The Alchemist • Fall/Winter 2021

FALL/WINTER 2021

COCKTAIL WEEK

FUTURE VISION

THIRD WAVE

HOLIDAY HELPER

A sneak peek at VCW 2022

Top trends, rising bar stars

Distilleries dip into B.C. terroir

How to make DIY spiced rum

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A MASTERPIECE SCULPTED BY TIME.

T H E A R T O F T I M E , S I N C E 1 7 7 9.

bowmore.com Bowmore® Scotch Whisky, 43% alc/vol. ©2020 Beam Suntory, Inc. Chicago, IL.

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Contents

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08 – BAR BITES News from the world of cocktails and spirits 16 – MOMENT OF PROOF Catching up with Beam-Suntory’s bourbon ambassador Ray Daniel

by Michael White 18 – STILL LIFE B.C.’s terroir-driven “third wave” spirits

by Charlene Rooke

Photo courtesy of Pacific Rim Distilling

22 – NEXT GENERATION Meet five new barkeeps shaking up the city

by YVR Barfly 25 – SPICED SIPPERS Follow Surrey’s new Spice Trail, one cocktail at a time

by Joanne Sasvari

Matthew Benevoli photo

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38 – CL ASSICS: DRINKS TO GO Cocktailing’s planes, trains and automobiles

by Joanne Sasvari 42 – TASTING PANEL Bartender favourite gift bottles under $100 47 – BAR BASICS Essential tools and terminology 48-53 – DISTILLERY LISTINGS Our guide to B.C. distilleries 54 – L AST CALL Rooms we love: Johnnie Walker Princes Street, Edinburgh

28 – TIPPLING TRENDS What will we be drinking in 2022?

by Joanne Sasvari 33 – HOME BAR How to make your own spiced rum

by Matthew Benevoli

RECIPES in this issue 07– Shaam Masti (Night Party) 11– Geraniol Gin Cosmo 12– The Nightmare Before Christmas 25– Band-e-Amir 26– Badam da Nasha (High on Almonds) 27– Century Mule 27– CinnamonCardamom Crème

34– West Coast Spiced Rum 35– El Presidente 35– Flannel by the Fire 39– Aviation 40– 20th Century 41– Sidecar 44– Brown Derby 45– Amaro Spritz 46– Pineapple Daiquiri (Stiggins’ Daiquiri)

M A D E W I T H T H E C O C K TA I L E X P E R I E N C E I N M I N D

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D I S C O V E R R E C I P E S & M O R E AT S E E D L I P D R I N K S.C O M

Contributors Joanne Sasvari is the editor of The Alchemist and Vitis magazines.

She is a WSET-certified writer-editor who covers food, drink and travel for a variety of publications, and is the author of several cookbooks, including the newly released Island Eats.

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Matthew Benevoli is an awardwinning mixologist, industry veteran and mentor. He has a passion for creating custom and unique cocktails and loves storytelling through them.

Michael White is a veteran magazine editor (Vancouver, FASHION and more) and author of the award-winning music biography Popkiss. He is currently writing his second book.

Charlene Rooke is a certified Specialist of Spirits, WSET instructor and a Moonshine University-trained craft distiller who writes for enRoute, Taste and Food & Drink.

YVR Barfly is a Vancouver-based writer and longtime waiter and bartender who prefers to go incognito. They might be under cover at a bar near you.

ON THE COVER: Thinking about the future has us dreaming about travel and all the ways to get where we want to go. And that has us thinking about the Aviation, a classic cocktail inspired by air travel and tinted with violet liqueur to mimic the sky. For recipe and more transportive cocktails, go to page 38.

Photo: Getty Images.

SHAAM MASTI (NIGHT PART Y) This cocktail from My Shanti is just one of many to enjoy along Discover Surrey’s Culinary Spice Trail (story page 24).

1 oz vodka 3 to 4 sprigs fresh mint 0.5 oz lime juice 1 oz blueberry or (preferably) blueberry-cardamom jam Soda water to top Garnish: Fresh mint sprig Muddle vodka, mint and lime juice in an Old Fashioned glass, then stir in the jam. Add cubed ice to the rim and top with soda water. Garnish with mint. Serves 1.

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ere at The Alchemist, we think it’s time to look forward rather than back; to be hopeful rather than anxious; to raise a glass to the good rather than drink to forget the bad. So this issue is all about our bright, sunny future.

Let’s start with an announcement: The Alchemist magazine is thrilled to present the inaugural Vancouver Cocktail Week, March 6 to 10, 2022. Expect parties, seminars, our Cinq à Sept series and much more. Find details inside and at thealchemistmagazine.ca/vcw. We can’t wait to see you there!

Meanwhile, in this issue, we look at cocktail trends, meet some of Vancouver’s rising bar stars, taste a trio of classic cocktails that make us want to get out of town, and introduce our new writer, YVR Barfly, a cocktail expert who prefers to explore the city’s bar scene incognito.

Also: In Still Life, Charlene Rooke investigates B.C.’s “third wave” distilling, which is all about capturing our terroir in the bottle. Home Bar columnist Matthew Benevoli shows us how to make a West Coast-influenced spiced rum, perfect for all your holiday eggnog needs. Our Tasting Panel shares their favourite boozy gifts for under $100. And in Moment of Proof, Michael White meets Beam-Suntory’s bourbon ambassador, Ray Daniel.

Plus we cover all the latest spirited news from here and around the world, and offer a complete guide to B.C.’s distilleries. For more, visit thealchemistmagazine.ca.

—Joanne Sasvari, Editor

PUBLISHER: Gail Nugent gnugent@glaciermedia.ca EDITOR: Joanne Sasvari jsasvari@glaciermedia.ca DESIGN & PRODUCTION MANAGER: Tara Rafiq SOCIAL MEDIA EDITOR: Valeria Remizova TheAlchemistMagazine.ca @TheAlchemistBC @TheAlchemistMag Published by: Glacier Media Group 303 West 5th Avenue, Vancouver, BC V5Y 1J6 778-240-4010 © The Alchemist 2021 This issue is complimentary.

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BAR BITES NEWS AND NOTES FROM BEHIND THE BAR AND AROUND THE WORLD OF COCKTAILS AND SPIRITS

IT’S OFFICIAL—THE ALCHEMIST MAGAZINE PRESENTS VANCOUVER COCKTAIL WEEK 2022 We have worked closely with more than 30 partners and 50 venues to create a stellar lineup just for you. The five days of VCW 2022 begin with a cocktail-paired brunch at the Fairmont Pacific Rim, then continue with seminars, elevated “Cinq à Sept” happy hours and more cocktail-paired dinners than you can shake a cobbler at.

The week wraps up at one of the city’s most historic venues—The Roof at Fairmont Hotel Vancouver—for the Fun City Gala, a marquee event that travels through the city’s decades of drinks culture.

Jana Bizzarri photo

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ere at The Alchemist, B.C.’s first magazine of cocktail culture, we are thrilled to announce the details of the first ever Vancouver Cocktail Week, which will be held March 6 to 10, 2022.

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“I wanted to support our amazing culinary and cocktail culture in Vancouver, the people behind it, the bartenders and brand ambassadors, who really put Vancouver on the world map,” says publisher Gail Nugent, the founder and event producer of Vancouver Cocktail Week. “We need to celebrate that. And coming out of these hard times, this is an important time to support our community.”

Finally, no celebration of community can go without supporting those who make it possible, especially when they need it most, so a portion of proceeds will go to our charity partner, the BC Hospitality Fund.

We look forward to welcoming you to our events. Let’s all raise a glass together in celebration of VCW in March 2022.

For tickets and information, visit thealchemistmagazine.ca/vcw.

HOSPITALITY HELPER Since the BC Hospitality Foundation was created in 2006, it has become a go-to lifeline for the industry. And this October, the organization passed a significant milestone: It reached $1 million given to hospitality and tourism workers facing financial crisis due to a health condition experienced by themselves or a family member.

Over the past 15 years, the BCHF has provided financial assistance to 254 beneficiaries who include restaurant chefs, servers, hotel workers and baristas, as well as behind-thescenes workers such as delivery drivers, sales representatives, writers, brewmasters, winemakers and vineyard workers.

BCHF executive director Dana Harris says the organization “is based on the idea that we in

Getty Images photo

the hospitality and tourism industry work together to help our own. We couldn’t have reached this significant milestone without the support of everyone in the hospitality and tourism sector, as well as our board members and many volunteers.”

The BCHF has also given over $230,000 in scholarships to more than 260 students, investing in the industry’s next generation. bchospitalityfoundation.com

CAMPAIGN TO LIFT SPIRITS Canada’s craft distillers have had it with what they see as an unfair federal excise tax on spirits production, and they just won’t take it any more.

They have created a coalition called Lift Canada’s Spirits and have launched a petition urging the federal government to make the excise tax on small volumes more in line with that on domestic craft beer production—and, significantly, with what small U.S. distilleries pay.

Canada's 200-plus craft distillers currently pay $3.81 in excise tax per 750 mL, while craft beer makers pay $0.02 for the same amount.

Meanwhile, across the border, American distillers recently campaigned successfully for tax improvements and as a result, Canadian distillers now pay seven times what their American counterparts do, putting them at an enormous competitive disadvantage.

“Reducing the excise would mean more job creation as well as other economic benefits for the communities surrounding the more than 200 distilleries across Canada, including our own right here in the Okanagan,” says Tyler Dyck, Lift Canada’s Spirits spokesperson, president of the Craft Distillers Guild of B.C. and CEO of Okanagan Spirits Craft Distilleries.

Like small breweries and wineries, craft distilleries use local fruits, grains and other produce, and champion regional agri-tourism.

It is anticipated that setting the excise tax to a less punitive level would lead to both higher local employment and larger demand for local agricultural products.

For more info or to sign the petition, visit liftcdnspirits.ca.

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BOOZY READS FOR COSY DAYS Pour yourself a cocktail and curl up with one of these new releases.

B.C., DISTILLED If you’re looking for a guide to the province’s distilleries, the spirits they produce and the cocktails you can make with them, then Shawn Soole is the guy to take you there.

The bar manager of Clive’s Classic Lounge in Victoria is an award-winning mixologist, hospitality entrepreneur, podcaster (Post Shift) and author of several books, including his latest, The BC Spirits Cocktail Book (FriesenPress). It’s got everything you need to know about 57 of B.C.’s artisanal distilleries, with creative cocktail recipes to enjoy along the journey.

