Whisky Review/Tasting: Crown Royal Northern Harvest Rye

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Nosing 4:01
Whisky .com reviews the Crown Royal Northern Harvest Rye.
The nose:
Vanilla, rye, light oakiness, christmas cake, alcohol
The taste:
Full, rye, smooth, creamy, fruitness, oak, pepper
The finish:
middle
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[@Megawatt]

"Something completely different"...exactly! That is why we should be celebrating it, not arguing over whether it is the best. It is interesting, affordable, and different, which is reason enough to buy it. Also I don't understand why people act so surprised about the 97.5 rating from Murray, considering he has been handing out 95-point ratings to Alberta Premium 5 year old for years. He clearly has a hard-on for genuine Canadian rye and this one struck the right nerve for him. And anyway if we are to take his ratings at face value, we must convince ourselves that he would rather have Alberta Premium 5 year old than Laphroaig 18 year old.

[@Del-Canada]

When this first came out it sold out in minutes around Canada.

[@MrLoobu]

Yea took me 4 months to get one. Even now, I saw 2 bottles left on sale for 36CAD at the beginning of the month so I got one.

[@7orokenshin]

When that bite hits I was laughing out loud! 😂 Love these vids!

[@spearhead3ad377]

I have tried 1 bottle of this and it really gets better when it is less then a half bottle I have found . I have 1 more bottle to sip on that I will open her around November to help keep me warm on these cold nights here in North Carolina. Great review!

[@Treusch]

This is my go to for an evening whiskey. I find I personally enjoy this just as much as whiskey's that cost much more. But at the end of the day it is a matter of personal taste. I recommend trying it. At it's price point if you do not like it at least you didn't spend a large sum of money on it.

[@ShoshonnaLacy]

Best rye whisky that I had in a long time!

[@Whiskycom]

Understandable!

[@MrVara411]

Hmm. I love Horst but think he was a bit harsh, here. I agree it's not necessarily the Best Whiskey of the Year, but I found it a very drinkable dram for a rye.

[@Euphorica]

great review. thank you.i have had a few bottles myself. quite a decent offering compared to their typical offerings.

[@Euphorica]

relatively speaking that is.

[@Euphorica]

+Euphorica there are better offerings from Canada.

[@tulockthewerewolf9744]

im from Manitoba and proud its from here

[@rodgunn2621]

The Northern Harvest is tremendously smooth and drinkable. Fabulous stuff.

[@socaldep2280]

At the end of the day, it's what you like. I've done so many whiskey taste tests and I found out that I like Crown. It's an easy drinker.

[@The_Story_Channel]

I agree with everything you said. I am Canadian and I purchased a bottle 6 months ago and I cannot bring myself to finishing the last 1/3 of the bottle. How anyone can claim that as the whisky of the year is beyond me.

[@alexk3088]

Bribery?

[@scottcarey7725]

Crowns better than Jack!!

[@thes.a.s.s.1361]

I find it is smoother. But, is Jack Daniels a bourbon vs a whiskey?

[@drax14QC]

@@thes.a.s.s.1361 Canadian/Rye vs Tennessee Whiskey (which is technically Bourbon.)

[@Grimcityslasher]

I have always been a fan of the crown! Ps... I'm from Canada. I may be a bit biased. That said. 😉 I plan to visit both Northern Ireland and Scotland in the next few years! Can any whiskey fans share a gluten free whiskey I should drink first! Ps... I would liv to tatse them all. Unfortunately I have celiac disease! 😢

[@thomasjackson1075]

Grimcityslasher If you want to avoid gluten you probably should avoid blends, since a lot of them have wheat in the form of grain whisky mixed in. So, go for single malts or blended malts (as the malt means it is 100% barley, no wheat). Glen Scotia has an amazing flavour profile: green apples, fudge, sultanas... but it really depends what you like - if you visit a liquor shop they are guaranteed to be friendly and helpful.

[@maladyofdeath]

Crazy, my bottle was phenomenal, absolute gem, worth every penny. Maybe got lucky or something? But I've had dozens of whiskeys and this one was stellar. Honestly the best bottle of whiskey I have had the pleasure to drink in my life. 10/10 and my all time favourite.

[@maladyofdeath]

Not sure if it means anything but I bought a bottle the very first day it showed up on the shelves here before the hype took over, perhaps the first batch had the magic?

[@drummingsim]

Totally agree Horst. Rough and unbalanced were my main takeaway points also.

[@tulockthewerewolf9744]

keep in mind people the irish and scots hold animosity towards Canadians for taking the win

[@newfie252]

Alberta Springs 10 Year Old Rye, Alberta Premium Dark Horse are both excellent affordable Canadian Rye Whiskys. Both are at least as good as this - better imho. But this is good too, especially considering it is $34/bottle.

