty Creek limited editions, but those are infrequent and spotty, though some are highly rated (such as Unity or Victory), so I started to do some research. Davin DeKergommeaux writes about Canadian whisky for Whisky Advocate, and has a fantastic website (canadianwhisky.org) where there are detailed reviews of a multitude of Canadian whiskies. @Kteach also has a fantastic YouTube page called Whisky Neighbour where he talks about a number of Canadian whiskies and I've learned a lot from his videos. Check both out if you get a chance and give this category another look. It's not all Crown and Club. Now...this whisky. I have a lot of nice bottles, particularly Scotch and Bourbon. I'm looking for something different this year. I remembered having a great experience with the 40 Creek Copper Pot, with my only gripe being a slightly astringent finish, which water tamped down a tad. 40 creek has higher rated expressions than this one, but I was intrigued by the idea of "Canadian terroir" on this one, it being primarily aged in Canadian Oak barrels rather than American Oak. Supposedly the slower growing process in Canada results in stronger vanillin being imparted into the spirit. How often do you see this? Usually oak is either American or French. If this isn't Canadian whisky, I'm not sure what is. On the nose, I get a similar profile to the Copper Pot, but more refined, aged, settled. There's vanilla, butterscotch, tannic barrel notes, and a smell that I can only describe as the lumber section at Home Depot (lumber is a note I see a lot in Canadian whisky reviews, so maybe I'm not crazy here). It arrives gentle on the palate, with maple brown sugars, toffee, dark berries (I'm thinking blackberries & raspberries ) moving into a smokiness (note: not peatiness) on the back palate. This leads to a surprisingly long, sweet, coating finish. It reminds me of a Kentucky hug, but perhaps we should call it the Ontario hug instead. I like this. Really like this. Enough that I think most of my purchases this year will be from North America rather than Europe until they can sort out this tariff nonsense. I have plenty of Scotch in tow to last me a while, but this, this is worth another look. Cheers! P.S.- Remember that "no new bottles for 2020" bit I put out a while back? Ya...made it 11 days. C'est la vie en whisky.

I've been a Canadian whisky fan since I came of age. My first northern friend was Canadian Club 6 year (circa 1980) and I've explored quite a few since then. I've had several bottles of this particular whisky and I'm generally a fan of Forty Creek since I ran into a crazy 50% off sale at a liquor store several years back. I purchased a case of Barrel Select, a case of Copper Pot and a case of the Confederation Oak under consideration here. This is from the very last bottle of that case. Confederation Oak pours a rich, clear burnt sienna. It exhibits clingy sheeting when swirled, with quick tears that leave thick tracks. By appearances this is going to have a creamy mouthfeel. On the nose this is vanilla, candy corn, sweet demarara syrup, and Squirrel Nut Zipper candy. There's a little nuttiness to this. Pecans, not peanuts. There isn't a lot of complexity and this isn't going to hold your interest for some deep tasting session. It smells good, nuff said. Tasting this bears out its gentle, sweet nature. There isn't any real bite to speak of. This is a relatively low 80 proof. I'll admit that in recent years my tastes have leaned towards much higher barrel proofs. That said, this seems even kinder than its proof suggests. It's an easier sipper than Jack Daniels Gentleman Jack, for example (though quite a bit different in profile). The rye makes its presence known with traces of dill, mint and cedar. There isn't any giant profile, just a sweet candied flavor bomb. A drop of water will take any semblence of complexity from the nose, leaving mostly vanilla and candy corn. The water makes this really a very easy drinker, perfect for dessert. Mostly I've drunk this with a single large cube, often as a accompaniment to a coffee or espresso. I've also used this to make a brandy alexander, substituting for the brandy. I've also used it to make a crazy-sweet smoked old fashioned for guests who aren't whisky-experienced and want to try something new. This is a sweet, creamy, easy drinking honey/vanilla/candy liquor that's right at home when you want something that's not challenging. At the sub $35 price I got it for, it was a steal. At the $69.99 price I see it for at Florida liquor stores today, it's a hard pass. I have to dock it at least half a point for lack of value. It's good, just not $70 good.

