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Crown Royal Northern Harvest Rye

Nozinan Mini and Sample Series - 10

0 879

@NozinanReview by @Nozinan

25th Feb 2016

0

Crown Royal Northern Harvest Rye
  • Nose
    21
  • Taste
    20
  • Finish
    18
  • Balance
    20
  • Overall
    79

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Distribution of ratings for this: brand user

Full disclosure:

I am not an expert on Canadian Whisky. My preferences are generally toward single malts and bourbons, but I am open to any well-crafted whisky. I’ve really enjoyed a number of Forty Creek special releases, and am a big fan of Alberta Premium 25 and 30 YO ryes. Highwood 90/20 is a stunner.

Tonight I was at a meeting and someone who is aware of my interest in whisky but who doesn’t drink it to my knowledge asked me if I had tried the World Whisky of the year. I have a sample courtesy @paddockjudge and so I promised I would taste it and let her know. I emailed her before writing this review: “ I tried it…I don’t like it”. So I suppose you could stop reading here.

I decided to do a head to head with another sample I received, Crown Royal Monarch, and after nosing both I tasted this one first. It was put in a sample bottle after being open three weeks.

Nose: fruit, pickle juice, spirit 20/25
Adding a drop or two of water brings out a pleasant fruit syrup / pineapple note but then the pickle juice pokes through 21/25

Taste: hot, some vanilla, muted. Spice or alcohol? With time becomes a tad less bitter with some added sweetness. 19/25 Water adds to the fruitiness as in the nose and gives it some flavour but also makes it hotter. 20/25

Bitter finish 18/25 – minimal change with water

Balance: Not unbalanced just not pleasant. 20/25

Score (with water because it was a touch better – unusual for low ABV whisky): 79

I did not finish the dram. I will leave the rest of the sample un-gassed and see what happens. I am a patriotic Canadian but I’ve tasted many whiskies , Canadian and not, which are better than this.

PS: mixing this with Crown Royal Monarch in equal proportions creates something better than the NHR and more complex than the Monarch. I am not sure I would repeat it.

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8 comments

@Nozinan
Nozinan commented

And, after a long drought, this once again available at the LCBO. 10 000 bottles worth. I guess they figured it would be snapped up like last time. I wonder if it the shelves will be emptied or if everyone has all they want...

8 years ago 0

@Robert99
Robert99 commented

@Nozinan You are perfectly clear about what you think of this rye but, at a reasonable price, I will buy it out of curiosity. The point that surprises me is not that some amateurs don't like, it's that it doesn't seem to have a big and well defined personnality. My hope is that if it is not good enough to be a sipper, it would have some good caracteristics to become part of some vatting. I will let you know.

8 years ago 0

@Victor
Victor commented

@Robert99, CRNHR is a great cocktail rye, as my wife and sister can attest. That is why my bottle was half gone in a week, when I reviewed it.

@Nozinan found the nose only good to very good. I think that it is a very fine nose...but the nose is the end of where I think that CRNHR is admirable.

Robert, hell, everything is expensive up there in Canada! If you can get CRNHR cheaply you will probably be content enough with it.

8 years ago 0

@Robert99
Robert99 commented

@Victor I would phrase your comment differently: everithing is cheap downthere in the USA! When I read about the prices in Australia, Denmark, Sweedish or even in GB (for Boubons or even for some of their Scotches like Laphroaig Cairdeas), I came to the conclusion you are in the Valhala of whisky drinker. Thanks for the advise, my adviser at SAQ has one waiting for me.

8 years ago 0

@Robert99
Robert99 commented

@Nozinan I don't think giving air to this rye will improve it for you as I found that I usually get the pickle flavor more and more with air. But I like it way more than you although not as much as a famous expert that every one knows. I found it taste like an oxydized American Rye with some Canadian caramel. That is a mixed that is not for everybody!

8 years ago 0

@Nozinan
Nozinan commented

Well, I better get used to it seeing as someone gave me a bottle of this as a gift...

8 years ago 0

@Nozinan
Nozinan commented

For some reason when I open the comments on this review I get a whole bunch of comments that were clearly meant for my review of CRNHR, and the identical ones appear there. This comment however is about Glenfarclas 15 YO.

I see some few bottles still available for $115 at the LCBO. I'm relaxing with the second half of the sample from @paddockjudge that I had earlier reviewed. The vegetal note persists even though I put some water in right away. On the palate I get sherry notes but compared to something like an A'Bunadh this has neither the depth or the breadth. It's not unpleasant but it does not provide anything unique that I cannot get from another sherried dram.

If offered in someone's home I would probably accept. It's not bad, has some flavour, 46% is OK. But I wouldn't likely order it in a bar and I won't spend $115 on it when I can get a 17 YO CS Glendronach single cask for $5 more ( and I did get it, when it was about $80-90 and I wish I got 10).

But tonight I want to toast @paddockjudge's safe arrival at home after the chaos that was yesterday's SOT, and so I chose something that was a gift from him...

7 years ago 0

@Nozinan
Nozinan commented

tried the second part of the sample with @Nosebleed. This time I would say this whisky has nothing to recommend it. 10 cc and I couldn't, WOULDN'T finish the dram

7 years ago 0

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