Canada's only magazine dedicated to distillers, spirits and cocktail culture.
It’s rare that a cocktail is made from only two ingredients, without a third to provide balance and support. It’s even rarer that a two-ingredient cocktail is so perfectly crafted that it can withstand the test of time.
The Godfather is just that drink.
Upstairs from the Red Antler at the heart of SilverStar Mountain Resort, the new Black Pine Social restaurant has two natures—like an urbanite-turned-weekend-warrior.
The alluring room has shades-of-grey walls and floors, and a swishy copper chain mail curtain screening a sexy supper club. It’s also got rustic barnboard panelling and a wood-burning stone fireplace fronted with deep leather couches for enervated skiers and cyclists. There’s a wrap-around patio and a long bar, “comfortable and deep enough for dining and to encourage chat and questions as you taste and order,” says Jacob Sweetapple of Notion Concepts, the brain trust behind a selection of back-bar gems like Eagle Rare bourbon or Don Julio 1942 tequila.
Last month, at the global finals of the Diageo World Class competition in Sydney, Australia, all eyes were on Toronto’s Massimo Zitti. The action was riveting.
The restaurants in the Wentworth Hospitality Group are known for their welcoming atmosphere, friendly neighbourhood vibe and excellent food and drink. As the group’s beverage director J-S Dupuis says, “We’re elevated without the elevated price tag.”
He credits much of that to his talented team of bar managers. “When you come into the bar, you are coming into their house and they will treat you as such,” Dupuis says. “We really focus on hospitality with the leaders we have. They really understand that.”
Meet the team leading the bars at Homer Street Cafe, Maxine’s Café & Bar and Tableau Bar Bistro.
The world’s best bartenders shake and stir with them. Michelin-starred restaurants create inventive drinks with them. And now Lyre’s, the world’s most awarded non-alcoholic spirits, have arrived in Canada.
Today, no- or low-alcohol riffs on the Negroni, Martini, Daiquiri and other cocktail classics are as on-trend as their spirit-forward counterparts—and every bit as delicious. They can be the star of your next cocktail party or your next Wednesday night in. With sophisticated, complex flavour profiles that pay homage to the spicy, bitter and sharp notes of classic cocktails, Lyre’s gives you the freedom to drink your way.
• 1.5 oz Lyre’s White Cane Spirit
• 0.75 oz simple syrup (1:1)
• 1 oz lime juice
• Pinch salt (optional)
• Garnish: lime zest
Boom + Batten is a dazzling contemporary hot spot with a prime location on Victoria’s Inner Harbour. It’s also one of the city’s best places to get a well-made cocktail, thanks to the skills of beverage director Vincent Vanderheide and his team. “I always like to say it’s not a bad office,” he says with a laugh.
Sometimes the best things you find are the ones you have to search a little harder for.
With a recent rebrand behind us, Donnelly Group’s hospitality business—now Freehouse Collective—opened our doors to our newest creation. The Stock Room is tucked behind Hundy Burger in Yaletown, with no visible street signage. Built on the exemplary heritage bones of brick walls and exposed wood, The Stock Room’s intimate bar offers a drinks program robust with fruit-forward original creations showcased alongside classic cocktails and a thoughtful selection of natural wines and local beers.
World Class Canada is back,” says Michael Armistead. Is it ever.
After two years of cancelled, postponed and virtual events, competitors and judges gathered in early May at the Ritz-Carlton Hotel in Montreal for what was more than a festival that crowned Toronto’s Massimo Zitti World Class Canada Bartender of the Year 2022. It was an invitation to the world to make Canada the destination for next year’s global final.