CREATIVE & INCLUSIVE CALGARY COCKTAIL CLASSES FOR FUN-LOVING ADULTS
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May 13th. Maybe it’s just another Tuesday. Maybe it’s a reason to crack ice, shake something bold, and raise a glass to the beautifully weird thing we call cocktail culture.
We say: it’s both.
World Cocktail Day isn’t just a hashtag holiday. It marks the first time the word “cocktail” was officially defined—in an 1806 newspaper, no less—as a “stimulating liquor composed of spirits of any kind, sugar, water, and bitters.”
A bittered sling, they called it.
An electioneering potion. A drink to stiffen the spine and soften the edges.
But if you think this day is only about sipping Old Fashioneds, think again.
This is a celebration of craft, chaos, creativity, and culture—served in a coupe, a coconut, or a good ol’ mason jar. From Japanese ice spheres to prairie spirits and clam-spiked tomato juice, the cocktail has evolved far beyond its humble four-part beginnings.
And here in Canada, we’ve given the world one of the wildest ones yet.
Let’s back up. Humans have been mixing their drinks for centuries. Fermented honey, mulled wines, medicinal tinctures—alcohol was often about preservation, medicine, and ritual long before it was about happy hour.
The cocktail as we know it started taking shape in the 18th and 19th centuries. It was equal parts barroom experimentation and cultural mashup, and like many good things, its name is steeped in delightful confusion. Some say it came from horses with docked “cocked” tails.
Others cite egg cups (coquetiers) in New Orleans, or the tailings at the bottom of casks.
The truth? Likely lost to history, but the stories are half the fun.
Once it had a name, the cocktail went global. American bartenders like Jerry Thomas codified recipes, while Prohibition forced creativity underground.
The 1920s speakeasies birthed some of the most iconic drinks we still know today—Sidecars, Bee’s Knees, and clever disguises for bathtub gin. Meanwhile, displaced American bartenders carried their skills (and recipes) abroad, fueling an international boom.
From Havana’s daiquiris to Italy’s aperitivos, cocktails evolved as a way to express regional tastes and rituals. Japan elevated bartending to an artform, carving ice with reverence and precision. The Caribbean brought rhythm, rum, and tropical flair.
The French 75 gave us champagne with a cannonball kick. Tiki bars added theatrics. Every era, every culture, every cocktail—another story in the glass.
But while most stories fixate on Manhattan or Martini culture, we’d argue that north of the 49th, we’ve got a tale just as bold.
Forget everything you know about brunch drinks. Canada’s contribution to the cocktail canon is equal parts outrageous and genius.
While Bryan Adams was busy getting his first real six-string in the summer of ’69, Calgary was getting to work on what would become Canada’s national cocktail. Born in 1969, the Caesar was Walter Chell’s ode to spaghetti alle vongole—pasta with clams.
He set out to create a cocktail that captured that savoury, seaside flavour. What he landed on? Vodka, Clamato (clam + tomato juice), Worcestershire, hot sauce, and a celery salt rim. Garnish with celery, or—these days—half a charcuterie board.
It’s salty. Spicy. Savoury. Weirdly refreshing. And somehow…it works. The Caesar is unapologetically Canadian, deeply satisfying, and a symbol of our national palate: inventive, comfort-driven, and just a little over the top.
Cocktail culture in Canada goes far beyond Caesars and curling clubs. We’re in the middle of a mixology renaissance—craft distilleries are popping up in forests, foothills, and forgotten prairie towns. Gin with wild juniper. Vodka from maple sap.
Bitters made with spruce tips and Labrador tea. Syrups kissed with fireweed, honey, and birch.
It’s not about being fancy. It’s about storytelling. Sourcing. Celebrating the land and the season. A true northern terroir.
And that’s what Spirit of the Wench is all about—creating drinks with a sense of place, purpose, and a dash of cheek.
Every good cocktail carries a story—sometimes history, sometimes rebellion, sometimes grief or joy or love.
The Old Fashioned is the original definition, unshaken since 1806. The French 75 is war and celebration in one.
The Aviation channels the wild promise of early flight.
The Negroni? An accident.
The Margarita? A border story.
The Caesar? A prairie fever dream with staying power.
And if you’re wondering what makes a cocktail more than a drink—it’s this. It’s the fact that when you sip one, you’re not just tasting a blend of liquid. You’re taking part in a lineage. You’re time traveling. You’re communing.
This World Cocktail Day, we invite you to make something—old or new, bold or quiet—and raise your glass to the weird and wonderful world of mixology.
Try an Old Fashioned, just for history. Try a Caesar, just for the hell of it. Or invent your own and name it after the inside joke that made you spit it out laughing the first time you tasted it.
Because cocktails aren’t about perfection. They’re about experimentation, connection, and flavour with feeling.
Snap a pic of your creation. Tag us on Instagram at @spiritofwench. Tell us what’s in the glass and what story it tells. Did your drink come from a backyard harvest, a breakup, a birthday, or a book? We want to know.
Let’s make World Cocktail Day not just a toast to the past, but a living celebration of what’s still being stirred.
This free guide is packed full of everything you ever wanted to know about whiskey!
You’ll learn fun and interesting facts about where whiskey comes from and how it’s made, what you should mix and what you should sip, and 10 delicious drink recipes to impress your friends with!
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