McCallum Scott - A Field Guide to Canadian Cocktails

Copyright 2015 Scott McCallum and Victoria Walsh
Photography copyright 2015 Juan Luna

All rights reserved. The use of any part of this publication, reproduced, transmitted in any form or by any means electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise, or stored in a retrieval system without the prior written consent of the publisheror in the case of photocopying or other reprographic copying, license from the Canadian Copyright Licensing Agencyis an infringement of the copyright law.

Appetite by Random House is a registered trademark of Random House LLC.

Library and Archives Canada Cataloguing in Publication is available upon request.

Print ISBN: 978-0-449-01663-3
e-book ISBN: 978-0-449-01664-0

Cover design by CS Richardson
Prop styling by Virginie Martocq
Food and drink styling by Victoria Walsh

Published in Canada by Appetite by Random House,
a division of Random House of Canada Limited,
a Penguin Random House Company

www.penguinrandomhouse.ca

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To Margaret, who has always been there.

To Cathy and Don, for their constant love and support.

To those who inspired, helped and encouraged us to take this journey.

And to this great land.

W elcome to Canadian Cocktails, our boozy celebration of True North spirit. For this book, we aimed to capture and create some of the most sensational sips, from sea to shining sea. We scoured the country to find the best ingredients; to consult the most accomplished bartenders, distillers and other makers; and to get to know the land, people and history that inform the flavours and character that the cocktails embody.

In these pages, youll find tips and tricks for the home host, smart techniques from Canadas top bartenders, suggestions for how to stock the ultimate Canadian bar, and even a sprinkle of travel advice, with highlights from our coast-to-coast cocktail conquest.

But first, some background. A few years ago, we got engaged next to a sunny container garden on our apartment rooftop in Toronto, which Scott built secretly, using his long-dormant green thumb. This small urban garden was a gift, a marker for the beginning of our lives together and the catalyst for a new urban homestead-style life for both of us. Thanks to Scotts newly unearthed farming roots, our garden flourished, yielding a bounty of fruits and vegetables (which youll see were put to use in the books recipes). This, coupled with Victorias career as food writer and stylist, kept our lives revolving around food and drinklocal and, whenever possible, homegrown. It was only natural that our try-anything-and-use-everything approach to cooking would broaden into a passion for making garden-fresh cocktails too. (Of course, being talented tipplers helped our cause as well.) We started with basic homemade drinks like hot pepperinfused Caesars, and then began playing with herbal simple syrups, infusions, tinctures, bitters and liqueurs. Eventually, we moved beyond our garden to Canadas garden, on the hunt for exciting, largely unexplored and distinctly Canadian flavours.

While we were learning, experimenting and searching for the best Canadian cocktails, it became apparent that there is a lack of comprehensive work on the subject. Dont get us wrong, we love a good Caesar, but it is not the only cocktail to be fashioned in this country. We decided it was time to solidify Canadas place in the international cocktail canon. Thats how we came to the idea for Canadian Cocktails, a book dedicated to perfectly crafted, Canadian-infused and -inspired drinks. And so we kept our ears to the ground and noses to the coupes while partaking in a lot of recipe alchemy, spirit tasting and treasure hunting across the country.

After years of exploration and discovery, we are excited to finally share our findings and recipes. This isnt a definitive guide, but rather a medium for showcasing the bartenders and producers who make the cocktail scene in Canada so strong and impressive. This book is a jumping-off point. Our hope is to get your creative juices flowing, and to use this books guidelines as inspiration for your own experiments, whether its stirring up classic drinks at home or seeking out delicious libations while travelling.

This field guide starts with the basics. In the next chapter youll find tips on what youll need to craft a stellar cocktailtechnique, glassware, equipment and, of course, great liquor. Next youll find tales of our Canadian cocktail pursuit, some nods to the history that shaped our drinking landscape and shout-outs to some of our favourite places in the country, all accompanied by refreshing and purely Canadian drink recipes, many of which are our own creative concoctions, others shared by a fantastic selection of Canadas most passionate bartenders.

In proper celebratory fashion, we show our dedication to this great country in the form of a drink. Cheers to Canada!

Heres our primer on how to make excellent drinks every time, and the tools youll need to prepare them.

PREPARE AND STORE ICE This simple ingredient is often overlooked and taken for grantedice can taste funny or be the wrong shape (causing it to melt too quickly or not dilute the drink enough) or, the worst faux pas of all, not having enough on hand. But these mistakes are easily avoidable. Use filtered water, when available, to make ice. Invest in multiple standard ice cube trays plus a king cube mould , to make large ice cubes. When preparing for a party, set several trays and moulds on a baking sheet, fill with water and freeze. Place freshly prepared ice in large resealable freezer bags. This prevents freezer odours from absorbing while allowing you to stockpile. When it comes to crushed ice, cheat and buy store-bought or crush your own by pounding regular cubes in a resealable plastic bag. Just cover a partially sealed bag with a kitchen towel and use a rubber mallet.

CHILL A GLASS An essential step in helping to maintain optimal cocktail temperature is chilling a glass. Often, simply tucking a glass in the freezer works well, but when left too long, delicate glassware can crack. Keep your eye on it or set a timer for a few minutes. Alternately, fill a glass with ice and cold water and let it stand while you prepare your cocktail. When ready, discard ice and water, shaking off any excess water. Add fresh ice, if using in the cocktail.

MEASURE Cocktails are like baking: when it comes to measuring, precision is essential. Be sure to use appropriate tools, such as dry measuring cups for dry ingredients (we use the scoop-and-swipe method) and measuring spoons , liquid measuring cups and jiggers for liquids.