Absinthe in Quebec… the best in the world!

Absinthe, the alcohol of sublime drinking bouts, the one that would make you blind or crazy, the green fairy of 19th century artists, from Baudelaire to Verlaine, including Van Gogh and Toulouse-Lautrec, was banned for a hundred years. Like in fairy tales. It reappeared at the turn of the 2000s, 2011 in France and in Quebec in 2015, thanks to the ardor of Jean-Philippe Doyon and his parents, co-owners of the Absintherie des Cantons , located in Granby.

“Absinthe remains legendary for artists, it is surrounded by a special aura. I tasted it and quickly became passionate about it. I worked in the production of musical shows, it is far from the world of distilling! The three of us went on the absinthe route in Switzerland and France to learn more about the history and learn all the know-how and artisanal manufacturing methods.

There are a dozen aromatic plants that need to be macerated: anise, fennel, hyssop, lemon balm, angelica, verbena, mint, etc. In short, a concentrate of essential oils. It is the main molecule of absinthe that is toxic. You have to know how to distill it. Reduced to a minimum quantity, it is no longer so. But you must not go to excess! It is a strong alcohol, between 65 and 72%. To drink it, you have to dilute it in three to four times its volume of water, like pastis. Absinthe is still little known here, there is a lot of work to be done in terms of democratization and education.

We established the first absinthe plantation in Quebec, and marketed our products in 2017. In May 2022, we won the grand prize for the best absinthe in the world at the very prestigious World Drinks Awards in London with Fleur Bleue, aged in a plantation rum barrel, a floral bouquet with notes of caramel and vanilla. In competition with the original European absinthes, we can say that it is quite an honor!

Innovation: a vodka with hyperoxygenated water

Another one that earned exceptional recognition this year is Dirty Devil Vodka , which received gold at the Beverage Tasting Institute . In 2019, the same year it was launched, it won a double gold medal at the China Wine & Spirits Awards . It is also causing a stir in the United States, where one of its shareholders, actor, director and producer Giancarlo Esposito, known as the drug lord in Breaking Bad, is its headliner. “We will distribute in twenty-eight American states this year. We are present in one of the largest chains, Total Wine , and we managed to get Southern Glazer’s , the largest distributor in the country. We are also entering Hard Rock hotels .”

"We were on pause during the pandemic, but now we're stepping up our efforts, and we have the means to match our ambitions. After that, we're heading to Europe... there are little devils everywhere! People are going to hear about us, check out the signs on the highway soon!" proudly announces François Tremblay, founder of Spiritueux St-Lucifer in Morin Heights.

François can boast of having achieved his dream. As a child, he watched his father work in his Pepsi bottling plant in Baie Comeau. Already at the age of seven or eight, he saw himself having his own brand of beverage one day.

His flagship product is unique. It was a chance encounter with a researcher-entrepreneur that led him to produce the world's first hydrogen peroxide spirit, a process that has been patented. "It's a great collaboration with IVe État inc. and its Acka water. By placing the water in a plasma reactor, we increase the oxygen level five times more, which allows us to get the impurities in the alcohol. We distill it and filter it several times. That's what makes our vodka so smooth and can be drunk like a scotch or whisky! The devil is in the details of science and engineering technology."

Ubald, 100% Quebec and 100% smart

A young shoot in the industry, Ubald distillery is just as deserving. It accumulates medals in 2022, from Berlin to London via the United States ( Craft Spirits Berlin, London Spirits Competition and ADI International Spirits Competition ).

“Our goal has been clear from the beginning: to distil the best vodka in the world from our own estate’s crops, with a view to the circular economy. These honors propel us forward and motivate us to continue our quest for perfection , ” said Pascale Vaillancourt, master distiller and one of the five partners in the project.

With agriculture in its DNA, the distillery operates in synergy with Patates Dolbec, the largest producer and packer of potatoes in Eastern Canada. “ The potatoes then go to the fermentation tank and stills for distillation. No other inputs are added. The spent grain, the residue, is spread on the fields to fertilize. With 10,000 acres of land, including 4,000 for growing potatoes, and 6,000 in rotation to protect the soil, the company is taking its thinking on the circular economy and zero waste further. “We make one year of potatoes and two years of cereals or green manure,” explains Josée. “Which means that we will soon be able to make gin or whisky from cereals!” , we could read in Les patates Dolbec ont germé: Ubald Distillerie a pousse .

Done. Barely a year and a half later, the company offers a corn-based gin and a rye-based vodka. The cereals grow on its land, in the valleys of Portneuf. The company can boast of making grain to bottle. From tubers to cereals, the distillery produces 100% Quebec spirits, 100% smart for the planet. And as if that weren't enough, it highlights local herbs and fruits, such as lemon balm or our sea buckthorn berries. Its herbaceous and zesty gins are full of green and sunshine. You can even breathe in the salty scents of the nearby river while sipping with your eyes filled with dreams and your heart filled with national pride...