Slainte-Mhath
Schenley O.F.C. 8 Year
Canadian — Alberta, Canada
Reviewed
August 23, 2020 (edited August 25, 2020)
Canadian whisky can be a bit of a minefield, as I have yet to come across a bottle I really like. This 8-year-old Schenley O.F.C. came to me as a leftover from an estate sale, so let's give it a try. Corn sweetness, vanillin and cinnamon are prominent on the nose, interrupted by chamomile, mango and an occasional bite. Feisty and untamed in the arrival, the development is marked by peppery spices, brown sugar and herbal notes. Crème brûlée, grapefruit and mild tannins creep into the surprisingly long finish. Granted, this is definitely better than Canadian Club.
RATING: 3.2/5.0 stars ≙ 81 pts → AVERAGE [+]
80.0
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@Ctrexman Haha, nice one!
The best canadian whisky is the scotch/bourbon you bring with you to Canada
@Slainte-Mhath Wisers 18 is ok but not life changing. Most of the good Canadian stuff stays in Canada, with very limited availability elsewhere. Lot 40 is quite good, any of the Crown Royal Noble Collection or single barrel picks are tasty, and my personal favorites come from Forty Creek. I plowed through a bottle of their Confederation Oak earlier this year, and some of their annual releases are pretty tasty too, particularly the 2018 Unity.
Can anyone recommend a Canadian whisky that is actually worth trying? I still got an unopened bottle of Lot 40, and I was considering J. P. Wiser's 18yo, but other than that I wouldn't touch Canadian whisky with a bargepole...
@cascode Canadian Club was by far the worst 'whisky' I have reviewed so far. It tasted more like a vodka, so I'm not even sure if I'd call it whisky.
@Slainte-Mhath Yes, I've not had great experience with Canadian whiskey simply because I gave up after having many dud bottles. Saying somthing is better than Canadian Club is like saying something is better than drinking stale urine. Then again, at least rotting urine would have some flavour and aroma to it ...
@Slainte-Mhath Hilarious!
@ContemplativeFox As far as I know, the 'O.F.C.' was not Canadian, but when they acquired the brand, they simply changed the meaning of that abbreviation.
@Slainte-Mhath Hahaha, so it wasn't originally Canadian but they changed it to mean that anyway?
Additional comment: It seems that 'O.F.C.' once stood for 'Old Fine Copper' in the United States, but when Schenley acquired the brand, they simply converted it to 'Original Fine Canadian'.
Additional information: Distilled in November 1967 at Valleyfield Distillery, Quebec, and bottled in November 1975 at 43% ABV. It seems that parts of the production were later relocated to the Black Velvet Distillery in Lethbridge, Alberta, before this expression was finally discontinued. It's a mulit-grain blend of corn and rye whisky.