Collingwood 21 Year Old Rye Canadian Whisky

July 30, 2015 Eric Burke

Collingwood 21 year old rye. I first heard of this while conversing with Davin de Kergommeaux during the Twitter tastings that were held to promote his book Canadian Whisky: The Portable Expert. Now, Davin loves Canadian whisky so you need to take his enthusiasm for the category into effect when interpreting his comments on a particular whisky. And he was really enthusiastic about this. After doing a little reading online, I took his advice. “If you see it, buy two” to heart. It was getting close to Christmas 2013 at this point and I was doing a little shopping.

Yes, for others…but for me too.

We were in the area so I stopped off at Surdyk’s, a liquor store in Minneapolis to see if they had this particular treat. The parking lot had zero spaces and the streets were full of snow so I sent my wife in. She nicely bought me one bottle…

I forgot to tell her to get two. I didn’t say anything until we were on our way home. Mostly because I was sick of circling the block waiting for either her to come out or for a parking space to open up. After listening to the fact that Davin suggested we get two, she agreed to stop off somewhere on the way home to see if someone else had one. Luckily, they did.

Bottle badge stating: "toasted maplewood mellowed.

But what is it? Collingwood whisky is a brand owned by Brown-Forman. This is a limited edition line extension of that brand. It is a 21 year old 100% malted rye whisky that was then vatted in a container containing maple wood staves and allowed to rest there for a year. It is produced at the Canadian Mist Distillery in Collingwood, Ontario, Canada. (See map below.) Having begun life as an experiment, what’s on the shelf is all there is. Even if Brown-Forman wanted to release more, we’d have to wait almost 20 years from now for there to be more to release.

As of today, it is still on Minnesota shelves. But, as this was a one time only production run, ever since then I’ve always had at least two bottles of this on hand. One open (or soon to be opened) and at least one in reserve. When I open one, I run to buy another so I always have a buffer for when it eventually runs out. To say I like this is a bit of an understatement.

Collingwood 21 Year Old Rye

Purchase Info: $54.99, 750 mL. Surdyk’s, Minneapolis, MN (Dec 14, 2013, I’ve bought this often, so we’ll go just with the first one as it is roughly the same price today at other stores.)

Details: 21 year old (age stated), 40% ABV.

Nose: Clothes that have been drying outside on the clothesline. Black tea. Faint hints of dill. After some time strong vanilla and caramel develop.

Mouth: Delicate. Sweet with hints of maple. Very strong floral presence. Vanilla bean ice cream. Some oak.

Finish: Delicate and gentle. Black tea (thinking unsweetened ice tea where your ice has melted), some mint, some caramel. A bit floral.

Thoughts: This is the third or fourth bottle I’ve bought of this and there is still one in my closet so that should tell you I love this one. I will admit that it isn’t for everyone—some people I know compare it to drinking perfume—so see if you can grab a taste of it before you drop almost $60 on it. To me, the disparate notes meld so well that this can be truly described as an exquisite whisky, but that's me. It isn’t for everyone.

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Woodford Reserve Rye

July 2, 2015 Eric Burke

Back in August 2012 I said the following:

"Overall I liked this whiskey. I didn't care for the price. $100 is a lot for this, but the experience and the satiated curiosity were worth it, even if the whiskey was not. Based on this, if Woodford released a permanent rye in the price range of their original bourbon, I'd give it the occasional look."

I was talking about the Woodford Reserve Master’s Collection New and Aged Cask Ryes that were released in 2011 . I enjoyed the experience of trying the same juice aged in two different types of barrels and I enjoyed the whiskeys. So it was with some interest that I read that Brown Foreman was releasing that rye expression I had asked for.

I read varying comments around the web at the time of the announcement. Most of them were...not positive. But I tried to remind people that Brown-Forman was the company that until recently was producing the very tasty Rittenhouse Rye for Heaven Hill. Even if nothing else about them making it was applicable, at least they knew how to handle rye in such a way it made a tasty whiskey. Didn't seem to help much.

