Sagar Chhabra, bartender at Stumbletown Distillery mixes a drink using Sunset Gin. (Julia Lovett-Squires/battlefordsNOW Staff)

By Julia Lovett-Squires

Sunset Gin

‘Give it a chance’: Tariffs offer opportunity for local flavours to shine

Mar 21, 2025 | 3:30 PM

With event goers sipping on their Tom Collins drinks and chatting among themselves, Sagar Chhabra said it’s an exciting time to be in the beverage world.

“This will keep an eye open to the market to support local,” said the Stumbletown Distillery bartender.

“Obviously Saskatchewan is the community here, they do support local, but this will be like ‘No….we’re really going to support local.’”

The bottles of Sunset Gin. (Julia Lovett-Squires/battlefordsNOW Staff)

The gin master had come from Saskatoon to take part in Wednesday night’s product launch and tasting of Sunset Gin in collaboration with Co-Op Discovery and attendees were treated to a bevy of cocktails that call to mind blissful days of summer, paired with charcuterie.

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“Gin is a really growing category in liquor,” said Mike Nord, CEO of Discovery Co-Op.

He explained that the business has been in the Battlefords for 93 years and some of the products sold date back to the early 1930’s. Hard liquor, however, has only been carried since 2018.

A fancy cocktail. (Julia Lovett-Squires/battlefordsNOW Staff)

“Now that we have three stores, we wanted to again, showcase how we are different then maybe other stores that have things,” he said.

“We do have some exclusive products as well, but this is really the first one that is made exclusively just for us.”

According to the Co-Op Discovery introduction page, the gin is also a limited edition – only 500 bottles were made and feature local ingredients that include wild herbs and citrus.

“Gin is made up of juniper berries, angelica root, orange – dehydrated orange peel – along with that, what we added to give the vibes of sunset is coriander in there. We also added rosehips and Saskatoon berry,” said Chhabra.

Attendees enjoy drinks and food pairings on Mar. 19. (Julia Lovett-Squires/battlefordsNOW Staff)

As the tariff war continues, the Government of Saskatchewan recently directed Saskatchewan Liquor and Gaming Authority (SLGA) to stop purchasing US-produced alcohol and has directed that goods and services procured by the Government of Saskatchewan prioritize Canadian suppliers, with the goal of reducing or eliminating US procurement. On Thursday, SLGA released a list of more than 50 American alcohol brands it won’t be purchasing in retaliation against the threat of tariffs from the United States.

Nord said the tariffs will have an impact on everyone, but Chhabra the timing could also help local producers shine.

“It’s an opportunity I would say for us,” he said, adding they’ve seen positive changes, new faces and had product enquiries.

“No matter if it’s a tariff, no tariff situation, we should always support local and then give it a chance to try the local breweries and distilleries – that’s how we can keep (off the tariff) if all of a sudden it pops up.”

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julia.lovett-squires@pattisonmedia.com

On BlueSky: juleslovett.blsy.social