Category Cocktail Hour

Review: Oshlag Gin Dentdelion
I was at the SAQ (what we call the liquor store here in Quebec) and was planning to buy some wine and some gin when I came across a new product that was just being placed on the shelves. A new local gin made with…dandelion? The label also highlights the other two weeds which distinguish […]

Cocktail Hour: Romeo’s Gin (Review)
Wow, exciting things have been happening on the Quebec gin front since I’ve been abroad. Yet another new gin from la belle province has made its way onto store shelves…and this one is even being marketed as ‘Montreal Dry Gin’. What a great time it is to be a Montrealer…well, if you overlook the struggling […]

Tej (home-made mead)
I have to say that my honey wine attempt worked out rather well. It was a little on the sweet side, but had a very nice flavour. It was also dead easy, so I’ll definitely be repeating the exercise.

Cocktail Hour: Yellow Chartreuse
If you’ve never tried Chartreuse before, you should…it’s good quality stuff. Still made by Carthusian monks using the method outlined in a secret manuscript given to them in 1605, it is essentially an herbal liqueur. The more readily available green version is sweet, pungent, and strong (55% alcohol). Served on ice, and sipped slowly, it […]

Cocktail Hour: Cranberry Margarita
I visited the Nutcracker Market recently, and decided to purchase some cranberry syrup. This syrup is manufactured by a company called Nutra Fruit, which specializes in products made with cranberries grown here in Quebec. According to their website, Quebec is the world leader in the production of organic cranberries. I’m not quite sure why none of […]

Cocktail Hour: Piger Henricus Gin
Okay, so, a micro-distilled gin, made in Longueuil, Quebec…how cool is that? Exciting things are happening on the Quebec gin scene…first, Ungava…now this. First, a little background information. According their website, the distillery Piger Henricus is named after the latin word for a type of furnace used by alchemists during the middle ages. The English translation of Piger Henricus […]

Foraging Fun: Yarrow, Self-Heal, and Wild Strawberries
I’ve recently set my mind towards trying to identify which edible (or otherwise useful) plants I could discover growing close to home…whether in my boyfriend’s yard up north, or near my apartment in Verdun. Getting started with plant identification may not be the easiest thing, but once you learn the name of a certain species you will […]

Cocktail Hour: ‘Bowmore Sails Around the World’
The inspiration for this cocktail stems from a lack of gin. However, the cocktail that resulted from the limited repertoire of ingredients I had on hand turned out to be quite delicious, so I decided to share it with all of you (whoever you might be): Recipe (for 2 cocktails): 3 oz Bowmore Scotch (this is […]

Cocktail Hour: Ungava Gin
The first time I saw this gin at the SAQ, I was immediately attracted to it. ‘A gin made with indigenous Quebec herbs? How cool is that?’, I thought. The only thing that would make it cooler would be an organic designation (locally grown corn is used to make the spirit the gin is made with , […]

Cocktail Hour- Beet Juice Martinis
Want some vitamins along with your booze? Well, then, this is the cocktail for you. Simply take your basic martini and add beet juice, a bit of lime, and voilà- you have a tasty and (sort of) nutritious drink. Recipe (for 1): 2 oz gin 1/2 oz (or less) dry vermouth 1 oz beet juice […]