BOURBON AND MORE

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There is no greater authority on spirits than the critic, journalist and educator F. Paul Pacult, and this year sees not one but two new books from this prolific writer.

Just released is Buffalo, Barrels, & Bourbon: The Story of How Buffalo Trace Distillery Became the World’s Most Awarded Distillery (Wiley), which chronicles the compelling story of how the Kentucky distillery—and

bourbon itself—survived the U.S. Civil War, two world wars, Prohibition and the Great Depression. Earlier this year, he released The New Kindred Spirits: More Than 2,000 All-New Whiskey, Brandy, Agave Spirits, Gin, Vodka, Rum, Amari, Bitters, and Liqueur Reviews from F. Paul Pacult’s Spirit Journal. An essential resource for anyone interested in spirits.

LOW AND NO PROOF

“Mock”-tails are no longer the joke of the bar world, and to prove it are three tasteful books celebrating sober-curious drinking. Zero Proof: 90 Non-Alcoholic Recipes for Mindful Drinking by Elva Ramirez (Houghton Mifflin Harcourt); Mocktail Party: 75 Plant-Based, Non-Alcoholic Mocktail Recipes for Every Occasion by Diana Licalzi and Kerry Benson (Blue Star Press); and The Low-Proof Happy Hour: Real Cocktails Without the Hangover by Jules Aron (WW Norton).

WORTH THE HANGOVER If you ever wondered why humans wanted to get drunk in the first place, well, Edward Slingerland may have the answer. A professor of Asian studies at the University of British Columbia and co-

director of the Centre for the Study of Human Evolution, Cognition and Culture, he explores what has driven us to drink throughout history in Drunk: How We Sipped, Danced, and Stumbled Our Way to Civilization (Little, Brown and Company).

COCKTAIL BOOT CAMP Getting bored with your RTDs and basic Negronis?

Alex Day, Nick Fauchald and David Kaplan want you to take things to the next level with their newest book, Death & Co Welcome Home [A Cocktail Recipe Book] (Clarkson Potter/Ten Speed). Not only does it feature hundreds of signature recipes, it also puts readers through the same steps as a new bartender at Death & Co, one of the world’s most influential bars.

JAPANESE COCKTAILS No one approaches cocktails with singleminded finesse like Japanese bartenders do, and at the top of the elegant-shakerwielding heap is Masahiro Urushido.

He’s now released his first book, The Japanese Art of the Cocktail (with Michael Anstendig, published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt) that demystifies the techniques that have been handed down over generations.

Nick Halim photo

GERANIOL GIN COSMO Recipe from Stillhead Distiller y, created

by Mitch Poirier and reprinted with per mission from The BC Spirits Cocktail Book by Shawn Soole.

3 snap peas 1.75 oz Stillhead London Dry Gin 0.25 oz Arbutus Limoncello 0.5 oz cranberry cordial 0.5 oz lemon juice 1 dash of Ms. Better’s Black Pepper Cardamom Bitters In a mixing tin, muddle the snap peas, then add all the remaining ingredients and ice. Shake well, then double strain into a large cocktail glass. Serves 1.

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SPOOKY BY DESIGN Come the dark, gloomy days of fall, it’s easy to imagine ghosts all around us, especially in a historic building like Victoria’s Fairmont Empress. Several spirits are said to roam its venerable halls—and one in particular.

“When you have thousands of people in a building for more than 50, 60, 100 years, with all of those collective experiences, the residue they leave behind and the wake—we all leave a wake like a boat behind us—allows the past to invade upon the present,” says Dan Aykroyd, host of the T+E show Hotel Paranormal. “At the Fairmont Empress Hotel, which opened in 1908, guests report seeing the hotel’s architect, Sir Francis Rattenbury, roaming the halls.”

Rattenbury designed some of B.C.'s most famous structures, including the Parliament Buildings. But by 1935 he was back home in England, living in disgrace with his scandalous second wife, Alma, when his chauffeur (who was her lover) beat him to death with a mallet.

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He was buried in an unmarked grave in England, but has apparently chosen this hotel across the globe as his favourite haunt. So if you spot a thin, dapper, mustachioed gent swinging a cane in the vicinity of the Empress' former lobby, chances are that's just the ghost of "Old Ratz" checking in.

True, he designed several other hauntable buildings, but wouldn’t you choose to stay at the Empress, too?

Photo courtesy of the Fairmont Empress Hotel

THE NIGHTMARE BEFORE CHRISTMAS T his boo-zy concoction is only available at the Fair mont Empress’ Q Bar from October 29 to 31, but with this recipe, you can enjoy its spooktacular flavours all through fall.

1.5 oz Jack Daniel’s Tennessee whiskey 0.75 oz ghost pepper reduction (or other hot sauce) 1 oz lemon juice 0.5 oz Amaro Averna Garnish: 1 toasted marshmallow, powdered blood orange (available online or at gourmet markets) Combine whiskey, ghost pepper reduction, lemon juice and ice in a shaker. Shake well and double strain into a shallow fizz glass. Float Averna on top of drink.

Top with a skewered, toasted marshmallow, then sprinkle blood orange powder over the marshmallow.

Serves 1.

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Diageo World Class Global Bartender of the Year James Grant gets a lift from previous winners of the World Class Canada title. Photos courtesy of World Class Canada

Bartender of the Year 2021 James Grant faces the future DIAGEO WORLD CL ASS EXCITED TO SUPPORT THE BARTENDING COMEBACK

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t took James Grant only a decade to go from bartending “to pay the bills” to becoming the Diageo World Class Global Bartender of 2021—a title that recognizes him as the world’s best bartender.

“It’s pretty wild. It’s finally started to sink in,” says the bar manager of Edmonton’s Little Hong Kong. “I’m very humbled and grateful to have done OK representing the Canadian bartending community on the world stage.”

When the results were tallied back in July, it was the second time in only four years that a Canadian triumphed over 50 other countries to take home the cocktail world’s most prestigious title; the first was in 2017 when Vancouver’s Kaitlyn Stewart won.

For Grant, this means his life is about to change, even though right now it all feels pretty much like business as usual.

Despite pandemic-related restrictions, he’s already seeing his schedule start to

fill up with travel, conferences, events and opportunities. It starts in November with the launch party for the inaugural Vancouver Cocktail Week, when he’ll be in town making cocktails for industry and media guests, including an adaptation of his World Class-winning Johnnie Walker highball inspired by Edmonton’s river valley.

“It’s really exciting to see the industry coming back to life,” he says, noting that World Class plans to play a pivotal role in the industry’s post-pandemic comeback.

Since it began in 2009, more than 400,000 bartenders from 60 countries have taken part in World Class (Canada only started competing in 2013). But it is much more than a competition. It is a network of friends and colleagues that emphasizes the importance of education, training and staying on top of important industry trends.

“What I love about World Class—you’ll hear people jokingly refer to it as the Olympics of bartending, but it’s more than that,” Grant says. In the Olympic Games, he notes, athletes excel in one sport. But at World Class, competitors have to excel at all aspects of the industry, from speed to creativity to service to menu development.

“Then you bring all these improved skills back into what you do the other 364 days of the year, which is serving your guests,” he says. “I could learn something new every day and still not know the half of it. You’re combining all these skills to host somebody like you would in your home. I think that’s so rewarding and such a privilege.”

He still remembers the first time he competed in World Class, back in 2017, how unprepared he was for the challenges

diageoworldclasscanada.com

Grant, who leads the bar at Edmonton’s Little Hong Kong, is looking forward to a year of travel, special events and education with Diageo World Class—starting with an appearance at the Vancouver Cocktail Week launch party in November.

it posed, and how emotional the finish was. He laughs and says, “There are two things that will always be true [about World Class]—the first is that they will announce a winner, and the second is that I will cry.”

But even then, he says, “I recognized it as an opportunity to grow and develop and build these relationships in the industry.

World Class—I couldn’t recommend it enough to other bartenders.”

World Class is proud to partner with Vancouver Cocktail Week. Catch up with the World Class Team March 6 to 10, 2022.

Diageo World Class Canada @WorldClassCanada @WorldClassCa #WorldClass

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MOMENT OF PROOF

Protector of the brands AS BOURBON BRAND AMBASSADOR, RAY DANIEL IS LIVING THE DRAM As told to Michael White

When Ray Daniel applied for an after-school job at an unremarkable “country pub” in his native Ireland, he didn’t realize he was walking the first steps of his career path—after all, he was only 14 and his dream was to be a musician. But Daniel has since learned to expect the unexpected. He didn’t intend to settle permanently in Canada either, nor did he anticipate that a long tenure at an Irish-themed Toronto bar would eventually lead to his becoming brand ambassador for Beam Suntory’s American whiskey portfolio. Yet every development has been borne of the same impulse: a love of learning.

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ven at 14, I looked older than I was, so after some time picking up glasses and emptying ashtrays, the owners of the pub took a chance by throwing me behind the bar. I loved it—it was a level of socializing that doesn’t exist for 14- and 15-year-olds. I also felt like I was learning something that none of my friends were learning. It was something that was mine. I did that through to the end of college.

“At the pub, a fancy cocktail was a gin and tonic. But the man who hired me, he had the better part of 20 years’ experience behind the bar. He took me under his wing

and, on quiet nights, he’d teach me the basics of cocktailing, of flavour profiling.

He later got me a job at a five-star hotel a couple of towns over from where I grew up.

It was one of the only places in Ireland that had a legitimate cocktail program; I think we had 300 bottles behind the bar and were expected to know everything about them.

“I’d wanted to move to the States, but a buddy of mine was on his way back from spending a year in Toronto, and he called me and said, ‘You need to at least come here for a visit.’ And I just fell in love with the city, and I haven’t wanted to leave for 15 years.

THE MAN WHO HIRED ME, HE HAD THE BET TER PART OF 20 YEARS’ EXPERIENCE BEHIND THE BAR. HE TOOK ME UNDER HIS WING AND, ON QUIET NIGHTS, HE’D TEACH ME THE BASICS OF COCKTAILING. dinner one night and I said, ‘Hey, what Matt does is something I’d be interested in pursuing.’ Obviously, it’s a really hard job to land, but when Matt decided to move over to the World Whisky portfolio, he gave me a heads up.