I decided to just wait and see. I knew it would be some time before we got Woodford Rye here in Minnesota. Heck, we've just received the first release in the Old Forester Whiskey Row series (1870). Coincidentally, right around the time the second release hit the stores in Kentucky.

My wait and see approach lasted until business happened to take my wife to Cincinnati. Flying into Cincinnati lands you in Kentucky. In Kentucky fairly close to the Party Source. So I told her that I would be happy to stay at home all alone while she had fun at a conference if she would bring me a few things back. One of those was the Woodford Reserve Rye.

This weekend we decided to taste it.

Woodford Reserve Rye

Purchase Info: $38.99, 750 mL. The Party Source, Bellevue, KY

Details: 45.2% ABV. Batch 002

Nose: Mint, cedar, honey sweetness, black tea

Mouth: Cinnamon and clove, mint, black tea, buckwheat honey.

Finish: Decent length. Cedar, mint, black tea.

Thoughts: I’m very impressed with this rye. It has an interesting depth of flavor while still retaining the standard minty/spicy rye character. It’s tannic, but not overly so. Sweet, but not cloying. Spicy, but not overly hot. Black tea was a bit of a surprise note for me, but it seemed to work well. There are hints of the flavors of the bourbons produced by Old Forester/Woodford Reserve. I’m guessing that is coming from the yeast. Overall, I like this as much as I thought I would. It’s tasty.

Rebel Yell American Whiskey

May 28, 2015 Eric Burke

This is the second part of a two part post. The first being the story of how I got the bottle and a reminder that you don’t know what’s in a bottle of whiskey until you open it and take a taste.

Well. I’ve spent two weeks with this whiskey. It’s half gone and now I think I can talk about it. I’ve turned the bottle over and over in my hands looking at what is said and what is not said on the label. And I noticed a few things.

The most obvious is that it is a blend of bourbon and rye. The back label says: “Our original, time-honored recipe, perfectly blended with the rebellious spirit of rye.” From that I’m guessing it is the normal Rebel Yell wheated bourbon mixed with rye.
“Distilled and aged in Kentucky and Indiana.” So I’m going out on a pretty sturdy limb and saying that rye is from MGPi.
This is a two-year age-stated whiskey. Remember, that’s the youngest whiskey in the bottle, there might be older whiskey in there. In fact I would guess there is since the flavor has a depth I wouldn’t expect from a two year whiskey.
Though it is two year, nowhere does it say “straight.” We’ve learned from Templeton that you can add minute amounts of flavoring to whiskey that isn’t labeled “straight.” Just throwing that out there. Though it is very possibly not applicable, I get a little nervous when a whiskey doesn’t say straight when it could.

I’m breaking format and telling you my thoughts now since this is such an odd situation. I can find next to nothing about this online aside from the Rebel Yell website, the COLAs and Chuck Cowdery’s blog announcing it back in February. I can’t even tell if it is for sale yet so I have no idea if this is a good value. I’d say if you get it for free in a regifting situation, the value is excellent. If you pay more than $20-25 you are probably over paying. It’s tasty but not on par with many other widely available whiskeys at that price point. Some even sold by Luxco, the company who makes this.

Rebel Yell American Bourbon

Purchase Info: Didn’t I just say I got it in a regifting situation?

Details: A Blend of bourbon and rye whiskey, 45% ABV

Nose: Cedar, mint, white sugar, leather and hints of vanilla

Mouth: Thin in the mouth, but it has a nice tingle to it. Oak, cloves, dark chocolate and a nice earthiness.

Finish: Fades quickly. The mint is back along with chocolate and cedar.

Thoughts: As detailed in the previous post, I went into this expecting something terrible. As such, it exceeded expectations. As a two-year age stated whiskey, I’m very impressed with it’s depth of flavor. Overall, for what it is, this is an impressive whiskey. I just don’t think I’d pay more than $25 for it.

