MONTREAL, Dec. 3, 2025 /CNW/ - Canada has a new reason to raise a glass! Marie-Louise Roy-Bilodeau, a Montreal bartender and the reigning Canadian Ultimate Bartender Champion, has officially claimed the Ultimate Bartender Championship (UBC) Americas title--beating out 26 of the top bartenders from North, South and Central America.

Hosted by Monkey Shoulder, the Ultimate Bartender Championship is one of the world's most rigorous tests of real-world bartending skills. Unlike traditional cocktail competitions, UBC challenges competitors across every facet of the job--from knowledge and speed, to accuracy, hospitality, and technical execution.

This year's Americas Final was one of the most competitive to date, with an exceptionally strong field of contenders and a packed crowd who watched each bartender advance through six high-pressure skill stages, including: The Quiz, Pouring, Nosing, Table Service, The Perfect Serve, and the highly demanding Round Building final.

Roy-Bilodeau excelled across the board, advancing to the semi-finals as the only woman remaining in the top four. In the final round--where competitors are tasked with producing five cocktails and a shot at top speed with flawless technique and balance--she delivered a performance that outpaced the region's best.

Her victory marks a major milestone for Canada on the international bartending stage.

"I wasn't expecting to win," said Roy-Bilodeau. "When I saw how many people, I was competing against I was very nervous --but everyone was so welcoming and made me feel included even though I was the only competitor who didn't speak Spanish! I'm so grateful to Monkey Shoulder for making his competition possible."

UBC's signature "SKILLS THAT PAY THE BILLS" is a unique bartending competition format as it puts as much weight on service and technique as on mixology itself--reflecting the real-world pace and pressure of a working bar. Whether precisely measuring pours to within one millilitre, identifying 10 spirits by aroma alone, or building round after round at speed, consistency is critical.

DANVILLE, Ky., Dec. 2, 2025 /PRNewswire/ -- Wilderness Trail, the award-winning Kentucky Distillery known for using modern science to optimize old-world distilling traditions, is proud to announce the launch of 6-Year-Old Private Barrel offerings in their single barrel lineup. This marks a notable milestone for the young craft distillery, which was founded only 13 years ago.

The collection features three distinct 6-year-old, single-barrel, cask-strength, non-chill filtered expressions including a Wheated Bourbon, a High-Rye Bourbon, and a Rye Whiskey. Each is meticulously crafted using Wilderness Trail's Sweet Mash process, proprietary yeast strains, and a Level 4 Alligator Char barrel profile to deliver elevated flavor definition and barrel complexity. 

Hand-selected for its distinct character and complexity, each single barrel is a testament to the combination of employing modern fermentation science with traditional Kentucky maturation techniques. Wilderness Trail's unconventional approach to traditional bourbon-making is crafted for the true whiskey enthusiast looking to explore alternative styles and is best enjoyed neat or on the rocks.

"At six years, our single barrels hit the sweet spot where our sweet mash fermentation and proprietary yeast strains deliver layered complexity without sacrificing balance," said Dr. Pat Heist, Co-Owner and Chief Scientific Officer of Wilderness Trail Distillery. "The Wheated, High-Rye bourbon, and Rye Whiskey selections let enthusiasts choose between softer high-wheat elegance and the vibrant spice and herbal nuance of rye, each barrel a distinct expression of science meeting tradition."

What's in the 6-Year-Old Private Barrel Offering

• Kentucky Straight Wheated Bourbon 6-Year-Old Private Barrel ($70): Bottled at cask strength and featuring a high-wheat mash bill for a uniquely soft and rich flavor, the Wheated Bourbon features a mash bill of 64% corn, 24% wheat, and 12% malted barley using proprietary yeast strains. This is one of Kentucky's highest wheat ratios, resulting in a softer, more nuanced flavor profile. Aged in #4 char barrels and entered at 110 proof, the tasting profile is characterized by sweet and nutty notes, encompassing vanilla, caramel, butterscotch, and stone fruit. Secondary notes include baking spice, oak, and barrel char.
• Kentucky Straight High-Rye Bourbon 6-Year-Old Private Barrel ($70): Bold and complex, the High Rye Bourbon is crafted with a unique mash bill of 64% corn, 24% rye, and 12% malted barley using proprietary yeast strains. Aged in #4 char barrels and entered at 110 proof, this bourbon stands out for its distinctly spicier, herbal, and botanical flavor profile. With balanced notes of rye spice, herbal complexity, and a hint of mint, the profile is complemented by aromatic tobacco, oak, cherry, citrus, and vanilla, underscored by a subtle smokiness.
• Kentucky Straight Rye Whiskey 6-Year-Old Private Barrel ($80): Crafted with 56% rye, 33% corn, and 11% malted barley, this refined Wilderness Trail mash bill presents a well-balanced flavor profile, engineered to showcase broader complexity and balance than conventional high-rye recipes. Aged in #4 char barrels at 105 proof, it's a true Kentucky original. Approachable and smooth, layered notes of plum, green apple and citrus are complemented by vanilla and baking spice, enhanced by gentle oak, barrel char, and subtle hints of mint, herbs, and botanicals.

