I try to pick up a nice bottle of whiskey to enjoy after the Thanksgiving meal. This year, Hokus Pokus just got in Found North Batch 10, which is their second batch to have Canadian wheat whiskey in the mix, the first being batch 5. This batch is a blend of 23-year-old corn whisky, 19-year-old corn whisky, 8-year-old wheat whisky, and 9-year-old malted barley whisky. This batch is a little different in that the barley component is not simply some barley in the mashbill of one of the whiskies, but an actual barley malt whisky Found North acquired. The proof on this whisky is a hefty 123.8 proof.

The color on this is a very deep amber and is darker than some of the other Found North releases I have tried. Big thick film and legs on the swirl. On the nose, I get vanilla, dark chocolate, cinnamon rolls, and nutmeg. On the palate, the whiskey has a thick rich mouthfeel, and the flavor profile is brilliant: caramelized dark brown sugar, dark chocolate, nutmeg, hazelnuts, cherries, peaches, cinnamon rolls, and oak. This whisky is super smooth for this high of proof. On the finish, Allspice covers the palate for a very long time, along with caramel, vanilla beans, some apricot, English pipe tobacco, which all fades into oak.

Overall, this is a really delicious whiskey that went great with my cousin’s homemade pecan pie and a Cohiba red dot on Thursday afternoon. But, this isn’t a super desserty Found North release; rather, it was a great foil to dessert. My brother likewise really enjoyed it. This was his first time trying Found North, and he had no idea that Canadian whisky could be this flavorful. It has been almost a year since I published my first Found North review, complete with video interview with Nick Taylor. During that time, I have acquired six different bottlings, and they have all been consistently excellent.