A Stump in the Grove: Honouring BC’s Majesty with a Cocktail

The Story of our Cathedral Grove
Inspired Cocktail: a Stump in the Grove

We Love the Wild, Ancient Trees of Vancouver Island

The unexpected encounters with creatures of the forest; the grandeur of massive groves of ancient cedars and firs.  This is why we decided to create a cocktail based on this beautiful piece of land called Cathedral Grove.

Cathedral Grove is 157 hectares of ancient Douglas Fir trees, and it’s the only stand of Douglas Fir trees in British Columbia accessible by highway.  If you haven’t seen massive trees in person before, we highly recommend getting out to Cathedral Grove to experience these wonders of nature.  So wondrous, in fact, that the grove made the short list for the Seven Wonders of Canada competition held by CBC television in 2007.  The 157 hectares that are Cathedral Grove on Vancouver Island, British Columbia, Canada are part of 301 hectares that make up MacMillan Provincial Park.  You’ll find these gargantuan trees towering over highway 4 in central Vancouver Island – 25 km west of Qualicum Beach and 16 km east of the small town of Port Alberni.

A Stump in the Grove, one of our first wilderness cocktail creations, honours the beauty and majesty of our very own British Columbian coastal forests. We’ve carefully selected winter spices and foraged needles and mixed them with Stump Coastal Forest Gin and Woods Amaro Bitter Liqueur.

To offset the bitterness of the Amaro and the citrus kick from the lime, we created a sweet tea through steeping winter spices in boiling water and sugar. We finished the cocktail with lime, and rimmed with salt infused with the tips of Grand Fir needles (which have a subtle pineapple / citrus taste).  It’s decidedly woodsy, herbaceous, and earthy. The citrus blend of the tree needles, gin, and amaro accentuates the grandeur of the surrounding towering giants on a cool, British Columbian May morning.

Stump in the Grove Ingredients:

1.5 oz (45 ml) Stump Coastal Forest Gin

0.75 oz (22.5 ml) Woods Amaro Bitter Liqueur

0.75 oz (22.5 ml) Lime juice

0.75 oz (22.5 ml) Sweet Winter-Spiced Tea

Serve on the rocks, garnished with Grand Fir tip infused sea salt on the rim

Sweet Winter-Spiced Tea:

A handful of cinnamon, juniper berries, star anise, clove, and allspice mixed with equal parts sugar and water. Simmer all of these ingredients together for 20-25 minutes.

This actually isn’t the first time we’ve used ingredients from the forest in a cocktail. It certainly won’t be the last. Have any ideas or suggestions for mixed drinks that come from the forest? Mention them in the comments below and we’ll give them a try! Assuming they’re legal.

A word of warning: don’t forage ingredients yourself unless you know what you’re doing. Not all plant in our forests are edible. If you want to safely experience unique cocktails like A Stump in the Grove, join our expert bartenders at an outdoor event.

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