Highwood Canadian Maple Whisky 22% alc/vol
Pure, unadulterated maple syrup with all its lovely, earthy, creamy, woody tones and a murmured mention of Canadian rye.What's the first thing you think of when you think of Canada? Free health care (it's not)? Beavers? Rocky Mountains? The easy answer is maple syrup. For whisky lovers, the correct answer is maple whisky. Whisky and maple syrup are both imbued with abundant quantities of similar congeners – the chemicals that give them their characteristic flavours. So it's only natural that someone would think to blend the two together.Highwood Distillers in High River, Alberta, is often on the leading edge of innovation. It's a relatively small and independently owned distillery, without layer upon layer of approval authorities. Drawing on their stocks of well-matured whiskies, the team at Highwood can turn an idea into a bottled product in a matter of months. Its White Owl Whisky has taken Western Canada by storm. And now it has a sleeper in its maple whisky. Packaged in a bottle that is shaped like a maple leaf, it's a sure thing with travelers and airport shoppers looking to take a wee bit of Canada home with them. Available in Manitoba, Saskatchewan, Alberta, British Columbia and some duty free shops.Nose: Typical Canadian-whisky toffee with butterscotch, hints of clean oak, and vague whisky spices – cinnamon and ginger.Palate: Sweet but not cloying with all the mouth-filling richness of Canadian maple syrup. Those lovely herbal maple syrup tones simply surge to the fore, boosted by subtle pepper which in turn is tempered by a milky creaminess. This is very much maple whisky, redolent with scorched maple taffy in the snow, vanilla fudge, and the burnt nuttiness of charred roasted chestnuts.Finish: The maple lingers as do the herbal notes while the pepper slowly increases though never enough to intrude.Empty Glass: Pure, unadulterated maple syrup with all its earthy, herbal, creamy, woody tones.Suggested retail is $29.95Other flavoured whiskies include:Black Velvet Toasted CaramelDock 57 SpicedDock 57 BlackberryForty Creek Cream Liquor Gibson’s Maple 100th Grey Cup Revelstoke SpicedWhite Owl Spiced