Until recently, all vodka sold in Canada had to be distilled from either potatoes or cereal grains. Even world-famous Ciroc Vodka had to be called Grape Spirit in this country. This was an oddity unknown elsewhere in the world.

But, thanks to the persistence and disruptive innovation of Distillers Lynne MacKay and Pierre Guevremont of Ironworks Distillery, this has now been changed.

As Lynne tells it:

The Vodka War started in Canada on July 14, 2016, when the CFIA (Canadian Food Inspection Agency) sent us an email stating that they had received a “trade complaint” about the labelling of Ironworks Vodka. They told us that vodka had to be made from only grain or potato and without distinctive character, aroma and taste, and would we please remove vodka from the label as soon as possible.

We said ‘no’ and so the war was on.

There were meetings. And phone calls. And letters asking when we were going to “bring the product into compliance”. We kept explaining that we would not be doing that. They even threatened at one point to “seize the product”. Throughout it all, we refused to change the label and insisted that they look at re-writing the rules.

All this time, our Local Member of Parliament, Bernadette Jordan, and her tireless team, were working behind the scenes in concert with former MP Scott Brison, to convince the Minister of Agriculture to revise the compositional standards of Canada’s Food Labelling and bring them into alignment with the rest of the major world markets.

Finally, in June 2019, the government announced that it would be changing the compositional standards as we requested. Victory.

The CFIA asserts that the new regulations will “encourage competition, facilitate interprovincial and international trade, promote innovation and enable cost-savings”. Those statements are all well and good but remain to be proven. The most important piece of the puzzle for us micro-distillers is allowing for creativity and the production of unusual, delicious and very local “vodka” that is now able to compete internationally using the name and definition that it deserved all along.

To the half dozen or so distillers making “unorthodox” vodka in Canada – you’re welcome!

Sometimes persistence pays off, and not just for your own business.

Read the new standards

 Image courtesy of Taste of Nova Scotia