It's that time again. That magical time of year when all the "Best Whiskey of the Year" lists come out. I've been searching around and found that most of these lists consist of highly aged Scotch and limited release or allocated Bourbon, and while I'm sure these drams are delicious, the fact remains that most of us will likely never taste most of these, so over the next five days, I present to you this longhorn's humble top 5 whiskies of 2020. Most of us could agree that this was not our best year. However, all the time spent at home resulted in expanded imbibing of our favorite brown beverage. This is the criteria for my list: (1) The whiskey has to be readily available on store shelves. No special releases. This means the most excellent Wild Turkey Masters Keep expressions I tried and rated this year are out, though you should feel confident to buy on sight. (2) Every dram on my list is $80 or less. Everyone should be able to taste great whiskey, and yes, I realize my definition of "great" might be different than others, but that's the fun of what we all do here, and (3) I had to have tasted it in 2020. None of the whiskies on my list were released this year, but this year is when I finally got around to them. Coming in at #5 was an early contender for this list. I've professed my love for Canadian whiskey and I don't care who knows. There's a lot of cool offerings out there once you move past the bottom shelf, even at 40%, and this one ticks off all the right boxes. Finished in Canadian oak barrels (who else can claim that!), this dram presents notes of maple, spice, butterscotch, toffee, and more. At $55 and bottled at 40% ABV, it packs a lot of flavor into a modern classic from the North. I've written (read: lamented) before about how Canada keeps all the best stuff for themselves, but this one makes it south to us here in the US, and any whiskeyfile should give this a go before they write off Canadian whiskey as a category. Those folks at Forty Creek know what they're doing. Pick up a bottle and try for yourself. Cheers!

Forty Creek has had a good run over the last 10 years with its popularity catching on and allowing it to expand into the premium bottle territory. This Canadian whisky is smooth, minuscule burn (barely taste it) and a pleasant oak taste, but not over powering. It’s stored in bourbon barrels for four years and then stored in white oak barrels for another two. For a six year old whisky and a price tag of $69.95 CND, i would say that is the only downfall with this dram. Although the abv is only 40.5%, the oak really pushes this through to a “buy me once” and move on to something else in there lineup. An odd thing i noticed was the way the store this product is used in reverse for making another fortey creek whisky called Double Barrel. The price point for that one is $10 cheaper. I guess depending on your preference of enjoying oak vs a bourbon finish may depend on which one you may prefer. All in all, fortey creek makes some wonderful products. For a rye and if you are a collector, i would recommend this as a one time purchase if you enjoy less bite and more flavours.

According to the company's promotional material, likely the first whiskey aged in Canadian oak--it's the same species of oak as found in the US, but environmental differences supposedly create some differences (the wood is tigher, less porous, heavier in vanillans, supposedly). Good quality, but a bit overpriced, and is desperately crying out for more proof. Flavours of toffee, butterscotch, big vanilla, rye spiciness, cinnamon hearts, orange peel, rye bread, berries, tobacco. Fresh cut lumber on the taste, a nice blend of sweet and spicy. But quite soft, and the flavours require a lot of teasing out. Gets drowned out in cocktails, and honestly--while it's better than its younger brother, Forty Creek Copper Pot--it's not so much better as to justify the $30 higher pricetag).

Complex and constantly evolving best describe the nose. Maple syrup, brown sugar, vanilla, raisin, figs, apricots and black pepper are immediate. Leather notes and green apple become apparent upon later wafts. On the palate the brown sugar, maple syrup, and vanilla are up front and center with the peppery notes filling and lingering in the back of the throat. The finish is long and lasting, odd for an 80 proof whisky. This one causes salivation to occur triggering the need and desire for further sips. Another lovely offering from Forty Creek. This distiller knows their business and makes a lot of very good whiskey. Nose 4.5/5; Taste 4/5 Overall 4.25/5 Repurchase: Yes Type: Friday Night Pour