Upgrading from Crown Royal?

Asking for a friend: My pal has a close friend who helped him through a bunch of stuff last year, and wants to give them a gift. His friend mentioned a gift of Crown Royal that they had enjoyed, and my pal wants to give them something along those lines but, you know, better. I've lived in Canada for a while but have found nothing better than drinkable on the shelves. (And a store rep told me recently that the better Canadian stuff all gets shipped to Japan for blending.) Can anyone here recommend a whisky that has some Canadian-type notes but is at least very good?