Canada - BourbonSphere

A Commitment to Sustainable Whisky

Scotland’s Nc’Nean Distillery is one of a handful of whisky distilleries certified as “B Corp” for their sustainability efforts. At Nc’Nean, that goes all the… Read More

Scotland’s Nc’Nean Distillery is one of a handful of whisky distilleries certified as “B Corp” for their sustainability efforts. At Nc’Nean, that goes all the way to the use of renewable energy for the distillery and using recycled glass for its bottles. We’ll talk with founder Annabel Thomas about the challenges of making whisky sustainably and organically on this week’s WhiskyCast In-Depth. In the news, the founder of Bimber and Dunphail distilleries has stepped aside following his arrest on two-decade old charges in his native Poland, while Kentucky lawmakers are trying to close loopholes in the state’s Vintage Distilled Spirits law.

Episode 1045: February 25, 2024

Image courtesy Nc’Nean Distillery.

American Spirits Exports Reach Record High

March 12, 2023 – American distillers exported a record $2.06 billion in spirits during 2022, a 30 percent gain over 2021 as the temporary end of tariffs on Bourbons and other American whiskies helped exports rebound. According to a new report from the Distilled Spirits Council, American whisky exports grew 32 percent with a value of $1.28 billion during the year. “Growth to the European Union and United Kingdom lagged behind other markets,” DISCUS Vice President of International Trade Rob Maron told WhiskyCast in a telephone interview. Both trade partners ended their punitive tariffs on American whisky exports in 2022, Read More »

March 12, 2023 – American distillers exported a record $2.06 billion in spirits during 2022, a 30 percent gain over 2021 as the temporary end of tariffs on Bourbons and other American whiskies helped exports rebound. According to a new report from the Distilled Spirits Council, American whisky exports grew 32 percent with a value of $1.28 billion during the year.

“Growth to the European Union and United Kingdom lagged behind other markets,” DISCUS Vice President of International Trade Rob Maron told WhiskyCast in a telephone interview. Both trade partners ended their punitive tariffs on American whisky exports in 2022, though Maron noted the tariffs could return if no agreement on sustainable steel and aluminum trading is reached with the Biden Administration by this October.

“We urge the Biden administration to secure the permanent removal of these tariffs. If an agreement on steel and aluminum is not reached with the EU before the end of 2023, the EU will reimpose its retaliatory tariff at 50% on American Whiskeys. That will bring this renewed interest in American Whiskey among EU consumers to a screeching halt,” Maron said.

While the end of tariffs helped push export sales, the report also found shifting consumer preferences toward premium and luxury spirits, along with the gradual reopening of the hospitality sector following pandemic-related closures.

The 27-member European Union remains the single largest export market for U.S. spirits at $703 million, more than double Canada’s second-place ranking at $268 million. The United Kingdom ($159 million), Australia ($141 million) and Japan ($113 million) round out the top five export markets by value.

Links: Distilled Spirits Council

Crown Royal And Dave Grohl Thank Canada

Diageo-owned Crown Royal has enlisted former Nirvana and current Foo Fighters musical artist, Dave Grohl for their upcoming Super Bowl commercial in which they thank Canada for a myriad of inventions. Grohl – who is not Canadian – proceeds to rattle off a list of artists, domestic items, foods, sports and gadgets originating in the […]

Grohl – who is not Canadian – proceeds to rattle off a list of artists, domestic items, foods, sports and gadgets originating in the Great White North for which he is thankful, including Rush, Eugene Levy [which would inherently include “SCTV” – though only some members of that comedy group are shown], the electric wheelchair, ironing board, peanut butter, paint roller, basketball, hockey and even football [though, alas, no “Kids in the Hall”].

In the end of this 30-second version – the full 60-second version will run during tomorrow’s game – Grohl unfurls a large Crown Royal banner with the sentiment toward Canada.

Crown Royal was the first spirits brand to advertise in the Super Bowl in 2017 – the first year spirits brands were allowed to advertise during the game – and, in 2021, became the official whiskey sponsor of the National Football League.

Companies And Countries Unite To Support Ukraine

Various distilleries and beverage and spirit companies have joined with some countries to support Ukraine in unison after that country’s unprovoked invasion by Russia on February 24, 2022. Specifically, Luxembourg-based Amber Beverage Group (ABG) has declared its support for Ukraine following the Russian invasion of the country. ABG has donated financial resources to the charity […]

Various distilleries and beverage and spirit companies have joined with some countries to support Ukraine in unison after that country’s unprovoked invasion by Russia on February 24, 2022.

Specifically, Luxembourg-based Amber Beverage Group (ABG) has declared its support for Ukraine following the Russian invasion of the country.

ABG has donated financial resources to the charity project Stand With Ukraine as well as requesting that the governments of nearby Latvia, Lithuania and Estonia consider ‘streamlining legislation’, so that ABG and other companies can offer jobs to Ukrainian refugees by easing the process of obtaining work permits and supporting temporary residences.

