Canadian Whisky
A true American Beverage
Canadian whisky is whisky made in Canada; by law it must be aged there at least three years in a wooden barrel of not greater than 700 L capacity. Most Canadian whiskeys are blended multi-grain whiskeys and are usually lighter and smoother than other whiskey such as Irish Whiskey or Scotch Whisky. These are also called "rye whisky" in Canada, though the American definition of "Rye Whiskey" prevents them from being so labeled in the USA. Although rye is often a primary component in Canadian whiskeys, the use of rye is not dictated by legal standards.
Canadian whisky featured prominently in illegal imports into the U.S. during Prohibition in the 1920s. Hiram Walker had a distillery in Windsor, Ontario across the Detroit River from Detroit, Michigan that easily served small, fast smuggling boats. This period of time can be pinpointed as the rise of Canadian and fall of Irish Whiskey in America due to geographical and legal barriers. Although Irish whiskey is very popular in the U.S., it has never fully regained the foothold it once had. Likewise, Many Irish distillers went under during this period of time due to lack of access to an American market.
Canada's biggest whisky producer, Seagram's, have half a dozen distilleries in Canada, using several different yeasts, and making more than 50 different straight whiskeys for blending. A Large number of these whiskeys will go into some of the more complex blends, and general Canadian practice is to use up to 20 different whiskeys. Even the least complex blend will most likely contain 15 or so whiskeys, built around six or seven basic types.
There are other types of whiskeys made in Canada, such as the "single malt" and "Quebec Maple" whiskeys described below; but these are more boutique whiskeys and would not be generally included in the category of "Canadian Whisky".
Since 1991, Glenora, an independent distillery in Glenville, Nova Scotia, on Cape Breton Island, has been producing unblended malt whisky in the Scottish style. Their product, Glen Breton Rare, was as of 2003 the only single malt whisky produced in Canada, and the oldest of the few produced in the Americas.
In Quebec, Maison des Futailles produces two so-called "maple whiskeys". The first one, Fine Sève, is made from the distillation of maple wine (which is then aged in oak barrels, giving it a distinctive taste). The second, Sortilège, is a mix of Canadian whisky and maple syrup. While these two products are not whiskeys per se, they have often been described as such.
Canadian whisky varies greatly from whisky to whisky and does most Scotch Whisky and Irish Whiskey. Canadian Whisky and Irish Whiskey are all very different from one another. This is because of a few different reasons, one is ingredients, most Canadian whiskeys are made with Canada's #1 crop, rye. Rye is not found in Irish Whiskey. Another reason is the blending process, there are just two very different schools of thought about how to blend the whiskey, The Irish will often try to feature the distinct differences and characteristics of the whiskey, attempting to impart the geographical areas that the whiskey hails from, where as Canadian whisky is blended to balance and smooth every flavor out, the result is an easy drinking, but often slightly less exciting whisky.
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