A decade of distilled character
There is a kind of quiet that only exists in places where work is repeated with care.
A still room. The soft edge of copper. The patience of grain becoming something else.
Simple truth: CIRKA is built on method, and method is what lasts.
In this anniversary story, you will see how CIRKA began, what the house believes in, and how a Montreal distillery earned its place in the industry through discipline rather than spectacle.
The moment the standard was chosen
CIRKA was founded by Paul Cirka with master distiller Isabelle Rochette.
The decision at the beginning was not to be different for the sake of it, but to be precise.
The distillery took shape along the Lachine Canal in Montreal, near the iconic Canada Malting silos.
There is history in that geography. Grain moved here long before CIRKA arrived. The city remembers it.
CIRKA simply chose to bring the work back, with mastery at its centre.
The CIRKA manifesto
“Grain-to-bottle” is often used as a phrase. At CIRKA, it is treated as discipline.
CIRKA is recognized as the first grain-to-bottle microdistillery in Quebec, producing spirits from grain to glass with local grain as its base.
That choice changes the spirit in ways that are easy to feel.
Clarity in the first impression.
Texture that holds.
Balance that stays intact as ice melts.
A finish that resolves instead of fading.
Isabelle Rochette describes it with a rare directness: “We were the first crazy enough to produce grain to glass.”
The next line matters even more: "It gives us full control over our base product to make it perfect".
A decade, shaped by proof
Some brands are built by headlines.
A distillery is built by repetition.
2014 to 2016: the beginning
CIRKA’s early arc: launched in 2014, then refined until production could begin with seriousness and intent. The first products hit store shelves in 2016.
2016: first releases, early recognition
Vodka Terroir arrives first as an early statement of intent: a vodka built for clarity and texture, validated quickly with gold medals at both The Vodka Masters and the SIP Awards.
A few months later, Gin Sauvage follows with boreal aromatics that evoke the Quebec forest, setting the house signature in a style that would later earn international recognition.
That same year, CIRKA is named Quebec Distillery of the Year by the New York International Spirits Competition.
Recognition matters when it is earned early, before the story is fully written.
2017 to 2019: a gin that carries the city
CIRKA released Gin 375, an Old Tom style gin created for Montreal’s 375th anniversary. A bottle shaped by local botanicals, honey, and the idea that place should be tasted.
In 2019, Gin 375 won Best Flavoured Gin (Canada) at the World Gin Awards, with a second-place finish toward the global title.
It is a reminder that structure can still be expressive.
2019: whisky begins to speak
In 2019, CIRKA launched Whisky Premier, the first release in the house whisky range, bringing a long-term vision into the glass after years of patient work.
It was the first chapter of a longer legacy, built to unfold slowly, with patience at its centre rather than urgency.
2021: the industry votes
Paul Cirka and Isabelle Rochette received a Laurier Gastronomy Award for excellence as producers, voted by industry professionals.
It is the kind of recognition that carries weight because it is peer given.
2022: Passion expands the palette
With Passion, CIRKA opened a brighter register without losing precision.
It marked a step forward in accessibility and cocktail culture, a liqueur designed for simple serves that still feel composed.
2023: the work travels, without losing its discipline
CIRKA collaborated with Michael Bublé on Fraser & Thompson, a whisky project that brought CIRKA’s craft and blending expertise onto a wider stage, without trading away the standard of the house.
2025: Quebec firsts, made tangible
In collaboration with Burgundy Lion, CIRKA released the first Quebec single malt whisky with an age statement, a milestone defined by time and control.
That same year, CIRKA introduced Ephemeral Series No.1, the first single malt in the Ephemeral Series: an exclusive, rare, and limited quantity release that proved the house could still take risks with discipline, exploring how method choices shape depth, texture, and finish.
Values, made visible
CIRKA’s values are not abstract. They live in decisions.
Attention to every detail is not a slogan. It is how spirits become repeatable.
CIRKA is also embedded in its terroir: sourcing from local farmers and foragers, collaborating with chefs and bartenders, and shaping liquids with regional character.
Even the mascot, Clovis the woodland caribou, is tied to an environmental message, pointing toward protection and responsibility rather than decoration.
What CIRKA means for the industry
CIRKA helped give Quebec craft spirits a clearer vocabulary: control, method, and repeatability.
The achievement is not only being early to grain-to-bottle. It is making it credible.
Awards and trade recognition matter, but the deeper impact is this: CIRKA showed that a Montreal microdistillery could produce spirits with repeatable structure and compete on a global stage.
What to keep from ten years
A distillery is not defined by one perfect moment.
It is defined by the ability to repeat a standard.
If CIRKA has proven anything, it is this: method creates trust.
Built in Montreal. Grain-to-bottle.
Ten years of audacity. Ten years of precision. Ten years of CIRKA.
