Review by: TOModera
It’s officially cold as heck now, and as such, I need to start drinking Canuck whisky again. Why? Because I’m one of the vast majority of Canadians who lives close to the border but pretends like the cold I deal with is the equivalent to the Yukon.
Hooray misunderstood nationalism!
Recently I was asked if I could do some Canadian full bottle trades with GWCad. Unfortunately due to holiday shopping and some pretty rough shipments, I’m not really doing full bottle swaps anymore. Contact him if you’d like, I think he’s still looking for someone to swap with.
However I did offer to go out and try one of the Canadian Whiskies requested, Alberta Springs.
The last time I had this I wasn’t impressed, and expressed that to GWCad. However I had never done a full review, which for me is like commenting on a car I’ve never driven and saying I don’t like it. So I went out and picked up a bottle of this. Worst case scenario, I have a new cooking whisky.
Alberta Springs is made by Alberta Distillers, known for their Alberta Premium line, and owned by Beam Inc. It is sometimes 100% rye, though doesn’t state that on the bottle. Why? Well, it’s a blend. And sometimes there are non-rye whiskies used in the blend, if that matches the flavour they are going for. It’s aged for 10 years, first individually in oak, then blended, and then back into the oak.
And finding out that much was a pain as they don’t have a website. Let’s get to the brass tacks and see how it tastes.
Distillery: Alberta Distillers Distillery.
Bottler: Distillery Bottling.
Region: Her Royal Highness’s Ski Country, Canada.
ABV: 40%.
Age: 10 years.
Cask type: Oak.
Price: $24.45 (750ml) (CAD)
Color: Light beer
Nose: Basil, steamed spinach, maple sugar, caramel, coconut, alcohol, white grapes
Very herbal nose on this one, with the sweetness developing with time. There’s almost a wine quality to it, which is different than other Canadian whisky I’ve had.
Don’t know if I like the balance of flavours, however it’s unique, so it will pass. This time.
Taste: Maple, corn, cream, chili powder, rosemary, funk, salt, anise
That first hit of maple reminds you that you’re drinking something that has to follow national flavour laws, but it subsides into something closer to a Bourbon on the tongue. Really good mouth feel, and I usually ignore mouth feel, but this mouth feel is good.
Well that sounded insane. What I’m saying is there’s a good consistency to this, which is surprising, as I’m pretty sure it’s chill filtered.
Also does Beam have to add in Funk into everything? Look, Funk is good in all music, not all whisky, let’s back off on it, shall we?
Finish: Plum, light rosemary, floral salt, cream
Simple, very herbal, sour, and creamy finish on this one. Don’t think I like it too much, wish that it had more of the spice from the taste.
Conclusion: My original assessment of this whisky was incorrect. Frankly I didn’t give it enough of a chance, and I apologize, it’s no lame duck. Yes, it has a low Abv., that typical maple/sugar taste to it, and there’s a Beam Funk present that I wish wasn’t. However the consistency is good, the nose is unique, and for it’s problems, the finish isn’t the worst I’ve ever had. I bought a 1.14 L bottle, so more than likely I’ll be using this to cook/bake with, however I’ll still be drinking it. This is pretty solid.
Final Score: 76.
Scoring Legend:
- 95-100: As good as it gets. Jaw-dropping, eye-widening, unforgettable whisky.
- 90-94: Sublime, a personal favorite in its category.
- 85-89: Excellent, a standout dram.
- 80-84: Quite good. Quality stuff.
- 75-79: Decent whisky worth tasting.
- 70-74: Meh. It’s definitely drinkable, but it can do better.
- 60-69: Not so good. I might not turn down a glass if I needed a drink.
- 50-59: Save it for mixing.
- 0-49: Blech.
Malt Runners 