[@Foodexperimentation]

I like it. It’s bold for sure but not for everyone. Definitely hits hard

[@ryanland6440]

Luening is my boy!

[@JohnGrove310]

Luening, Horst Luening

[@Kinseydsp]

whiskey.com I just got a bottle and I really Like it not because it is the Best but it is very Pleasent to drink and nice flavor on the rocks!

[@moviebod]

A little bit off topic, but if you are travelling outside of Canada from St John's Newfoundland, their prices rule. I bought a quart of normal blended Crown Royal yesterday, duty free for $28.50. I also bought a quart of Canadian Club which is very different, if not a bit sweet for $21.00 at the duty free. It is a lot cheaper there than at Reykjavik airport in Iceland.

[@ernesthemingway9094]

Cheap now, $30 / bottle here in Quebec and large quantities. Got one today; didn't love it either.

[@anony955]

Perhaps it's a cultural feature, but I can appreciate the German tendency to avoid effusive self promotion, and the suspicion on these types of "best of" claims. Unless someone has tried literally all the whiskeys made in 2016, you cannot say "this is the best." You can only say, "among the thousands of whiskeys I didn't try, vs the few that I did, this whiskey is my favoured."

[@PHILLYMEDIC69]

Christmas cake? I don’t find whiskey to taste like cake

[@JK-rt8jj]

It's too bad horst didn't like this one. I have nothing but respect for his opinion, as I love his videos and use them as a guide for my own tasting but I had a very different experience with this whisky. I loved rhe spiciness of it and I found it to be very creamy, as horst said. I wouldn't say it is the best whisky in the world but I find it to be a great change up from time to time. another great rye is Lot 40. it beat out the crown royal northern harvest for Canadian whisky of the year. I'd love to see a review of that one as well

[@foodquig]

Interesting... Here in Western Canada we don't get a bag or a box with all that marketing blurb. We just get a bottle of CRNHR... I feel like I've been ripped off from part the whole experience, but it still noses and tastes pretty good...

[@richardbostan4286]

Crown Royal discontinued the "bag and box" for most of its whiskies sold in Canada years ago. They chose to keep them for their export markets.

[@jeremyh4710]

In Ontario you can find plenty of Northern Harvest with the box and bag

[@richardbostan4286]

@Jeremy H -- What about the other Crown Royals in Ontario? In British Columbia, the Reserve and XO are in boxes (and I assume they are in bags in the boxes). All of the other versions of Crown Royal are without box or bag in BC.

[@jeremyh4710]

You can find every expression with box and bag, however the Deluxe only has a bag with special promotion bottles, like holiday releases ect.

[@drmodestoesq]

Yeah, where are we gonna store our scrabble tiles?

[@johnboot6732]

i dont mind this at all. ive had about 3 bottles and its not bad. next i will be trying the Jack daniels rye,

[@terskinsBBX]

Oh no! I'm sad you didn't like it Horst! We had very different experiences with this one...

[@jayk5549]

Love this whiskey. Still the same price. Still better than any bourbon for a sazerac or old fashioned

[@roon5251]

interesting voice/accent sir, quite relaxing if you don't mind me saying

[@Maltmeister1]

As a collector I was all over this as a Canadian citizen but that was a mistake,to say it was the best in 2016 I'm not sure about that.

[@richardbostan4286]

Let's get something understood right now. Horst's peculiar way of tasting whisky -- swishing it around his mouth (something that I have never seen another human being do, and not even Horst's own son does it) -- gives him a very distorted picture of what this whisky tastes like. Since becoming a regular viewer of Whisky.com videos, I have had fun trying out tasting different whiskies at least once "the Horst way." That is, swishing around my whole mouth. What I have found is that this method magnifies the intensity of any rye taste in whisky to an absolutely extraordinary degree. Even a mild rye seems to become super-powered. Using his tasting method on a heavy rye like CR's Northern Harvest Rye, it is little wonder that Horst reacts like his skull is being blown apart from the inside.

[@DarkSalmonz]

don't speak for how another person can taste and enjoy whisky, especially someone with as much experience as Horst. It's ridiculous.

[@richardbostan4286]

Horst can do whatever the hell he wants. I don't care. I will, however, point out over and over again if I have to that his method distorts the taste of rye whisky. If what I say is accurate it obviously isn't "ridiculous." But you haven't obtained some rye whisky and tried to taste it like Horst tastes whisky to see if I am right or wrong in what I say, have you? No, of course not.

