Another Canadian Classic From Pike Creek
Near the Windsor, Ontario banks of Pike Creek rows of squat buildings have been dusted with a black patina nicknamed “distillery shadow.” From the outside, they look like ordinary large concrete warehouses, but inside, sit luxury resorts for thousands of ageing whisky barrels. Air and resting whisky expand during the hot, humid summers pushing the whisky into the wood. They contract during the dry cold winters drawing whisky out of the wood. This interaction resembles a Zen master, taking in calm deep breaths then slowly releasing them.
The barrels also house an endless source of inspiration for Hiram Walker Master Blender Dr Don Livermore's Pike Creek whisky releases. This growing series elevates Corby's wood management program to euphoric levels by finishing their whisky in a new barrel type for each release. The latest, Pike Creek 15-year-old is finished in Ontario Cabernet Sauvignon Barrels.
"This idea for this whisky started during an introductory training program for the Foreign Affair Winery's production team when they visited the Hiram Walker Distillery after Corby acquired the winery," explains Livermore. While touring the plant, the team was treated to Livermore's Blending 101 program. "As you know, we have a number of barrel finishing prototypes, and it was evident that we had not tried a Canadian wine finish. Likewise, the Foreign Affair team had never tried a wine finished in a whisky cask."
The grain and grape seeds were planted. "A project like this was all about timing around the wine maturation schedule. In the fall of 2018, we swapped barrels after Foreign Affair dumped their casks. We acquired several wine styles from them and put it in a 2006 whisky stock. We liked how it aged and matched it with the Pike Creek recipe," explains Livermore. "We wanted to move forward with the project."
The winery and the distillery swapped barrels a second time in June 2019 with the winery's Cabernet Sauvignon barrels travelling from Niagara to the Pike Creek warehouses. Livermore selected a bond of double-distilled corn whisky that had been ageing in ex-Canadian whisky barrels for fifteen years for finishing.
This bond was filled the year the Foreign Affair Winery was established. But, there is more to selecting a whisky suited for these barrels than this Easter egg. "A couple of things were in our mind when we selected the Cabernet Sauvignon casks and a bond of whisky from 2004," says Livermore. "We wanted the whisky to be bright and emphasize the quality of wine as the primary note. We were looking for the cherry, plums, and dark fruits of the Cabernet Sauvignon casks to complement the green apple, vanilla and cinnamon notes of a 15-year-old whisky." Adding a splash of rye gives the whisky its real hidden Easter egg – a background chest warming baking spice note.
About a year later the Cabernet Sauvignon casks yielded 2,058 bottles of Pike Creek, exclusive to the LCBO. As a scholar in oak management, Livermore knew that the majority of the wine flavours trapped in the oak would diffuse into the whisky in 200 days. Anything past that point would create a concentrating effect due to evaporation losses of alcohol, otherwise known as Angel's share.
"Honestly the compelling part about this whisky is the partnership with a Canadian winery and a Canadian whisky manufacturer. I think too many times as product developers we look for the exotic when designing whiskies and we miss the forest for the trees," admits Livermore. "The Niagara region makes great quality wines and Canada makes great quality whiskies. Why not bring each expression together? We make award-winning products in Canada and we should be proud of them, and the Pike Creek 15 Year represents Canada at its best."
The whisky has a shadow of ripe peach on the nose then it's gone. Spiced sandalwood, brown sugar, lots of red wine, smouldering char, black pepper, spices and dark orchard fruits swirl into the air. Then comes the army of cherries. "The cherry note is incredible," Livermore agrees. "I used to pick cherries when I worked on a fruit farm in Beamsville. It reminded me of ripe Bing cherries."
A surge of spice and vanilla lands firmly on the palate punched up by a drying sweetness. The flavour profile of this whisky is tightly knitted around those cherry notes. Dark honey and mild tobacco appear late on the palate as the beautiful oak structure hits with soft oak tannins and a peck of rock sugar that drifts all the way from Windsor to Niagara. In the wine world, it's about finding that perfect food pairing. The best pairing for this whisky, is another glass.