• 2 oz. Basil Hayden’s Bourbon
• 1 oz. lemon juice
• 0.4 oz. maple syrup
• 0.4 oz. cinnamon syrup
• 1 oz. egg white
Standed Mountie
Van Isle Iced Tea
This drink – created by Robyn Gray and Brad Stanton, head bartenders at Prohibition in the Rosewood Hotel Georgia – taps into several of 2017’s cocktail trends: infusions, new white spirits, and mixing multiple spirits together. Note that you can purchase jars of hibiscus flowers in syrup at stores like Gourmet Warehouse, or make your own using the recipe below.
Five top cocktail trends for 2017
Well, thank goodness that’s over. This past year was enough to drive a person to drink. Luckily, the city’s best bartenders know just what we’re craving right now and in the year ahead. Here are the top-five cocktail trends they say we’ll be enjoying in 2017. Cheers!
The Alchemist Guide to Whistler Cocktails
Think about Whistler drinking and images of craft beers on sunny patios and fragrant steaming mugs of après ski Glühwein inevitably come to mind. But for some reason, Whistler has never traditionally conjured up much in the way of cocktail culture. Fortunately, the wave of thoughtfully crafted drinks and micro-distilled spirits has finally made its way up the Sea-to-Sky, and bars across town are shaking and stirring up some decidedly delicious creations.
Capital Spirits
How a love of gin put Victoria Distillers on the map
Almost a decade ago, Peter Hunt and his family made a decision that changed their business model forever: they bought a still. The family-run winery soon recreated themselves as Victoria Distillers, and their gin quickly became one of B.C.’s best-recognized local spirits.
The Hunting Party
Created by Katie MacDonald at Veneto in Victoria
• 1 oz Victoria Oaken Gin
• 0.75 oz Dubonnet
• 0.75 oz Amaro Montenegro
• Twist orange
Hot Buttered Rum
In the 17th century, American colonialists replaced the whisky in their toddies with rum. Then some genius added a pat of butter to the concoction while another added baking spices, and so they created the gloriously unctuous drink we know as hot buttered rum.
Winter Warmers
Brrrr – it’s chilly out there. Must be toddy time. With the mercury plunging below zero these past few weeks, Vancouver’s bartenders have been brewing up pots and pots of toddies, mulled ciders and other steamy beverages. Open the door to just about any drinking establishment – from the pop-up Winter Terrace at Reflections (in the Rosewood Hotel Georgia) to Juniper Kitchen & Bar in Gastown – and you’ll be greeted by the seasonal aroma of cinnamon, nutmeg and cloves. And this is especially true at the Cascade Room on Main Street.
End of an era
Pablo Picasso’s Blue Period meets the Martini.
• 1.5 oz Grey Goose Pear
• 0.75 oz Hpnotiq
• 0.25 oz vermouth infused with lavender and sage
• 0.25 oz chamomile
• 0.25 oz fresh squeezed lemon
• Dash of Bittered Sling Denman Extract
Seasoned greetings
The bartender’s salt and pepper, bitters are big in B.C.
After working for five years as a bartender on cruise ships, Tiffany Davis is well acquainted with the benefits of cocktail bitters.
“I went through so many bottles of Peychaud’s,” she laughs. “It was the best cure for seasickness.”
Now safely moored on dry land, as a bartender at the Shangri-La Hotel Vancouver’s Market by Jean-Georges, Davis still relies on bitters, but primarily for their cocktail applications.