Who knew all you needed to do to make Rebel Yell bourbon drinkable was add some MGP rye? So we've learned that.

Russell’s Reserve Rye

May 21, 2015 Eric Burke

The first time I had this whiskey was on my first visit to the Wild Turkey Distillery during my first visit to Kentucky. That’s a lot of firsts to pack into one whiskey. I think back on that visit fondly. It was back when I could visit a major distillery and have samples that I hadn’t tasted before (because I hadn’t tasted that many yet). I’ve been on the Wild Turkey tour a couple more times since and I always make sure I grab a sample of the Russell’s Rye just for old time’s sake.

Fast forward to a couple months ago. I was looking at my editorial calendar trying to plan out what the next month or so of reviews would be when I made a startling discovery. I’d not reviewed any of the Russell’s Reserve line. And even more shocking, I’d never even bought the Rye. For something that has become somewhat of a tradition for me, the thought brought me up a little short. My search for the next new thing had allowed me to pass over this one I enjoyed. For years. That changed. Fast.

Russell’s Reserve Rye

Purchase Info: $32.99, 750 mL. Marketplace Liquors, Savage, MN.

Details: 6 year old. 45% ABV.

Nose: Cheerios cereal, mint, cherry and a hint of cedar.

Mouth: Nice tingle. Flavorful. Mint, clove and oak.

Finish: Cereal, mint and a nice long heat fading to a pleasant bitterness.

Thoughts: Though I was surprised by the Cheerios on the nose, it was quickly followed by the more expected mint and wood. I like this rye, it’s got enough heat to keep things interesting and a good minty oak flavor. It’s got a nice finish. The tingle sticks around for a decent amount of time before fading to a bitterness that makes me want to take another sip. The price is good too. Especially since I just saw a bottling of a 7 year old MGP rye going for $90.

Crown Royal Northern Harvest Rye

May 14, 2015 Eric Burke

So. If you were told that in two days you would no longer have a job, what would be the first thing you’d do? For me it was go buy beer. Even though I had been looking to leave for some time, it was still a shock to actually have it happen. It seemed like a beer sort of night because if it had been a bourbon sort of night, I might have needed to call in the next day…

Come to think of it that might have been funny, in hindsight.

But as I always do, I wandered over to the whiskey aisle. And in this case, my wandering was rewarded. You see, sitting about half-way up Total Wine’s Rye section was Crown Royal’s new rye whiskey. I looked at it, looked at my wife, looked back at the shelf, saw there was no price tag, hesitated and then…watched her grab it.

I love my wife.

Crown Royal Northern Harvest Rye

Purchase Info: $24.99. 750 mL. Total Wine, Burnsville, MN

Details: 45% ABV, 90% Rye Whiskey, “Fine Blended Canadian Whiskey”

Nose: Initially it was alcohol, mint, and cedar. After spending a bit of time with it, I was able to also tease out lime zest as well.

Mouth: Tingly. Much more tingle than I would expect to come from Canada. It’s sweet, but not overly so, with mint, cloves and some grassiness in the mouth.

Finish: Nice and warm. That tingle lasts awhile along with the mint, cedar and cloves.

Thoughts: I like this one. It’s got an interesting tingle and enough sweetness underneath to make me want to come back again. Toss in those rye notes and you’ve got something well worth the $24-$30 it sells for here in the Twin Cities. Even if you don’t normally like Crown Royal, give this a try.

A nice treat to share: Angel's Envy Rye

April 30, 2015 Eric Burke

Every morning my dog, Whiskey, begs for her morning treats. She will sit nicely, take the treat from you, run into the living room, set it down and come back for the next one. She does this twice as she gets two treats every morning.

If it is the weekend, she will eat them right away while we eat our breakfast. On work days she does something a little odd. She leaves them on the floor until we get home. Once we get the running around outside taken care of, she will grab the treats and bring them to where we are sitting and proceed to eat them. It is almost as if she understands that good things are even better with friends.

