Canadian whisky is its own tradition — corn-based base whiskies blended with pot-distilled rye and barley flavouring whiskies, matured through prairie winters and hot summers, and built for smoothness without giving up spice. At Del Mesa Liquor, our family-owned store in San Diego, California, the Canadian whisky collection runs from the original Crown Royal Deluxe in its purple bag at $27.99 to a 127.4-proof cask-strength Alberta rye at $99.99 — all available to order online at Del Mesa Liquor.
Blends, Single Barrels and 100% Rye
Canada does three things no one else does quite the same way. First, the classic blend: a silky corn-based whisky married with intensely flavoured rye and barley whiskies, the house style Crown Royal has followed at Gimli, Manitoba since 1939. Second, the single barrel — a format Canada ignored for a century until Sazerac's Caribou Crossing arrived in 2010. Third, and most exciting for rye lovers, 100% rye: Lot 40's copper-pot whisky from Windsor, Ontario, Crown Royal's Northern Harvest Rye, and Alberta Distillers' undiluted cask-strength rye from Calgary. If American rye is your reference, start with our rye whiskey guide, then taste what the northern grain does differently.
The Bottles in Stock
- Crown Royal Deluxe Canadian Whisky — $27.99. 750mL, 40% ABV (80 proof). The original Crown Royal, created in 1939 for the royal visit of King George VI and Queen Elizabeth: a blend of 50 full-bodied whiskies from Gimli, Manitoba — Coffey-still corn whisky married with pot-distilled rye and barley flavouring whiskies, aged in charred American oak and presented in the iconic purple bag.
- Pike Creek 10 Year Old Canadian Whisky Finished in Rum Barrels — $34.99. 750mL, 42% ABV. Ten years at Hiram Walker in Windsor, Ontario, then finished in rum barrels. Part of Corby's Northern Border Collection under Master Blender Dr. Don Livermore, it matures in a non-climate-controlled warehouse where sub-zero winters and hot summers drive the spirit deep in and out of the wood.
- Lot 40 Canadian Rye Whiskey — $42.99. 750mL, 43% ABV (86 proof). 100% rye grain, distilled in a traditional copper pot still in small batches at Hiram Walker & Sons in Windsor and matured in virgin white oak. Named Canadian Whisky of the Year at the Canadian Whisky Awards in both 2013 and 2015.
- Caribou Crossing Single Barrel Canadian Whisky — $59.99. 750mL, 40% ABV (80 proof). The world's first single barrel Canadian whisky (2010): each bottling drawn from one hand-selected barrel out of Sazerac's roughly 200,000-barrel Canadian inventory, chosen by Master Blender Drew Mayville and bottled twice a year, in spring and fall.
- Crown Royal Northern Harvest Rye Canadian Whisky — $99.99. 750mL, 45% ABV (90 proof). Crown Royal's first standalone rye, distilled at Gimli from winter-planted prairie rye — and the first Canadian whisky ever named World Whisky of the Year, by Jim Murray's Whisky Bible for 2016.
- Alberta Premium Cask Strength Rye Whiskey 2021 — $99.99. 750mL, 63.7% ABV (127.4 proof). 100% Canadian prairie rye from Alberta Distillers in Calgary, bottled straight from the cask with no dilution — the 2021 edition of the cask-strength line whose release took World Whisky of the Year honours and 97.5 points in Jim Murray's 2021 Whisky Bible.
Where to Start
New to Canada? Crown Royal Deluxe ($27.99) is the benchmark — vanilla, butterscotch and gentle rye spice in the silkiest frame in whisky. Cocktail drinkers should reach for Pike Creek 10 Year ($34.99), whose rum-barrel finish loves an Old Fashioned. Rye purists get two very different proofs of the same grain: Lot 40 ($42.99) at 86 proof for balance, and Alberta Premium Cask Strength ($99.99) undiluted for the full 127.4-proof experience — add water a teaspoon at a time. Collectors have Caribou Crossing ($59.99), a true single barrel that changes with every bottling run. Browse the wider whisky shelves, compare the neighbours in our Tennessee whiskey guide, and check the shipping and returns page before ordering.
Frequently Asked Questions
What makes Canadian whisky different from bourbon and American rye?
Canadian whisky is typically a blend of a smooth, corn-based base whisky with smaller amounts of intensely flavoured pot-distilled rye and barley whiskies, all aged in oak through Canada's extreme seasonal swings. The result is famously smooth, but 100% rye bottlings like Lot 40 ($42.99) and Alberta Premium Cask Strength ($99.99) are as spicy and powerful as any American rye.
What is the best Canadian whisky for a beginner?
Crown Royal Deluxe ($27.99) is the classic starting point — a blend of 50 whiskies from Gimli, Manitoba, bottled at 80 proof with vanilla, butterscotch and soft oak. It works neat, on the rocks and in cocktails.
Which Canadian whisky won World Whisky of the Year?
Two Del Mesa bottles carry that lineage: Crown Royal Northern Harvest Rye ($99.99) was named World Whisky of the Year in Jim Murray's Whisky Bible for 2016 — the first Canadian whisky to take the honour — and the Alberta Premium Cask Strength line took the same title for 2021; our bottle is the 2021 edition at 127.4 proof.
Where can I buy Canadian whisky online?
Del Mesa Liquor in San Diego, California stocks Crown Royal Deluxe and Northern Harvest Rye, Lot 40, Pike Creek 10 Year, Caribou Crossing Single Barrel and Alberta Premium Cask Strength Rye 2021, all available to order online at Del Mesa Liquor with nationwide shipping where permitted.