Long-Aged Canadian Whiskies to Try

Read about the trend towards long-aging Canadian whisky in oak.

All were tasted first neat (without water or ice), and then were retasted with a splash of good-quality, non-chlorinated water.

Canadian Club 20-Year-Old

AB $55, NB $46

Slightly darker than regular CC. Attractive nose of nuts (hazelnut, almond), caramel, with a touch of citrus. Soft and smooth, with lots of yummy nutty flavours, and an herbal, almost minty aspect, and good length. Elegant. (CP)

Forty Creek Double Barrel

BC $60, AB $60, SK $60, MB $60, ON $60, QC $61, NS $60

Finished in used bourbon barrels. Amber, smoky oak vanilla nose, with caramel and sherry-nut complexity, spicy, gingery, rye notes, and curious hints of banana, plus some grainy, bready flavours. This is round, smooth and complex, yet easy drinking. Pretty sexy stuff. (CP)

Gibson’s Finest Rare

18-Year-Old

ON $65

Light gold, toffee nose, woody notes, with some light citrus fruit. A few drops of water really bring out the citrus fruit and ginger rye spice. This is a very elegant style, lighter in body and less heavy-handed with the oak than some of the other long aged ryes. Very delicate. The fruit makes it seem almost cognac-like. (CP)

Forty Creek Confederation Oak

ON $70, NB $70, NS $70

This is aged in 150-year-old (hence the Confederation name) Canadian white oak that John Hall sent to the US to be coopered. Radical! Orange-tinged gold colour, and there’s that banana nut again — a Forty Creek house character? Also some vanilla, spicy oak, vivid “wood pile” oak notes and toffee, with a warming, long finish. A serious whisky, with grippy wood tannins. If this were wine, it would be a Barolo. (CP)

Danfield’s Limited Edition

21-Year-Old

AB $44, ON $50

Between orange and amber, with an attractive caramel nose, with some gingery spice and orange. Super-smooth, round and fairly full bodied, with attractive bitter orange peel and ginger flavours. This really tastes like textbook rye. It’s almost too smooth, spicy and fruity, but it is extremely likeable. (CP)