Hot Toddy
Exploring Ontario: Niagara’s Unofficial Whisky Trail
Five distilleries, one weekend, and a new way to taste Niagara.
When most people think of Niagara, they picture cascading waterfalls, winding vineyards, and endless glasses of Chardonnay. But if you know where to look, you’ll find another story pouring quietly in the background: whisky. Niagara is home to five whisky-producing distilleries, each offering a glimpse into how the region is reshaping Canadian whisky culture. And the best part? They’re all within about an hour of each other, making for the perfect sipping trail.
Canada in a glass
Bye-bye bourbon. It’s Canadian whisky’s time to shine in these modern cocktails
For decades, Canadian whisky has played the quiet backbone in everything from Manhattans to whisky sours. But now, a new wave of bartenders is reclaiming it—not just as a versatile base spirit, but as a way to express local terroir, seasonality and storytelling in the glass. Whether it’s smoky and coastal, floral and bright, or tropical and spiced, Canadian whisky is proving that it can do more than blend in: It can take the lead.
We sat down with seven bartenders from across Canada to find out which whiskies they’re reaching for and the signature cocktails they’re crafting to showcase them.
The Belly of the Beast
Recipe by Tristin Vissers, bartender at Toronto’s Library Bar.
INGREDIENTS:
1.5 oz Appleton Estate 12 Year old rum
0.75 oz Brown Butter Fat-Washed Bearface Triple Oak whisky (see note)
0.75 oz Metaxa 5 Star brandy
0.75 oz grapefruit juice
0.75 oz sea buckthorn juice
0.75 oz Toasted Pecan & Mace Orgeat (see recipe below)
1 dash Angostura bitters
Garnish: cedar sprig, cinnamon sticks, bitters
Rat Boy
Recipe by Kat Saulnier, bartender at Toronto’s Bar Mordecai.
INGREDIENTS:
0.75 oz Lot 40 Rye Whisky
0.75 oz Tio Pepe fino sherry
0.5 oz Strega liqueur
0.75 oz Salted Oat Orgeat (see note)
0.5 oz fresh lemon juice
1 dash Angostura bitters
Garnish: star anise pod
High Fives All Around
Recipe by Bradley Horseman, bar manager, Salt & Brick in Calgary.
INGREDIENTS:
1.5 oz Forty Creek Copper Bold
0.5 oz Punt e Mes vermouth
0.25 oz maraschino liqueur
0.5 oz Chinese Five Spice Agave Syrup (see recipe)
1 oz pineapple juice
0.75 oz fresh lemon juice
Lost Highway
This thoughtful spin on a whisky smash uses flavour mapping to showcase the whisky’s range. Recipe by Griffin Cox, bar manager at Bernie’s Supper Club & Cinema in Kelowna.
Pollination
Bearface’s distinct character serves as the perfect foundation for a cocktail that connects flavour, place and story in Lacey Roberts’s (Published on Main) Bianco Manhattan, which is poured tableside from a beeswax-coated vessel, the wax sourced directly from the Queen Elizabeth Park apiary.
Devil
Recipe by Ryan Buchanan, bar manager at Arcana Spirits Lounge, Vancouver. Note that he uses lime ash to create black bitters to draw the pentagram on the drink, but recommends that home bartender use Angostura instead.
A riff on the classic Paper Plane
