A MUST Visit: Canon in Seattle, WA

[mrviognier]

Have been spending a few days in Seattle, interviewing potential distributors. Yesterday afternoon I had the good fortune of spending some time with Jamie Boudreau, owner/head barkeep at Canon. Opened seven months ago, Canon might be small in size, but it's HUGE in terms of its selection of American Whiskey.

Words don't do it justice. Want pre-prohibition Rye? There's plenty to be had here. Old S-W juice? Sure. There are labels available to sample that haven't been around in decades. You can view the latest copy of the ever-changing Captain's List here.

And, oh yeah, he has a pretty impressive selection of whiskies from other parts of the world, too...plus other spirits.

To be sure, the price tag is hefty should you want to explore some of these treasures...but there's plenty of depth in the recent & currently-available releases, too. And there's something special to be drinking in the presence of SO MANY great bottles, not to mention in the presence of Jamie's enthusiasm for whiskey.

If you live in or are going to visit the Seattle area, you need to beat feet to this place soon!

[dridge11]

I'll be in Seattle next weekend. However, I think this place looks dangerous and I should stay away. Insane list!

[wmpevans]

Amazing selection.

Amazing prices $$$. :bigeyes: :bigeyes:

Makes me feel a lot better(I'm in justification mode here) about $$$ I've spent stocking the bunker. :grin: :grin:

[mrviognier]

As I tell my wife, "It's only money!"

And, yes, as you''d expect, that excuse doesn't always work with her. :grin:

[drunk]

Did you ask the owner how often he sells $900 glasses of bourbon?

[mrviognier]

Did you ask the owner how often he sells $900 glasses of bourbon?

[White Dog]

No Dixie Dew?!? Meh

[drunk]

As I said, they're not cheap...but just as legitimate a question would be: "How often in your life will you have the opportunity to taste these whiskies?"

[Trey Manthey]

Wow! I'm heading to Seattle next month and this will be a stop. Have you seen the pictures of the place? I want to live there:

[CaptainQ]

As I said, they're not cheap...but just as legitimate a question would be: "How often in your life will you have the opportunity to taste these whiskies?"

Tomorrow at Jake's house. :grin:

[andykeck]

Make sure to order a glass of the 1890 Amer Picon, a bargain at only $1,500 a pop.

As good as their whiskey selection is, when I'm at Canon, I prefer to do the roulette or whatever they call it. You tell the bartender an ingredient or a flavor, and they come up with something based on that. I've discovered some really fantastic liqueurs that I had never heard of, let alone tasted, by letting them pick for me.

[CorvallisCracker]

Tomorrow at Jake's house. :grin:

I should take off early tomorrow and drive up. I could pick up some more Weller 12 while I'm up there.

[BFerguson]

This is when it's good to probably have a company expense account, and write it off as "research":grin:

Mind blowing selection, it's almost like walking back in time.

B

[Tico]

Wow, that list is incredible!

[nivto]

I should take off early tomorrow and drive up. I could pick up some more Weller 12 while I'm up there.

[SMOWK]

It sounds like they are pricing the older stuff so that they aren't pouring it often and it can sit on the shelf and look pretty adding to the ambiance.

[CaptainQ]

I should take off early tomorrow and drive up. I could pick up some more Weller 12 while I'm up there.

[bad_scientist]

Uhhh.... $29 for a glass of the Willett 5 year rye? $45 for glass of the BT Single Oak Project bottles? $45 for a glass of the BT Experimental Oat? I'll be back with more ridiculous prices on that menu, unless anyone else would like to join in on the fun.

[AaronWF]

Uhhh.... $29 for a glass of the Willett 5 year rye? $45 for glass of the BT Single Oak Project bottles? $45 for a glass of the BT Experimental Oat? I'll be back with more ridiculous prices on that menu, unless anyone else would like to join in on the fun.

$99 for Michter 25yo Rye? I had a pour of this, and it's fantastic, but it retails for around $350 and the bar where i had it got it straight from the distributor for less than $200, maybe even less than $150, if I remember correctly. Actually, at first they were charged $25 because the distributor screwed up and thought they were delivering the 10-year, but the bar was honest about it.

$25 for a nice size pour where I had it here in Chicago. It was worth it, but I wouldn't pay much [if any] more.

[CaptainQ]

It sounds like they are pricing the older stuff so that they aren't pouring it often and it can sit on the shelf and look pretty adding to the ambiance.

And remember it's expensive to be a hipster in this town.

[Rockefeller]

Those prices might be justified (no pun intended) for NYC, but it's in Seattle ... and not even really nice Seattle.

Quick glance, they have PVW 15-20-23 but NOT ORVW 10/90, 10/107, LotB or VWFRR. I suspect this is a trying-too-hard place that I can just go to Brooklyn to find.

I hope they realize you aren't truly a hipster bourbon bar until you start making your own barrel-aged cocktails.

[SMOWK]

And remember it's expensive to be a hipster in this town.

I hope they realize you aren't truly a hipster bourbon bar until you start making your own barrel-aged cocktails.

How many hipsters does it take to screw in a lightbulb?

12. 1 to change the bulb, and 11 to discuss why it was cooler without a bulb.

[mrviognier]

Now THAT'S funny.

No, Canon doesn't fall into the "hipster" bar category. These folks are pretty passionate. As for cost, I don't begrudge Jamie. The chance that he's able to replace many of the bottles in his collection is about the same as me being able to ride the space shuttle.

As to the more-recent, higher-end bottlings, Washington State really didn't get much allocated to them. Now, post-1183, I suspect that will start to change.

[wadewood]

How is he able to sell these older pours since they were not bought through the state? Even with the change in the retail laws in WA, the state government still gets their cut on bar sales.

I used to hang out at a very popular bar in Seattle that had great bourbon selection. They occasionally had some bottles they were not available in WA. Heck, maybe I even helped with that. But they were also very cautious about it because selling these would be illegal. They never put these on the menu with a price. For the most part, they just poured these as "samples" to the regulars.

[mrviognier]

As I understand it, as long as you pay the tax, the State is ambivalent. There's change a-coming.

The BIG change I see is going to come when the consumer realizes that he's been had. The underlying theme with pro-1183 folks is that it will be a windfall for the consumer. With the taxes in place, the average consumer used to buying a $25 bottle of vodka is going to see that bottle ring up at $35 after tax.

I suspect they'll be some VERY pissed off Washingtonians within the next two months.