Events

Mark your calendars

July 16, 2018 No Comments

Sure, you could enjoy cocktails alone in your back yard. Or you could join the crowds having fun at these great events here at home and abroad over the next few months.

Deighton Cup

Don your fancy chapeaux and hoist your glasses! The ponies hit the track once again on July 21 for the 10th annual Deighton Cup at Hastings Racecourse. Some 5,000 people gather at the track to gamble on the ponies while enjoying swish fashion, buckets of bubbly, fine cigars, gourmet cuisine and, of course, cocktails. The event includes an annual mixology competition, plus sweet summer sippers to enjoy trackside. deightoncup.com

The Alchemist

EAT! Vancouver returns with luxe all-new cognac tasting

June 20, 2018 No Comments

It might be called EAT! Vancouver, but we’re here for the drinks.

Which is why we were thrilled to discover that the annual foodie festival is returning to Vancouver Nov. 5-10 with more than 37 acclaimed chefs and 18 events, including a luxurious all-new cognac event.

The Alchemist

There are 74 places to celebrate Negroni Week in Vancouver

May 31, 2018 No Comments

Every year during the first full week of June, bars and restaurants around the world pay tribute to the classic Italian cocktail, the Negroni, during a popular annual event known, fittingly, as Negroni Week.

The elegant aperitif is traditionally made with one part gin, one part vermouth rosso, and one part Campari, and is garnished with orange peel.

However, for Negroni Week, participating venues offer up their own renditions, available to customers with proceeds going to a charity of choice.

Recipes

SEA TO SKY RAD-LER BEER COCKTAIL

May 29, 2018 No Comments

Shaun Layton’s Sea To Sky RAD-ler. Dan Toulgoet photo

Made with Vancouver Craft Beer Week’s 2018 Collaboration Beer, Sea To Sky Double Dry-Hopped Pilsner, by bartender Shaun Layton of Backcountry Brewing.

If you’ve been following the burgeoning cocktail scene in Vancouver over the past decade, there’s a good chance you’ve come across bartender Shaun Layton and his spirited creations. Having managed the bar programs at hotspots like George, L’Abattoir and Juniper, Layton has a well-earned reputation as one of the West Coast’s top cocktailiers. He’s been named Vancouver’s Bartender of the Year by Vancouver Magazine, Westender, Western Living and Georgia Straight, and coming this fall, he’ll be opening his own Spanish-themed bar in Mount Pleasant, Como Taperia.

On the Town

BC Distilled 2018

April 18, 2018 No Comments

De Vine Spirits. Byron Smith/Tank Five photo.

Central City Brewers & Distillers. Byron Smith/Tank Five photo.

Goodridge & Williams Craft Distillers. Byron Smith/Tank Five photo.

Victoria Caledonian Distillery. Byron Smith/Tank Five photo.

Okanagan Spirits Craft Distillery. Byron Smith/Tank Five photo.

Tailored Spirits. Byron Smith/Tank Five photo.

Old Order Distilling Co. Byron Smith/Tank Five photo.

The 101 Brewhouse + Distillery. Byron Smith/Tank Five photo.

After Dark Disillery. Byron Smith/Tank Five photo.

Shelter Point Distillery. Byron Smith/Tank Five photo.

Gillespie's Fine Spirits. Byron Smith/Tank Five photo.

Resurrection Spirits. Byron Smith/Tank Five photo.

Pacific Rim Distilling. Byron Smith/Tank Five photo.

Phillips Soda Works. Byron Smith/Tank Five photo.

Phillips Fermentorium Distilling Co. Byron Smith/Tank Five photo.

Salt Spring Shine Craft Distillery. Byron Smith/Tank Five photo.

Victoria Distillers. Byron Smith/Tank Five photo.

Lucid Spirits. Byron Smith/Tank Five photo.

Stillhead Distillery. Byron Smith/Tank Five photo.

Rootside Provisions. Byron Smith/Tank Five photo.

Tumbleweed Spirits. Byron Smith/Tank Five photo.

The Woods Spirit Company. Byron Smith/Tank Five photo.

The Alchemist publisher Gail Nugent with B.C. Distilled founder Alex Hamer. Byron Smith/Tank Five photo.

Mixers and Elixers. Byron Smith/Tank Five photo.

Legend Distilling. Byron Smith/Tank Five photo.

Long Table Distillery. Byron Smith/Tank Five photo.

Yaletown Distilling Co. Byron Smith/Tank Five photo.

Spirits were high at the fifth annual BC Distilled festival at the Croatian Cultural Centre in Vancouver on April 14, which brought together 40 artisan distilleries from around the province, including a dozen new distilleries that have opened in the last year.

Bar Bites

B.C.’s most spirited festival

March 24, 2018 No Comments

Clear your schedule for the BC Distilled festival.

BC Distilled is the biggest artisan and micro-distillery event in Canada and a must for anyone interested in spirits and cocktails. It is April 14 at the Croatian Cultural Centre, with a trade tasting from 2 to 4:30 pm followed by the public event, 6 to 9 pm.

The Alchemist

November’s most ‘spirited’ events

November 10, 2017 No Comments

November is no one’s favourite month. It’s dark, cold, wet and gloomy, and it isn’t quitethe month that comes with presents. Maybe that’s why it’s such a great month for drinking. I mean, maybe that’s why it’s such a great month for new product releases and exciting social events, starting with these.

The Alchemist

A Cornucopia of cocktails in Whistler

November 3, 2017 No Comments

Savour the art of the shaken and stirred at the ski resort’s annual food and drink fest

Cocktails are served! This year’s Whistler Cornucopia event takes place Nov. 9-19. Darby Magill photo

If you think Whistler Cornucopia is just about wine, think again. Sure, there’s no shortage of Chardonnay, but the annual food-and-drink festival is also about beer, whisky and, above all, cocktails.

In fact, Whistler has generally become a great destination for cocktail lovers. As Mary Zinck, the manager of travel media for Tourism Whistler, says, “I don’t think there is a place that you can go where you can’t get a good drink.”

On the Town

On the Town: BC Distilled 2016

August 14, 2016 No Comments

The second annual BC Distilled event showcased 27 craft and micro distillers from around the province, with almost 500 ticket holders in attendance.

Mixologist Kylie Bartlett and founder and distiller Gordon Glanz show off East Vancouver’s Odd Society Spirits. Alexa Mazzarello photo.

BC Distilled founder Alex Hamer snuggles up with a representative from charity recipients, Pacific Assistance Dogs Society (PADS). Alexa Mazzarello photo.

Richard Klaus and James Lester of North Van’s Sons of Vancouver took home audience awards for their Chili Vodka and No. 82 Amaretto. Alexa Mazzarello photo.

Sheringham Distillery’s Alayne and Jason MacIsaac presented their signature Seaside Gin, William’s White whisky, and vodka. Alexa Mazzarello photo.