Monarch, the 75^th anniversary limited edition of Canada’s best-selling whisky, raises the already high Crown Royal flavor bar. Zesty rye from an ancient Coffey still is the throbbing heart of this blend, balancing cloves, ginger, cinnamon, glowing hot pepper, and that gorgeous sour bitterness of rye grain against crispy, fresh-sawn lumber, fragrant lilacs, dark fruits, and green apples. Butterscotch, chocolate, toffee, mint, pine needles, and sweet pitchy balsam enrich a luscious, creamy mouthfeel carefully tempered by grapefruit pith. Editor's Choice

Reviewed by: Davin de Kergommeaux (Fall 2014)

Crown Royal has always been a very stylish, silky smooth whisky. This bottling adds a new dimension in flavor and texture with its cognac cask finishing. A velvety smooth whisky with notes of creamy vanilla, butterscotch, nougat, dried fruit, and gentle spice are well-defined and nicely balanced. Gently sweet, fruity finish. Crown Royal’s best effort to date.

Reviewed by: John Hansell (Spring 2008)

Creamy, silky texture on the palate. Richer than the flagship Crown Royal, but still quite clean on the palate. Along with creamy vanilla, delicate fruit and floral notes, you’ll also find caramel and butterscotch, a peppering of spice (particularly cinnamon), and light nougat. Silky smooth finish. A benchmark whisky in the traditional Canadian style.

Reviewed by: John Hansell (Spring 2007)

If Canada made bourbon (it doesn’t), it would taste like this massive dram. The mashbill of 60% corn, 36% rye, and 4% malted barley is identical to that used for Crown Royal Hand Selected Barrel Coffey rye. Beer still distillation and virgin oak barrels yield huge vanillas, rye spices, barrel tones, cherries, dark fruits, soaring floral esters, and gingery, peppery spices. Strong woodiness, slightly pulling tannins, and something almost chocolaty.

Reviewed by: Davin de Kergommeaux (Fall 2018)

The first expression of the Crown Royal Noble Collection was our Canadian Whisky of the Year in 2016 and this one outdoes the original. This release features the standard Crown Royal Fine De Luxe finished in cabernet sauvignon barrels.  To an already complex blend of vanilla, delicate flowers, and fruits, add canned peach syrup, pears, and white plums, with smoldering pepper and grape skin tannins on the finish.

Reviewed by: Davin de Kergommeaux (Summer 2017)

The fourth in this series is finished in air-dried French oak. Hints of butterscotch become fruity, with tinges of vanilla as the nose opens. A luxurious creamy palate develops peppery spices that dissolve into a sweet fruitiness with a glowing warmth in the back of the throat. A dynamic dram with lovely hot spices that advance, then retreat. The long finish is mildly sweet and spicy. Editors’ Choice

Reviewed by: Davin de Kergommeaux (Fall 2019)

Distilled from a mash of 90% rye, matured in new and once-used barrels, and masterfully blended to produce a bold, spicy, complex whisky with aromas of vanilla, baking spices, and butterscotch. Crown Royal’s classic minty, piney palate melds gloriously with gingery heat and sweet clove oil cushioned by ripe cherries, fruit cocktail, and soft milk chocolate. Sugar and spice on the medium-long finish blanket barrel notes and fresh lumber.

Reviewed by: Davin de Kergommeaux (Winter 2020)

This truly outstanding Canadian whisky is sold exclusively in the U.S. The Crown Royal blending lab has so perfected the art of blending that each whisky becomes a seamless unit. Blenders’ Mash is a rare opportunity to taste a component of that unit. Distilled from 60% corn, 36% rye, and 4% malted barley, then matured in new oak, this whisky is massive and bourbon-like. It ages slowly in Canada’s cold winters for 13 years, becoming very complex, yet not too woody. Rather, it is packed with creamy caramels, vanilla, gingery white pepper, dark fruits, floral tones, and accenting barrel notes. Number 5 in the 2018 Top 20 

Reviewed by: Davin de Kergommeaux (Winter 2018)

A rich luxurious whisky finished in cognac casks, as was the crisper, brighter Cask No. 16 that it replaces. This is the cedary, leathery, tobacco-ish sipping whisky of the private club. Simple toffee and the cherry essence of Beaujolais nouveau evolve into ripe red apples and heavy, dusky, dark fruit with candied citrus peel, bitter almond skins, and hints of oak. Sizzling gingery spice and white pepper linger over textured sandalwood. Defined by its heavy, creamy body.