[@dreamaster9000]

Richard I really appreciate your explanation, as his reaction was curious given all the other reviews I've seen, none of them say anything other than "mild pepper in the back", and they certainly don't light up like Horst does. That said, this will be the next whiskey I try, but my favorite so far has been Crown Royal Black... for the reasons I love it others dislike it: goes in sweet, burns the tongue then changes to nutty oak, then kicks your butt with alcohol as you swallow and breathe in... what a rush!! :)

[@jaxson1948]

This is the proper way to do a tasting of whisky, Richard Patterson does just as Horst! It is the way all afficianados taste whisky!

[@robinsharkey6658]

This is in no way a "Heavy Rye". Try rittenhouse BIB or sazerac rye. Then you will know

[@luigiviking3667]

I had thd black one hot burn I had to mix never again never had rye but had the rest of the crown i like it never had the new Peach yet

[@the204collector]

As always appreciate your take on these. I enjoy this one a lot myself.

[@nightelf7695]

lol was going to buy that didnt even know what rye was,,,,, love from canada!

[@mask_mystery]

When I was 17 I drank half of a bottle like that when I was trying to get drunk so I didn't feel any pain when I was going to kill myself but 4 of my friends showed up at my house and here I am

[@maddkatter7948]

I like rye. But not harsh rye. I may try in a small bottle.

[@thomasjackson1075]

I don't know to much about Jim Murray, or the validity of the comments here claiming he is paid to give good reviews, nevertheless, to me it seems that he is just choosing the whisk(e)y that will seem the most shocking as his No. 1. If he named a Scotch no. 1 it would seem obvious, but a rye or bourbon... well, it's unexpected, maybe even controversial! I think I'll be sticking to Horst, Ralfy and the Whiskey Vault (and their comments section) for my whiskey recommendations.

[@stonewall11b1984]

Canadian whiskey is delicious and this is a great whiskey.

[@mikemidwood9661]

Where can I get a glass like yours, Horst?

[@Luke-pk9fe]

You know what would help these videos.. . If you made some more even louder discussing mouth noises at full volume in the microphone

[@dougharlow6037]

I've read that the batch means everything in this whisky. The whisky your drinking is properly NOT the batch what was called the best whisky in the world. I was told the batch L5085 N3 was nominated the best whisky in the world.

[@cherokeefit4248]

Cool. I’m still buying these and have three unopened

[@davidhinson7882]

You are clearly not tasting the Northern Harvest Rye that I know

[@1961Humbucker1]

Thanks for the great review! I was shocked to hear that this was picked as "whisky of the year". Since it's quite cheap here in Canada I decided to buy a few bottles when these things were flying off the shelves. I have to say that I wasn't bowled over by this product. IMHO the super economical Alberta Premium is a better whisky and is $10.00 cheaper here in Canada. Alberta premium is also 100% Rye and nothing else. Lot No.40 was also quite good but the price has crept up a bit lately. So, if you want to try a decent Canadian 100% Rye whisky at a budget price, give Alberta Premium a try. With that being said, I still much prefer a quality Scotch (different animal all together though) but boy, we are being raped over here with the rising prices on Scotch lately, ouch!!!

[@MrROTD]

I don't like Rye as much as I used to, it's bland and often bitter, I'm Canadian but I prefer Bourbon even for mixing

[@chrismcgoey9261]

I can honestly say... when I drink whisky I don't treat it like mouth wash.... who swishes around in their mouth... just drink it.

[@puressenceuk35]

Each to their own, but without the swishing you're missing out on 80% of the flavour

[@peterwhite507]

This did not even win Canadian Whisky of the year. Lot 40 did and it is a 100% rye and far better than this mixer for a few bucks more.

[@jackasswhiskyandpintobeans9344]

I thin you are being a bit hard on this.

[@peterwhite507]

Sorry, just my opinion. I have gone through half a bottle and I still find it mediocre. Price point and ABV are good but I just don't get it. Very polarizing Whiskey for sure.

[@jackasswhiskyandpintobeans9344]

Well, we should probably encourage CR to release more at 45 abv because I find many Canadian whiskies so tepid and bland at 40%. Even some of the premium stuff is bottled at 40%. You're right, the price and abv are great. I can get this for $20. It's very decent.

[@peterwhite507]

Well CR Black is 90 proof and their Barrel Select is barrel proof but not available in Canada. Highwood Ninety is 90 proof and aged 20 years, Wiser's Legacy and Red Letter are 90 proof and both fantastic. Also Wiser's "Last Barrels" sour mash is 90 proof and aged 14 years. Corby's had a cask strength Lot 40 at the recent Toronto Spirits event and there is some hope that that will be a release to the public. There are more but the list is far too short.

