This annual beer, wine, and spirits festival has so much to offer – it's great for groups of friends who all have different drink preferences. Tickets were really cheap, but you do have to pay for tokens ($1.25/ea) and samples range from 2 - 5 tokens, on average.
Whiskies Sampled:
- Clonakilty Single Grain Bordeaux
- Deanston Virgin Oak
- Glenronach 8-Year
- Jura 12-Year
- Paul John Edited
- Rock Town Bourbon
- Teeling Single Grain Wine Casks
- Tomatin Cù Bòcan
- Two Brewers Release 15 (Special Finish: ex-Sherry)
- Two Brewers Release 16 (Classic)
- Wayne Gretzky 99 Ice Wine
Location: PNE Forum (Vancouver, BC) Cost: $25 | Next Event: Fall 2020
A.D. Rattray Masterclass
This masterclass tasting was part of Hopscotch 2019.
Whiskies Sampled:
- A.D. Rattray Cask Islay
- A.D. Rattray Cask Orkney 18-Year
- A.D. Rattray Cask Speyside 10-Year
- Benrinnes Stronachie 10-Year
- GlenAllachie Single Cask 8-Year
Location: Gran Reserva (Vancouver, BC) Cost: $30 | Next Event: Unknown
Tullibardine Masterclass
This masterclass tasting was part of Hopscotch 2019.
Location: Gran Reserva (Vancouver, BC) Cost: $30 | Next Event: Unknown
Northern Border Collection 2019
The annual Northern Border Collection is a release of very affordable Canadian whiskies. They are available early November in my area, so I always have my eye out for this opportunity to taste them in advance, and make my "must buy" selections.
I met Dr Don Livermore! The Master Distiller / Master Blender of J.P. Wiser’s, Pike Creek, and Lot 40 brands among others. He guided us through the tasting which was a real treat as he delivered a massive amount of knowledge to the crowd.
The keen eye would have noticed the BC-exclusive J.P. Wiser’s Seven Rebels in the image. Highly recommend. In a blind tasting, I wouldn’t be surprised if someone thought it was a scotch - it tasted the "least Canadian" of the five sampled.
The new NAS (No Age Statement) Lot 40 Cask Strength is great. I didn’t really like the first two (12-Year and 11-Year) - and I think that it’s a change in flavour profile for sure.. which could probably be attributed to new French Oak barrels used this year.
The J.P. Wiser’s 23-Year "Blended Cask Strength" is also a 1996 vintage, though not stated. The Pike Creek 21-Year Oloroso finish has rested in some first-fill seasoned oak. The Gooderham & Worts 49 Wellington had another good story to go with it, and features red winter wheat in the recipe, but I definitely liked the Eleven Souls from last year a lot more.
You can’t go wrong selecting any of these - especially when factoring price - but I only ended up purchasing the J.P. Wiser’s Seven Rebels... three of them!
Location: BC Liquor Store Cost: $10 | Next Event: Annual
Whisky, Port & Chocolate 2019
I'm already a fan of whisk(e)y – that's clear – so this event was a great opportunity to get to know some fantastic Port (and Sherry), and get to try some tasty chocolate too!
There were plenty of tables bordering the room, and it was a smaller crowd – perhaps around 100 people? It's so much more enjoyable when it's easy to walk around, there is time to chat with the brand ambassadors, and there are no lineups for anything. The whisky was very well represented, and I would say the same for Port, but I thought there could have been more chocolate!
I'd definitely go again; the tickets were completely reasonable and it was "all inclusive"!
Whiskies Sampled:
- Ardbeg 10-Year
- Ardbeg An Oa
- BenRiach 2010 Càrn Mòr Single Cask
- Bowmore 15-Year
- *Compass Box The Spaniard
- Douglas Laing Rock Oyster
- Glencadam Origin
- *Glenfarclas 15-Year
- Glenmorangie 18-Year Extremely Rare
- Liberty TRUST Canadian Rye
- Liberty TRUST Single Grain
- Liberty TRUST Southern
- *Odd Society Smoked Maple
- Oppidan Malted Rye Whiskey
- Tomintoul Old Ballantruan 10-Year
- West Cork Bourbon Cask
Port & Sherry Sampled:
- *Broadbent Madeira 5-Year
- Gonzalez Byass Nutty Solera
- *Lustau East India Sherry
- *Ramos Pinto 20-Year Tawny Quinta do Bom Retiro
- *Ramos Pinto 30-Year Tawny
- *Taylor Fladgate 20-Year Tawny
* denotes my favourites of the evening.