Reviewed by: Davin de Kergommeaux (Summer 2014)

A blend of 95% rye-grain flavoring whisky with a variety of base whiskies. Its big whisky cocktails will tempt mixers into sipping. Very fruity and floral, with prunes, peaches, red apple skins, and bouquets of spring flowers all boosted by vibrant peppery spices on a slightly oaky base. Crown Royal’s signature balsam resin note and hints of vanilla round it out. The long, spicy finish ends with hints of citrus pith. A complex, tightly woven blend. (U.S. only)

Reviewed by: Davin de Kergommeaux (Fall 2015)

Inspired by Crown Royal Monarch, Crown Royal is introducing a new line of equally remarkable whiskies called the Noble Collection. This “Cornerstone Blend” begins the series. Rye-grain whisky, fresh-cut lumber, and new oak. Sweet, with a broad spiciness, rich heady nose, floral overtones, and fruity esters. Vague milk chocolate, tropical fruit, and ripe bananas soften the peppery spices. Powerful yet elegant. Complex and tightly synthesized into a single, well balanced whole.

Reviewed by: Davin de Kergommeaux (Summer 2016)

Vanilla and oak nose, with a creamy layer of mint that warns you: Rye Ahead. And what a sweet rye wave it is, rolling in with green mint and grass, more bourbony oak and vanilla, lively spice on the top (with enough heat to keep it bold), and a finish that brings everything together. Beautifully integrated, and not overly woody, a tribute to the blending art of Canadian distillers.

Reviewed by: Lew Bryson (Fall 2012)

Until recently, Crown Royal, Canada’s best-selling whisky, took a conservative approach to limited-edition releases. The annual Noble Collection is a promising taste of the innovation underway at the Gimli, Manitoba distillery, which includes experiments with single grain wheat whisky, single malts, and more. This first venture into cask finishing uses Cabernet Sauvignon barrels. It is still Crown Royal, but on top of the bourbonesque vanillas and woody notes, rich red fruits jump from the glass. A new direction that moves Crown Royal into the realm of big, beautiful whiskies. Number 18 in the 2017 Top 20 

Reviewed by: Davin de Kergommeaux (Winter 2017)

Crown Royal develops its bourbon-like house style by using an American-style mashbill of 64% corn, 31.5% rye, and 4.5% malted barley for one of its many component whiskies. From this single component, blender Mark Balkenende selected mature whisky exhibiting sweet flowers, pear juice, vanilla, fresh grain, mild barrel tones, clean dry wood, brisk spices, and a long, glowing finish. Very floral, fruity, and quaffable. ($55CAD; Ontario only)

Reviewed by: Davin de Kergommeaux (Spring 2018)

Recently, Crown Royal began bottling some of the 50-odd whiskies in its core blend. Hand Selected Barrel and Northern Harvest Rye each peeked behind the blenders’ curtain. Now Blenders’ Mash (originally called Bourbon Mash) unveils the woody vanilla signature of Canada’s bestseller. This approachable, creamy, medium-bodied whisky bathes in sweet vanilla and mild oak tannins, seasoned with peppery spices and fruity-floral esters. Incredibly long, creamy, vanilla finish.

Reviewed by: Davin de Kergommeaux (Summer 2018)

The faint aroma might fool you into thinking there won’t be much in the glass, but this balanced spirit is pleasant and drinkable, if not terribly complex. It’s a new look at Crown Royal’s discontinued XR expression, which went away in 2019, and it’s made from a blend of three of the oldest whiskies in the company’s lineup. Light caramel, sliced orange, and a bit of wood combine nicely in the glass.

Reviewed by: David Savona (Summer 2022)

Light and easy drinking. Very clean on the palate, with notes of creamy vanilla, subtle fruit, and delicate floral notes. Light, clean finish. When I think of Canadian whisky, this is the whisky that comes to mind.

Reviewed by: John Hansell (Spring 2007)

With a rich nose like warm maple syrup, it’s hard to miss that this is a flavored whisky. But the maple smells real, like breakfast in a Vermont diner. It’s also good that it’s not sickly sweet and thick; the mouthfeel is like good Crown with maple flavor, not a big wad of syrup. So if you like flavored whiskies, bring on the Canadian cocktails and ice cream: this is the good stuff.

Reviewed by: Lew Bryson (Spring 2013)