A Bottle of Whisky With a Side Of Future

A cool email crossed our desk this morning from one of our fave local distillers—Sons of Vancouver. The North Van-based operation is best known for their category dominating craft Amaretto (which was a hit in our 2019 Made in Vancouver Awards) but they love to nerd out over other rarities like Blue Curacao, Cocoanut Liquer and Tiki Creamer. And they’ve also been climbing the mountain that is whisky.

Their evocatively named Cigarettes on the Leather Jacket whisky recently won Gold at the Canadian Artisan Spirits Competition (where yours truly is a judge) and while I can’t say I remember it—the entire competition is blind so I only taste numbered vials—I must have scored it quite highly for it to nab the gold. Its description is compelling—a heavy dose of Rye (90%), which is always compelling for a younger whisky, and it’s bottled at cask strength which is another plus for the ornery rye flavours.

It’s just been released at $100—pricey at first glance, but the bottle is actually a perk for a $100 donation to their crowd sourcing campaign. You’re paying to invest in the future of their pursuit of craft whisky. Watch James Lester explain below.

The link to the campaign is here, and you can also buy future bottles that are years from being released at significant discounts.