Ray Daniel admits he’s fortunate to represent Beam Suntory’s bourbon brands in Canada. “It’s not something i take lightly,” he says. Photos courtesy of Beam Suntory

“I started working at [the Irish Embassy Pub & Grill in downtown Toronto] a couple of weeks after I landed in Canada. I can’t speak highly enough about the ownership there—outside of my family and my girlfriend, I don’t know if I’ve ever had people support me the way they did. I stayed for over six years.

“How I like to approach my job is… it’s my responsibility to educate people about the brands, but also to protect the brands; to make sure that when we’re doing events, they’re in line with the values the brands hold. The fact that I’m trusted by those families, who have been making whisky for hundreds of years, is not something I take lightly. Every day, I do take a moment to remind myself I’m incredibly lucky to be able to do what I do.”

“But joining Char No.5 Whisky Bar [in Toronto’s Delta Hotel] was probably the most pivotal moment in my career. They basically handed me the reins and told me to make it whatever I wanted while still keeping it within the whisky theme. We expanded over the course of a couple of years to nearly 500 whiskies.

“Through that job, I got pretty close with [Beam Suntory’s] Matt Jones. One of the brand managers from Beam was in for

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As a Beam-Suntory ambassador, education is an important part of Daniel’s job.

STILL LIFE

Third-wave terroir “TERROIR” SPIRITS DEFINE B.C.’S FL AVOURS, CULTURE AND SENSE OF PL ACE

by Charlene Rooke

C

omparing B.C. craft spirits from a decade ago to today is like comparing 1970s drip coffee to artisanal, fair-trade Chemex pour-overs. While B.C. has a long distilling and even rum-running history, the first wave of local, small-batch distilleries debuted not even 20 years ago. The second wave happened when 2013 B.C. liquor laws defined “craft” spirits as those using 100 per cent B.C. agricultural raw materials.

Now, a third wave of modern distillers is bottling the flavour and culture of the province, defining the future of B.C. spirits.

Follow their progress through distillery newsletters and social media feeds.

ANCIENT WISDOM

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DEVINE Distillery’s Ancient Grains, a young whisky created by master distiller Ken Winchester from heritage varieties including barley, spelt, emmer, khorosan and einkorn, has won awards for its lively, spicy character.

There was just one tiny challenge: the tiny local production of the grains.

Einkorn, in particular, was in short supply, so Kevin and Kirsten Titcomb, the distillery’s distiller and general manager respectively, planted some on their own four-acre Saanich property near the distillery. “We got a great

Einkorn is one of the heritage varieties that go into DEVINE’s Ancient Grains whisky. Photo courtesy of DEVINE Distillery

crop,” Kevin Titcomb says. “What we’re actually working toward is growing all the grains for that whisky, between our property and DEVINE.” (Other B.C. distillers, including Okanagan Spirits and Shelter Point, have also done important grain research and development.)

EINKORN HAS A LIT TLE BIT OF SPICE, A LIT TLE BIT OF CARAMEL—TO ME, IT’S ONE OF THE MOST INTERESTING. So successful—and bountiful—was the farming experiment that Titcomb distilled a new spirit showcasing einkorn; now aging in quarter-size casks, it should be bottled as whisky in 2023. “These ancient grains are all derivatives of wheat, but they have their unique flavour. Einkorn has a little bit of spice, a little bit of caramel—to me, it’s one of the most interesting.” Next up: growing and distilling grain for a khorosan-forward whisky.

THE ODDS AGAINST PEAT Smoky peated Scotch is a gold standard of global whisky; the challenge of making it in B.C. is “not finding it—there is a huge amount of peat in B.C.—but having access to it,” says distiller Gordon Glanz, the founder of Odd Society Spirits in Vancouver. Although pioneering distiller Tyler Schramm of Pemberton Distillery made small-batch whisky using barley malted with local peat a decade ago, “B.C. malting companies aren’t working with local peat,” says Glanz.

Glanz sent some peat from Delta’s Burns Bog to Skagit Valley Malting near Seattle, and came up with an ingenious distillers’ hack that allows him to add the U.S.-peated B.C. malt flavouring to whisky, much the way global botanicals can be added to B.C. craft gin. (Other B.C. distillers are maturing whisky in casks that previously held Scottish peated malt.)

The peated spirit Glanz distilled tastes deeply roasted and almost vegetal, with ashy and briny beach-fire notes. “You don’t get those crazy heavy, oily phenols that you would from an Islay peat,” says Glanz, who hopes to release the whisky in 2024. “Our peat is different.”

Odd Society Spirits distiller Gordon Glanz has always relied on barrels to flavour his whisky, but has now found a way to infuse them with smoky peat notes. RD Cane photo

YOU DON’T GET THOSE CRAZY HEAVY, OILY PHENOLS THAT YOU WOULD FROM AN ISL AY PEAT. OUR PEAT IS DIFFERENT. In December, smokeheads can buy Odd Society whiskies flavoured with Scottish and Washington State peat. Glanz has also experimented with single malts smoked with local garryana oak, beech, bigleaf maple and arbutus wood. “You are not going to get more local than that,” he says.

THE BEES KNEES Wayward Distillery in Courtenay was the first in B.C. to distill exclusively from local honey, and although it now makes some grain-based spirits, its values are still bee-loved. Three recent ultra-local recent releases—Cortes Island Apple Brandy, Juneberry Amaro and Rose Petal Bee’s Knees Gin Liqueur—explore coastal flavours kissed with B.C. honey; even better, one per cent of their proceeds are donated to Pollinator Partnership Canada (P2C), which promotes and protects pollinators and their ecosystems.

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THAT IS WHAT I WANT WHEN I TRY SPIRITS—I WANT TO TASTE THE AREA I AM VISITING.

Island’s wild west coast, “because that is what I want when I try spirits—I want to taste the area I am visiting.”

For instance, all of Pacific Rim’s spirits begin in fermentations that use a strain of “wild” yeast from Barkley Sound, which Erridge isolated and cultured for use at the distillery. He says the flavours and aromas the yeast develops are responsible for the “uniquely floral finish” of his Humpback Vodka; similarly, flavourings for Lighthouse Gin are hand-foraged near the distillery, including shorepine and salal berry, one of the botanicals that gives the gin its vivid, rosy colour.

Laura Carbonell, head distiller at Wayward Distilling, with the busy bees that provide her raw materials.

Elli Hart Creative photo

“We’re excited to ... help raise funding and awareness of conservation initiatives that can turn the dial for pollinators everywhere,” says founder and CEO Dave Brimacombe. “Our goal is to raise $20,000 this year.”

He’s not emulating London Dry gin, or any other global style.

“I want the Barkley Sound style to showcase Barkley Sound, and be truly original,” says Erridge. “Making spirits is an art, and you will never produce a great piece of art while trying to copy someone else.”

Lora Morandin, conservation director of P2C, says, “The support from Wayward Distillery will help us create more pollinator habitats on Vancouver Island.” That means more healthy ecosystems supporting aromatic and delicious B.C. grains, flowers and botanicals to inspire B.C. distillers.

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CALL OF THE WILD As a fourth-generation distiller, Luke Erridge, founder of Pacific Rim Distilling in Ucluelet, takes the “craft distillery” designation seriously, combining “my family’s craftsmanship with traditional methods.” That means he goes the extra mile to capture the terroir of Vancouver

At Pacific Rim Distilling, even the yeast used for fermentation comes from Barkley Sound.

Photo courtesy of Pacific Rim Distilling

Rebujito 2 oz Tio Pepe Fino Sherry 0.5 oz lemon juice 0.5 oz simple syrup

6 mint leaves 1 pinch of salt

Origami Social photo

Add all ingredients to shaker tin, then add ice and shake. Strain into Collins glass filled with ice. Top with soda and garnish with 2 olives and a mint sprig.

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Have you met...?

INTRODUCING VANCOUVER’S NEXT GENERATION OF BAR STARS

by YVR Barfly As a hotbed of cocktail culture, Vancouver is home to seasoned bartenders who have wowed on the world stage—and to those who are now stepping up their careers. Here’s an introduction to the next generation of local bar stars, five up-and-coming mixologists to seek out the next time your thirst needs quenching.

PETER CHARLES JOHANSON

Bar manager, Boulevard Kitchen & Oyster Bar Johanson was first drawn to bartending as a way to pay for all the time he spent on the other side of the pine during university.

With a degree in forensic chemistry from his native England, he appreciates the science behind cocktails. Before coming to Vancouver, he gained experience at several hot spots in Whistler and at the Grand Cayman Ritz Carlton.

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Leila Kwok photo

He’ll have: A Negroni or Black Manhattan.

Signature drink: Negroni—“always equal parts with Campari, gin, and sweet vermouth, but I use a blend of vermouths that create a much more balanced cocktail. I feel that vermouth is a muchoverlooked part of a Negroni that can make or break it,” he says.

Ingredients he can’t live without: Campari, sweet vermouth and gin. (“Shocking!”)

SARAH HAWKINS

Bar manager, St. Lawrence Restaurant

GUILHERME AYRAO TEIXEIRA DE CASTRO

Bartender, Cardero’s Restaurant

A former personal trainer in Rio de Janeiro, de Castro moved to Vancouver from Brazil in 2016, working at the Tea House in Stanley Park before landing at Cardero’s. After working several front-of-house positions, he jumped at the opportunity to train as a bartender; he enjoys being able to create something unique out of seasonal ingredients.

He’ll have: A Bourbon Sour.

Photo courtesy of St. Lawrence Restaurant

Hawkins earned her stripes in Toronto and Alberta before joining St. Lawrence in 2018. She became hooked on bartending because of its inherent creativity: “I have always been fascinated with storytelling, and most spirits and cocktails have wonderful stories attached to them,” she says. “I also love the interaction that bartenders have with their guests. The detail in having higher seating so that the bartender and guest see eye to eye creates a mutual respect and bond over food and drink.”

She’ll have: Beer with a side of bourbon, or a Sazerac made with a nice rye or Cognac.

Signature cocktail: “One signature aperitif that I am

proud of is our herbes de Provence vermouth. Chef started a salts-and-spice line, and I wanted to tie one of the spice blends into the bar program. You can have the vermouth on its own on ice with a twist of lemon or in our signature martini.”

Signature cocktail: “I like to play around with sour drinks,” he says.

“I use bourbon a lot and play around with amaretto, tequila and Aperol.