Even if she doesn’t understand it, I do. Think about it. A romantic movie is better when watched with someone you love. A good meal is better with good company. And a good whiskey is better when shared with friends. In fact, the better the whiskey, the more apt I am to share it.

When I finally bought a bottle of Angel’s Envy Rye, the first thing I thought about was who I wanted to pour samples for. It is only fair, I first tasted it after receiving a sample from a friend. Angel’s Envy Rye is a fairly new arrival to Minnesota. I started seeing it on the shelf when Total Wine appeared on the scene. It’s expensive for what it is. You don’t expect something that starts with MGP Rye to go for near $90.

Angel’s Envy Rye is finished in rum casks. And it shows. There is little to none of the typical MGP profile here. It has been completely changed by the rum. It is sweeter and has picked up more complexity. It really is a treat worth sharing with friends.

Angel’s Envy Rye

Purchase Info: $84.99, 750 mL. Total Wine, Burnsville, MN

Details: Batch#: 3F, Bottle#: 1696, 50% ABV, rye whiskey finished in rum casks

Nose: This smells like a good candy store. Fresh chocolate, nuts and a bit of fruitiness. Also pumpkin pie.

Mouth: Warm with ginger spiciness. Very sweet with nutty cocoa, cloves and molasses.

Finish: Surprisingly little burn for 100 proof but a lingering spicy sweetness.

Thoughts: This is a ginger molasses cookie in a glass. It’s very sweet and so not something I’d want all the time but tasty enough to have with (or for) dessert occasionally.

High West Master Class Plus a Review of High West Double Rye

April 16, 2015 Eric Burke

High West Distillery is a company that gets a lot of love from whiskey geeks, myself included. They are located in Park City, Utah. Though they do distill some of their own stuff, they’ve really made their reputation on the ability to obtain interesting spirits and then blending them together to make something even more interesting.

So it was with real interest that I attended the master class Whiskey: An Organoleptic Journey at Sunday’s Whiskey on Ice Festival. The class was lead by Brendan Coyle, Lead Distiller at High West. During the class he discussed the whiskey making process in great detail. Everything from sourcing the grain down to bottling the finished product.

The coolest part of the class was that it wasn’t just “first you mill, then you mash, then you ferment.” Instead he went into great detail about how and why you might want to do things a certain way and how it would affect the finished product. For example: He didn’t just say you mill the grain, but showed a diagram of a hammer mill and described the relative courseness of the resulting flour. And why you’d want to mill at the speed you do so you don’t risk scorching.

Plus I really liked the dive into the science behind the processes. Things like why you might want a little bit of bacterial fermentation to go along with your yeast fermentation (complexity). The differences between the grain-in method of fermentation that American whiskey typically uses and the grain-out method used in making malt whiskey and why those methods are used (ease of filtration). Or why you would want to make your cuts at certain times and a bit of how you’d know when those are (taste/aroma + proof measurements).

And of course he went over distillation and aging. Each of these were illustrated with a small taste of whiskey. We tasted six whiskeys* during the course of the class. First were two silver whiskeys Western Oat and OMG Pure Rye. After that were four aged blends: Double Rye, Rendezvous Rye, Campfire and the newly-reintroduced Bourye. I enjoyed all of them on some level except the Campfire. It tasted a bit too much like it’s namesake for me.

All in all, if you get a chance to see one of Brendan Coyle’s talks, do it. My only regret is that it only lasted an hour. I could easily have sat through one twice as long.

High West Double Rye

Purchase Info: $32.99. 750 mL. Casanova Liquors, Hudson, WI (on a Sunday, out of state, for those who are watching Minnesota politics)

Details: 46% ABV. Batch# 14E20. Bottle# 3488. Blend of two straight rye whiskeys: a 2 year old 95% MGP rye and a 16 year old 53% Barton rye.