Location: Vancouver Rowing Club Cost: $25 | Next Event: Annual
Friends of Laphroaig Dinner
I had missed the opportunity to attend the previous 'Friends of Laphroaig' Dinner (& Whisky Pairing), and, after some deliberation bought tickets for this one. While this event does have a significant price of admission, it is not all about the whisky – in fact, the meal was 5-star and was very well crafted by the kitchen.
We began the sitting with a welcome cocktail – the 'Islay Colada' – using Laphroaig Select as a base, with amontillado sherry, orgeat, coconut cream, lime, pineapple, and nutmeg. The first course was smoked oyster – prepared with creme fraiche, fingerling chip, pickles, and herbs. I'm an oyster fan and this was the fanciest preparation I've ever seen.
Up next was confit duck terrine, with lingon berry, shisho, and house mustard. Definitely something I wouldn't order normally, so it was nice to try. The main course was ling cod, celeriac, charred brassicas (fancy for broccoli), and delicata squash in a white wine sauce.
Finishing off the evening was a chocolate mousse, sponge toffee and sea salt dessert – or, I should really say that the dessert was the 25-Year!
Location: Royal Dinette (Vancouver, BC) Cost: $135 | Next Event: Annual
Highland Park Single Cask Release
BC Liquor Stores purchased two casks from Highland Park, and this tasting coincided with release. Really great stuff, but I didn't find the value good enough to purchase a bottle – $190 before taxes...
The 18-Year remains one of my favourite, and I preferred Cask #1780 as it had more tropical fruits. Both single casks were lightly peated with a good amount of red fruit character.
Location: BC Liquor Stores Cost: $40 | Next Event: Unknown
Whisky "Heels" BBQ 2019
This is the event of the year! The one I always looks forward to! I am SO grateful that there is such an amazingly generous whisky community here, and for the efforts of the whisky club to arrange and host this gathering. It's an opportunity to see familiar faces, and an opportunity to taste some really interesting drams.
There were not as many peated whiskies brought to the table this year – I can't say that I brought any peat bombs myself... with me came the heel – the last few pours – of a Caol Ila Distiller's Edition and The Macallan Select Oak, the latter being a travel retail exclusive.
My favourites were, in no particular order: Old Pulteney 1989, a single cask of The Macallan 23-Year, Highland Park 21-Year, an 18-Year Caol Ila distilled in 1997 (SWMS 55.227), The Arran Malt Port Cask Finish (bottled in 2004!), Springbank 21-Year, and a mysterious Bunnhabhain – labelled with a sticker that read: Gregor Hannah, 1828/2003, and 55.8%! Rumoured to be "an old one" but that's about all I was able to learn.
A lot of these whiskies are the first, and likely last, that I'll see of them... and I'm already starting to think of which bottles I'll bring next year!
Location: Companions of the Quaich Whisky Club Cost: $75 | Next Event: Summer 2020
Whisky & Words 2019 - Vancouver Writers Fest
Description not available.
Location: Performance Works (Vancouver, BC) Cost: $120 | Next Event: March 2020
Rare Bourbon & Whiskey Masterclass
This tasting was a great opportunity to taste some American whiskies that I normally wouldn't think to try! Some of these bottles are fairly expensive, and when compared to prices of some single malt scotch that I adore... a purchase cannot be justified without tasting first.