[@Euphorica]

lot 40 is better. no question

[@franklampard6316]

To be clear, this is a good whiskey. It's not a great whiskey, and it's certainly not whiskey of year by any means. I've bought several bottles as I enjoy Rye whiskies, and I will buy more, but I have no idea what Jim Murray was thinking!

[@allegra7188]

I love you Horst Luening x

[@nicksimeon7940]

Reminiscent of moonshine I won't spend my money on another bottle and I am Canadian!

[@darinsteele7091]

this stuff is a ripoff in canada, it's $35 and it's worth about $25.

[@neandrewthal]

It is a good whisky but my least favourite Crown Royal. I even prefer the humble "Deluxe"

[@darkoanton5]

The Forty Creek line is better than Crown Royal.

[@MrQwaas]

This is coming from a british person that never even been to the Americas. If you ever been crown royal is #1 in all three American countries.

[@darkoanton5]

Forty Creek Barrel Select (their basic whisky) crushed Crown Royal in blind tastings.

[@ItsHowIDoNicca]

I was not impressed by this whisky whatsoever. One of my favourite Canadian whiskies is Canadian Club 40 year. Found it for $209.99 CAD, which I feel is an excellent buy. Crown Royal is very lacking, and there are many other Canadian whiskies that are far better.

[@ejwinn7543]

Totally disagree

[@TheMarciolima1967]

" He said he tasted the whisky a few minutes agor", in fact he took a drop of that whisky a few minutes ago and he is taking another drop now. The bottle is stil very full.

[@markmccoll657]

I just finished a bottle myself and this is the first time I've called a whisky shit in a long time but yeah it was shit. I have never been more disappointed in a dram before.

[@markmccoll657]

In fact I think Jim Murray was paid for the good review because I would rate it 5.5 out of 10 and that's on a good day.

[@markmccoll657]

VOREVOX I live in Scotland and it costs £20 for Chivas Regal 12 sometimes less but the crown royal northern harvest costs £120 at the moment and I would rather have a Chivas Regal so I was left feeling really disappointed.

[@rebelrecluse2704]

Overrated whiskey. I remember this crap going online during the strike at Crown Royal going for $500.00 a bottle. I wouldn't pay over $20.00 for another bottle of this.

[@kqh123]

The screw cap is a turn off for me. I know it does not effect taste but I still prefer cork.

[@DinduMuffins]

Yeah a cork would be so much more classy. I bought my dad a Jack Daniel gift set for Father's day, and the bottle of whiskey uses a cork top. Feels very premium and nice

[@kqh123]

@@DinduMuffins exactly. Corks add a classier touch.

[@foxmulder4134]

Horst , your facial expression says it all. It is a terrible Whisky Plain and simple. Being from Canada it shocks me that this could win whisky of the year. It's laughable really. Time for Jim Murray to retire after picking this.......pretty sure this pick is the laughing stock and the butt of jokes around the world no doubt.

[@jeremyh4710]

Its not whisky of the year, but for $32 its a great buy. Which Rye for $30-35 do you think is better?

[@jeremyh4710]

How do you know they are bottling it younger now? Jim Murray loves Rye, but its just one guys opinion. I agree, rye doesn't bring to the table that other types do.

[@richardbostan4286]

@Jackson Li -- Rye has a great deal of complexity. It doesn't sound like you have much experience with rye whisky to say such a thing. And rye without question has the strongest flavour of any grain used in whisky production. That doesn't mean that everyone is going to LIKE that flavour, of course. It is over-powering to many people who want something weaker, and I have already explained in this thread why Horst's way of tasting whisky -- something he no doubt adapted because he thinks it is the best way to savour his beloved single malts -- guarantees that rye will blow his head off.

[@foxmulder4134]

People like me?? Give your head a shake. Who said anything about wanting "smooth" rye whisky? It's a bad Whisky....Period. It's a joke on everyone that ran out to grab bottles of this stuff after ol' jimmy gave it "Whisky of the year" after forgetting to take his meds that day. I know you are pissed you got suckered......but it's hardly my fault. Anyway, enjoy it. It was made for people like you.

[@johnbotica3497]

overpriced now...$40 a bottle...complete marketing scam

[@dustinkunish377]

A very alcoholic smell

[@scottcarey7725]

Why the hell are every Whiskey Videos always with a British guy ? lol

[@Seronu]

British? He's German.

[@spectatorofallthings6587]

Man you taking that cheap whisky to serious lol that stuff is nasty to me

[@JohnDoe-wy1yd]

Jim Murray = Zero credibility.