Recipes  

7 Innovative Local Drinks to Refresh Yourself This Spring

Refreshment is synonymous with spring! All that’s needed are a few good ideas to add some sunshine to our drinks. Meet a few new local and innovative products that have made their way into our glasses.

Yerba maté-based infusion

Mate libre has always stood out by offering unique products. This bet has been won with their natural drink, qualified as an “energizing infusion,” made of yerba maté. The latter comes from a tree found in South America. Composed of simple, organic and fair-trade ingredients, all of Mate libre’s products are plant-based and add a kick to your day much like an espresso would, with 45 mg of caffeine in each 250 ml can. Four flavours are available for you to discover, if you haven’t already: original, mint and lime, rose and hibiscus, and passion. And as of this spring, the company has decided to completely eliminate plastic from their packaging. We love that! matelibre.com

Mate Libre

Sparkling maple water

Maple sap has another vocation here than making syrup. It’s transformed instead into sparkling water, like Maple 3 and their new line of drinks in three flavours: original, lime, and peach and mango. Refreshing and only lightly sweetened, it’s enjoyed both by more active people as well as those who want to try unknown flavours. The product is 100% natural and has no added sugar, given that it’s made of maple sap harvested in the spring. It is then filtered and bottled, retaining its electrolytes and minerals. Enjoy it at any time of year, not just during maple season! maple3.ca

Maple 3

Kombucha  

There are already quite a number of kombucha brands on the market. So what distinguishes Lao Kombucha from the rest? It’s because they’ve revolutionized the world of beverages with smart and original blends. They’ve created flavour profiles (fruity, floral, herbaceous, aromatic and rustic), allowing you to choose your preferred type for your taste buds. They even suggest food pairings to go with your kombucha choice! We particularly enjoyed “Mojito Inspired.” Made with green tea, fresh herbs and lime leaves, it’s the perfect way to quench your thirst. laokombucha.com

Lao Kombucha

Drinks starring “ugly” fruit

You can never have too much kombucha with Club Kombucha! Welcome to the club, where their fresh products are made with a majority of organic ingredients and juice made of “ugly” fruit. Simplicity is the name of the game with flavours like grapefruit, berries, ginger, raspberry and clementine. Sold in a can, these products are a nod to beer with their sour, spicy or bitter flavours. It’s also possible to purchase Club Sélect, a kombucha made of blackcurrant and rhubarb, available in a 750 ml bottle. Not only is it brisk and invigorating, it is also simply good! clubkombucha.ca

Club Kombucha

Sodas 2.0 

Those of you who remember the famous Marco spruce beer are going to want to try the ginger beer from the same company. The latter, in business since 1956, is still coming up with products that go off the beaten path. Black cherry soda, orangeade and birch beer are just a few of their classics. Dive head-first into this refreshing and sparkling soda, with the bold and up-front taste of ginger. For a few months now, it’s been available in a can, making it easy to take with you on the go. Add it to cocktails or enjoy it on its own for an alcohol-free drink! sodasmarco.com

Marco

Sea buckthorn kombucha

Fermented drinks are all the rage, and new products seem to be launching all the time. Aside from green-tea-based kombucha, there is a world of enzymes and yeasts that are evolving non-stop. Among the more recent ones, Quebec business Kombucha du Mont-Ferréol stands out with a 100% local product made of sea buckthorn. A drink prepared with Quebec fruit. In fact, the ingredients required to make this kombucha come from producers within a 150 km radius of the brewery. The result is a drink that is slightly acidic, effervescent, thirst-quenching and, of course, local! kmfkombucha.com

Mont-Ferréol

New tonics

We love turning to Quebec products when making cocktails, starting with 100% local tonics, made with natural flavours and sugars. 1642 has launched a new elderflower tonic that leaves a floral taste on your tongue. It enhances its drinks with boreal flavours and notes of juniper, for example. The company has also released a light tonic, less sweet than the original, but still very enjoyable. Mix the tonic with your choice of spirit or just add slices of lemon and some ice to enjoy it at its most simple. It’s refreshing and will set the tone for the warmer season ahead! 1642.ca

1642

Photo credits : Alexandre L Thibault (Kombucha du Mont-Ferréol), 1642.ca (1642 Tonics).