Alambika

OUR STORE
All Eco-friendly LED lighting, featured in Montreal Guide of design since its creation, and showcasing all the items you see online, the Alambika store is definitely a destination to stop by on your next trip to Montreal. Pretty much all the cocktail bitters, syrups and garnishes are available for you to sample. Our friendly and knowledgeable staff will help you making choices, be it for providing you with all the information you need to buy the right Japanese knife, or for selecting the cocktail ingredients that will match your tastes and budget. Looking for us? We are a few minutes away from Beaubien Metro Station, close to a bus stop, and there is always parking available nearby. There are simply no good excuses not to come see us, and taste the best cocktail cherries you’ll ever have!

OUR MISSION
The most straight forward way to describe Alambika : a toy store for everyone who enjoys a fine glass of wine, beer and spirit, and whoever likes to experiment with the wide and interesting world of the cocktail. Although admittedly hedonistic, our goal remains a pragmatic one, namely to bring to the masses high-quality products, which will increase the enjoyment of liquid consumption, each and every day.

THE BEST TEAM
Launched in 2012 by Jean-Sébastien Michel, an academic with a huge fascination for alcohol and prohibiton, Alambika quickly became a team project. Our first hiring criteria is to find motivated people with a good heart. We believe that it’s possible to learn the technicalities of a job. But what is harder to learn is devotion and passion. The result? Today, the Alambika team is the driving force behind our young organization.

OUR APPROACH
Alambika’s approach is quite different than many Canadian stores. We prioritize handmade products, providing the most transparency we can, in the most democratic way possible. For that reason, Alambika tries to work directly with producers to have a constantly increasing offer of small batch, high­end quality products, while staying affordable at the same time. Every year we assure a regular income to canadian glassblowers, blacksmiths, woodworkers, designers, confectioners and other local craftsmen.

OUR VALUES
To be in business is one thing, but it’s our passion for what we do that makes the efforts worthwhile. Testimonies from barmen tell us that Alambika has been instrumental of their success by making available a steady stream of high quality ingredients and tools. Also, in addition to our mission to encourage local craftsmen and to support the cocktail scene, Alambika established from the start a strict green policy, invested in design (and is mentioned in Montreal’s design guide since its beginning), has supported projects such as La Grande Dégustation and got locally involved in its neighbourhood’s revitalization. This, altogether, is just a beginning because, to us, it is obvious that having a successful company means to be in a privileged position to give back and improve the community that surrounds us, and which makes us live.

OUR GREEN POLICY
Recycling: Systematic recycling or reuse of packaging materials.

Green Products: We strive to find and develop a range of green products made from recycled or renewable materials. Also, in this context, several projects with local artisans have resulted in organic, renewable and non-industrial means.

Paperless Office: Minimal use of paper is done in all our operations. When necessary, we use recycled paper. This is also why we put so much emphasis on e-marketing instead of using traditional means.

Environmentally Friendly Packaging: Use of protective foam and recycled or biodegradable cardboard.

Quality Before Quantity: By opting for quality, our products are designed to last a long time, thus limiting our impact on landfills.

Grouped Imports: Whenever possible, our orders from foreign suppliers are streamlined to reduce unnecessary transportation.

Energy-efficient Measures: Our premises are isolated by using the latest technologies (urethane and double isolated windows), heating was converted to a 99% effective electric option and all our lighting uses LED lights. We are proud to underline that our project was also accepted into the energy efficient buildings program of Hydro-Quebec.

CUSTOMERS
Alambika is a proud partner of prestigious clients, such as the Château Frontenac in Quebec, Montreal’s Ritz Carleton and the Four Seasons in Vancouver, but also of about a hundred specialized cocktail bars and restaurants in North America. Our clients are enthusiastic and curious people, and bon vivants… just like you!

FUTURE
For us, every cocktail that is garnished with a cherry of quality – and not a fluorescent red and, no doubt, radioactive cherry – is a victory and a step towards a better future. We won’t stop working on our mission, as long as there are ugly glasses, syrups made from modified corn, olives without taste and knives as dull as spoons!