Nose: Mint, cedar, bubblegum, clove and licorice.

Mouth: Spicy. Toffee, mint, clove and licorice.

Finish: Mint, cedar and a nice lingering warmth

Thoughts: When I tried this side-by-side with the Rendezvous Rye during the class, I noticed that this one had much more of the typical “MGP” character. Which is perfect for me, because I really like that. It has more complexity than your typical MGP bottling though due to the addition of the much older Barton rye. This is a nice sipper with plenty of heat and at $30-$40 the price is right too. I like this. It’s an easy one to recommend.

*If you want info an any of these whiskeys visit www.highwest.com. The other cool thing about High West is how transparent they are about the details of their whiskeys. They will tell you what makes up each blend and we even got to see what proof the tails were cut at for the stuff they distilled during the presentation.

Don't Know What You Got: Jim Beam Rye

March 12, 2015 Eric Burke

For a while after moving to Minnesota, I worked as a camera salesman at Circuit City, a big box electronic store. I worked there part-time for a little extra money during the fall and into the holidays. It was an ok job as part-time retail jobs go, but once I was offered a full-time position as a designer at a local ad agency, I left that job behind as quickly as I could.

Being a dedicated Amazon shopper, I didn’t really think about Circuit City again until I heard it was closing a few years later. By this point, I had moved on to yet another design job, but still sort of fondly remembered the time I spent there helping people to pick out gifts for their kids or parents. So I decided to stop in one more time before they were gone for good. The store was having a liquidation sale by this point, selling everything off the shelves for deep discounts and then selling the shelves. In a wonderful example of Minnesotan passive-aggressiveness, the store’s music system was playing Cinderella’s Don’t Know What You Got (Till It’s Gone) on an endless loop.

I was a little sad to see it go, until I realized that the reason it was leaving was that it really wasn’t very good. Nobody went there anymore because there really was no reason to do so. Even the deeply discounted items were more expensive than Amazon’s regular price. So after spending a few minutes looking around, I left. I go to that building all the time now. It’s a Trader Joe’s and a Total Wine and it’s a block from where I work.

Recently it was announced that Jim Beam Rye (the yellow labeled one) was being discontinued. It was going to be replaced by Jim Beam Pre-Prohibition Style Rye. According to BeamSuntory PR, this is basically a new label and a higher proof.

Now, I never thought much about Jim Beam Rye. It was always there, in it’s faded looking yellow bottle. But I never really thought much about picking up a bottle. Once in a while I’d order it at a bar, but only if there wasn’t anything better.

It was relatively cheap. I liked other stuff better. And there we stood…until the discontinuation announcement. Suddenly I wanted to buy a bottle “for old times’ sake.” I drank that first pour and then I remembered why I never really wanted to buy it. It wasn’t very good. My guess is there weren’t a lot of people buying it because there was no reason to do so. People who knew better, knew better and those that didn’t wanted something that cost more and and came in a pretty bottle.

So don’t be sad that it's going away. Be happy that the repackaging comes with a proof bump, a name change and even a prettier bottle.

Jim Beam Rye (yellow label)

Purchase Info: $17.99, 750 mL, Total Wine & More, Burnsville, MN

Details: 40% ABV

Nose: pencil shavings, spearmint leaves, chamomile

Mouth: Thin. Grassy. Chamomile and mint with just a hint of a burn.

Finish: Slight lingering tingle in the mouth that fades quickly to be replaced by chamomile and a slight bitterness.

Thoughts: Meh. Just meh. It isn’t bad. In fact, if you love chamomile tea, you may love this. But much like chamomile, it isn’t very interesting and might even help you to sleep.

Blog

Collingwood 21 Year Old Rye

Woodford Reserve Rye

Rebel Yell American Bourbon

Russell’s Reserve Rye

Crown Royal Northern Harvest Rye

Angel’s Envy Rye

High West Double Rye

Jim Beam Rye (yellow label)