Century Reserve 15 Years Plus

[Gillman]

This is a new whisky in Ontario at least. The producer is listed as Potter's Distillers Ltd, Calgary. Potter's used to be a facility in Britsh Columbia, then issued whiskies from existing stocks as a non-distiller, then possibly issued whiskies (under its name and the Century name) sourced outside, then was sold I understand, possibly to one of the existing distilleries in Alberta.

This whisky is very good in the Canadian way: it has lots butter, clean light vanilla and spicy hints which may denote some whisky distilled at low proofs from rye. It sells here for $20 plus so worth the money for the age range stated. A cardboard neck collar states "Century Reserve is proud to introduce the Custom Blend, created by our master blender from premium whisky aged 15 to 25 years".

Gary

[Gillman]

See www.centuryreserve.ca for more information on the history of Potter's and the company which now owns it.

Gary

[ThomasH]

I have a bottle of the 21 and it is just as you described only with a little more oak influence. I got it in Windsor a few years ago for 33.95c which I thought was reasonable!

Thomas

[Megawatt]

I just picked this up today. The bottle is impressive; I would expect it to store grappa or cognac, not Canadian whisky of all things. This distiller seems to be big on fancy packaging. It is quite light in colour, which suggests a lack of added colouring (the absence of caramel flavour attests to this).

I poured some in my new Glencairn Canadian whisky glass (very nice glass, by the way). It is light on the nose, with immediate hints of tangerine and then milk chocolate. On the palate it is quite dry, with a bit of fruit over wood notes. Very little of the typical vanilla-toffee flavour. The finish I am not crazy about. It leaves me with an aftertaste that is not unlike the taste you get the morning after a night of drinking too much whisky. Strange.

Overall it is not one of my favourites so far (this is my first glass), but for the price I have no complaints. It is much lighter in body and flavour than all the other old Canadians I've tried, which seems to be a hallmark of this distiller (Centennial 10-year-old being another that I've tried).

[Megawatt]

I'm just about finished my bottle and I must say that I rather enjoy this stuff. The spirit is so mild and clean that it's pretty much all oak, to my palate. This is good, though, because it gives it a bigger body and a long finish. The sour taste I noticed before is not so pronounced; maybe I just wasn't feeling well that day. For $30 it's a totally decent bottle.

[Frodo]

Had a sample of this at a tasting tower. Very easy to drink. Butterscotch and some oak to balance. NO off notes. Well worth the $30 price tag. Exactly what I'd give to someone who wants to put their big toe in the whisky water...