Hamilton’s Collective Arts is moving into distilling and adding two gins to its craft beer and cider portfolio.
Co-founder Matt Johnston says one is its flagship Artisanal Dry Gin, the other is a seasonal Rhubarb and Hibiscus Gin, and both were recent silver medal winners at the San Fransisco World Spirits Competition.
Both products will go on sale through the Liquor Control Board of Ontario (LCBO) starting on May 1.
Johnston notes that they are a company “founded on creativity which seems to also mean that we’re founded on chaos,” adding that “we plan to have a lot of fun in the gin space.”
He says it’s “like-minded to craft beer in that it is fairly quickly made, but all about the ingredients and botanicals.”
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Johnston says this is also just the start for Collective Arts Distilling, with plans to start producing barrel-aged products in the future.
The craft beers which are sold by Collective Arts are known for featuring the work of artists on the cans.
Johnston says the plan for the spirits involves commissioning art to be painted on the bottles. When you’re done drinking the gin, he adds that “you’re left with a beautiful bottle with a beautiful limited release piece of art.”
Collective Arts was founded in Hamilton in 2013 with a goal of creating new social experiences for drinkers to connect with artists from around the world.
To date, over 900 artists and musicians have been featured through the sale of its products.
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