The world needs another honey flavored liquor like we need another Kardashian show… We don’t. Yet here I am staring at a golden bottle of the new Crown Royal Honey wondering if it’s any good. I heard rumors of a Crown Royal Honey a couple months back and thought “ugh”, but the truth is they wouldn’t make it if someone wouldn’t buy it. And then I remember brands are all about market share, it doesn’t matter who came out with what first, just ask Jack Daniels Fire or Jim Beam Apple. It’s a better late than never kind of industry. With its quiet release in several states it’s already flying off the shelves and even when I made some attempts to snag a bottle early with no luck, I called my local ABC and Total Wine locations and BOTH were sold out. Thankfully I was doing some traveling this month on the West Coast and snagged a bottle. (See, I pay for my liquor too!). I’m a fan of Canadian Whisky, especially Crown so I had to find out if this was just another shelf filler of it’s the real deal.

First Impression: If it ain’t broke don’t fix it. The familiar look and feel of a Crown Royal bottle continues here with a gold tint to the box, the label, and the bag it comes in. I’ve actually got quite the collection of Crown Royal pouches around my house. Some are full of coins, some are full of knick-knacks, I guess I’m kind of a hoarder. When you crack open the cap, you get a very refreshing blast of honey and whisky all at once. It’s got a very sweet aroma, but not obnoxious to the nose. One thing I will say is this, If I put this next to a bottle of Jack Daniel’s Tennessee Honey and did a blind smell test I wouldn’t be able to tell you the difference. Not a bad product to be compared too, it’s one of the best-selling and our personal favorite of the honey whiskies out right now.

Tasting: The guys at Crown hit the nail on the head with this one. Not too thick and syrupy, not overly sweet, it’s a whisk(e)y with honey flavor, the way it should be. For comparison, Wild Turkey’s American Honey is pretty popular but we can’t stand it. Not only is it too sweet, it’s thick like they took real honey and added just enough whiskey to give it a buzz. Jack Daniel’s Tennessee Honey improved on this concept greatly with a much better liquid consistency and a great taste but still a bit too sweet for the typical whiskey drinker which makes sense because it’s a honey liqueur made with whiskey, not the other way around. They accomplished this by mixing Crown’s classic blend of whiskies with subtle but sweet wild clover and sunflower honey. I’m not a honey expert, but whatever those are, they work great with Canadian whisky. The finish on this one is smooth and yet leaves a cool tingling feeling around your mouth. Now if it’s tingling more than a few seconds that’s not the whisky, you should get yourself checked out.

Price: 19.99-24.99 [Varies by state]

Grade: A

Final Word: Crown Royal Honey does NOT disappoint. If you’re already a fan of other honey whiskies on the market then this is just another to add to the collection from a familiar brand we all trust. If you’re one of those whisk(e)y snobs that doesn’t think you should mess with whiskey don’t bother, this one isn’t for you, but it is the closest to the real thing we’ve had so far. This is for those that like the sweet stuff, or the fun to drink stuff, or the easy to mix stuff. Simple as that. You can enjoy this one all by itself on ice or have some fun with it making cocktails over the Summer. It’s pretty hot here in Florida so I’m going to keep a bottle handy and sip it on ice, or maybe add some lemonade to it and call it a day.

Disclaimer: Sample bottle of Crown Royal Honey was provided courtesy of my bank account. For more information including Crown Royal Honey recipes, or where to buy Crown Royal Honey, visit their website at www.crownroyal.com OR you can check back here at Intoxicology.com where we’ll be making and sharing some recipes in the upcoming weeks.

Cheers,

Alex