UVA | The Alchemist

Sipping la bella vita: Four places to drink Italian cocktails in Vancouver

February 5, 2021 No Comments

Italian cocktails have taken over Vancouver

Bar manager Nico Tognon shakes up Italian-inspired cocktails at the new Tutto Restaurant and Bar in Yaletown. Supplied photo

Cocktail culture may be thriving in North America, but you could say Italy invented it with the aperitivo. Drawn from the Latin aperire, meaning “to open,” the term implies much more than a drink to whet the appetite; it’s a ritual of gathering with friends and unwinding after work over drinks and small bites and opening up conversation.

Here in Vancouver, several Italian hot spots are serving aperitivo-inspired cocktails, putting their own spin on la bella vita.

Bar Bites

Flip for this frothy Halloween cocktail

October 25, 2019 No Comments

Wyeth Maiers at UVA Wine & Cocktail Bar has created a Halloween cocktail that is both clever and complicated and, most importantly, delicious. Photo courtesy of Uva Wine & Cocktail Bar

Halloween is the most spooktacular night of the year for a party; it’s just too bad Halloween cocktails are almost universally frightful. Weird colours, creepy garnishes, far too much dry ice, dubious vessels—you might as well stick to the classic Zombies and Bloody Marys, right?

Not if Wyeth Maiers has his say. The bar manager at UVA Wine & Cocktail Bar has created a Halloween cocktail that is both clever and complicated and, most importantly, delicious.

Bar Bites, Recipes

Graveyard Flip

October 24, 2019 No Comments

Created by Wyeth Maiers, bar manager at UVA Wine & Cocktail Bar.

Meringue:
• 3 egg whites
• 1 oz crème de cassis

Cocktail:
• 0.75 oz Evan Williams bourbon
• 0.25 oz Fernet Branca
• 2 tsp Laphroaig 10 Year Old single malt whisky
• 0.75 oz lemon juice
• 0.5 oz maple syrup
• 1 dash Angostura bitters
• 1 egg yolk
• Garnish: Grated chocolate, granulated sugar, (optional) brandied cherries

Features

Golden Oldie

January 15, 2018 No Comments

The name may sound dated, but the Old Fashioned remains a classic for a reason. The Alchemist asked Sabrine Dhaliwal, Bar Manager at Uva, to let us in on its secrets.

Sabrine Dhaliwal stirs up a classic. Dan Toulgoet photo.

The Old Fashioned is amazing — simple and complex at the same time. On paper it is minimal — spirit, bitters, sugar and water (via the dilution of ice) — but what is critical for an Old Fashioned is getting that balance right. You get the balance right, you have a beautiful cocktail, but if you don’t, there’s nowhere to hide. The fewer the ingredients in a cocktail, the more skill needed to make it.

The Alchemist

From vermouth to high volume: Cocktail trends for 2018

December 29, 2017 No Comments

Some of Vancouver’s top bartenders give their thoughts on what’ll be hot next year

Glass straws will be seen more widely as bars strive toward more sustainable practices. The Last Straw Co. photo

Raise your glass to the end of 2017, a year that brought us one disaster after another, from raging wildfires to the near-daily perp walk of sexual predators. Between all that and the inescapability of frosé, it’s a year we’re mostly happy to forget.

And so we look forward to 2018. We checked in with some of the city’s top bartenders to discover what’s shaking for the New Year.

Recipes, The Alchemist

Bright Eyes

December 29, 2017 No Comments

This tall, refreshing, low-proof cocktail from UVA’s Sabrine Dhaliwal will ensure you remain bright-eyed throughout the night.

1½ oz (45 mL) fino sherry
¾ oz (22 mL) grapefruit juice
¾ oz (22 mL) peach tea syrup (see note)
¾ oz (22 mL) lemon juice
2 dashes Bittered Sling Cherry Bitters
Ginger beer

The Alchemist

Time to get into the festive spirits with holiday cocktails

December 1, 2017 No Comments

A roundup of seasonal drinks rolled out by Vancouver bars

Justin Taylor with his Candy Cane Fizz at The Cascade Room. Photo: Dan Toulgoet — Justin Taylor with his Candy Cane Fizz at The Cascade Room.
Photo: Dan Toulgoet

Fa-la-la-la! It’s beginning to taste a lot like Christmas at The Cascade Room, where the holiday cocktails are merrily flowing.

Recipes, The Alchemist

Lady O’Keefe

May 5, 2017 No Comments

Lily Duong, assistant bar manager at UVA Wine & Cocktail Bar in the Moda Hotel, captures the floral fragrance of elderflower in this refreshing spring cocktail.

• 1 oz (30 mL) vodka
• 0.5 oz (15 mL) St. Germain elderflower liqueur
• 0.75 oz (22 mL) lemon juice
• 0.75 oz (22 mL) Monin jasmine flower syrup
• 2 dashes Bittered Sling Grapefruit & Hops bitters
• 1 egg white

Place all the ingredients in a cocktail shaker and shake vigorously. Once you have created voluminous foam, add ice, and shake again. Strain into a chilled cocktail glass. Serves 1.

The Alchemist