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Bombay Sapphire, spirits sponsor of Jean-Michel Basquiat: King Pleasure, the recent retrospective exhibition in New York curated by the iconoclast’s sisters, has teamed up again with the Basquiat estate to debut a special edition bottle of Bombay Sapphire gin emblazoned with Basquiat’s Untitled (L.A. Painting).
Geoff Dillon, founder of Dillon’s Small Batch Distillers in Beamsville, Ontario, is always thinking 10 steps, or years, ahead. When he founded the brand in a former truck depot in 2012, he was already dreaming of making “rye whisky in Canada, not Canadian rye whisky.”
Ciarán “Rowdy” Rooney, the head distiller at Wicklow, Ireland’s, Glendalough Distillery, didn’t want to make “just another pink gin.” Although he doesn’t speak favourably of what he calls “confected” pink gins, the main motive behind Rooney’s desire to produce a rose gin of distinction is a more personal one.
Jean-Pierre Allard, co-founder and president of Stadaconé, found inspiration in the rich history of Quebec and his own world travels. He combines both experiences to create a line of gin products with flavours from Canada, Asia, and places in between.
Despite the challenges of 2020, many specialists predict that global volume sales for spirits will set a new record this year, mostly thanks to new distilleries making subtle differences to switch things up.
This simple spring-inspired cocktail is from the entirely gin-centric cocktail book Sip by small-batch distiller Sipsmith.
The list within features bottles from the best gin producers in Canada’s westernmost province, all thoughtful businesspeople who draw inspiration from natural splendour when crafting fine spirits.
Quebec’s province-wide gin boom has been spurred on by significant changes to laws that now allow distilleries to give samples and sell bottles at their own on-site boutiques.
Canada is spoiled for choice when it comes to homegrown spirits. Herewith, five of the best tipples—to gift, or to get.
