Review: Crown Royal Cask No. 16 and XR Whiskys
Two additional Crown Royal bottlings for your consideration. This classic Canadian whisky continues to expand its portfolio upward and onwards, with rarer and more expensive blends. (See also our review of Crown Royal Reserve.) Both of the below whiskys land at a perfectly accessible 80 proof.
Crown Royal Cask No. 16 - This is a very unusual whisky, a blend of 50 different whiskys that are then brought together to age in old cognac casks made from French oak. (The "16" comes from a stamp put on the casks to indicate their place of origin and authenticity.) Served neat, you get fruit notes and a good slug of vanilla. Very smooth, it's a fine whisky. Crown Royal recommends it served on the rocks, but I preferred it at room temperature. The cold brought out some bitterness which I found disagreeable. A / $100
Crown Royal XR Extra Rare (pictured below) - A curious blend of bourbon and rye characters, this spicy number carries an initial punch of vanilla, then backs it up with strong rye grain notes. It's creamy in body, but the finish fades quickly, leaving you with a modest, oaky note. It's good enough, but I think the #16 is a better, more interesting, and better balanced whisky. For your $180, though, you will at least get a great story to tell: The XR was crafted from whatever rare whiskys that they managed to save when one of Crown Royal's distilleries, Waterloo Distillery, burned down. So, yeah, that's pretty rare. A- / $180
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- Review: Crown Royal Reserve Canadian Whisky
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February 9th, 2009 - 13:44
where can I purchase a gift set with Crown Royal cask no 16, XR, special reserveand black lablel.
October 22nd, 2009 - 17:18
I like cask 16 and have never paid over $60 +CA tax.
I did just buy 3 bottles for $52.32 delivered and NO tax.
Like mine in a brandy snifter after a steak dinner.
November 6th, 2009 - 19:05
cask 16 @bottle king in nj 4 $30 bucks!!!
December 31st, 2009 - 18:38
Where did you buy the cask #16 @ $53.00/bottle……come clean my man!!!!
December 31st, 2009 - 19:12
You can find it for $60 online pretty easily…
March 21st, 2010 - 10:51
I bought a bottle of cr xr and it was absolutley great i intend to by another one very soon although i still have some left because i have been nursing it since super bowl 44 it is great i want no need more.
June 12th, 2010 - 15:29
I have been a big Crown Royal fan since 1978. I have tried all the blends except for Cask 16. I was unimpressed with XR as I was expecting something better in smoothness than Crown Royal Special Reserve.
Recently I purchased a bottle of Crown Royal Black and was impressed with it’s extra body and oak heritage. Being a higher proof 90 I was surprised by it’s faithfulness the Crown Royal history.
August 11th, 2010 - 18:07
Impressed ! Neat ! Ice did it no good. Paid $ 44.95 in Southern Maryland.