With B.C.’s most iconic landmarks as my inspiration, I’ve taken three classic cocktails and given them a local twist by incorporating some of our province’s vast bounty of ingredients — from craft spirits distilled right here in B.C., to homegrown artisanal cocktail bitters.
Try your hand at these fun, easy and hyper-local cocktail recipes below, or come visit me at my bar and let me shake one up for you.
Ogopogo
Justin Taylor/Daily Hive
This fun variation on the classic Mai Tai is named after the legendary sea serpent of Lake Okanagan, the Ogopogo. This cocktail features a beautiful cherry liqueur produced in the Okanagan Valley.
Ingredients:
- 1.5 oz Gosling’s Rum
- 0.5 oz Jagermeister
- 0.25 oz Okanagan Spirits Maraschino
- 0.5 oz Orgeat
- 0.5 oz Simple Syrup
- 1.0 oz Lime
- 3 dashes Angostura Bitters
Method:
- Combine all ingredients in a cocktail shaker.
- Add ice and shake vigorously for 10 seconds.
- Strain over ice in a highball or Collins glass and garnish with preserved cherries.
Steam Clockwork Orange
Justin Taylor/Daily Hive
The Harvey Wall-banger is back in a whole new concoction. This simple cocktail from the mid 1980s gets a much needed makeover with Gillespie’s Gastown Shine Vodka, and Bittered Sling’s Kensington Bitters. These local ingredients combine to make the perfect brunch cocktail.
Ingredients:
- 1.5 oz Gillespie’s Gastown Shine Vodka
- 1.0 oz Fresh Squeezed Orange Juice
- 0.5 oz Galliano
- 3 dashes Bittered Sling Kensington Bitters
- 2 oz Cava, or Sparkling Wine
Method
- Combine all ingredients in a cocktail shaker except for Cava.
- Add ice and shake for 10 seconds.
- Pour into a chilled cocktail glass, top with Cava and garnish with an orange twist.
Coquihalla
Justin Taylor/Daily Hive
One of the most famous and and picturesque highways in all of Canada, the Coquihalla is a riff on one of the world’s most famous cocktails, the Negroni. This variation uses an uncommon spirit called Aquavit from my friends at Okanagan Spirits in Vernon.
Ingredients:
- 1 oz Okanagan Spirits Aquavitus
- 1 oz Cocchi Vermouth di Torino
- 1 oz Campari
Method
- Combine ingredients in a mixing glass.
- Add ice and stir for 15 seconds.
- Pour over fresh ice in an Old Fashioned Glass and garnish with an orange twist.
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