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28 SPRING 2018 Awards are proof positive this vodka rocks BY JIM TIMLICK A small Winnipeg-based distillery is making a big name for itself on the craft spirits scene. Earlier this year, Capital K Distillery earned four awards at the Canadian Artisan Spirit Competition (CASC), which recognizes the best offerings from the country's microdistillers. Capital K picked up a gold medal for its Tall Grass vodka, two silvers for its gin and dill pickle vodka and a bronze for the company's espresso vodka. The CASC, Canada's only national spirits award program, featured over 200 entries from more than 50 craft distilleries across the country. Judging was conducted by a panel of eight industry experts from coast to coast and was based on a point system in four categories: Nose, palate, balance and finish. Capital K owner Jason Kang says the awards provided the upstart company with a measure of validation. Even though he and his staff were confident about their product based on customer feedback, the wins were proof that they were on the right track. "At the start I kind of doubted myself. It was like, 'Oh my god, can I actually make this? Maybe I can't make it.' I knew I had to keep trying but I was torturing myself about it," he says, laughing. "We got 99.9 per cent positive feedback from our customers. That proves something, but it doesn't prove everything. Once we won these awards it was like we were getting approval on a professional level. All the judges were professionals. If they say this is good … that means you've got something." The CASC awards were the culmination of three years of blood, sweat and more than a few tears for Kang. A former convenience store owner, he sold that business in January 2015 to start his own distillery. He'd long been fascinated with brewing and started off making batches of beer and wine for his friends while attending university. He readily admits his early efforts left something to be desired. "I didn't make great beer," he laughs. "I made very powerful beer. Sometimes it was over 10 per cent alcohol. My friends were drinking it and said, 'Wow, this is very strong.' I thought if I can make beer I can make liquor too, so I started looking into it." Kang grew up in Tianjin, a port city of more than 15 million people on the northern coast of China, before moving to Winnipeg with his parents in 2003. After scouring the Internet for distilling methods and recipes, he connected online with a master distiller in his former homeland who shared his more than 30 years of experience with Kang. From there, he learned everything he could about Western distilling methods, attending workshops and picking the brains of various distillers for nuggets of information. "I got to a point where I was thinking I'm pretty sure I can start making a commercial product from the distilling point of view," he says. CAPITAL K DISTILLERY LIGHTNING IN A BOTTLE

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