Tasting Lineup:
- King's County Moonshine
- King's County Bourbon
- King's County 4-Year
- Old 55 Cask Strength (Batch 15H9A)
- Chuckanut Bay Cask Strength Bourbon (Finished in Syrah)
- King's County Peated Bourbon
With exception to the Moonshine – it was just too sweet – I felt these were all good whiskies. The King's County Bourbon, which reminded me of Wild Turkey Rare Breed, and the ex-Syrah (Painted Rock) Chuckanut Bay were my two favourites.
Tomatin! Highland Single Malt. Before attending this whisky tasting I had not tasted many expressions of Tomatin - just the 12-year French Oak (limited to the North American market) and an independent bottling of the 18-year (Sansibar). So, needless to say, I was really looking forward to sampling from the core range and learning about what Tomatin does, as a distillery, to stand out from the rest.
The Tomatin distillery sits about 1000 feet above sea level. They use Scottish barley, from local farmers, and must buy it malted as they don’t have the facilities to do so themselves. A very light and fruity spirit (pears!) is produced by their stills, double distillation process (using the same stills for both), and use of soft water coming from the nearby mountains. Brand ambassador Scott Fraser also noted how he believes the air surrounding the distillery itself can be thought of an important ingredient for their flavour.
On to the whisky! The lineup was the Legacy (roughly 4-year on average, 20% virgin American Oak, the rest 1st-fill ex-Bourbon), 12-year (one third of each 1st/2nd-fill ex-Bourbon/Olorosso, and Refill), 12-year French Oak (spending the first 9 in ex-Bourbon), 14-year (12 in ex-Bourbon and 2 in ex-Tawny Port), 15-year Moscatel (massive 6-year finish on top of ex-Bourbon), and the 18-year (3-year ex-Olorosso after the majority in ex-Bourbon).
The flavours imparted by the ex-Port on the 14-year sees me rank it the best of the lot, followed closely by the Moscatel and French Oak finishes. All three a cut above the 12- and 18-years, which make me consider whether the combination of this spirit with Olorosso is what I found offputting.
There are not too many local spots to grab a glass of Tomatin, so this was a great experience - and great value.
Location: West Coast Whisky Society Cost: $50 | Next Event: Unknown
Subtlety of the Finish Masterclass (Hopscotch 2018)
When I saw the title and short description of this Masterclass, I thought it was a marvellous idea! Throughout the past year I have been discovering new flavours that I have really liked - mostly cask finishes. I don’t have any statistics to reference, but it does seem that they are becoming more accessible as time goes on...
Not always does one have the opportunity to taste different cask finishes side-by-side(-by-side-by-side) so I knew I was in for a treat! We sampled the Balvenie 14 Caribbean Rum, Glenfiddich IPA, Glenmorangie 12 Quinta Ruban (Port), and the Glenfiddich Fire and Cane (Peated, Rum). I had tried all of these previously, but also each in solitude. There certainly is something to be said when you can compare and contrast different whiskies at once. It can really help to identify some characteristics that will help you remember the flavour.
Generally speaking, my favourite finishes include Sherry (I haven’t narrowed it down further than that), Sassicaia, Port, and Rum. I tend to gravitate towards peated whiskies, so often the fruit forward flavours of the finish aren’t as powerful as they might be in a lighter spirit. That said, I’ve come to learn that it isn’t as simple as reading the type of finish on the label to know exactly what you are getting. At best, it marks the theme of flavours you might expect - but it’s no guarantee. Selecting casks is itself an art form, and some factors that can heavily influence flavour include the amount of time any previous liquid was held before the whisky, any rejuvenation, the level of charring, and, of course, how long the whisky sits maturing or finishing in this ex-something barrel.
This was a really neat experience although the selection presented didn’t get me too excited. I probably wouldn’t attend a similar event without knowing what the whiskies were beforehand. However, it was a good value and I would highly recommend to new or budding whisky connoisseurs.
Location: Gran Reserva (Vancouver, BC) Cost: $29 | Next Event: Unknown
Nikka Masterclass (Hopscotch 2018)
Description not available.
Location: Gran Reserva (Vancouver, BC) Cost: $29 | Next Event: Unknown
Islay Masterclass (Hopscotch 2018)
Description not available.
