IN AMERICA, CANADIAN whisky has been stereotyped, like its homeland, as sweet and mild-mannered, reliable if unexciting. Though it was the top-selling type of whisky in the U.S. until 2010, it failed to capture the cachet bestowed on Scotch and, more recently, American bourbon and rye. Now, this category long dominated by mass-produced mixers is undergoing a quiet revolution thanks to a handful of industry upstarts.

With prices in the $25 to $75 range, there is excellent value to be found among the premium Canadian bottles. "The truth is, when you look past the bottom shelf, there's unbelievable stuff hiding in plain sight," said Davin de Kergommeaux, author of "Canadian Whisky: The Portable Expert." Among Mr. de Kergommeaux's favorites are Corby's Lot No. 40, a spicy, lush rye, and Wiser's 18 Year Old, a full-bodied blend. Two other notable newbies, the Collingwood 21-Year-Old, plucked from the vaults of Brown-Forman's Canadian Mist distillery in Ontario, and Caribou Crossing, a rich, woodsy single-barrel whisky selected from a stock of 200,000 barrels by the master blenders at Sazerac/Buffalo Trace, represent the big conglomerates' increasingly luxury-minded approach to the category.

Still, some of the most interesting new bottles are from smaller players such as John Hall, a former winemaker, who distills and ages corn, rye and barley separately, combining them at the end for maximum control. The results, sold under the Forty Creek label, are robust, balanced, complex—not your grandfather's Canadian whisky. "We're probably a little crazy, but we're looking for new challenges," said Barry Bernstein of Ontario's Still Waters Distillery, an ambitious newcomer whose roster includes both blends and single-malts. "We've been watching as the craft-distilling renaissance has exploded in America," he said. "And we've realized: We can do that."

1. Collingwood 21-Year-Old 40% ABV | Full of oak and black cherry from up to a year of post-blending maturation with maplewood staves, this 100% rye is a bold treat, starting strong and spicy but mellowing to an incredibly dry finish. This is a special, one-time-only bottling, so catch it while you can. And bear in mind that its lighter, blended sibling, Collingwood Canadian Whisky, is also a fine dram.

2. Stalk & Barrel Single Malt Whisky 46% ABV | This groundbreaking single malt from Still Waters Distillery starts out with a spicy punch before easing into creamy, apple sweetness. "It tastes young," said Mr. De Kergommeaux. "But it doesn't taste green." A more potent cask-strength bottling (60.3% ABV) is also available.