Ingredients he can’t live without: Bourbon, lemon and sugar.

Ingredients she can’t live without: “Give me a base spirit, a modifier and a bitter so I can make a cocktail.

Cognac and gin reign as our base spirits. Noilly Prat Rouge or Lillet would be our most needed modifiers. I couldn’t make many of our cocktails without the French bitter liqueur China China.

It is great in our version of a Negroni called La Réplique.”

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Photo courtesy of Cardero’s Restaurant

ZAHMAYNE LINDSAY

Bartender, The Sandbar Seafood Restaurant

Photo courtesy of The Sandbar Seafood Restaurant

Lindsay moved to Canada from Jamaica to study physics, and while in college, met the team he now considers family at The Sandbar. “After I started my part-time position in 2016, I became interested in bartending because I wanted to improve my communication skills by learning to provide an outstanding guest experience. And I wanted to learn the craft because I was intrigued by the endless creative possibilities in making cocktails.”

He’ll have: A classic Whisky Sour or any variation thereof.

Signature cocktail: “Since I enjoy Whisky Sours so much, I wanted to introduce a Jamaican twist, so I came up with a Grapefruit Whisky Sour with fresh ginger, lemon and peppermint.

Nothing beats a cocktail like this one in the wintertime.”

Ingredients he can’t live without: Angostura aromatic bitters, fresh limes/lemons and Jameson Irish Whiskey.

L AUREL NIXON

Bartender, Laowai

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Nixon admits she kind of fell into her job, though she can recall being seven or eight years old and wanting to imitate her aunt, a bartender, who would set up cocktail ingredients in the kitchen at family gatherings.

“It was always fun for me to put flavours together and make the drinks as pretty and colourful and quirky as possible, then bring them out like a gift,” she says. “I’m 25 now and bartending still sort of feels like being a kid making potions. There’s something almost childlike and nostalgic about some bars and the way bartenders curate cocktails. It’s like a combination of potion making, party throwing, visual artistry and storytelling.”

She’ll have: “A good, spicy mezcal Margarita. The smokier the better.”

Signature drink: “I’m so new as a student in the cocktail curating world that I still have a lot to learn about the craft.

I do feel really lucky to be working in a lounge with a lot of really knowledgeable career bartenders [including managing partner Alex Black] who encourage me to experiment, provide constructive feedback, and take time to walk me through the philosophy behind their creations. I love that I’m exposed to different spirits, like baijiu, and they want me to think outside of the box.”

Photo courtesy of Laowai

Ingredients she can’t live without: Spirit, sugar and citrus.

Sippin’ along the Spice Trail FOLLOW THE FRAGRANCE OF GINGER, SAFFRON AND CARDAMOM TO DISCOVER SURREY’S BURGEONING COCKTAIL SCENE

by Joanne Sasvari

E

xploring Discover Surrey’s new Culinary Spice Trail has been an excellent way to find terrific new eateries in this booming city, especially South Asian ones. But alongside the dosas, pakoras and momos, there is also an exciting cocktail scene developing here.

Exotic fruits and spices find their way into every glass. Think passionfruit and pineapple, cardamom, ginger, star anise, saffron and cinnamon. The cocktails often connect to a heritage on the subcontinent, like the azure hue of Afghan Kitchen’s Band-e-Amir cocktail, which evokes the

six famously blue lakes in Afghanistan, for instance. Even when they don’t, there is an element of spice, as in Dominion Kitchen + Bar’s tropical take on a classic mule, Mainland Whisky’s cinnamon-andcardamom-scented “cream” cocktail or the delicate saffron-and-almond fragrance of My Shanti’s Badam da Naasha.

You can find craft cocktails on the menu at Afghan Kitchen, Clove–The Art of Dining, Dominion Kitchen + Bar, Mainland Whisky and My Shanti, with more to come soon. discoversurreybc.com/spice-trail

Photo courtesy of Afghan Kitchen

BAND-E-AMIR T he blue hue of this cocktail from Afghan Kitchen comes from Victoria Distillers Empress 1908 gin and is inspired by the six deep blue lakes in Afghanistan.

2 oz Empress 1908 Gin 1 oz fresh lemon juice 1 oz Giffard passionfruit syrup 1 egg white or 1 dropper of vegan foamer Optional garnish: Dried butterfly pea flower

Place all ingredients (except garnish) in a cocktail shaker without ice and shake well (dry shake) until very foamy. Add ice, shake again rigorously for at least 15 seconds, then strain into a chilled coupe class. If you like, garnish with a dried butterfly pea flower. Serves 1.

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Photo courtesy of My Shanti

BADAM DA NAASHA (HIGH ON ALMONDS) T his recipe from Vikram Vij’s restaurant My Shanti in South Surrey is delicate and sophisticated with the subtle taste of almonds and saffron. It is also beautiful, thanks to its silver leaf gar nish.

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1 oz vodka 0.75 oz saffron simple syrup (see note) Pinch of cardamom powder 1 to 2 oz chilled almond milk Garnish: Silver leaf, crushed pistachios

Place vodka, saffron syrup and cardamom powder in a shaker with ice, shake well, then strain over cubed ice in an Old Fashioned glass. Slowly pour almond milk over ice to create a layered effect. Garnish with a flake or two of silver leaf and a sprinkle of crushed pistachios. Serves 1.

Note: To make saffron simple syrup, combine 1 cup each sugar and water in a small pot and add a generous pinch (about15 strands) of saffron. Bring just to a boil, stirring often, until sugar has dissolved. Remove from heat and cool to room temperature. Strain into a clean jar and keep refrigerated for up to two weeks.

Photo courtesy of Dominion Kitchen + Bar

CINNAMON-CARDAMOM CRÈME COCKTAIL T his recipe from Mainland Whisky was inspired by the Surrey Spice Trail—and made possible by an unexpected gift of cardamom pods. Note that using oat milk makes it creamy, but still approachable for those who can’t consume lactose.

CENTURY MULE At Dominion Kitchen + Bar, the food is “New Canadian,” or classics with a twist, and this cocktail is no exception. A tropical take on the classic Moscow Mule, it was meant to be an in-house “secret” drink named for the restaurant’s parent company (Century Group). Tur ned out the secret was too good not to share, and it has become a customer favourite.

1.5 oz vodka 0.5 oz Giffard Caribbean Pineapple liqueur 0.5 oz ginger simple syrup (see note) 0.5 oz passionfruit syrup 1 oz lime juice 4 oz ginger beer 3 dashes angostura bitters Garnish: Lime wedge

1.5 oz Mainland Cinnamon Whisky 0.5 oz cardamom simple syrup (see note) 2 oz oat milk 2 drops bergamot bitters.

Optional garnish: Cinnamon stick Put all ingredients (except garnish) in a shaker with ice and shake. Strain into a low-ball (Old Fashioned) glasses over fresh ice. If you like, garnish with a cinnamon stick. Serves 1.

Note: To make the cardamon simple syrup, combine 1 cup water and ¼ cup cardamom pods in a small pot over medium-high heat and slowly bring to a boil.

Add 1 cup sugar and stir to dissolve. Turn down heat and simmer for 15 minutes. Remove from heat, cool to room temperature, then strain. Syrup will keep, chilled, for up to two weeks.

Add all ingredients except ginger beer, bitters and lime wedge into an ice-filled cocktail shaker. Shake for 20 seconds, then strain into a copper mug (if available; if not, a Collins glass is fine). Add ginger beer and bitters, stir gently, then garnish with a lime wedge. Serves 1.

Note: To make the ginger simple syrup, simmer 3 cups of water, 3 cups of sugar and 1 whole unpeeled ginger root, sliced, until sugar has dissolved. Let ginger steep as the syrup cools, then strain. Syrup will keep, chilled, for up to two weeks.

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Photo courtesy of Mainland Whisky

Top 10 cocktail trends OUR EXPERTS WEIGH IN ON WHAT—AND HOW— YOU WILL BE DRINKING THIS WINTER

by Joanne Sasvari

The Espresso Martini is the retro drink we're craving right now.

Getty Images photos (unless otherwise noted)

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W

hat’s new? What’s next? In some ways, the pandemic has changed everything about how we drink. In others, it’s only accelerated trends that were already in the works. We checked in with experts both local and global, and here’s what they had to say about the way we’re drinking now and in the months to come.

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PREMIUMIZATION

“The overlying trend in cocktail consumption is elevation of experiences with premium spirits,” says Jay Jones, bar development leader of JOEY Restaurant Group. “While an Old Fashioned may now be familiar to a much greater

LEFT: If it's whisky, better make it premium.

CENTRE: RTD products like Opus aperitivos are more popular than ever.

Photo courtesy of Opus RIGHT: Lumette! and other zero-proof spirits are great options for the sober-curious.

Photo courtesy of Lumette!

number of general consumers, the idea of ‘upgrading’ to a more premium spirit has gained allure.”

This applies to sprits of all types: gin, whisky, rum and especially tequila.

“The biggest thing that came out of pandemic drinking conditions, it’s that we now collectively care more about the quality and integrity of what we’re sipping—and embracing the premium cost that tends to come along with it,” Jones says. “It’s a tremendous thing to see.”

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CONVENIENCE

That said, we’ve also become used to the ease of cocktails-to-go, prebatched drinks, e-commerce and, above all, ready-to-drink canned cocktails and hard seltzers.

“RTDs are absolutely having a moment right now,” says Olivia Povarchook, bartender at Tocador on Main Street. “Every cocktail you could think of and then some seems to be available in a bottle or can right now. It’s not just about vodka sodas anymore. There’s tons of variety.”

So much for the at-home-mixology trend.

While we were supposedly staving off pandemic bordeom by making all those

fancy drinks, global consumption of canned cocktails grew by 43 per cent, according to the ISWR drinks-market analysis firm. And it’s still growing.

Meanwhile in B.C., thanks to relaxed (if still somewhat murky) liquor rules, you could also get a drink made by your favourite barkeep sent right to your door.

“I think in Vancouver at least, to-go cocktails are starting to have their heyday,” says Andrew Wong, premium bartender at H Tasting Lounge at The Westin Bayshore. “The pandemic has forced a lot of restaurants and bars to start serving cocktails differently, so things that travel are appearing more and more.”

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LOWER-PROOF COCKTAILS

“I personally think people are very much getting on the bandwagon of non-alcoholic and low-ABV cocktails,” says Wong. “I think a lot of bars should start thinking about their non-alcoholic selections with as much thought as their regular cocktail menu.”