Location: Gran Reserva (Vancouver, BC) Cost: $29 | Next Event: Unknown
Douglas Laing Masterclass (Hopscotch 2018)
Description not available.
Location: Gran Reserva (Vancouver, BC) Cost: $29 | Next Event: Unknown
Hopscotch 2018 Grand Hall
I really do have mixed feelings about this event: it’s really big, features lots of beer and wine, requires purchasing tokens, and gets very busy with a party atmosphere as the evening progresses. Of course, many of these qualities are welcomed and exciting, but if you want to have an experience focused on tasting and savouring your whisky sample — this isn’t the event for you! Part of the advantage for higher upfront costs to enter are the free sampling and no feeling of obligation to finish a dram to get your money’s worth. Whisky samples ranged from 4-10 tokens at $1.25 each. Nonetheless, I knew all this going in, so I did completely enjoy the event which I attended with a best friend.
I focused on things I haven’t tried. The winner: Glengoyne 18 with its dark fruits (cherry, raisin) and chocolate coated citrus. The loser: Johnnie Walker White Walker served cold — in retrospect, I think I had too high an expectation.
Other notables included “local” malts Lohin McKinnion Tequila Barrel Finished, Yaletown Distilling Small Batch, and Two Brewers Release 11.
Location: PNE Forum (Vancouver, BC) Cost: $29 | Next Event: Fall 2019
BC Liquor Spirits Release - Whisky Club Masterclass
Every year, BC Liquor Stores has a massive release of new and limited edition whiskies. If you haven’t been travelling around this time of year, and are on the hunt for whisky, chances are that you end up making a blind purchase — or risk losing that opportunity to buy (at least locally).
With that in mind, it is really great that the whisky clubs round up some bottles for tasting! This event was put on together by both the Companions of the Quaich and the West Coast Whisky Society.
To add another layer of intrigue when trying new whisky, each was paired with another and served blind until everyone had time to nose, taste, and discuss flavour profiles! The lineup was: Compass Box Delilah’s Blend paired with Compass Box Flaming Heart, Old Pultenay Single Cask (Hogshead) paired with GlenAllachie 10 Cask Strength, Highland Park Light paired with the Dark, and a bonus Port Charlotte 2009 MC:01 to end the night.
The best pairing was easily the two Highland Park expressions — also the most expensive, unfortunately. And my favourite was the Old Pultenay which I luckily picked up a bottle before they were all gone. The Port Charlotte MC:01 is the infamous accidental shipment that, what seems to be, most of Canadian provinces received instead of MRC:01. Oops! Its taste was equally amazing as the mistake — and also equally hard to track down for sale.
Location: Companions of the Quaich Whisky Club Cost: $55 | Next Event: Fall 2019
Northern Border Collection 2018 Masterclass
This annual release from Corby Spirits is making a name for the Canadian whisky industry. Not just your average blenders and producers of rye anymore, eh?
Gooderham & Worts Eleven Souls, J.P. Wisers 35, Lot No. 40 Cask Strength Rye, and Pike Creek 21 European Cask are the feature expressions for 2018. The Lot No. 40 came in younger - an 11-year - compared to last year, the inaugural release. And I think that the Wisers 35 was sampled at cask strength during the Victoria Whisky Festival, which created some excitement, but it was bottled at 50% ABV in the end.
We tasted each one this year which was great! (The tasting organized last year was sans Pike Creek..) My favourite being the Lot No. 40, but, having no need for another rye whisky, I followed suggestion of my partner and we selected the Eleven Souls to take home. A delicious dram for every day enjoyment.
Location: BC Liquor Stores Cost: $10 | Next Event: Unknown
Beam Suntory Masterclass
Every year BC Liquor Stores schedules a massive release of rare, limited, and new whiskies for the first weekend in November. Leading up to “Release Day” are a number of tasting events where there is an opportunity to sample a select lineup of various bottles included in the release. However, you don’t really know the exact lineup until you arrive!
