Crown Royal Single Malt

A friend of mine's significant other is absolutely obsessed with Crown Royal. The type of obsessed where she has multiples of extremely rare, 4 figure bottles in her home. ( I never knew "rare" Crown Royal existed ). Admittedly, I've only had the standard Crown Royal. You know... the type that you'd have to pick if you were at a seedy dive bar in the wrong part of town trying to weigh your three whisky options: Crown, Jack and Jameson. Yuck. But I suppose it would be unfair for me to discount Crown Royal's entire catalogue just from tasting their cheapest swill. Or by the fact that they make flavored whisky ( gross. ). Sorry that makes me sound a bit of a douche snob. On to the tasting.... The nose is light, sweet and quite nutty. Like walnut Baklava. Actually I could go for some deliciously sweet Baklava right now... There's almost a rich maltiness about it similar to a good ale. Walnuts mix with honey in an almost cloying nose that's saved by a bit of spicy sweet cinnamon that rides in with just a hint of tart granny smith apples. The taste is decidedly very light. Vanilla dominates with sweet cream but there lies a bit of a floral fruitiness. Green apple, bananas and orange blossom. Back half of taste spices things up a bit and also brings in some dryness, cinnamon spice with leather. The finish is a bit one dimensional but it's rather long lasting for a Canadian whiskey. Spice lingers with a tannic bite. This is fine. Certainly better than the standard poverty grade Crown Royal but I'd hardly be convinced to give another Crown selection or really even another Canadian whisky a go. To anyone that is more experienced in this segment: what Canadian whisky do you think would actually make me a convert?

Nose is soft and fruity with golden apple, pear, banana, cranberry, and citrus along with some wood scents; both oak and cedar. Slight mossy note. No ethanol to speak of. Overall appealing. Palate brings vanilla creme, banana, apple, honey, malt, and generic nuttiness. Flavors aren’t the most robust, but are nicely balanced. I appreciate the lack of burnt hair note that I find in some single malts. Super short finish offers praline ice cream, white pepper, soft delicate oak, toffee, mint, and cinnamon. Mouthfeel is soft and creamy, which I found to be a plus. Ok I can see why some would criticize this; too mild, not complex enough, short finish, etc, but you know what? I kind of dig it. Now here’s the rub; I paid $79.99 and at that price it just doesn’t measure up to rebuy status. If I could get this at retail which I understand is $49.99, it would probably be a staple. Definitely one of the best Crown Royal expressions I have sampled.

Ok, I’m old and my palate isn’t all that discerning, but it was incredibly smooth with just a touch of ice.