The sober curious are finally being served more than cranberry-sodas, thanks to zero-proof spirits like Seedlip, Sobrii and Lumette! And for those who just want to drink a little less, lower-proof vermouths and

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LEFT: We're thirsty for plant-based drinks like the Pourhouse Milk Punch.

Photo courtesy of Pourhouse CENTRE: Bars are turning to sustainable choices like reusable straws.

RIGHT: It's tequila's time to shine.

amaros are replacing traditional base spirits in cocktails.

“You see the rise of amari with the low-ABV cocktails such as the Bicicletta, Sbagliato, Americano and Aperol Spritz,” Wong says.

“It allows people to enjoy multiple drinks over longer periods of time without getting intoxicated or over-drinking.”

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RETRO DRINKS

Look at a cocktail list lately and is that... an Espresso Martini? Yep, sure is. The caffeinated retro classic invented

by Dick Bradsell in late 1980s London is currently the sixth most popular cocktail in the world, according to Drink Lab, and almost certainly being poured at a cocktail bar near you.

There is comfort in the familiar, especially after a year and a half of relentless bad news and uncertainty. No wonder we’re enjoying our simple comfort foods and easygoing retro cocktails like slushies, punches, highballs and, it seems, vodka-based “tinis” that will, as the saying goes, “wake you up, then fuck you up.”

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5

SUSTAINABILITY

After a year of epic drought, heatwaves and wildfires, sustainability is on everyone’s mind these days, and bars and restaurants are seeking solutions big and small to lower their impact on the planet.

“We are looking more towards sustainability behind the bar by implementing low- and zero-waste strategies for 2022, such as stainless-steel straws to replace paper ones,” says Renée Lauzon, restaurant manager at The Courtney Room in Victoria.

That applies to everything from reducing food waste to demanding accountability from suppliers to switching to compostable takeout packaging.

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PLANT-BASED EVERYTHING

It also means recognizing that meat and dairy farming is a huge contributor to climate change, and that more and more consumers are adopting a plant-based diet as a result. Crafty bartenders are seeking out vegan products like oat or nut milks, vegetable oils and Ms. Better’s Miraculous Foamer.

For instance, Povarchook says, “I am seeing fat washing becoming more prevalent as of late. But not the bacon or duck fat washing that was popular in recent years—think coconut oil, olive oil, the more vegetarianfriendly options.”

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TEQUILA TIME

If there has been one trending spirit in 2021, it’s tequila, following the “ginaissance” of 2019 and the rise of rum in 2020. Indeed, Forbes Insights projects that the global tequila market will grow from US$9.89 billion in 2021 to US$14.70 billion

LEFT: The next big thing might just be spirits made from the sotol plant.

RIGHT: Social isolation has made us crave each other's company more than ever.

by 2028. And virtually all of that growth is coming from handcrafted, ultra-premium tequila.

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NEW (TO US) SPIRITS

At the same time, we’re also looking for “the next unknown ingredient,” says Wong. “A big one people are starting to play around with is baijiu, the grain spirit out of China.” He notes that Miantiao and Laowai are two establishments introducing this spirit to Vancouver consumers.

“Another one I think will start showing up soon is sotol. Mezcal has been quite popular, of course, so a spirit very similar to it would likely be interesting for people.”

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SOCIAL CONNECTIONS

If we’ve learned anything this last two years, it’s the importance of connecting with other people, and your friendly local is still the best place to do just that. “That’s why you go to a bar, because we are social animals,” says Robyn Gray, the general manager of the Queens Cross Pub in North Vancouver.

The other thing we’ve learned is that there is a whole lot of social injustice out there, and a whole lot of people who are badly paid and badly treated, especially in hospitality. No wonder the industry is making the issues of diversity and inclusivity a priority.

“There has been a real moment of reflection for the trade over the past 18

months,” the pioneering London bartender Ryan Chetiyawardana, a.k.a. Mr Lyan, told the Diageo Taste of the Future conference in August. “The idea of human connection has become so important. It’s helped people reassess what’s important and fasttracked concerns such as sustainability.”

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THE COCKTAIL

“The desire to explore and discover is more prevalent than ever,” says Jones. “That means underexplored spirits and less-familiar cocktail designs are getting the chance to be experienced again—or for the first time.”

It’s been almost two years of shut-downs, restrictions, staff shortages, supply-chain issues, rising prices, anxiety and, for most of us, far too much time spent on social media. Who knew all of that would be a recipe for a renaissance in cocktail creativity? Yet here we are.

“The trend train has been making cocktails at home,” says Gray. All that home mixology has made for an educated drinker, but one who misses the social aspect of the bar.

And that has democratized the cocktail, moving it from high-end lounges to chain restaurants and pubs.

“To be super basic about it,” Gray says, “the cocktail is the trend.”

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Our industry, your charity www.bchospitalityfoundation.com

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Interviews News Features Reviews Trends Recipes & more

Packed full of cocktail-loving content, the print edition of The Alchemist focuses on what makes cocktail culture great in B.C. and beyond.

Better yet, it’s free, so when you subscribe, you pay only for the cost of shipping and handling. Subscribe today and get every issue delivered to your door.

For more info and to start your subscription, visit thealchemistmagazine.ca/shop

HOME BAR

Spiced rum GIVE THIS DIY WINTER WARMER A WEST COAST TWIST Story and photos by Matthew Benevoli

Homemade spiced rum makes a good gift, especially for yourself.

A

s the days get shorter and colder, we trade our Hawaiian shirts for sweaters and our light spirits for dark.

Spiced rum is a wonderful way to warm up your cocktails during the autumn and winter. But what is spiced rum? In short, it’s (usually) an aged rum that’s been flavoured.

find spice notes of allspice, nutmeg and clove, among others. Depending how the barrels are treated, you may also find toasted nut and stone fruit notes atop the woody oak blanket. “Spicing” with these components seems a natural evolution to further enhance the flavours that rum already presents us with.

Modern versions of rum have been around since the 17th century, with accounts of “secret blend rums” in Jamaica flavoured with fruit, herbs and spices being served in Port Royal taverns.

When spirits age in oak barrels, the wood commonly imparts rich flavours of vanilla and caramel, but beyond this you’ll

Given rum’s lengthy history, it’s surprising that spiced rum has only been commercially available since 1984. Now in 2021, there are many options available, but why not customize your own blend to warm your soul and your tastebuds?

Here’s a West Coast-inspired blend to start your infusing adventures.

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HOW TO MAKE WEST COAST SPICED RUM YOU WILL NEED 1 tsp finely ground nutmeg

1 (750 mL) bottle of medium-bodied aged rum (use something you enjoy already)

1 tsp cardamom pods

Food-grade cedar plank

2 tsp spruce needles

1L jar or other sealable container 6 allspice berries

3 strips of orange zest, about 1 inch wide (no white pith; pith adds bitterness)

6 whole cloves

1 vanilla bean pod

1 star anise

Optional: 1 to 2 tsp sweetener such as cane sugar, maple syrup, honey or granulated sugar

2 cinnamon sticks

METHOD

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1. Add rum to a large pot over medium heat and bring just up to simmer.

5. Store for 2 days in a cool place out of direct sunlight. Shake after 1 day.

2. Remove from heat, add cedar plank and let rest for 30 minutes, stirring the plank occasionally.

6. After 48 hours, strain through a fine-mesh sieve or a cheesecloth into a clean bottle. If you like, add sweetener now.

3. Add spices (allspice, cloves, star anise, cinnamon, nutmeg, cardamom) and spruce needles to a litre jar or other large sealable container. Twist orange zest strips to release oils and place in your jar. Cut vanilla pod lengthwise, scrape out beans then add both to your jar.

4. Remove cedar from rum, then add cedar-infused rum to spices, tightly seal the jar and shake well.

7. Spiced rum will keep indefinitely if stored in a tightly sealed bottle and out of direct sunlight.

As it rests, the flavours will develop, and the sharper tones will mellow out.

Recipes by Matthew Benevoli

EL PRESIDENTE 1.5 oz West Coast Spiced Rum 0.75 oz dry vermouth 0.33 oz orange Curaçao

1 barspoon grenadine Garnish: Orange twist and brandied cherry

Add all ingredients (except garnish) to a mixing glass with ice. Sir well for 20 to 30 seconds. Strain into a chilled cocktail glass.

Garnish with an orange twist and brandied cherry. Serves 1.

FL ANNEL BY THE FIRE 1 oz West Coast Spiced Rum 2 dashes cocoa bitters 1 oz Pineau des Charentes 1 egg white or 1 dropper of Ms. Better’s Miraculous Foamer 0.75 oz mandarin juice Garnish: 3 to 4 drops of cocoa 0.33 oz lemon juice bitters 0.25 oz Chili Syrup (recipe below) Add all ingredients (except garnish) to a shaker tin, and dry shake (without ice) for 10 seconds to build froth. Add ice, shake well for 20 seconds.

Double-strain into a rocks glass over 1 large ice cube. To garnish, sprinkle 3 to 4 drops of cocoa bitters on top of the drink, then swirl a toothpick through them to create a design. Serves 1.

35 CHILI SYRUP

Combine 0.5 cup water and 0.5 cup sugar in a saucepan over low-medium heat. Stir until sugar is fully dissolved.

Slice 1 Thai chili pepper lengthwise, then add to hot syrup. Remove from heat and let it rest for 20 minutes.

Strain into a clean sealable bottle. Store in the refrigerator for up to one month.

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Beverage snob on your gift list? Why not put one of their pressurized uKeg growlers under the tree this year?

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Winner of the Gold Medal and Best in Class at the 2021 Canadian Artisan Spirit Competition, our Aged Apple Brandy is an applebased spirit aged in oak and flavoured with a subtle yet irresistible blend of spices. Order at wynndelcraftdistilleries.ca

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Inspired by the icy glaciers of Whistler BC, this vodka is distilled with purity in mind.

Hand crafted using 100% BC malts we are able to ensure a smooth and silky mouthfeel with a mild sweet finish. Savor the outdoors with Parkhurst Premium Vodka.

