The Alchemist Magazine BC | B.C. Distilleries

The Alchemist Fall/Winter 2025

November 3, 2025 No Comments

There’s a whole lotta shakin’ goin’ on across Canada this fall, and stirring, building, infusing and maybe even a little throwing, too. The global finals of World Class just wrapped up in Toronto, and the city is just hosted the inaugural Toronto Cocktail Festival, from October 22 to 26. It was brought to you by The Alchemist magazine team behind Vancouver Cocktail Week, which celebrates its fifth anniversary in March. But big events aside, every night is cocktail night in Canada, with bars from coast to coast celebrating cocktail culture and, more importantly, connection.

Bar Bites

A local liqueur to go nuts for

October 31, 2025 No Comments

Just in time for the cooler weather and all your après ski special coffee needs, The Woods Spirit Co. is releasing its all-local, award-winning Crema Nocciola. This hazelnut cream liqueur, a gold medal winner at Sip Magazine’s Best of the Northwest Awards 2024, is crafted in small batches from sustainably grown Abbotsford hazelnuts, freshly roasted Moja Coffee distillate and Canadian non-GMO oat milk.

Recipes

Crema Martini

October 31, 2025 No Comments

This creamy, nutty riff on an Espresso Martini comes courtesy of North Vancouver’s The Woods Spirit Co.

A World Class welcome to Canada

October 27, 2025 No Comments

Norway’s Felice Capasso named Global Bartender of the Year

The World Class Global Bartender of the Year 2025 is Felice Capasso of Norway. Photos courtesy of World Class Canada

Canada’s bartenders have long been stars at the prestigious World Class cocktail competition. But this year, Canada itself was the star, hosting 51 finalists from around the world and wrapping the event up with a thrilling final at Toronto’s historic Casa Loma.

The winner, who proudly claims the career-defining title of World Class Global Bartender of the Year 2025, is Felice Capasso of Nedre Løkka Cocktailbar in Oslo, Norway, and also the founder of Sesto Senso Academy, a centre for wine and spirits education. Throughout the week, Capasso wowed the judges across every challenge he faced.

Have Glass Will Travel

Exploring Ontario: Niagara’s Unofficial Whisky Trail

October 2, 2025 No Comments

Five distilleries, one weekend, and a new way to taste Niagara.

The Kent Motel is a retro-modern boutique hotel. Reece Sims photo

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.

Home Bar, Recipes

Jade Ghost

September 26, 2025 No Comments

This refreshing and fruity cocktail will make the Margarita lovers happy.

Home Bar, Recipes

Kyoto Collins

September 25, 2025 No Comments

This refreshing long drink uses a soda made with fragrant white tea. White teas are harvested from the youngest, most tender buds and leaves of the tea plant, and very lightly processed, resulting in a delicate, often floral flavour.

Home Bar, Recipes

Idol Meets Impostor

September 24, 2025 No Comments

This twist on a classic Old Fashioned gets an appealing smoky note from the ice cube made with Lapsang Souchong, a Chinese black tea whose leaves are dried over burning pinewood for a rich, bold and earthy flavour with subtle bonfire notes.

Home Bar

Tea time

September 23, 2025 No Comments

Discover a world of flavour in a cuppa

Tea is a classic component of mixed drinks, especially punches, and has almost infinite uses in cocktails. Matthew Benevoli photo

Tea is one of the world’s most common beverages—second only to water in terms of the amount consumed—yet it’s often overlooked as a cocktail ingredient. And that’s too bad, because it’s far more versatile, accessible and fun to experiment with than you may think.

With a wide range of black, green, white and herbal teas available, you can find almost any flavour profile you’re looking for, from a fruity herbal tea ideal for a fizzy and refreshing highball to a bitter, dry and tannic over-steeped green tea that makes a substitute for dry vermouth in a Martini. Looking for something more exotic? Enter Lapsang Souchong. Often referred to as “the scotch of teas,” its leaves have been dried above a pinewood fire, giving it savoury and smoky characteristics akin to Islay-made whisky.

Toronto Cocktail Festival

Toronto Cocktail Festival 2025: The city’s can’t-miss cocktail event is coming this fall

September 20, 2025 No Comments

Looking for the best events in Toronto this October? Mark your calendar for the first-ever Toronto Cocktail Festival, happening October 22–26, 2025.

Toronto is about to raise its glass in a whole new way. From October 22 to 26, 2025, the first annual Toronto Cocktail Festival will take over the city with a week of spirited seminars, tastings, and experiences that highlight the artistry, innovation, and community behind the city’s cocktail culture. Tickets are now on sale, with more programming to be announced in the weeks ahead.

Presented by The Alchemist magazine, this five-day city-wide celebration of cocktails, culture and culinary creativity unites Toronto’s top bartenders, chefs, and visiting talent from the global bar scene.