Rare Perfection 14 Year Old Canadian Whisky

Rare Perfection 14 Year Old Canadian Whisky is a 750mL Canadian whisky bottled at 100.7 proof (50.35% ABV) — the "overproof" sibling in the Rare Perfection found-barrel series — distilled from a four-grain bourbon-style mash of corn, wheat, rye and malted barley, aged 14 years in cold storage in Canada, and bottled by Preservation Distillery of Bardstown, Kentucky. It is available to order online at Del Mesa Liquor.

• ABV: 50.35% (100.7 proof) — overproof, per importer Skurnik
• Size: 750mL
• Age: 14 years
• Origin: Distilled and aged in Canada; bottled by Preservation Distillery, Bardstown, Kentucky
• Mash bill: Four-grain bourbon-style — corn, wheat, rye and malted barley
• Maturation: The importer lists American white oak and French oak; the brand's found-barrels account describes new charred oak — see the story below

The Found Barrels, One Year Younger

The story, as the brand's retailers tell it: when a Canadian distillery changed hands, the new owners found barrels at the back of the warehouse that nobody had counted — new charred oak filled with a four-grain, bourbon-style whisky, laid down for a short rest and then forgotten in a single-level warehouse kept extremely cold year-round, where the freeze slowed the wood's work to a crawl. Word reached the Rare Perfection principals through mutual friends; they tasted the casks blind and were impressed. Preservation Distillery, Marci Palatella's small Bardstown, Kentucky operation (also home to Very Olde St. Nick), now bottles these found casks — this 14-year bottling at a steady overproof, its 15-year sibling at cask strength. That geography is why this whisky honestly carries two homes: Canada in the making, Kentucky in the bottling. Browse the range on the Preservation Distillery vendor page and in our whisky collection.

Tasting Notes

Per importer Skurnik's notes for this bottling: honeysuckle, orange blossom and roasted tree nuts. Retailer note sets for the 14 add candied pecan, chocolate-covered walnuts and hard toffee in a butter-cream coating, with wood spice behind — a sweeter, broader nose than the 15, and a soft palate feel that belies the 100-plus proof.

How to Enjoy

Neat first, then with a few drops of water — at overproof the water opens the four-grain sweetness without taking the whisky apart. More rare and high-proof bottles are in our whisky collection and the full range in our spirits collection.

Frequently Asked Questions

Is Rare Perfection 14 aged in Kentucky?
No — it was distilled and aged in Canada, in a cold single-level warehouse, and then bottled by Preservation Distillery in Bardstown, Kentucky. Kentucky is the bottler's home, not the aging location.

What is the difference between Rare Perfection 14 and 15?
Age and proof. The 14 is bottled at a fixed 100.7 proof (50.35% ABV) — the importer calls it overproof — while the 15 is bottled at cask strength and varies by batch. Both come from the same found-barrel, four-grain program.

What grains are in Rare Perfection 14?
A four-grain bourbon-style mash bill — corn, wheat, rye and malted barley — unusual for Canadian whisky, and part of why the found barrels drew attention.

Fourteen cold years at a steady overproof — order Rare Perfection 14 Year Old Canadian Whisky online from Del Mesa Liquor in San Diego, CA.