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This season, invigorate the time-honoured Canadian holiday tradition of the Rye & Ginger with Prospector Canadian Rye Whisky from Odd Society Spirits. Made in East Van using 100% BC grown rye, this whisky will impress the most discerning Canadian whisky drinker. Available at the distillery, select private liquor stores, and online at shop.oddsocietyspirits.com

Citrus Gin – a classic London Dry with the addition of lemon, orange, lime leaf and dry salted limes.

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Enhance your favourite holiday cocktail with Stealth Corn Vodka. This award winning vodka is meticulously distilled using 100% organic corn giving it a subtle natural sweetness.

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Getty Images photo

CLASSICS

Cocktails to go, go, go THREE DRINKS THAT BRING NEW MEANING TO “ONE FOR THE ROAD”

by Joanne Sasvari

I

f you’re like me, you’ve probably been dreaming of escape, of going somewhere, anywhere that isn’t your home. But it might be a while before it seems like a good idea to hop on a train or a plane just for fun.

Instead, let this trio of classic cocktails whisk you away on a spirited journey.

Cocktails have always tasted of travel and exotic places. A Kir Royale is a sip of France just as a Margarita is of Mexico.

AVIATION Many recipes leave out the crème de violette, but it is essential, not just for the blue colour it gives the drink, but the way it balances the other ingredients.

2 oz gin 0.25 oz maraschino liqueur 0.25 oz crème de violette 0.5 oz lemon juice Garnish: Flamed lemon peel or brandied cherry

Combine gin, the liqueurs and lemon juice in a cocktail shaker filled with ice; shake well and strain into a chilled cocktail glass. Garnish with flamed lemon peel or brandied cherry. Serves 1.

A bowl of punch carries memories of India. Tropical cocktails are the very essence of the Caribbean or South Pacific.

But some cocktails are about the journey itself, inspired by the modes of transportation that will get you there.

Consider these three—the Aviation, 20th Century and Sidecar—the sour-based planes, trains and automobiles of cocktail culture.

AVIATION The Aviation is that rare pre-Prohibition drink whose origins are actually known— the recipe was first published in Hugo R. Ensslin’s 1916 Recipes for Mixed Drinks. It’s the renaissance that is a mystery. For years the Aviation was considered something of a “bartender’s handshake,” a cult drink just for those in the know, even after it was rediscovered in the 1990s.

That’s because it was for decades nearly impossible to find crème de violette, the floral liqueur that gives it that essential sky-blue hue. Even Harry Craddock, when he published the recipe in 1930’s Savoy Cocktail Book, left out the liqueur. Without the sweet perfume of violets, this is just

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20TH CENTURY COCKTAIL T he original recipe from 1937 called for Kina Lillet, which is no longer available— Lillet Blanc makes a good substitute in this Art Deco cocktail.

1.5 oz gin 0.75 oz Lillet Blanc 0.5 oz light crème de cacao 0.5 oz fresh lemon juice Garnish: Lemon twist

Combine gin, Lillet Blanc, crème de cacao and lemon juice in a cocktail shaker filled with ice. Cover and shake until chilled, about 15 seconds. Strain into a chilled cocktail glass and garnish with lemon twist. Serves 1.

The 20th Century is also a gin sour, but softened and made complex with the chocolate notes of crème de cacao and the gently bittered ones of Lillet Blanc. (It’s not unlike the classic Corpse Reviver #2, but with cacao instead of orange.)

Getty Images photo

a tart gin sour with the overpoweringly phenolic notes of maraschino liqueur.

Luckily, Giffard produces a crème de violette that is widely available in B.C. so we at least can make a proper Aviation. It’s still a challenging cocktail for most palates.

But at least it’s a pretty one.

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20TH CENTURY COCKTAIL A much more easygoing drink—though perhaps less well known— is the 20th Century Cocktail. Think of it as the relaxed luxury train ride of cocktails compared to the Aviation’s nerve-wracking red-eye flight with lots of turbulence.

It was created by a little-known British bartender named C.A. Tuck and first published in the 1937 Café Royal Cocktail Book. He named it for the stylishly Art Deco 20th Century Limited, an express passenger train that shuttled between the Big Apple and the Windy City from 1902 to 1967. Then, like the train, it disappeared until cocktail historian Ted Haigh rediscovered it in the 1990s.

Like its namesake, it is an elegant drink that evokes a much more stylish bygone era.

SIDECAR Perhaps the most famous vehicular cocktail is the Sidecar, which was almost certainly invented around the end of the First World War and named for the passenger attachment on a motorcycle.

But then the story gets a bit befuddled.

Getty Images photo

The Ritz Hotel in Paris lays claim to the drink. So does Buck’s Club in London.

Not so fast, says Harry’s Bar in Paris, which also takes credit. There’s even a school of thought that it was invented in the United States, in either New York or New Orleans.

But let’s go with the Ritz Hotel version of the tale, in which it was invented by the hotel’s first head bartender, Frank Meier, in 1923, inspired by an American army captain and his motorbike. (Presumably, he got back to base in the sidecar after a few too many of these.)

It is a great Prohibition-era classic, a balancing act of deep brown spirits, bright fresh citrus and soothingly sweet liqueur, and is itself an evolution of the older Brandy Crusta.

In any case, the Sidecar will whisk you on a breathtaking flavour journey, helmet and leathers not included.

SIDECAR T he proportions for this drink have changed since it was invented in the 1920s, so feel free to adjust them to your liking.

2 oz Cognac (or brandy, if you’re on a budget) 1 oz Cointreau 1 oz lemon juice Garnish: Optional sugar rim; lemon or orange twist If you like, run a cut lemon half around the rim of a chilled cocktail coupe and dip it in sugar. It’s more modern, though, to skip this step.

Combine Cognac, Cointreau and lemon juice in a cocktail shaker filled with ice; shake well and strain into the prepared cocktail glass. Garnish with lemon or orange twist.

Serves 1.

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TASTING PANEL

Spirited gift ideas

A bottle of something distilled can make a great gift, even if it’s just for yourself.

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THE ALCHEMIST TASTING PANEL REVIEWS BOT TLES TO SHARE

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ow that we’re socializing again and heading into holiday season, it’s time to upgrade our gifting game.

Whether you’re looking for a host gift or something to tuck under the tree, a bottle of spirits is a present with presence. And we figured no one would have a better idea of what to give than our tasting panel, so we asked them for their suggestions for gift

bottles under $100, and the cocktails they’d make with them. This issue, our team comprises bartenders Sabrine Dhaliwal, J-S Dupuis, Robyn Gray, Trevor Kallies, Kaitlyn Stewart and David Wolowidnyk. Here’s what they had to say. Shop and sip accordingly.

Note: Some of these products may not be available due to shipping delays.

The second is from Lake Bartezek in northeastern Poland, about 100 kilometres from Gdansk, where long, cold winters heavily influenced by the Baltic Sea, along with heavy post-glacial clay soils, cause unique stresses for the rye. “This vodka is fresh and delicate,” she says, “with a rich texture and a palate of fresh spearmint, fresh hay and touch of biscuit.”

SABRINE DHALIWAL: BELVEDERE SINGLE ESTATES (SMOGORY FOREST, LAKE BARTEZEK) 40% ABV, $60 TO $68 (750 ML) “Vodka drinkers care about the subtleties in their drinks—it’s a spirit that requires one to think and search for the nuances in a spirit that doesn’t hide behind anything, no botanicals, no barrels, no additives,” says Dhaliwal, who is bar manager of the Chickadee Room and Moët Hennessy spirits ambassador. “Belvedere has been exploring the notion of terroir in rye vodka for some time now, and here we have two beautiful spirits from two very different locations in Poland.”

The first is the lush, green Smogory Forest, where long summers and mild winters ensure a long growing period for the rye to develop its deep, rich and bold character. “The palate is full and found while taking you on a journey between sweet and savoury, with hints of black pepper and spice, and a bold and savoury finish,” Dhaliwal says.

Suggested cocktail: “Enjoy both vodkas on their own and then start to experiment with them,” Dhaliwal says.

“I suggest using the Smogory Forest for bolder spirit-forward cocktails while the Lake Bartezek is great in longer refreshing drinks. Try them both—I will admit they both make excellent Martinis.”

ONE OF THE BEST BOT TLES TO GIVE THIS YEAR IS SOMETHING DELICIOUS, SOMETHING DECADENT AND, MOST IMPORTANTLY, SOMETHING LOCAL. J-S DUPUIS: ALBERTA PREMIUM 20 YEAR OLD LIMITED EDITION CANADIAN RYE WHISKY 42% ABV, $80 (750 ML) “One of the best bottles to give this year, this crazy year we’ve all been through, to me, is something delicious, something decadent and, most importantly, something local,” says Dupuis, the beverage director of Wentworth Hospitality Group.

“I received myself, from myself, a bottle of Alberta Premium 20 Year and I was over the moon. Alberta Premium uses only prairie rye, no corn, no barley. It is the oldest

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distillery making a 100-per-cent rye grain whisky, and because of that, they have an extensive library of older barrels.

“Alberta Premium is a soft whisky. Using older barrels for their finishing, it really brings out the softness of the spirit.

Now imagine that sitting for 20 years in a barrel; holy moly, is it ever delicious.

Beautiful notes of cinnamon, maple and baking spices with a soft and long finish that really rounds out this delicious whisky.”

He adds: “It is the perfect bottle to give to someone that does not like whisky. The chances that they will let you drink most of the bottle will be greater.”

Suggested cocktail: “When it comes to a 100 per cent rye whisky, spice has to be the name of the game, which makes it fun in cocktails, although one has to be careful—at that age, it becomes much more delicate,” says Dupuis. “Although it deserves to stand alone and be enjoyed neat, a strong spirit-forward cocktail like a Manhattan or an Old Fashioned will work. We just need to adjust the recipe by adding less vermouth, or sugar, or bitter to really let the whisky shine.”

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BROWN DERBY T his Prohibition-era classic, updated by Robyn Gray, was named for the hat-shaped Los Angeles diner and originally called a De Rigueur cocktail.

2 oz Bakers 7yr Bourbon 1 oz grapefruit juice 0.75 oz honey syrup (see note) 2 tsp lime juice Garnish: Grapefruit slice.

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Shake all ingredients (except garnish) hard on cubed ice and strain into an Old Fashioned glass over fresh ice. Garnish with a grapefruit slice. Serves 1.

Note: To make honey syrup, mix equal parts hot water and honey, stirring until dissolved, and cool completely before using.

