CROWN ROYAL WHISKY Crown Royal was developed by Seagram's in 1939 to commemorate a visit from England's King George VI to Canada-the first reigning monarch to visit the young country. Seagram wanted to distill a spirit that would be suitable for royalty. The distillers tested over 600 combinations of whiskey before coming up with the winning formula, a proprietary blend of 50 whiskies. The finished product was bottled in an ornate cut-glass decanter, which was then wrapped in a velvety purple bag with gold stitching, much like a king's robe. The train that carried the king and his entourage was loaded with 10 cases of Crown Royal. History hasn't recorded how he liked the spirit, but since the 1960s, when Seagram began selling it internationally, Crown Royal has been the world's bestselling Canadian whiskey. 38 VIRGINIA ABC | ABC.VIRGINIA.GOVhttp://ABC.VIRGINIA.GOV