The Alchemist Magazine BC | B.C. Distilleries | Cocktail Bars Vancouver

‘Absurd’ inequities: Why craft distillers are slamming B.C. government

March 19, 2025 No Comments

Higher taxes, a production cap: B.C. distillers push for wine-like treatment

Okanagan Spirits principal Tyler Dyck has been lobbying for years for the B.C. government to change liquor policies. Submitted photo

B.C. craft distillers have told BIV that there are several specific ways in which the B.C. government is treating them less favourably than it does wineries.

For one thing, government mark-ups, or taxes, on spirits is higher than it is for wine.

Another beef is that craft distillers have a production limit that they must stay below to gain some tax advantages. Wineries do not have that restriction. Finally, wineries get financial kick-backs, or reimbursements, when they sell products in government-run liquor stores. Distilleries do not.

Recipes

The Borealis

March 14, 2025 No Comments

Recipe by Tabytha Towe, bartender/server at Brix & Mortar Restaurant in Vancouver.

1.25 oz Basil Hayden bourbon

0.25 oz Mia Amata or similar amaro

0.25 oz Bénédictine

1 barspoon yellow Chartreuse

5 drops Ms. Better’s Cypress Bitters

Garnish: lemon peel (oils), fir pine or berry leaf, clip

Vancouver Cocktail Week

VCW25’s visiting VIPs

February 27, 2025 No Comments

Rub shoulders with international bar stars and brand ambassadors at Vancouver Cocktail Week

Hisatsugu Saito mixes cocktails at the Nikka bar at 2024’s Green Garden Gala. Living Room Creative photo

Stop in for cinq à sept at one of Vancouver Cocktail Week’s participating bars and you never know who might be perched on the bar stool next to yours. It might be an out-of-town cocktail lover, a global brand ambassador or a rock star bartender from overseas. Hanging out with VCW visitors is one of the most exciting aspects of the whole week.

Here are just a few bar stars we know will be in town, and where you can see them — note that many will also be at the Black and White Gala.

Vancouver Cocktail Week

5 must-attend events at VCW

February 25, 2025 No Comments

Can’t decide what events to go to? Start with these

Experience top brands’ cocktail creations at Vancouver Cocktail Week. Living Room Creative photo

Each year there are those cocktail week events that you find yourself telling your friends about over and over—or that you forever regret having missed out on. Here are five that will be all the buzz this year; if you don’t have your tickets yet, what are you waiting for?

Recipes

The Thief’s Journal

February 21, 2025 No Comments

Recipe by Josh F. Lindley, Toronto-based cofounder of Bartender Atlas.

• 1.5 oz Maker’s Mark bourbon

• 1.0 oz lemon juice

• 0.5 oz ginger syrup (see note)

• 0.25 oz Liquore Strega

• 1 dash Angostura bitters

• Garnish: mint leaf

Recipes

Apple Spiced Old Fashioned

February 14, 2025 No Comments

Recipe by Beth Havers, owner of Kinda Whisky Inc. in Toronto.

• 2 oz bourbon or rye whisky

• 0.5 oz Apple Spiced Syrup (recipe below)

• 2 to 3 dashes Angostura bitters

• Garnish: apple slice

Recipes

Old Fashioned

February 13, 2025 No Comments

This variation on the classic is by Lacey Roberts, bartender at Published on Main in Vancouver.

• 2 oz Mitcher’s Kentucky Straight Bourbon

• 0.5 oz demerara syrup (see note)

• 2 dashes Bark & Bitter Overtly Orange Bitters

• 4 drops The Japanese Bitters – Umami

• Garnish: expressed orange peel, cherry wood smoke (see note)

Recipes

Sazerac

February 12, 2025 No Comments

This variation on the classic is from Jessica Toews, bar manager at PiDGiN in Vancouver.

• 1 bar spoon absinthe

• 1 sugar cube

• 3 dashes Peychaud’s Bitters

• 2 oz Uncle Nearest 1856 bourbon

• Garnish: lemon twist

Vancouver Cocktail Week

Perfect pairings: Vancouver Cocktail Week’s best events for food lovers

February 11, 2025 No Comments

This year’s VCW event lineup proves that great cocktails and great food go hand in hand.

Vancouver Cocktail Week isn’t just about the drinks—it’s a full sensory experience where food plays just as much of a starring role.

From March 2 to 9, 2025, VCW will offer plenty of ways for food lovers to indulge, from cocktail-paired dinners to whisky tastings and creative twists on afternoon tea. Whether it’s a multi-course Italian feast, an exploration of Japanese hanami traditions, or a deep dive into agave spirits, this year’s lineup proves that great cocktails and great food go hand in hand.

Presented by The Alchemist—a sibling publication to V.I.A.—VCW 2025 will bring together some of the city’s top chefs, bartenders, and international guests for a week of immersive dining experiences.

Here’s a selection of standout VCW events where the food is just as exciting as the cocktails.

Features

Maximalist drinking

February 7, 2025 No Comments

The most fashionable cocktails prove that more is more

At Minami in Toronto, cocktails like the Buena Vista are served with presentation as luxe as the ingredients. Photo courtesy of Minami

Something has shifted in drinks lately. Indulgence and excess have been the operative trends, shown off in drinks that are over-the-top, party-starting and a little bit naughty.

Martinis, icy, high-ABV and garnished with an olive, are on every cocktail menu in the country. They’re unavoidable on Instagram—perched in influencers’ hands like a new Fendi bag.

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‘Absurd’ inequities: Why craft distillers are slamming B.C. government

Higher taxes, a production cap: B.C. distillers push for wine-like treatment

The Borealis

Recipe by Tabytha Towe, bartender/server at Brix & Mortar Restaurant in Vancouver.

VCW25’s visiting VIPs

Rub shoulders with international bar stars and brand ambassadors at Vancouver Cocktail Week

5 must-attend events at VCW

Can’t decide what events to go to? Start with these

The Thief’s Journal

Recipe by Josh F. Lindley, Toronto-based cofounder of Bartender Atlas.

Apple Spiced Old Fashioned

Recipe by Beth Havers, owner of Kinda Whisky Inc. in Toronto.

Old Fashioned

This variation on the classic is by Lacey Roberts, bartender at Published on Main in Vancouver.

Sazerac

This variation on the classic is from Jessica Toews, bar manager at PiDGiN in Vancouver.

Perfect pairings: Vancouver Cocktail Week’s best events for food lovers

This year’s VCW event lineup proves that great cocktails and great food go hand in hand.

Maximalist drinking

The most fashionable cocktails prove that more is more

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