by Shaun Layton | You may have heard of Sons of Vancouver and their flagship Amaretto (we profiled it here in my Home Bar series). Making a trip to their North Store distillery is worth it; go for a hike, see the lads and maybe even walk the block to Bridge Brewing’s new tasting room. It’s a hell of a space!

Anyway, the Sons of Vancouver, James Lester and Richard Klaus, wanted to make a coffee liqueur in conjunction with the introduction of their new master distiller, who was revealed to us earlier this past week in all his adorable glory. To make the stuff, the crew use local cold brew concentrate from our friends over at JJ Bean. The Eastside Roast from JJ is then sweetened with vanilla, bitter almond, honey and demerara sugar. You’ll have to wait and ask them (or the new master distiller) about the name: “Coffee Liqueur Sucks”. I don’t think it would play well on the duty-free shelves…

I tried it in the early stages, and it’s got a great balance of nutty, bitter and sweet. The cold brew gives the liqueur a thinner more pleasant mouthfeel. Without naming names, I can tell you this is NOTHING like that coffee liqueur that Mom spikes her morning cup of coffee with over the holidays. James tells me they have dialed the flavour and balance even more, so this will be one to buy ASAP. Coffee liqueurs like this aren’t just for your boozy whipped cream topped warmers; try it in stirred cocktails! I would pair it with mezcal or a spicy, high-proof rye. Put about half an ounce into your next Tequila Old Fashioned or slip a cheeky drop into a Manhattan!

This is Sons of Vancouver’s new distillers’ first new product to hit the shelves in a while, so expect it to go fast. Only 200 bottles are being made available starting today (April 1), so get down to the distillery or try your luck at Legacy Liquor Store. The bottles are $20 for 375ml — keep in mind its a smaller bottle, but a little bit will go a long way in a cocktail.