This was the year Toronto embraced the notion that drinking less can be enriching. Trendsetting establishments like Bar Raval championed low-proof cocktails known as shims or suppressors mixed with vermouth, sherry and aperitivi, proving that big flavour doesnt have to lead to a devastating hangover.
The slew of new microbreweries and brew pubs in Toronto often have attached bottle shops that are conveniently open daily from 11 am to 11 pm. Independent breweries like Burdock, Folly, Blood Brothers and Rainhard have joined more established brew pubs like Bellwoods, Left Field and Indie Ale House, setting Torontos beer scene on an even more exciting trajectory.
We saw a focus in 2015 on the curation of new, intriguing wine programs away from Old World icons and gratuitous California Cabs toward elegant wines of a natural and biodynamic bent. Lesser-known varietals most drinkers have never even heard of, let alone sipped, graced wine lists at beloved new restaurants like Dandylion and wine bars like Archive. Local wines also enjoyed increasing prominence were especially enamoured with Ontario sparkling, Cabernet Franc, Gamay and (always and forever) Riesling.
Top-notch espresso houses, roasters and cafes like Boxcar Social, Pilot Coffee, Propeller Coffee and the Coffee Lab continued to make a strong case for coffee snobbery. There was an emphasis on pour-over and cold brew, plenty of coffee cocktails and coffee-infused craft beers, barista training in restaurants facilitated by Phil & Sebastian and the emergence of serious systems like Modbar more than enough caffeine to keep T.O. buzzing.
Toronto had a tropical mini-revolution with the opening of bars like the Shameful Tiki, Miss Things and Shore Leave. The trappings of tiki flaming punch bowls with ridiculously long straws, hollow pineapples brimming with near-illegal amounts of rum, tropical flavours and Caribbean spices were part of a lighthearted approach to cocktails.
Our taste buds took a turn for the weird this year, favouring funky, challenging drinks like kombucha and brett-laced beers, barnyardy ciders and almost-off natural wines.
We keep wishing and waiting for other spirits to have a bona fide heyday, but whisk(e)y bourbon, rye, Canadian, Scotch and Irish isnt stepping down from the throne any time soon. Old-fashioneds easy to make and easier to drink remain a go-to at bars, and releases like Novembers Buffalo Trace Antique Collection and Crown Royal Northern Harvest Rye (which won Jim Murrays World Whisky of the Year) had fans nearly rabid with desire.
This year draught lines were filled with much more than craft beer. Kegged cocktails (Negronis especially) and wine on tap flowed at restaurants like Queen Margherita Pizza and party bars like Track & Field Bar and Rush Lane.
Rose & Sons, Bar Isabel & Affiliates, Icon Legacy, La Carnita, Playa Cabana, Icon Legacy, the Drake: many of Torontos trendiest bars and restaurants became micro-empires seemingly overnight, proving the 6ix is as voracious as ever.
Toronto stubbornly refuses to let late-night snacking die. Bars dishing small, novelty foods into the wee hours some of them special, many of them not have continued to mushroom. We still love what unique spots like Hanmoto and Bar Raval are doing, but its time for new bars to push forward into more original, less saturated territory.
drinks@nowtoronto.com | @S_Parns
