Whisky gaining in popularity

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When it comes to what goes into your glass from the Niagara Region, your first thought is likely wine, but there’s a new spirit in the region. With whisky gaining in popularity, the region is moving towards adding darker, stiffer drinks to its aromatic whites.

Once the drink of gruff cowboys, today whisky is surging in popularity

Grimsby based Forty Creek and small batch distillers like Dillons, located in the heart of Niagara wine country, are adding to the hype. “People are asking more questions about where the whisky came from, what it tastes like before it’s in the barrel, what grain you are using” says Geoff Dillon from Dillon’s Distillers. They’re producing a 100 percent Ontario rye based whisky. “We are making it all in house we are grain to the glass. We bring grain in, we mash it, we ferment it, we distill it, we age it, we proof it, we bottle it. Everything is done here.”

Just like wine, when sipping whisky, local flavours come into play. “There’s so many different characteristics that can be imparted on that whisky.”

In today’s cocktail culture demographics have changed too. The under 35 millennials make up nearly half of all Canadian whisky drinkers. Market research is projecting whisky’s popularity will continue to soar over the next few years. At Dillons, that means they can expect to keep pouring more whisky well into the future, putting Niagara on the map for more than just wine and waterfalls.