Tour and sip

You’ll find more than just spirits at Nova Scotia’s growing number of distilleries

By Lori McKay

Distillery owner Lynne MacKay has advice for Nova Scotian travellers this summer. When you visit one of the province’s many local distilleries, ask to see the stills.

“We all have quirky names for our distilling equipment, and we love to talk about them,” she laughs. “If you come see us at Ironworks, you will meet Bergitta, our original gal in the front shop. And then you’ll find Ruby, who’s our beautiful big piece of new distilling equipment, out in the new extension.”

MacKay and husband Pierre Guevremont first opened Ironworks Distillery in Lunenburg 14 years ago. They were one of the first “out of the gate” with a local distillery, and a lot has changed in the industry since then. “Nobody knew what the heck we were doing in 2009.”

Today, she’s also president of the Distillers Association of Nova Scotia, which started in 2016 and has 13 members. “It’s terrific. Most of them are full members, which means they have a still and its product right here in the province. The big push is now on local, local, local.”

Boatskeg has ignited a cocktail scene in Lower West Pubnico.

Photo: Tourism Nova Scotia / @daveyandsky

Travelling around the province and visiting the different distilleries is a popular pastime for tourists and staycationers alike. Each distiller offers a unique experience, like Cherry Tree Distillery’s speakeasy in Windsor, Boatskeg Distilling Co.’s cocktail bar in Lower West Pubnico, and Barrelling Tide’s popular tastings and retail shop in Port Williams.

Barrelling Tide is making Port Williams a craft-drink destination.

Photo: Tourism Nova Scotia / Jessica Emin

Steinhart Distillery in Arisaig offers spirits plus a true Nova Scotian nature experience. In addition to the tasting bar and seasonal restaurant, it has rental cottages with hot tubs. “We also have a million-dollar view,” says owner Thomas Steinhart, noting the view of Arisaig wharf on the Northumberland shore. “We have miles and miles of hiking and biking trails right from here, and we’re just a hop and a skip to the beach.”

Black Harbour Distillers Inc. in Hubbards has live music matinees every weekend year-round. “We pretty much fill the seats every Saturday,” says owner Jamie Landry. It also offers flights and a cocktail menu, allowing customers to sample the blended spirits and buy bottles to go.

Local flavour

With so many amazing, award-winning spirits coming out of the province, cocktail options are endless. Many local distilleries share cocktail recipes on their websites.

“When it comes to what’s new, it’s the fabulous young mixologists who are doing really nifty stuff with Nova Scotia-made spirits,” says MacKay. “They are creating interesting combinations that are endlessly variable because they’re not put in a bottle, they’re put in a glass.”

But a bottle is also a great place to find a uniquely local flavour, with most distilleries sourcing ingredients from around the province: cranberries, blueberries, apples, rhubarb, grains, herbs, spices, and botanicals.

Unique flavours are the goal.

Ironworks in Lunenburg is at the forefront of Nova Scotia’s distilling revolution.

Photo: Tourism Nova Scotia / Cailin O’Neil

Ironworks offers rum aged in the renovated hull of a boat that floats in the Lunenburg Harbour.

“We’ve been using it for about seven years, except for one brief period when it went on the rocks. We call that one Shipwrecked rum,” MacKay laughs, adding the wreck happened during a nasty gale in the winter of 2018. The boat was badly damaged but not a drop of rum spilled. “The whole thing of aging spirits of any kind in the ocean creates a different flavour profile, which is kind of fun.”

She says the stills themselves also impart different flavours.

“Ask us questions when you visit a local distillery,” says MacKay. “It’s interesting to see how we do what we do. And ask about the differences in the shape and background of the still, because that will have an influence on the flavour.”

She says both Bergitta and Ruby are beautiful old copper stills from Germany; Bergitta being one of the only woodfired stills in operation in Canada. Other distilleries have ordered theirs from Germany, France, China, the U.S, and points beyond.

She notes that the owners of Still Fired Distilleries, Owen Ritchie and Andrew Cameron, have particularly distinctive stills, which they named Kirby and Morgan. “They physically built them here in Nova Scotia. And that’s completely unique.”

Go behind the scenes on an Authentic Seacoast distillery tour.

Photo: Tourism Nova Scotia / @daveyandsky

MacKay is also a big supporter of Taste of Nova Scotia’s Good Cheer Trail (goodcheertrail.com), which promotes local producers and includes a map of the province’s wineries, craft breweries, meaderies, cideries and distilleries.

“The paper version is actually more popular than the app,” says MacKay. “People love that little thing in their hand. They hold it out and they want you to put your stamp on it. It’s like they want this little talisman of ‘I’ve been here, and I did this.’”