Canada's only magazine dedicated to distillers, spirits and cocktail culture.
Asia is one of the world’s hottest bar scenes, and Hong Kong is one of its hotspots — and home to the recently named number 1 in Asia’s Best Bars 2024. If you’re lucky enough to be staying at a hotel in the waterside Central ’hood, here’s what an epic cocktail crawl up the city’s escalators, stairs and levels might look like.
Toronto Cocktail Conference (TOCC) powered through its fifth edition in August, drawing bartenders to Toronto’s The Drake Hotel from far-flung places to exchange ideas, build community and to drink in plenty of education and tasting (including the world’s best Martini!).
The first cocktail I had the pleasure of trying in the recently revamped Library Bar at Toronto’s Fairmont Royal York was the Sacred Beast, a spirit-forward lowball made with bourbon, mezcal, verjus, lapsang souchong tea and habanero.
Before you get to sip, though, the drink puts on a little show. Atop the glass is a slate coaster that entirely covers the cocktail and supports a small nest of steel wool that the bartender ignites to create a “cinnamon explosion”—sparks sprinting through the threads to create a mini-pyrotechnic display and a puff of baking spice smoke.
A new vodka and gin distillery has opened right next to a law firm in Richmond, and it’s no coincidence.
Was it bartender Jerry Thomas, at San Francisco’s Occidental Hotel in the 1860s or was it Tartini di Taggia at New York’s Knickerbocker Hotel in 1911 who invented the Martini? And is it a 5:1 ratio of gin to dry vermouth or equal parts that is the correct recipe these days?
While it seems that the Martini’s origins and recipe are, well, mixed, few cocktails rival the Martini in its ability to showcase the intricate nuances of a spirit, with each ingredient playing a crucial role in crafting the perfect sip. From the classic dry Martini, with its clean, bracing profile, to innovative twists incorporating a spectrum of botanicals and garnishes, gin Martinis provide a platform for both convention and creativity.
We recently chatted with our panel of industry experts to see what gin they’re currently drinking and their preferred Martini specs. The tasting panel for this edition features Evelyn Chick, Chantelle Gabino and Dash Tume from Toronto, Ontario, and Soren Schepkowski, Zoe Bates and Robyn Gray, from Vancouver, B.C.
• 1.5 oz Copperpenny 005 Social Project Gin
• 1.5 oz Cinzano Rosso Vermouth
• 0.25 oz Luxardo Maraschino Liqueur
• 3 dashes Angostura Orange Bitters
• Garnish: orange twist
• 2 oz Saigon Baigur Gin
• 1 oz dry vermouth
• Garnish: lemon twist
• 2 oz The Botanist Islay Dry Gin
• 0.75 oz dry vermouth
• 2 dashes orange bitters
• Garnish: lemon twist
• 2 oz freezer-cold Sipsmith London Dry Gin
• 1 oz extra-dry Italian vermouth
• 1 dash orange bitters
• Garnish: lemon twist
• 1.5 oz Plymouth Gin
• 1.5 oz Guerra Dry Vermouth
• Garnish: lemon twist and olive