Bear-bon takes a bite out of the Southern-style corn whiskey market. Photo courtesy of Bearface
After That American Whiskey’s long absence from many B.C. bar and store shelves, Canadian-made Southern-style, corn-dominant whisky has come out of hibernation, thanks to B.C.-born brand Bearface.
Bearface Bear-bon is a blend of corn, rye and barley whiskies, with the big vanilla and caramel burst that bourbon drinkers expect, plus toasty and charred notes on the finish. The char note comes from barrels that are custom-torched by a small Quebec cooperage, after being seasoned by previous use for both red wine and Bearface whisky maturation.
“While the profile is similar to Southern-style whisky,” says master blender Andrés Faustinelli, “the process behind it is unique to Canada,” including blending individual whiskies post-maturation as opposed to distilling a mashbill of mixed grains, and charring previously-used flavourful casks instead of new oak barrels.
