Canadian Mist and the Collingwood Distillery

Type: Distillery and brand

Canadian Mist is both a Canadian whisky brand and the name associated with its distillery in Collingwood, Ontario, on Georgian Bay. Built by Barton Brands in 1967, the distillery later became Brown-Forman's first production operation outside the United States; Sazerac completed its purchase of the Canadian Mist production assets in July 2020.[1][2][4]

Fact box

Canadian Mist and Collingwood: the names explained

The town, the distillery and the whiskies need separating. Collingwood is the Ontario location; Canadian Mist is the established brand associated with the plant; Collingwood Canadian Whisky is a separately named whisky launched during Brown-Forman's ownership in February 2011.[4][7]

That distinction also helps with the dates. The distillery was built in 1967, but that is not a verified launch date for the Canadian Mist brand. Collingwood's documented February 2011 launch belongs to the later whisky bearing the town's name, not to the construction of the plant.[4][7]

The two brands therefore share a production setting without being interchangeable names for the same product. Canadian Mist's published production account centres on separately matured components blended at Collingwood, while the account of Collingwood Canadian Whisky adds a distinctive stage involving toasted maplewood staves.[6][7]

From Barton Brands to Sazerac

According to a local newspaper column, Barton Brands built the distillery after a “ten-year-long search” for a suitable site. Its president, Lester S. Abelson, had passed over locations in Manitoba, Fort William and Windsor before the company settled on Collingwood.[4]

Local reporting places the opening alongside other industrial development encouraged by the federal Area Development Incentives Act. The whisky plant was part of a wider period of industrial expansion in the town, rather than an isolated development on the waterfront.[3]

Brown-Forman acquired the plant in 1971. In its own account, Canadian Mist represented its “first production operations outside of the United States”, giving this Ontario site a particular place in the company's manufacturing history.[1][4]

The distinction between the last two dates matters: the June announcement recorded an agreement, while the July announcement confirmed completion. The supplied fact sheet records Sazerac Company as owner following completion on 31 July 2020, checked November 2026.[1][2][10]

What the distillery is known for

The most useful starting point is Canadian Mist's description as a “single-distillery whisky” in Canadian Whisky. The published account identifies Collingwood as the source of its corn, rye and barley spirits, rather than describing a whisky assembled from several undisclosed distilleries.[5]

Its equipment also deserves a closer look. Stainless steel columns do not mean a copper-free process: the published description identifies copper upper trays, a copper doubler and copper piping alongside the six columns. That is a more informative account than judging the production system by the columns' exterior material alone.[5]

Collingwood Canadian Whisky brought another distinguishing feature to the same site. Its published production account describes distillation through the copper-rich columns and doubler, followed by a resting stage with toasted maplewood staves.[7]

Grain, water and separate components

A published Brown-Forman-era account describes two mashes, meaning the grain mixtures prepared for fermentation. The first used 100% dent corn, much of it supplied by Ontario farmers; the second combined corn, local rye and barley malt. Both belonged to production at Collingwood.[6]

The water came from Nottawasaga Bay, within Georgian Bay on Lake Huron. A local column reports fermentation lasting about 68 to 110 hours, although the column's publication date is not established in the supplied record.[4][6][7]

The separate maturation is worth keeping in view. In this account, the components were not simply combined immediately after distillation and treated as one whisky throughout ageing: they were matured separately before blending at the Ontario plant.[6]

During Brown-Forman's ownership, barrels came from the Brown-Forman Cooperage in Louisville. This connected the Ontario distillery with the company's American cooperage and bottling operations, while the documented component maturation and blending took place in Collingwood.[6][7]

The people behind the whiskies

Harold Ferguson guided the distillery as master distiller for about four decades, according to the published accounts. Brown-Forman master distiller Chris Morris worked with him on Collingwood Canadian Whisky, linking Ferguson's long experience at the plant with the development of the later brand.[6][7][8]

Canadian Mist Black Diamond involved another named contributor: Brown-Forman master blender Steve Hughes. The published review records it at 43% ABV (86 US proof) and three years old, compared with Canadian Mist at 40% ABV (80 US proof) and three years old in the 2011 account. These are historical product descriptions, not a current range list.[5][6]

The wider workforce also belongs in the account. Local reporting described the distillery as employing between 30 and 35 people in 2020, a dated snapshot of the operation rather than a present staffing figure.[3]

How Collingwood Canadian Whisky developed

The published development story begins with Morris and Ferguson asking what would happen if the whisky were aged longer. The resulting Collingwood brand launched in February 2011 in four US states: Florida, Kentucky, Louisiana and Texas.[7]

Its account describes the whisky as “triple distilled in the copper-rich columns and doubler”, then rested with toasted maplewood staves. Those staves came from sugar maple barrels made in Louisville and were toasted, not charred.[7]

Story box: the question behind Collingwood

• Founding story: Collingwood Canadian Whisky launched in February 2011 in Florida, Kentucky, Louisiana and Texas. This was the brand's launch, not the distillery's founding. Canadian Whisky review.
• Turning point: In 2020, Brown Forman completed the sale of Collingwood and the Canadian Mist production assets to Sazerac. Brown Forman release.
• Documented record: The published account connects the idea to Chris Morris and Harold Ferguson asking what longer ageing would produce. Canadian Whisky review.
• Last checked: November 2026; exact day not documented.

