The inaugural TRIBUTE TO CRAFT SPIRITS FESTIVAL in Banff and Lake Louise will be pairing regional distillers from Alberta and British Columbia (BC) with Banff and Lake Louise restaurants to showcase unique cocktails with local ingredients and talent. The festival will take place January 16th to 27th, 2019 and will be a part of SnowDays, an annual celebration of winter. The TRIBUTE TO CRAFT SPIRITS FESTIVAL was created by the same team behind MADE WITH LOVE, an International mixology competition and event for cocktail enthusiasts and food epicureans, currently taking place in 9 cities and 2 countries (Canada and Spain) and expanding.
 
 
About the Festival

Guests are encouraged to visit all the participating venues to taste their special cocktail menus, each which highlight the personality of the venue, and their take on Alberta and BC’s unique craft distillery scene. There will be 5 cocktails available at each venue showcasing 5 local craft spirits (17 Banff and Lake Louise bars and restaurants) with a total of more than 85 cocktails created to taste only during the festival.
 
 
Participating Craft Distilleries:

• Bohemian Spirits
• Burwood Distillery
• Central City Brewing & Distilling
• Eau Claire Distillery
• Old Order Distilling Co.
• PARK Distillery
• RAW Distillery
• Sheringham Distillery
• Wild Life Distillery
 
 
Spirits Used in the Cocktails:

• PARK Alpine Dry Gin
• Black Goat Vodka
• Burwood Gin
• Eau Claire Cherry Gin
• PARK Chili Vodka
• PARK Espresso Vodka
• Forester Single Malt Oak Aged Gin
• PARK Glacier Rye
• Legacy Gin
• PARK Maple Rye
• Eau Claire Parlour Gin
• Eau Claire Prickly Pear EquineOx
• Queensborough Gin
• RAW Botanical Gin
• RAW Peppercorn Gin
• RAW Rye Unaged
• Wild Life Barrel-Aged Gin
• Wild Life Gin
• Wild Life Vodka
 
 
Participating Bars & Restaurants:

• Balkan Restaurant
• Bear Street Tavern
• Bison Restaurant
• Block Kitchen & Bar
• Chuck’s Steakhouse
• Larkspur
• Eddie Burger Bar
• Fairmont Banff Springs
• Fairmont Chateau Lake Louise
• High Roller
• Magpie & Stump
• Maple Leaf
• Mount Norquay
• Nourish Bistro
• Park Restaurant & Bar
• Sky Bistro
• Sleeping Buffalo
• Toque
 
 
2-Day Discovery Event
 

Lemon Meringue Pie Cocktail Made With Wild Life Vodka By Wild Life Distillery, Available at Nourish Bistro

On the final weekend of the TRIBUTE TO CRAFT SPIRITS FESTIVAL, January 26 – 27th, 2019, there will be an outdoor event on Bear Street in downtown Banff from 2pm – 8pm where the cocktail and food creations of 9 bars & restaurants and 9 craft distilleries will be available to sample. Not only will guests be able to taste the food and drink, they will get the opportunity to meet the distillers and learn more about the production process while listening to music amongst an exhibition of beautiful snow sculptures and the scenery of the Rocky Mountains as a backdrop. Admission to the Discovery Event is free, with tasting coupons available for purchase for $1.

 
 
Unique Cocktails

Some of the cocktails available to sample at the Discover Event will be:

Distillery Partner & Banff Restaurant/Bar: Cocktail Name

• PARK & PARK Restaurant & Bar: Continental Divide
• Burwood & Sleeping Buffalo: Cranberry Thyme Gin & Tonic
• Central City Brewing & Block Kitchen & Bar: Glacier Melt
• Wild Life Distillery & Nourish Bistro: Lemon Meringue Pie
• RAW Distillery & Toque: Norman Luxton: Mr Banff was anything but “Old Fashioned”
• Bohemian Spirits & Sky Bistro: Oaked Apple
• Eau Claire Distillery & Larkspur at RimRock Hotel: Pyrus Provocateur
• Sheringham Distillery & Chuck’s Steakhouse: Silver Spurs
• Old Order Distilling Co & Banff Springs Hotel: Café Genévrier
 
 
Delicious Foods Available to Sample

Some of the foods available to sample at the Discovery Event include:

Venue: Block Kitchen & Bar
Korean BBQ Beef Skewers
Spicy Chicken Skewers
Tandoori Prawn Skewer

Room at the Fairmont Banff Springs
Beef Tartare

Sky Bistro
Diced Roasted Vegetables
Pulled Pork
Pork Veloute

Sleeping Buffalo
Elk Meatballs

Nourish Bistro
Pani Puri Errupting Orbs
Jackfruit Rib Bites

There are many more scrumptious cocktails and foods to try at participating bars and restaurants throughout the duration of the festival.
 
 
A Cocktail Recipe
 

Glacier Melt Cocktail With Queensborough Gin Made By Central City Brewers and Distillers, Available at Block Kitchen and Bar

Glacier Melt

• Queensborough gin
• Lillet blanc
• Blue curacao
• Yuzu juice
• Sugar syrup
• Basil

Created by: Block Kitchen and Bar
Spirit made by: Central City Brewers & Distillers

This is the recipe for one of the unique cocktails available at the TRIBUTE TO CRAFT SPIRITS FESTIVAL. It looks amazing!!
 
 
Festival Pass

Passports give guests access to all the exclusive events taking place during the TRIBUTE TO CRAFT SPIRITS FESTIVAL so they can make the most out of their experience.
 
 
Contest

Would you like to win tasting coupons for the TRIBUTE TO CRAFT SPIRITS FESTIVAL and discover the best of Alberta and British Columbia’s food and drink? I am giving away 40 tasting coupons for the TRIBUTE TO CRAFT SPIRITS FESTIVAL’s Discovery Event in Banff on Saturday, January 26 & Sunday, January 27, 2019! Must be 18+ to win and attend. The contest will run from today until midnight January 24, 2019 Mountain Time. The winner will be then be drawn and contacted on January 25, 2019 by email or the social media platform you used to enter the contest. Enter below. Good luck!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

If you would like to purchase tasting coupons for the TRIBUTE TO CRAFT SPIRITS FESTIVAL’s Discovery Event in Banff you can do so at the festival.

What is your favourite local spirit or local cocktail?

This giveaway and Photos 1, 2, and 3 were courtesy of TRIBUTE TO CRAFT SPIRITS FESTIVAL