Cocktail capital of Canada? Vancouver raises the bar as a libation destination
VANCOUVER — On a rainy evening inside an illuminated geodesic dome that adds sparkle to Vancouver’s skyline, queues of gussied-up socialites are forming at 25 beverage stations manned by award-winning bartenders.
Patrons of the Science World fundraiser are sipping Mai Tai vapour through straws at one station and shooting glow-in-the-dark gin and tonics at another.
One particularly popular line is sampling a Powell Street Sour — essentially a twist on a whiskey sour topped with a vegan botanical foamer and bubbles of aromatized red wine.
“That’s the thing about Vancouver — the culture demands more from bartenders,” says Tarquin Melnyk, who runs the bar for Bambudda restaurant, as he assembles the concoction.