ROBYN GRAY: BAKER’S BOURBON 7 YEAR SINGLE BARREL 53.5% ABV, $80 (750 ML) “Baker’s 7 Year is the namesake bourbon of Baker Beam, grandnephew of Jim Beam and former distiller at the Jim Beam Distillery,” says Gray, who is the general manager at Queens Cross Pub in North Vancouver. “This unique bourbon is from a single barrel, giving it nuance and complexity only found in that one barrel. I love this bourbon as a gift because you can track its journey from start to finish on their website, with the bottle ID number on the neck, and learn about what distinctive characteristics make it unique.

Fun stuff!”

Suggested cocktail: The Brown Derby (see recipe).

WHEN GIFTING SOMEONE A TAST Y SPIRIT, I LIKE TO LOOK OUTSIDE THE USUAL SUSPECTS AND INTRODUCE THEM TO MAYBE A CATEGORY THEY’VE NEVER TRIED. TREVOR KALLIES: SUNTORY TOKI JAPANESE WHISKY 43% ABV, $58 (750 ML) “Surprisingly, not enough people in my gifting circle drink simple whisky highballs,” notes Kallies, the bar and beverage director at Donnelly Group and president of the CPBA. “One of my favourite bottles to gift is Suntory Toki Japanese whisky. The packaging is fantastic. The bottle has clean, sharp, impressive corners which stand out on a back bar or shelf at home. The label draws in the eyes and the colour of the liquid is intriguing with that brassy, golden hue. The whisky itself stands up in so many ways: neat, over a king-sized ice cube, mixed into a whisky cocktail, sour, Old Fashioned or other.”

Suggested cocktail: “My favourite way to enjoy it is long, in a tall glass with an aggressively carbonated soda. Get those bubbles as angry as possible!” Kallies

says, adding that he will typically add a bottle or two of Topo Chico, a Mexican sparkling mineral water, to his gift. “A thick piece of lemon zest over top and dropped into the glass and you’re done.

Literally drink this any time.”

KAITLYN STEWART: THE WOODS SPIRITS AMARO 28% ABV, $40 (750 ML) “When gifting someone a tasty spirit, I like to look outside the usual suspects and introduce them to maybe a category they’ve never tried,” says Stewart, a cocktail consultant, educator and global winner of Diageo World Class 2017. “So I like to reach for amaro. Specifically, The Woods Amaro. It’s excellent sipped on its own as a digestif and works wonderfully as a substitute for Campari in cocktails. On the nose, there

AMARO SPRITZ Kaitlyn Ste wart recommends this ele gantly bittered variation on a classic spritz.

1.5 oz The Woods Amaro 0.5 oz elderflower liqueur 1 dash grapefruit bitters Cava (sparkling wine), to top

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Place amaro, liqueur and bitters in a large wine or Old Fashioned glass with ice and stir. Top with cava.

Garnish with an orange slice. Serves 1.

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THIS PINEAPPLE RUM IS SOMETHING TRULY SPECIAL AND WILL SURPRISE THE RECIPIENT OF SUCH A GIFT WITH A NEWFOUND APPRECIATION FOR FL AVOURED SPIRITS.

is a strong aroma of blood orange, pepper and vanilla. On the palate, notes of wood, dried herbs and a touch of bitterness. The fact that it is a local product, too, is just icing on the cake!”

Suggested cocktail: The Amaro Spritz (see recipe).

DAVID WOLOWIDNYK: STIGGINS’ FANCY PLANTATION PINEAPPLE RUM 40% ABV, $48 (750 ML) “I’m not usually one to sing praises for ‘flavoured’ spirits, but this pineapple rum is something truly special and will surprise the recipient of such a gift with a newfound appreciation for flavoured spirits done the way they should be,” says Wolowidnyk, bartender at Aquafarina and distiller at Resurrection Spirits. “It’s a blend of rum from three origins. The young rums are infused with pineapple rind and re-distilled. The dark rums are infused with the fruit for three months and then blended with the younger rums to be further matured in oak for an additional three months.”

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Suggested cocktail: Two drinks Wolowidnyk suggests you try immediately are a Pineapple Daiquiri (see recipe) or an Old Fashioned using the pineapple rum in place of the whisky.

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PINEAPPLE DAIQUIRI (STIGGINS’ DAIQUIRI) David Wolowidnyk recommends this tropical variation on the classic, perfect for wintr y days.

2 oz Stiggins’ Pineapple Rum 0.75 oz lime juice 0.5 oz simple syrup (see method page 47) Optional: Add 0.5 tsp of maraschino liqueur for another layer of complexity Garnish: Pineapple slice Combine all ingredients (except garnish) with ice in a cocktail shaker. Shake vigorously, then fine strain into a chilled coupe. Garnish with a small slice of pineapple.

Serves 1.

BAR BASICS What you need to know for making the recipes in The Alchemist.

ESSENTIALS

TERMINOLOGY

Measurements: For the most part, our recipes are in imperial volume (fluid ounces, teaspoons and cups). We might occasionally use weight (for instance, an ounce of tea leaves for an infusion); in those cases, it will be noted.

Double or fine strain: This means straining your cocktail through both a Hawthorne and fine-mesh strainer to remove ice, pulp, seeds and other small fragments that can muddy the texture of shaken drinks.

Tools: The essentials are a cocktail shaker (cobbler or Boston), mixing glass, jigger, citrus juicer, Hawthorne and fine-mesh strainers, muddler, bar spoon, sharp knife and vegetable peeler. Any special tools will be noted.

Dry shake: Shake without ice; this is often used to increase the froth in egg-based drinks like flips and sours.

Glassware: You could fill your cupboards with different types of glassware, but you only really need three (aside from wine and beer): a stemmed “cocktail” glass, either the V-shaped martini or curved coupe; the short, stubby rocks or Old Fashioned; and the tall, narrow Collins.

SWEETENERS Simple syrup: This is the basic sweetener in many cocktails; because the sugar is already dissolved, you won’t get a gritty, sandy sludge in the bottom of your glass. To make it: Bring equal amounts of sugar and water just to a boil in small pot over medium-high heat, stirring frequently, until sugar is fully dissolved.

Remove from heat, cool, and place in a clean jar or bottle. Will keep in the fridge for about two weeks.

Not-so-simple syrup: There are a couple of ways to add flavour to the basic simple syrup process. 1. Replace the water with another liquid, such as tea or juice. 2. Simmer the syrup with spices or hardy herbs such as cloves, cinnamon, ginger or rosemary and let them steep as the syrup cools. 3. Add soft herbs, such as mint or basil, to steep for a few minutes in the hot syrup after it is removed from the heat.

Long, tall, lengthened: A drink with soda water and ice added to it, typically served in a Collins glass.

Rim: To rim a glass with salt, sugar or spice mixtures, run a lemon or lime wedge around the lip of the glass, then dip it into the seasoning.

Rocks: Served on ice.

Straight, neat: Served without ice.

Twist: A slice of citrus peel, with no pith or flesh attached, used as garnish.

Up: A cocktail served without ice in a stemmed cocktail glass or coupe.

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B.C. DISTILLERY LISTINGS

DISTILLERY LEGEND

(on-site services offered)

YOUR GUIDE TO THE SPIRIT MAKERS This province’s 72 artisan distilleries are producing everything from vodka to vermouth. Discover B.C.’s best spirits with our updated guide to the producers, tasting rooms and so much more.

VANCOUVER ISLAND & GULF ISLANDS Ampersand Distilling

Tasting room

Cocktail lounge

On-site sales

Food

Tours Many distilleries are small operations. We always recommend calling before your visit to confirm opening hours and product availability.

Arbutus Distillery

DEVINE Distillery

1890 Boxwood Rd., Nanaimo 250-714-0027 ArbutusDistillery.com

Bespoke Spirits House 425 Stanford Ave., Parksville BespokeSpiritsHouse.com

ClearCut Distilling Co. The Schacht Family handcrafts spirits in the Cowichan Valley.

Ampersand Gin, their flagship spirit, was declared Canada’s Best Classic Gin at the 2021 World Gin Awards.

Products: Ampersand Gin, Per Se Vodka, Imperative Dry Vermouth, Nocino!

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4077 Lanchaster Rd., Duncan 250-999-1109 AmpersandDistilling.com

— Partner Distillery —

319 Sutil Rd., Quadra Island 250-285-2257 SouthEnd.ca

Fermentorium Distilling Co. 2010 Government St., Victoria 250-380-1912 Fermentorium.ca

Having won Artisan Distillery of the Year at the 2021 Canadian Whisky Awards, DEVINE is continuing to build on its farm-to-flask approach creating unique small batch whiskies.

Products: Glen Saanich, Ancient Grains, Genever, Dutch Courage, Sloe Gin, Honey Shine Silver, Honey Shine Amber, Black Bear, Moderna Vermouth 6181B Old West Saanich Rd., Saanichton | 250-665-6983 DevineDistillery.com

— Partner Distillery —

Goldstream Distillery

Island Spirits Distillery

Merridale Craft Spirits

4A-4715 Trans-Canada Hwy., Whippletree Junction, Duncan 250-213-8476 GoldstreamDistillery.com

4605 Roburn Rd., Hornby Island 250-335-0630 IslandSpirits.ca

1230 Merridale Rd., Cobble Hill 250-743-4293 MerridaleCider.ca

Moon Distillery Ltd.

Macaloney’s Caledonian Brewery & Distillery Misguided Spirits

350 A Bay St., Victoria 250-380-0706 MoonDistillery.ca

Pacific Rim Distilling 2-317 Forbes Rd., Ucluelet PacificRimDistilling.ca Winners of numerous World Whiskies Awards, this distillery, started by Scotsman Graeme Macaloney, offers several single malts as well as world-class tours of the distillery.

Salt Spring Shine Craft Distillery

Products: Glenloy Single Malt Whisky, Invermallie Single Cask Series (Ex-Bourbon, Portuguese Red Wine, Port, Moscatel), Mac Na Braiche Single Malt Spirit, Peated Mac Na Braiche Single Malt Spirit, Peated Darach Braiche Single Malt Spirit, Oaken Poitín Single Malt Spirit, Searaidh Braiche Single Malt Spirit

Owner-distiller Darrell Bellaart blends art with science to produce small-batch gin, vodka, liqueur and other products from B.C.-grown grain at Misguided Spirits craft distillery near Coombs.