All three product offerings will be permanently and widely available on shelves in the US beginning of January 2026. The Wheated Bourbon is available now for pre-order at the following link:

Casinos aren’t just about slot machines and card tables anymore. While the thought of a potential jackpot payout, or the thrill of taking a seat at the blackjack table and table games are the main attraction for some people, others are drawn in by the glitz and glamor of a full casino experience. And what’s more glitzy and glam than taking in a show?  

But let’s face it, Canadian casinos aren’t exactly Vegas. It’s unlikely that you’ll come across a residency by someone like Adele or Rod Stewart at the local casino in Kamloops. But nevertheless, local music events, comedy shows, dance troupes and even the occasional international headline act all perform at Canadian casinos.

But where should you go if you want to be entertained by the best in the business? There’s a big difference between a massive country music show in an arena that holds 10,000 people, and some guy who does comedy on his day off standing up for open mic night at the karaoke bar. And it’s safe to say that some Canadian casinos just aren’t geared up to host world-class entertainment. 

To help you out a little, we decided to go on a mission to find the casinos with the best entertainment options in all of Canada. Unfortunately, we didn’t manage to visit all of them ourselves, but we headed to Tripadvisor to find out what real people thought. We searched for mentions of particular keywords like “entertainment”, “live music” and “performance” and the more mentions a casino got, the higher it ranked on our very special scale. We’re going to tell you exactly which casinos came top of the list, and which ones leave a lot to be desired.

Here's our final ranking:

Credit to Casinos.com URL: 

Vancouver, BC, November 26, 2025 – This holiday season, five of Vancouver’s top cocktail destinations are joining forces for the inaugural ‘Sip into the Season’ cocktail crawl. From December 1-25, guests are invited to visit Botanist Bar, The Keefer Bar, Laowai, Meo, and June / LaLa, to experience a signature holiday cocktail from each bar's seasonal menu. Guests who visit each participating bar and enjoy a holiday cocktail can enter for a chance to win a one-night stay in a suite at Fairmont Pacific Rim, plus additional prizes.

“December is one of the busiest times of year for all of us behind the bar,” says Grant Sceney, creative beverage director at Fairmont Pacific Rim. “While we can’t be shaking drinks side-by-side, ‘Sip into the Season’ invites the community to share festive spirits with our industry friends.”  

A selection of the featured cocktails include:

Botanist Bar 
“Sleigh all Day”
Christmas pudding gin, aged rum, red wine, winter spices, black tea, citrus

The Keefer Bar  
“Quick Draw”
Lot 40 rye, sarsaparilla amaro, lemon, milk clarified, vanilla mochi  

Laowai  
“Via Galaxie”
Amaro Montenegro, Ardbeg Wee Beastie, raspberry, milk oolong, lemon juice 

Meo  
“Gingerbread Old Fashioned”
Calvados, gingerbread cordial, aromatic bitters, gingerbread cookie

June
“Noisette Manhattan”
brown butter Suntory Toki whisky, Pere Magloire Calvados, vermouth,
Champagne gomme, bitters

How to enter the contest: 
Order a festive cocktail at any participating location, snap a photo, and post it to Instagram tagging the bars - @botanistdining, @juneoncambie, @meochinatown, @thekeeferbar, and @whereislaowai – and include the hashtag #sipintotheseason. Each valid tagged story post counts as one entry. Winners will be selected at random and after December 25, 2025.  

“I look forward to raising a glass together with my fellow colleagues,” adds Sceney. “We hope we inspire guests to have a fun night out and can’t wait for them to share their holiday cocktail moments with us.” 

For more information about Sip into the Season, please visit