Verdict badge

• Claim: Collingwood's development began with Morris and Ferguson exploring longer ageing.
• Verdict: Documented.
• What the record shows: The published account connects the idea to their question about longer ageing.
• Evidence against or gap: The earliest source of the account is not established in the supplied record.
• Earliest known source: Not documented.
• Sources: Canadian Whisky, Collingwood review; publication date not established in the supplied record.
• Last checked: November 2026; exact day not documented.

The maple finish has a disputed development story. Some linked it to a maple finished Woodford Reserve, while Brown Forman said Collingwood had been in development for more than three years.[7]

The start of Collingwood whisky is also disputed: a town column says it was first distilled in 2011, while Canadian Whisky reports a February 2011 release after more than three years in development.[4][7]

The review also names a Collingwood 21 Year Old rye release. That historical mention does not establish that it is currently available.[7]

Three common misunderstandings

“The stills contain no copper.” This mistakes the columns' stainless steel construction for the whole system. The published equipment account explicitly identifies copper upper trays, a copper doubler and copper piping.[5]

“The rye character comes from added Early Times bourbon.” The Canadian Whisky account rejects that explanation: the rye, corn and barley spirits were distilled at Collingwood, and Early Times was not added. The brands' former shared ownership is not evidence of a shared recipe.[5]

“A blend must come from several distilleries.” Canadian Mist is described as a whisky from one distillery, although it is labelled a blend under US rules.[5]

“Canadian whisky must be bottled in Canada.” The Canadian compositional standard requires Canadian whisky to be mashed, distilled and aged in Canada; it does not require bottling there. Under Brown Forman, Canadian Mist was bottled in Louisville, Kentucky.[6][11]

Where to go next

• Crown Royal: another Canadian brand profile.
• Canadian Club: a separate Canadian whisky history.
• Forty Creek: another Ontario whisky producer.
• Alberta Premium: a different Canadian distillery and brand.

Sources

1. Brown-Forman. Brown-Forman to Sell Early Times, Canadian Mist, Collingwood. Company release, 15 June 2020. https://investors.brown-forman.com/investors/news-releases/press-release/2020/Brown-Forman-to-Sell-Early-Times-Canadian-Mist-Collingwood/default.aspx
2. Brown-Forman. Brown-Forman Completes Sale of Early Times and Canadian Mist to Sazerac. Company release, 31 July 2020. https://www.brown-forman.com/article/brown-forman-completes-sale-early-times-and-canadian-mist-sazerac
3. Simcoe.com, Collingwood Connection. Collingwood's Canadian Mist distillery has new owner. News report, 2020. https://www.simcoe.com/business/collingwoods-canadian-mist-distillery-has-new-owner/article_384eac80-13d4-5f13-8207-22777cf92565.html
4. Simcoe.com. A look inside one of Collingwood's best kept secrets. Newspaper column, publication date not established in the supplied record. https://www.simcoe.com/opinion/columnists/a-look-inside-one-of-collingwoods-best-kept-secrets/article_51c5ae14-e236-520b-bc52-78cb30edd66c.html
5. Canadian Whisky. Canadian Mist (40% alc./vol. (80 proof)). Published review, publication date not established in the supplied record. https://canadianwhisky.org/blog/reviews/canadian-mist-40-alc-vol.html
6. Canadian Whisky. Canadian Mist Black Diamond (43% alc./vol. (86 proof)). Published review, 2011 account identified in the supplied fact sheet. https://canadianwhisky.org/blog/reviews/canadian-mist-black-diamond-43-alc-vol-80-proof.html
7. Canadian Whisky. Collingwood (40% alc/vol.) Canadian Whisky Review. Published review, publication date not established in the supplied record. https://canadianwhisky.org/blog/reviews/collingwood-40-alcvol-canadian-whisky-review.html
8. OrilliaMatters. Enjoy all things whisky at annual Whiskylicious festival. News report quoting the producer, 2020. https://www.orilliamatters.com/local-news/enjoy-all-things-whisky-at-annual-whiskylicious-festival-2110728
9. The Spirits Business. Brown-Forman sells Early Times and Canadian Mist to Sazerac. Trade report, June 2020. https://www.thespiritsbusiness.com/2020/06/brown-forman-sells-early-times-and-canadian-mist-to-sazerac/
10. Support Our Makers. Canadian Mist Distillery, Collingwood ON. Trade directory entry, undated. https://supportourmakers.ca/makers/canadian-mist-distillery
11. Canadian Food Inspection Agency. Canadian Food Compositional Standards, Volume 2, section 2.1.3. Year not established in the supplied record. https://inspection.canada.ca/en/about-cfia/acts-and-regulations/list-acts-and-regulations/documents-incorporated-reference/canadian-food-compositional-standards-0

This desk-researched article uses the supplied verified fact sheet TOP-A326, keeping company statements, published production accounts and dated historical information distinct.

Last checked: November 2026