{"id":535402,"date":"2026-03-14T07:07:10","date_gmt":"2026-03-14T07:07:10","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/535402\/"},"modified":"2026-03-14T07:07:10","modified_gmt":"2026-03-14T07:07:10","slug":"with-u-s-bottles-off-the-shelves-local-whisky-is-having-a-moment-in-quebec-will-it-last","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/535402\/","title":{"rendered":"With U.S. bottles off the shelves, local whisky is having a moment in Quebec. Will it last?"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"Text<\/p>\n

Listen to this article<\/p>\n

Estimated 4 minutes<\/p>\n

The audio version of this article is generated by AI-based technology. Mispronunciations can occur. We are working with our partners to continually review and improve the results.<\/p>\n

Rows and rows of barrels line the cellar at the Distillerie de Montr\u00e9al.\u00a0<\/p>\n

The alcohol inside these containers ages for years before being bottled and shipped off to Quebec\u2019s liquor board, the Soci\u00e9t\u00e9 des alcools du Qu\u00e9bec (SAQ).<\/p>\n

The distillery in Montreal\u2019s Rosemont neighbourhood says demand for its spirits has been growing for years. But recently, there\u2019s one product in particular trending among customers. <\/p>\n

\u201cOur whisky production has gone up majorly,\u201d says Alex Arpin, the distillery\u2019s production manager. \u201cWe’ve more than doubled our sales. It\u2019s one of our best sellers.\u201d<\/p>\n

The recent boost has even put a spotlight on the distillery\u2019s honey whisky liqueur, Abeille, now one of its most sold products. Distillery co-owner Lilian Wolfelsberger beams with pride when talking about the concoction.<\/p>\n

\u201cWith the recipe for our Montreal whisky, we integrate honey, a spring honey from the Miels d’Anicet farm, and we make a Jack Daniel\u2019s [Tennessee] Honey-style drink but with real honey and no caramel or colorants,\u201d he explains.<\/p>\n

\"TwoThe Distillerie de Montr\u00e9al\u2019s honey whisky liqueur is now one of its best selling products. (Sharon Yonan-Renold\/CBC)<\/p>\n

He says the \u201cinternational context with our American neighbours\u201d has allowed them to have more shelf space at the SAQ.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cBut I also think our clients are more conscious of how important local markets are,\u201d he adds.<\/p>\n

‘More room for Quebec products’<\/p>\n

In spring 2025, the Quebec government asked the SAQ to remove all American products from its shelves<\/a> and halt the supply of American alcoholic beverages to agencies, grocery stores, restaurants and bars in response to tariffs imposed by U.S. President Donald Trump.<\/p>\n

The SAQ now says that between March 2025 and January 2026, sales of locally produced whisky increased by 114 percent, surpassing growth for products like wine, brandy and rum.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhisky in general has always been a strong category,\u201d explains \u00c9lo\u00efse Michaud, category manager for Quebec products at the SAQ.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019ve had big names, big products in the category. Removing the offer of important U.S. products has just given more room for Quebec products.\u201d<\/p>\n

WATCH | What’s behind the thirst for Quebec whisky?:<\/p>\n

The Union qu\u00e9b\u00e9coise des microdistilleries says a lack of competition in the whisky market is also giving Quebec sellers a boost. General manager Paul Goulet explains that whisky takes a minimum of three years to age and tends to be less popular in Quebec than in other provinces.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhisky is a growing market but it is a small portion of the products that our members are making. That\u2019s why the number seems very impressive,\u201d he says.<\/p>\n

Maintaining momentum<\/p>\n

Goulet says the real challenge will be maintaining this momentum once American bottles eventually return to SAQ shelves. He says the organization isn\u2019t leaving it up to chance.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe are very active with the SAQ, doing some training with their people in the various outlets so they develop the reflex of proposing Quebec products as alternatives,\u201d says Goulet.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019re hopeful that people will discover that we\u2019re making great quality products in Quebec and once they\u2019ve tried it, they won\u2019t want to go back to American-made ones.\u201d<\/p>\n

The SAQ says the local whisky market is also expanding.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019ve known for the past few years that distillers are working on new products and will eventually present them to the SAQ to market,\u201d says Michaud.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cWe don\u2019t exactly know when because they take a long time to make, so we just have to wait and see what they have to offer.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"ADistillerie de Montr\u00e9al\u2019s co-owner Lilian Wolfelsberger is confident local sales won\u2019t drop once American alcohols are sold at the SAQ again. (Sharon Yonan-Renold\/CBC)<\/p>\n

Wolfelsberger says he\u2019s confident boosted interest in local whisky will continue, even after U.S. products are sold at the SAQ again \u2014 though they probably won\u2019t fully replace established brands like Maker’s Mark and Jack Daniel\u2019s.<\/p>\n

\u201c[We\u2019ve proven] that we have a place in the heart of Quebecers and at their bars,\u201d he says.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Listen to this article Estimated 4 minutes The audio version of this article is generated by AI-based technology.…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":535403,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[194292],"tags":[49,48,2338],"class_list":["post-535402","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-montreal","tag-ca","tag-canada","tag-montreal"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/535402","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=535402"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/535402\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/535403"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=535402"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=535402"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=535402"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}