When the weather outside dips to -20C most peoples thoughts turn to hibernation. On a particularly cold Super Bowl Sunday members of the Toronto Whisky Society decided to brave the cold and warm up on a whisky world tour.

Six whiskies from different points on the globe were concealed. Teaser descriptions were given and members were encouraged to try to guess the country of origin, casks used and ABV. The only clue given was that none of the whiskies were from Scotland or North America.

The first whisky fooled almost everyone with its APV. Maybe it was due to the light colour but no one guessed this Japanese Matsui Sakura Cask from Kurayoshi Distillery, was packing a 48% ABV punch. The product is aged (although it’s NAS) in cherry (Sakura) wood barrels which gave it a light floral taste.

Next up was the 2025 World Whisky Awards Bronze Medal winner. A light tan colour and a slightly lower ABV at 46% Amrut Marudham Indian Single Malt was next up. India garnered a few guesses with thoughts that this had a stronger ABV than the first tasting. The ex-bourbon cask aging assisted in the tropical fruit, vanilla and prominent baking spices notes.

Penderyn Limited Edition Aur Cymru (“Welsh Gold”), which was Madeira finished was the third stop on our tour. Wales was not guessed, but more than a few members thought that this was Irish. The Madeira finish was light, and while there were notes of citrus it did not possess a long finish. This Welsh whisky also had the lowest ABV at 41%. Why did we put this third? because of the cask which it has in common with the next dram, though we’d soon find out the similarities were in name only.

The next tasting was the hands down crowd favourite. This powerhouse was the cask strength Taiwanese Kavalan Solist Madeira Cask and clocked in with the highest ABV of 61%. Fantastic notes of berry jam gave it a honeyed sweetness with a long warm finish. Kavalan was awarded the 2023 Distillery of the Year from in International Whisky Competition. Members almost unanimously picked this whisky as the one they would buy.

The fifth tasting stumped everyone, except for 1 member who randomly guessed Germany as the country of origin for the Whisky Sponge Edition No. 73B Saillt Mór 2014 8 year old. This Beechwood smoked malt was aged in a first fill bourbon barrel. The salty palate had a long finish with notes of smoked and medicinal herbs. Saillt Mór is distilled in Bad Dürkheim by Destillerie Ralf Hauer, and while whisky production started in 2012, their distilling roots go back to 1602.

The sixth and last tasting belonged to Millstone, a family distillery from the Netherlands. We tried the Special No 19 Millston Peated Amarone Cask (Distilled in 2016, 6 year old). This whisky was the heaviest peat that we tried at 50PPM with the longest fermentation process of 7 days. Obvious peat aromas with citrus notes, a slight fruitiness and delicate smoke were present.

Thanks to all for braving the cold to kick off the 2026 Toronto Whisky Society Season, especially to the new members who showed up for their first ever TWS event!