761 Enterprise Cres., Victoria 778-401-0410 VictoriaCaledonian.com

18-1343 Alberni Hwy., Parksville 250-586-2200 MisguidedSpirits.ca

— Partner Distillery —

Products: Brother XII vodka, Spectral Gin, Rhubarb-ginger gin liqueur

— Partner Distillery —

194 Kitchen Rd., Salt Spring Island 250-221-0728 SaltSpringShine.com

Shelter Point Distillery 4650 Regent Rd., Campbell River 778-420-2200 ShelterPoint.ca

Sheringham Distillery 252-6731 West Coast Rd., Sooke 778-528-1313 SheringhamDistillery.com

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Spinnakers 308 Catherine St., Victoria 250-386-2739 Spinnakers.com

Stillhead Distillery

LOWER MAINLAND, FRASER VALLEY & B.C. WEST COAST Anderson Distilleries

105-5301 Chaster Rd., Duncan 250-748-6874 Stillhead.ca

Crow’s Nest Distillery 117-667 Sumas Way, Abbotsford 778-251-6002 CrowsNestDistillery.com

Deep Cove Brewers & Distillers

106-3011 Underhill Ave., Burnaby 604-961-0326 AndersonDistilleries.ca

Tofino Distillery Unit G & H, 681 Industrial Way, Tofino, 250-725-2182 TofinoCraftDistillery.com

Victoria Distillers 9891 Seaport Pl., Sidney 250-544-8217 VictoriaDistillers.com

Wayward Distillery 2931 Moray Ave, Courtenay 250-871-0424 WaywardDistillery.com

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Bruinwood Estate Distillery 2040 Porter Rd., Roberts Creek 604-886-1371 Bruinwood.com

Central City Brewers & Distillers 11411 Bridgeview Dr., Surrey 604-588-2337 CentralCityBrewing.com

Copper Spirit Distillery 441 Bowen Island Trunk Rd., Bowen Island 778-895-9622 CopperSpirit.ca

Savor the outdoors with Parkhurst Premium Vodka.

Inspired by the icy glaciers of Whistler BC, this vodka is hand crafted using 100% B.C. malts ensuring a smooth and silky mouthfeel with a mild sweet finish.

Products: Parkhurst Premium Vodka, Deep Cove Canadian Rye Whiskey, Deep Cove Single Malt Whiskey, Deep Cove Premium Vodka, Deep Cove Mediterranean Gin 2270 Dollarton Hwy., North Vancouver 604-770-1136 DeepCoveCraft.com

— Partner Distillery —

Dragon Mist Distillery

Mainland Whisky

Montis Distilling

213-19138 26th Ave., Surrey 604-803-2226 DragonMistDistillery.com

107-3425 189th St., South Surrey MainlandWhisky.com

1062 Millar Creek Rd., Whistler MontisDistilling.com

Goodridge & Williams Craft Distillers

New Wave Distilling Roots and Wings Distillery

8-7167 Vantage Way, Delta GWDistilling.com

3387 Tolmie Rd., Abbotsford 604-864-1033 @NewWaveDistilling

North West Distilling Co.

The Liberty Distillery 104-20120 Stewart Cres., Maple Ridge 604-818-6972 NorthWestDistillingCo.ca

1494 Old Bridge St., Vancouver 604-558-1998 TheLibertyDistillery.com

Long Table Distillery 1451 Hornby St., Vancouver 604-266-0177 LongTableDistillery.com

Lucid Spirits 105B-8257 92nd St., Delta 604-349-3316 LucidSpirits.ca

Mad Laboratory Distilling 119-618 East Kent Ave., Vancouver MadLabDistilling.com

Specializing in craft spirits from absinthe to whiskey to gin to vodka. Stop by for a tasting or a cocktail flight and feel the farm fresh spirit take flight on your tastebuds.

Products: Vital Vodka, Double Vice Coffee Infused Vodka, Renegade (horseradishinfused vodka), Dill Pickled Vodka, Peachy Keen Vodka, Jackknife Gin, Encore Gin, Inspired Gin, Old Dame, Rebel, Sidekick, Johnny Handsome, Old Fashioned Spirit, Apotheosis Absinthe, cocktail kits 7897 240th St., Langley 778-246-5247 RootsAndWingsDistillery.ca

— Partner Distillery —

Odd Society Spirits 1725 Powell St., Vancouver 604-559-6745 OddSocietySpirits.com

One Foot Crow 1050 Venture Way, Gibsons OneFootCrow.com

Pemberton Distillery 1954 Venture Pl., Pemberton 604-894-0222 PembertonDistillery.ca

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Ravens Distillery 2485 Townline Rd, Abbotsford 604-758-1557 RavensDistilling.com

Yaletown Distilling Company 1132 Hamilton St., Vancouver 604-669-2266 YTDistilling.com

Resurrection Spirits 1672 Franklin St., Vancouver 604-253-0059 ResurrectionSpirits.ca

Sons of Vancouver 1431 Crown St., North Vancouver 778-340-5388 SonsOfVancouver.ca

Stealth Craft Distillers #3-20 Orwell St., North Vancouver 604-916-4103 StealthCraftDistillers.com

The 101 Brewhouse & Distillery

The Woods Spirit Co. 52 1450 Rupert St., North Vancouver 778-996-7637 TheWoodsSpiritCo.com

8486 Gallagher Lake Frontage Rd., Oliver 778-439-3580 TheDubhGlasDistillery.com

Elder Bros Farm Distillery

OKANAGAN, KOOTENAYS & INTERIOR

3121 Mission Wycliffe Rd., Cranbrook 250-581-2300 ElderBrosFarms.com

After Dark Distillery

Fernie Distillers

1201 Shuswap Ave., Sicamous 250-836-5187 AfterDarkDistillery.com

531 1st Ave., Fernie FernieDistillers.com

Alchemist Distiller 101-18006 Bentley Rd, Summerland 250-317-6454 AlchemistDistiller.ca

Bohemian Spirits 1009 Gibsons Way, Gibsons 778-462-2011 The101.ca

Dubh Glas Distillery

417A 304 St., Kimberley BohemianSpirits.com

CrossRoads Brewing & Distillery 508 George St., Prince George 250-614-2337 CrossRoadsCraft.com

Indigenous World Spirits 2218 Horizon Dr., Kelowna 250-769-2824 IndigenousWorldWinery.com

Jones Distilling 616 Third St. West, Revelstoke JonesDistilling.com

Kootenay Country Craft Distillery 7263 Gustafson Rd., Slocan 250-355-2702 KootenayCountry.ca

Legend Distilling

Okanagan Spirits

Taynton Bay Distillers

3005 Naramata Rd., Naramata 778-514-1010 LegendDistilling.com

1701B 6th Ave., Invermere 250-342-5271 TayntonBaySpirits.com

Maple Leaf Spirits

True North Distilleries

948 Naramata Rd., Penticton 250-493-0180 MapleLeafSpirits.ca

1460 Central Ave., Grand Forks 778-879-4420 TrueNorthDistilleries.com

Monashee Spirits 307 Mackenzie Ave., Revelstoke 250-463-5678 MonasheeSpirits.com

Okanagan Crush Pad 16576 Fosbery Rd., Summerland 250-494-4445 OkanaganCrushPad.com

Old Order Distilling Company 270 Martin St., Penticton 778-476-2210 OldOrderDistilling.ca

Red Collar Brewing & Distilling Co.

B.C.’s Original Craft Distillery invites you to step into their Prohibition-era tasting-rooms to experience authentic farmto-flask whiskies, gins, vodkas, liqueurs, brandies, and even Canada’s original absinthe.

Products: BRBN BourbonStyle Whisky, B.C. Rye Whisky, Laird of Fintry Single-Malt Whisky (double-wooded in Fortified Foch, Port, Rhum Agricole and Extra-Anejo Tequila casks), Okanagan Shine un-aged whisky, fruit and grain-based vodkas and gins, seasonal traditionally made liqueurs and brandies, Taboo Genuine Absinthe and Aquavitus. Private label custom cask program also available.

5204 24th St., Vernon 267 Bernard Ave., Kelowna 250-549-3120 | 778-484-5174 OkanaganSpirits.com

Tumbleweed Spirits #7-6001 Lakeshore Dr., Osoyoos 778-437-2221 TumbleweedSpirits.com

Vernon Craft Distillery Vernon, 250-306-4455 VernonCraftDistilleries.com

Wiseacre Farm Distillery 4275 Goodison Rd., Kelowna 250-469-2203 WiseacreFarmDistillery.com

Wynndel Craft Distilleries 1331 Channel Rd., Wynndel 250-866-5226 WynndelCraftDistilleries.ca

355 Lansdowne St., Kamloops 778-471-0174 RedCollar.ca — Partner Distillery —

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Photo courtesy of Johnnie Walker/Diageo

LAST CALL GREAT WORLD BARS WE LOVE: JOHNNIE WALKER PRINCES STREET, EDINBURGH

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here are few places I’d rather be right now than the Explorers’ Bothy at Johnnie Walker Princes Street in Edinburgh.

This glam new rooftop whisky bar not only features stunning views of the Edinburgh skyline, it also offers 150 different drams to sample. Then again, its neighbour, 1820, has equally breathtaking views and craft cocktails.

Hmm, which to choose?

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Both are highlights of Diageo’s new global Johnnie Walker visitor experience, part of the multinational spirits company’s massive £185-million investment in the future of post-pandemic Scotch whisky tourism.

(The transformation includes the historic Glenkinchie, Clynelish, Cardhu and Caol Ila distilleries and is the largest single investment of its kind.)

The flagship of the operation is Johnnie Walker Princes Street, luxurious new eight-

floor, 71,500-square-foot, ultra-personalized visitor experience celebrating the 200-yearold brand. It is housed in the old Binns department store (later Frasers), which was built in 1935 and remodeled over the last four years. In addition to the two rooftop bars, it features a cellar packed with rare whisky casks and a “Journey of Flavour” where visitors’ personal flavour preferences are mapped. The innovative dispensation systems have more than 800 flavour combinations available, so you could visit Johnnie Walker Princes Street every day for more than two years and not have the same experience twice.

Of course, there is also whisky for purchase— you can select from rare and exclusive whiskies, fill your own bottles and have them personalized. Or you can just pull up a seat in the bothy and drink in that view. johnniewalkerprincesstreet.com —Joanne Sasvari

MARCH 6-10, 2022

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