Nordic drinks company Anora Group, which produces Koskenkorva vodka and OP Anderson aquavit, said it has ceased sales to Russia to show support for Ukraine as well as donated $55,900 to the Ukrainian Red Cross, a non-profit charity providing food, water, shelter and first aid.

Many states in the USA and some provinces in Canada, have removed all alcoholic products produced in Russia from their stores in support of Ukraine.

The Liquor Control Board of Ontario (LCBO) said it had been ordered by the government to remove all products produced in Russia from its sales channels, including 679 LCBO stores across the province, lcbo.com and LCBO convenience outlets. The Newfoundland and Labrador Liquor Corporation also said that it would stop selling Russian-produced products in its stores.

In the USA, the states of New Hampshire, Ohio, Utah and Virginia have taken similar actions and several other states have followed suit.

In the UK, London-based bar ownership group, Nightcap, operator of London Cocktail Club, Adventure Bar Group (Tonight Josephine, Blame Gloria) and the recently acquired Barrio Bars, said it had removed all Russian-made alcohol from its venues in a show of support for Ukraine. Nightcap has created a cocktail made entirely from Ukrainian vodka – which will be available across all its bars – with all proceeds to go towards supporting Ukraine.

Arc Inspirations, operator of the Banyan and Manahatta bar brands across the UK, also joined in with their support of Ukraine by saying they would no longer pour Russian vodka at its venues. London-based bar, Pinch, has pledged to donate 15% of its profits to the Ukrainian armed forces. Pinch’s founders are Ukrainian and opened in December 2021, with a focus on Ukrainian-style food and drinks – including the venue’s signature drink, nalivka [a Ukrainian spirit infused with herbs, berries or roots].

Meanwhile, Ukrainian distillery Nemiroff has temporarily closed, and some employees have joined the Ukrainian army. The distillery is based in Nemyriv, in the Vinnytsia region of Ukraine, and is asking for financial donations to the Return Alive Foundation.

“Never, in my wildest dreams did I think it might happen,” says Yuriy Sorochynskiy, CEO of Nemiroff.

“This is a terrible story,” he laments. “What I see right now, regarding Russia, they are still living in the Soviet Union, still under the Russian propaganda, and they are not free. They are not able to say what they think. Nobody wants to go back to Soviet times in Ukraine. We would like to be with democratic countries, we would like to build our own country and be proud to be Ukrainians – and we are proud to be Ukrainians.”

“The last 30 years have shown us how to be free,” he adds. “Young people who were in free Ukraine, they are fighting for their freedom. They did not live in the Soviet period and would not like to be closed in its hands.

“This is the big, big, big difference between Ukraine and Russia. Our young generation, they are completely free. They like freedom, and we like freedom, and we are fighting for freedom.”

Details on how to donate to the foundation can be found via the following link: https://savelife.in.ua/en/.

Happy Hour Live with Dr. Don Livermore (Episode 930: March 2, 2022)

Dr. Don Livermore is the master blender at Hiram Walker Distillery in Windsor, Ontario, and the winner of numerous awards for his Canadian whiskies over the years. He’s also a whisky nerd, as we proved during our #HappyHourLive webcast the other night. You can catch the fun each Friday night on the WhiskyCast YouTube channel, our Facebook page, Twitter, and Twitch. Links: Hiram Walker Distillery

Download

Links: Hiram Walker Distillery

Danish Distiller Says “No Peace, No Whisky”

February 16, 2022 – Hans Island sounds like the name of the villain in a James Bond movie, but it’s actually more like a lair for a Bond villain. It’s a small island in the North Atlantic on the border between Canada and Greenland, and has been the subject of a low-key diplomatic dispute between Canada and Denmark for decades. Both sides claim sovereignty over Hans Island, but the dispute escalated in 1984 when Canadian soldiers “invaded” the island, planted the Maple Leaf flag, and left behind a bottle of Canadian Whisky. Denmark’s minister for Greenland followed up on that Read More »

February 16, 2022 – Hans Island sounds like the name of the villain in a James Bond movie, but it’s actually more like a lair for a Bond villain. It’s a small island in the North Atlantic on the border between Canada and Greenland, and has been the subject of a low-key diplomatic dispute between Canada and Denmark for decades.

Both sides claim sovereignty over Hans Island, but the dispute escalated in 1984 when Canadian soldiers “invaded” the island, planted the Maple Leaf flag, and left behind a bottle of Canadian Whisky. Denmark’s minister for Greenland followed up on that visit with a mission of his own to replace the Canadian flag with Denmark’s and the whisky with a bottle of schnapps. Ever since then, the two sides have regularly visited Hans Island to re-stake their claim to ownership while diplomats have tried and failed to come up with a resolution.