This tasting was worth its weight in whisky by a furlong. Auchentoshan 21, Bowmore 18, Bowmore 27 (Vintner’s Trilogy - Port Cask), Bowmore Vaults First Edition, Laphroaig Lore, and Laphroaig Cairdeas (2018 - Fino Cask Finish).
I was blown away by the third Vintner’s Release from Bowmore! A punch of dried fruit, raisin, berries, muted smoke, Seville oranges, and port spices. Amazing stuff, but a steep entry fee to own the bottle. The Laphroaig Cairdeas was runner up. I found it hard to really get to know this one with the provided sample size - but, I was lucky to snag one of the few bottles released at the flagship Vancouver BCL location. Looking forward to spending time with it!
Of all the Masterclasses I attended this whisky season, this one was my favourite. Despite the late substitution of the Laphroaig 27 with Bowmore Vaults — attributed to a shipping error.
Location: BC Liquor Stores Cost: $35 | Next Event: Unknown
European Independents Masterclass
An independent bottling extravaganza! Excellent whiskies selected for this tasting — the only downside being this was probably the only time I’ll ever see or taste these! This part of Canada struggles to get these lesser known bottles... Sansibar, Valinch & Mallet, The Whisky Agency, Eiling Lim, and 'Classic of Islay'.
My favourites were the "Bessie’s Dram" (Laphroaig) with its marine and deeply peated qualities, think of medicinal and tarry rope, and the Tomatin 18 (Sansibar) with its fruit, cereal, charcoal, pear, and spices.
Also notable was the "Older Than Old" sherry bomb, probably coming from barrels of unmatched quality compared to today, and the opportunity to try an independent Highland Park 15 (The Whisky Agency) which was, unfortunately, underwhelming.
Location: Companions of the Quaich Whisky Club Cost: $125 | Next Event: Unknown
Whisky "Heels" BBQ
A fantastic event put on by the Companions of the Quaich! I brought my Big Peat Christmas Edition 2017 to share and tried some amazing whiskies including Laphroaig 21, Black Bull 40, BenRiach Tawny Port Single Cask, and a 24-year old Bruichladdich bottled by Cadenhead.
Location: Companions of the Quaich Whisky Club Cost: $75 | Next Event: Summer 2019
Ardbeg Day 2018
An free, annual event to showcase the latest Limited Edition from Ardbeg. Hosted in early June, it’s your chance to try the latest “experimental” expression! This year featured Ardbeg Grooves — a non-age statement that was matured in heavily charred casks; the extra charring creating cracks and ridges, or Grooves, allowing for more barrel interaction with the liquid (think surface area).
Always worth the effort to secure a spot for tasting, but, after amassing the Ardbeg Day releases from 2015-17, I decided to leave this on the shelf and savour my sample pour.
Location: Irish Heather and BC Liquor Stores Cost: Free | Next Event: June 2019
The Dram - Vancouver Writers Fest
Description not available.
Location: Performance Works (Vancouver, BC) Cost: $110 | Next Event: March 2019
Comox Valley Whiskey Festival 2018
Description not available.
Location: Best Western Westerly Hotel (Courtenay, BC) Cost: $125 | Next Event: February 2019
Peat and Meat Whisky Dinner
Description not available.
Location: Companions of the Quaich Whisky Club Cost: $125 | Next Event: Unknown
Cooper's Choice Masterclass (Hopscotch 2017)
Description not available.
Location: Salt Tongue Café (Vancouver, BC) Cost: $35 | Next Event: Fall 2018
Bowmore 'Unlock Hidden Depths'
Description not available.
Location: The Blackbird Public House (Vancouver, BC) Cost: Free | Next Event: Unknown
Northern Border Collection 2017 Masterclass
Description not available.
Location: BC Liquor Stores Cost: $10 | Next Event: Fall 2018
Diageo Special Releases 2015
Description not available.
Location: BC Liquor Stores Cost: $50 | Next Event: Unknown
Vancouver Whisky Festival 2017
Description not available.
Location: Pacific Inn Resort (White Rock, BC) Cost: Volunteered | Next Event: TBD
