The renowned Canadian whisky, married in white oak barrels. Canadian Club was founded by whisky mogul Hiram Walker.
The nose is of medium-body with notes of barley sugar and aniseed, notes of cut grass and fennel, a hint of straw and a vegetal freshness. The palate is quite sweet and gentle. There are notes of winter spice and dark sugars, a touch of rum. The finish is of medium-sweetness and of medium-length.
I gave a taste of Canadian Club whisky, neat, to an Irishman once. "Strong sh*te!" he said with a wince. This whisky is harsh on the palate, nothing like most Irish or Scotch whiskies. It's sweet, spicy and oaky, but without subtlety. It's not for drinking neat. But it's great with Coca-Cola!
I take my whiskies neat. I prefer less sweetness in general. That being said, for those who like to experience full flavored whiskies of all stripes should not treat CC like the plague as some here suggest. There is a nice punch of wildflower that accompanies the sweetness at the beginning. After the flood of sweetness tapers you will catch some nice wood and smoke flavors that diminish anything but quickly.
First, appreciate that Canadian Club is a Canadian Rye Whisky, and it should be compared against other Canadian Rye Whiskys, not to scotch or bourbon. If you are going to compare it to scotch or bourbon, compare it to Johhny Walker red or Jim Beam, which are more in this whiskys ballpark. Now Canadian Club within Canada has a reputation as an everymans whisky, not at all drunk for being exotic, and more for having one of the lower price tags in the liquor store. It smells like spices, barley, and rum, has an alcohol kick, and quite a bit of sweetness, and is pretty representative of Canadian Whisky in general. Makes for a great mixer and it's OK straight. I'd recommend the more high end Varieties of Canadian club for drinking straight, it's a rather dramatic improvement in smoothness and reduction in harshness, and the 12yr variety is very similar in price. Worth it at a competitive price, wouldn't pay a premium for it, good whisky.
Yes, i know: What do i except from a bottle of Whisky for 15€. Not much. But still, this bottle did not even reach my low expectations. The alcohol in this one is so agressive, i just could not enjoy drinking it. Yes, sure, there are some flavours like lemon, flowers, mowed grass, even some cinamon. But they are hidden so far behind that alcohol, that i had a real hard time figuring these out. So, when do you want to buy this bottle? When you are a whisky beginner, who does not want to spend 50 bucks per bottle, you probably consider buying some scotch from independent bottler. Starts at 16€. If you are an experienced Whisky drinker, you find way better "exotic" bottles to experience with and you know good whisky's price. If you want to booze, there are cheaper ways. Maybe you can use this bottle in a mix. I could imagine something really fruity with lots of sirup. Really, that is the only reason i can imagine, someone wants to have this bottle at homw.
do not go to McDonalds looking for Koby beef. Canadian Club for almost all who drink it is a mix drink rye(I like it with ice tea myself[and i do not care who cringes]). The sweetness in the rye is beautifully offset by the tartness of the lemon ice tea.
