As the desire to know where our food comes from takes hold, it should come as no surprise that we also want to know who’s making our spirits and what ingredients they’re using. Nowhere in Canada is the craft distillery movement bigger than the wave hitting Vancouver Island. In fact, of the 30 or so distilleries that have sprung up in BC, one third are located on the island.
Amazingly, many of these craft spirits are already getting recognition and winning competitions for excellence. Interested? You can check them out and purchase online, but why not take a road trip through the wooded farmlands of Cobble Hill to the rugged west shoreline of Tofino to see firsthand where these high-quality products come from.
MERRIDALE CIDERY & DISTILLERY
What’s unique? Their stunning apple-orchard setting in Cobble Hill, Vancouver Island’s bread-basket region.
As soon as you turn off the highway and onto the country road that takes you past green pastures and over wooden bridges, you know you’re going somewhere special. After making cider for many years, Merridale now distills vodka, gin and brandy from their own apples, BC fruits and locally sourced ingredients, as well as a honey-fermented “rhumb.”
At Merridale you can do a self-guided tour of the distillery and cidery, then stroll the orchard, before having lunch in the Merridale Eatery. The Eatery’s motto is “Merridale makes,” so everything is made from scratch and, to keep things unique, dishes often include cider (like the cider-braised beef and apple stew). You can cozy up to the tasting bar to sample some mini cocktail creations, but a paired tasting flight is optimum: “We want people to understand how food and drink pair,” says Janet Docherty who operates Merridale with her husband, Rick Pipes.
STILLHEAD DISTILLERY
What’s unique? The Cask Club: purchase your own private 30-litre whisky cask and be part of the process, including tastings, as it ages and your own private label.
Stillhead Distillery in Duncan is all about local. Even the name Stillhead is a play on the steelhead salmon that return every year to the local Cowichan River (owner Brennan Colebank is an avid fly fisherman).
Flagship spirits are vodka and gin. “It took Colebank 23 runs before coming up with the perfect recipe for the Prime 23 gin, a West Coast gin inspired by the London Dry classic, hence the name,” says Zack Blake, production assistant. Stillhead’s other flagship spirit – and their bestseller – is the wild blackberry-infused vodka, made with wild berries picked in season by local Cowichan tribes.
Book a tour to learn about the entire distilling process and to see behind the scenes, before sitting at the bar for a tasting or a cocktail.
ARBUTUS DISTILLERY
What’s unique? There’s not only a tasting bar, but also a cocktail lounge within the distillery, where you can sit and watch the stills bubble and brew.
Arbutus Distillery in Nanaimo was one of the first on the Island. They offer a large selection of spirits, ranging from blue gin, to absinthe, to elderflower liqueur (they grow many of their own botanicals). Owner Mike Pizzitelli, initially a cell biologist, then studied brewing and distilling in Edinburgh, so it comes as no surprise that Arbutus’ newest addition is a three-year-aged single malt whisky. “And we’re always making new seasonal spirits to keep people coming back,” says Pizzitelli.
In season, the outdoor patio is the perfect spot to enjoy a spirit tasting, and the cocktail lounge is open evenings, Thursday through Saturday, when you can also savour stone-oven pizza.
WAYWARD DISTILLATION HOUSE
What’s unique? This is the first distillery in Canada to use honey as a base for its spirits.
At Wayward Distillation House in Courtenay, they start with honey harvested from pristine wild-clover fields in Northern BC to make mead, before distilling. Signature spirits are their Unruly Vodka and Unruly Gin, but they also make a Drunken Hive Rum and unique seasonal offerings, like a raspberry and ginger vodka infusion, and Krupnik, a Polish spiced honey liqueur (their biggest seller).
But Wayward is more than just a distillery – it’s a fun place to sit at the bar and try one of their innovative spirit-forward cocktails. “Courtenay residents bring their out-of-town guests here on a Friday afternoon to enjoy a cocktail,” says production assistant, Elise Caron. “Just tell the mixologist what taste you like, and they’ll concoct something sure to please your taste buds.”
SHELTER POINT DISTILLERY
What’s unique? The distillery’s seaside location, and the most beautiful building and equipment I’ve ever seen.
Just south of Campbell River, on over 154 hectares of land with two kilometres of oceanfront, Shelter Point Distillery is on one of the last seaside farms on the island. Owner Patrick Evans, third generation local farmer, is one of the rare distillers that grows his own barley for their small batches of artisan whisky, vodka and specialty liqueur.
Take a tour of the gigantic cathedral-like distillery with its soaring open-beam ceilings and lovely copper stills to learn all about how the local terroir, like the underground aquifer they pull their water from, contributes to the taste of the spirits. “Even the sea breeze makes a difference,” says Evans, “it affects the aging of the cask.”
Then sit down for a tasting of Shelter Point’s signature single malt whisky, distilled using traditional Scottish methods, to see why it’s getting worldwide attention and a mention in Jim Murray’s 2019 Whisky Bible.
TOFINO DISTILLERY
What’s unique? They are keeping things traditional with good, old-fashioned face-to-face interaction, so they’re not on social media.
Over on the island’s wild side, the recently opened Tofino Distillery is making small-batch jalapeno vodka (perfect for Caesars), gin and absinthe distilled from BC organic grains and, in 2019, it will become a certified organic establishment. Neil Campbell, co-owner along with Adam Warry and John Gilmour, says, “BC’s in a gin renaissance; gin’s really sexy right now, and that’s why we made West Coast gin as one of our flagship spirits.”
Tofino Distillery’s branding taps into the history of Tofino, with touches like a nautical chart on their labels. Visit the tasting room for some mini cocktail tasters or a sip of whatever constantly changing infusion they might have percolating on the bar. On the perfect summer day, when they roll up the front sliding door to let the sunshine in, you won’t want to leave.
IF YOU GO:
Vancouver Island Tourism: https://vancouverisland.travel/
Merridale Cidery & Distillery: https://www.merridale.ca/
Stillhead Distillery: https://stillhead.ca/
Arbutus Distillery: https://arbutusdistillery.com/
Wayward Distillation House: https://www.waywarddistillationhouse.com/
Shelter Point Distillery: https://shelterpoint.ca/
Tofino Distillery: https://tofinocraftdistillery.com/
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