LCBO Food and Drink Autumn 2016

TRENDS  LOCAL AUTHORITY

GEOFF DILLON DILLON’S DISTILLERS, Beamsville, Ont., dillons.ca

ever, that its reputation has been made and solidified, at least for the time being.    “Making the gin was two years of playing around with botani- cals,” recalls Geoff, “and we’re really fortunate that they have taken off the way they have.” Still, the young man who discovered his passion for distilling while study- ing at the University of Western Ontario says that the reason for his company existing at all has always been their straight rye, released through the years as a youthfulWhite Rye and finally this past summer as a 41-month‑old Dillon’s Canadian Rye.    Given that Geoff professes that “experimenting and playing around” is half the fun of distill- ing, and that the distillery has about 30 experiments ongoing at any one time, it’s a safe bet that neither the Rye nor the success- ful Dry Gin 7 will mark the end of product development for Dillon’s.

The key to opening a craft dis- tillery, says Geoff Dillon, lies in convincing people that you know what you’re doing. Even so, the young would-be distiller recalls the experience of telling his father what he planned to do with his life as “terrifying.”    Fortunately, and to the younger Dillon’s amazement, Peter Dillon was “over the moon” and not only approved heartily of his son’s de- cision, but decided to join him in the business. It was not only a relief for Geoff, but also a fortu- itous development, since the el- der Dillon possesses what his son describes as an “amazing palate” and has proved pivotal in the de- velopment of the distillery’s many recipes.    And many are the brands pro- duced by the Niagara distillery, including pure rye whisky, vodka, aromatic bitters, fruit spirits and even absinthe. It is with the com- pany’s many varieties of gin, how-

While he was working in the finance industry, Geoff Dillon told anyone who asked that his future lay in distilling.

Dillon’s Dry Gin 7 LCBO 413104, $39.85

There is no shyness to the juniper in this robust gin, and neither is there a paucity of spiciness in the nose, which virtually leaps out of the glass with bold peppery notes. Slightly sweet and floral herbal notes join the spice in the body, making this the base of a most assertive Martini and perhaps an even better Gin and Tonic.

66  FOOD & DRI NK AUTUMN 2016