Blog Archives - Deep Blue Distilleries

FIFA 2026 Is Coming to Vancouver. Will Visitors Actually Taste Canada?

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On June 13, 2026, Vancouver begins hosting FIFA World Cup matches. Over the six weeks that follow, the city will welcome more international visitors than any event in a generation. They’ll fill hotels, restaurants, tasting rooms, and bars. They’ll explore the city, ask locals for recommendations, and look for authentic experiences they can’t find back […]

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Your Guest from São Paulo Just Asked for a Canadian Gin. Here’s Your Shelf.

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Last week I wrote that international guests arriving for FIFA will be asking a simple question: “What’s actually local?” Bars, restaurants, hotels, and liquor stores across BC have a short window to prepare an answer. The problem is that many back bars aren’t as local as they appear. A BC story on the label is

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Inside Deep Blue Distilleries’ Rare Hungarian Hagyo Still

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Why We Chose One of North America’s Most Unique Vodka Stills for Charm Vodka Inside Deep Blue Distilleries in Richmond, BC sits a 450-litre still that is one of only two of its kind in North America. It’s a Hagyo still – designed and built in Miskolc, Hungary by a family-owned distillation equipment manufacturer founded

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Born in a Trade War: The Defiance of Fighter Vodka

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Sometimes, it takes an external threat to clarify who we are. For years, the Canadian spirits market was dominated by massive U.S. corporations, many of whom used “Canada-washing” to blend in. But when the trade war began, when our borders were weaponized and our industries were targeted, the mask came off. It became clear that

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The Maple Leaf Is Coming Off the Shelves

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At Deep Blue Distilleries in Richmond, every drop of spirit in every bottle we ship is made on site. The water is local. The grain is British Columbia. The still, a Hagyo column with porcelain tubes, sits about thirty feet from where this is being written. The company that owns the brand has its head

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The Entitlement of Extraction: Corporate Bullying as a Business Model

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For over a century, a specific pattern has defined American corporate expansion: the Entitlement of Extraction. This is the belief that foreign markets are not partners to be traded with, but territories to be stripped of wealth, resources, and value. The goal is always the same: to ship the profits back to the United States

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The Misleading Narrative: Why American Decline is a Canadian Choice

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If you read the international headlines, you will see a lot of hand-wringing about the “unprecedented” decline of the American alcohol industry. The media points to health-conscious consumers and shifting tastes, but they are missing the most significant factor: the Canadian consumer has stopped showing up. For decades, the American spirits industry relied on Canada

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The Missing Party: Why the New Generation is Losing More Than Just a Drink

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There is a lot of speculation lately about why alcohol sales are down across North America. While the common narrative points to a “health-conscious” shift, that is only a fraction of the story. In Canada, we are seeing a patriotic shift as citizens make the correct, quiet decision to avoid American corporate brands. When Canadians

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Beyond the Vodka Cranberry: Elevating the Standard Ask

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Every bartender has reached for the soda gun or a carton of cranberry cocktail more times than they can count. It is the default for a guest who does not know what they want. However, the standard “Vodka Cranberry” is rarely a premium experience. Most mass-market cranberry mixers are actually apple juice, sugar water, and

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Why Canadians Are Choosing Local Spirits More Than Ever

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Canadian consumers are changing the way they shop – and the spirits industry is feeling it. In recent months, a combination of trade tensions, supply restrictions, and shifting consumer values has led to a noticeable decline in U.S. alcohol availability across parts of Canada. In its place, locally made products are gaining ground. But this

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