Forty Creek Resolve

Poured Unity beside Resolve. Resolve is a step improvement from Unity, more fruit, more spice, more flavours. Unity’s nose is more caramel and profile is more typical of a Canadian whisky. Resolve has an obvious wine influence on the nose. The finish is the best part of Resolve. Spice hits immediately then a flash of fruit – brown sugar mixed with fruit, either grape or sour cherries. The finish is long and the best I have experienced from a Forty Creek annual edition. Very nice.

I just picked this up at the British Columbia release to expand my collection of annual limited release Forty Creeks. I have poured small tasters of the previous 2 years, Unity (2018) and Victory (2019) to provide a comparison of this year's release. Rich amber in colour, syrupy legs in the glass, similar to Victory, much thicker and more viscous looking than Unity. Nose: Sweet wine present up front. Port comes through pretty strongly, which in some whiskies is not my preference.. so we'll see how that pans out. Raisins and dried apricots. Unity has a far more butterscotch or caramel quality while Victory has a similar quality although I get a little less up front wine and a little more oak. I start to get some notes of damp cedar or fresh cut lumber after returning to Resolve. After having tasted it and the others, the caramel notes start to appear on the nose. Palate: Slightly thinner initial mouth feel than I expected although that does seem to develop after a second or two, however not as full as I might like. Not too sweet like some of the previous incarnations have bordered on and the wine flavours are highlighted but not overdone. Tart cherries and more dried fruits with subtle oak. Unity has more sweetness, and a bit more rye spice forward. Victory is somewhere in the middle between these two. They definitely all have distinct flavour profiles however, despite some similarities. Going back to Resolve, I find myself looking for a little more in the flavour but I'm not sure what that is? Finish: This has a nice long finish, helped I think by the tannins present which linger on the sides of the tongue. This tartness and slight acidity transforms into a lingering bitterness and warmth, almost reminiscent of chili flavored dark chocolate. This is I think a really nice aspect of this whisky, the warmth that lingers around. I get a lot more sweetness in the finish of Victory and sensation on the top of the tongue. The finish of Resolve feels longer than either of the other pours, although Unity is very close. Overall, another solid, enjoyable release from Forty Creek. As mentioned previously, sometimes the different wine casks or additions aren't my preference and that may be what lowers this one overall a bit for me, but not as a result of the quality of the product. I'd be curious to see a very different departure from current iterations in next year's release. I believe all 3 that I tasted here have some sort of Port type treatment or addition, and despite being different, it'd be great to go a completely different direction.. The finish I think might be the strength of this one, and results in a pretty darn good and enjoyable pour, and I'm not unhappy to have spent the money on this.