J.P Wiser's Hopped
Hop On Out Of Here
0 459
Review by @talexander
- Nose13
- Taste16
- Finish15
- Balance15
- Overall59
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Since whisky is distilled from a "beer"(properly known as wort), doesn't it make sense to try to make a beer-like whisky? Of course, the "beer" that is in the washback at the distillery is not usually commercially available as a bottled beer (notice I said usually). Which is too bad, as I've tasted some from the washbacks of Scotland and they taste a hell of a lot better than Molson Canadian or Coors Light!
Wiser's Hopped Whisky is...hopped. What does that mean? You got me - there's very little information on the bottle, and the product is not even mentioned on the website. I presume hops are added to the wort...or are they added to the mash? Or are they added in the barrel during maturation? It doesn't say. Or maybe there are no hops at all (since the ingredient list on this Frankenwhisky is just "Canadian whisky, natural flavour")
The colour is a dark caramel. On the nose - I don't even know what this is. It doesn't smell like whisky...burnt caramel (like, really burnt), heavy oak and stout. Corn syrup. Caramel apple. Cherrywood smoke (smokier with water). Cotton candy. There's a note I can't quite place; perhaps that is the hops (since I don't know what that smells like on its own)? And it doesn't smell much like a dark ale to me. None of these odours are particularly pleasant - imagine if you left your creme brûlée under the torch for about six minutes. If I had nosed this blind, I would have thought it was some weird spiced rum.
Less jarring on the palate - very sweet caramel, some indeterminate spice and more caramel apple. I actually get a fairground feeling when I drink this, somehow. Faint oak and some vanilla; but again, not much like dark ale. Water seems to make it even sweeter. More like their Spiced Vanilla but with very little vanilla.
The finish is rough, hoppy (I think) and has more dark ale characteristics than either the nose or palate. So here we have another flavoured Canadian whisky, but I'll say that it's not the worst I've had. Mix it with ginger ale and you might get a stronger beer-y ginger ale, who knows? Of course, it's proper place is in a boilermaker. Or down the drain.
Find where to buy Wiser's whisky
A note on the bottle recommends this with ice, which is a slight improvement (though not much). For a dissenting 4 1/2 out of 5 star review, plus some more information on the bottling and on the use of hops in distilling, check out canadianwhisky.org/reviews/….