Seagram’s VO Gold was initially put out by the former drinks giant Seagram’s, a lot of whose products are now owned by Diageo. Seagram’s is the the company that damn near killed Four Roses, did kill distilling in New Zealand and towards the end of their existence everything they touched seemed to be mismanage, corrupted and ultimately destroyed. Which is why they no longer exist and their corpse got carved up among Diageo, Pernod-Ricard and Coca-Cola.
The regular Seagram’s V.O. is a 6 year whisky that, as legend would have it, was created over 100 years ago by Joseph E Seagram for his son’s wedding. He crafted it to be a blend of his finest whiskies. Currently made in the Diageo’s Valleyfield distillery in Quebec the VO Gold is an 8 year version of the regular VO and if you’re wondering what the VO stands for nobody knows. There’s a lot of speculation, but no one knows for sure.
Seagram’s VO Gold Info
Region: Quebec, Canada
Distiller: Diageo (Valleyfield)
Age: 8 years
ABV: 40%
Price: $26
Seagram’s VO Gold Review
EYE
Golden yellow
NOSE
Raw grains, cinnamon, watery caramel, and ethanol are the first aromas to meet the nostrils and they come with a compliment of whisky spice and taffy. There are some biscuity undertones and a citrus that reminds me more of lemon pledge than it does an actual piece of fruit.
PALATE
The caramel richness is bumped up a touch on the palate and gets helped along with some notes of nougut, sweet grains and a mild citrus that is less pledge like and more fruit like here. There are some undertones of Twizzlers, cardboard and yeast that ride along with some hints of raw sugar and dust.
FINISH
Watery caramel syrup, raw grains, cheap vodka and an acrid sweetness ride out at a medium length.
BALANCE, BODY & FEEL
All of the odd notes and flavors work together in a strange way that ends up making it feel not-horribly-unbalanced. A medium body and a watery texture with zero bite does however make this an uneventful sip.
OVERALL
Seagram’s VO Gold is a strange whisky to be sure and not really one I want to drink too much more of neat ever again. It’s far removed from daily drinker status, but oddly enough, all of the strange flavors found wading around inside this glass make it work really well in cocktails. The strange funky cardboard and acrid sweetness get mellowed out in sweeter cocktails and it ends up lending a nice earthy quality to them. Though truthfully, if I’m keeping a cheap Canadian whisky around just for mixing’s sake it’s going to be the Canadian Club Reserve 10.
SCORE: 78/100