Now, Denmark’s Stauning Distillery is upping the ante. It’s one of nine whisky distillers in Denmark, and is threatening to stop production unless both sides come to an agreement.

“We don’t care who actually gets what, or if there’s a line down the middle or if it’s owned for half of the year or whatever the solution is, but it’s more the symbol of not being able to agree to something,” says Stauning’s Rasmus Bendtsen. He describes both countries as “peace-loving” and the conflict as calm, but with climate change increasing the potential for mineral exploration on Hans Island, he said in a Zoom interview that now is the time to resolve the dispute.

“Even as it is charming, what would happen if one day, one of the nations came and found a bottle of vodka, or mezcal, or Champagne or anything else, because now with climate change, the whole region will become much more important,” he said.

Watch Mark Gillespie’s interview with Rasmus Bendtsen:

Bendtsen and his colleagues are threatening to stop production on World Whisky Day (May 21), and want other distillers to join them in a #WhiskyPeace movement. They have offered the use of the distillery as a place for negotiations between Canadian and Danish diplomats. Bendtsen and his colleagues have already been invited to the Canadian Embassy in Copenhagen, where they were told that the Canadian government endorsed their calls for a resolution and told them talks remain active between the two countries. However, they have not heard yet from their own government.

Ironically, the Danes have never left a bottle of Stauning or any other Danish whisky on Hans Island. That’s because when the dispute started, there were no active whisky distilleries in Denmark.

Links: Stauning Distillery | WhiskyPeace.com

Happy Hour Live with the “Off Track with Hinch & Rossi” Gang (Episode 924: February 10, 2022)

Time for our annual visit with the guys from “Off Track with Hinch & Rossi” podcast for a virtual whiskey tasting session. IndyCar veterans Alexander Rossi and James Hinchcliffe joined us for the #HappyHourLive webcast, along with producer Tim Durham and their special guest, Marco Andretti. We tasted the Heaven’s Door Redbreast Edition Bourbon, the Dickel/Leopold Bros. Rye collaboration, Redwood Empire’s Lost Monarch, and the Crown Royal Noble Collection Winter Wheat edition. Join us for our live webcasts every Friday night at 5:00pm New York time on the WhiskyCast YouTube channel, our Facebook page, Twitter, and Twitch. Links: Heaven’s Door | George Read More »

Time for our annual visit with the guys from “Off Track with Hinch & Rossi” podcast for a virtual whiskey tasting session. IndyCar veterans Alexander Rossi and James Hinchcliffe joined us for the #HappyHourLive webcast, along with producer Tim Durham and their special guest, Marco Andretti. We tasted the Heaven’s Door Redbreast Edition Bourbon, the Dickel/Leopold Bros. Rye collaboration, Redwood Empire’s Lost Monarch, and the Crown Royal Noble Collection Winter Wheat edition. Join us for our live webcasts every Friday night at 5:00pm New York time on the WhiskyCast YouTube channel, our Facebook page, Twitter, and Twitch.

Download

Links: Heaven’s Door | George Dickel | Leopold Bros. Distilling | Redwood Empire | Crown Royal

Writers’ Tears Unveils Ice Wine-Finished Cask

Ireland-based Walsh Whiskey has released Writers’ Tears Ice Wine Cask Finish, created in a collaboration with Canadian winery Inniskillin, based in Ontario. Writers’ Tears Ice Wine Cask Finish is the result of Writers’ Tears Copper Pot poured into Inniskillin ice wine casks and finished for 12 months before being bottled at 46% alcohol by volume […]

Ireland-based Walsh Whiskey has released Writers’ Tears Ice Wine Cask Finish, created in a collaboration with Canadian winery Inniskillin, based in Ontario.

Writers’ Tears Ice Wine Cask Finish is the result of Writers’ Tears Copper Pot poured into Inniskillin ice wine casks and finished for 12 months before being bottled at 46% alcohol by volume [92 proof] and is said to contain notes of apricot, peach and spice.

Only 3,500 bottles of Writers’ Tears Ice Wine Cask Finish are being made available now in Canada and Ireland and, beginning in November 2021, in the USA for $85 per bottle.

Happy Hour Live with Distillers Bob Baxter & Todd Leopold (Episode 884: July 28, 2021)

Bob Baxter distills the award-winning Two Brewers Canadian single malts with co-founder Alan Hansen at their Yukon Spirits distillery in Whitehorse, Yukon, and Todd Leopold makes equally renowned whiskies with his brother Scott at Denver’s Leopold Bros. Distilling. Bob and Todd joined us on the latest #HappyHourLive webcast to talk about their whiskies, along with the unique three-chamber still now being used at Leopold Bros. We also talked a bit of hockey, shared heritage in the Detroit area, and much more on the webcast, too! Links: Two Brewers Whisky | Leopold Bros.

Download

Links: Two Brewers Whisky | Leopold Bros.