D I S T I L L E R Y P R O F I L E
Mad Laboratory brews in a
23-hectolitre lauter tun, which was purchased
used from Sons of Vancouver
Distilling. The distillery’s still is a custombuilt,
stainless steel, direct-fire pot still with
a thumper that was built from scrounged
parts and then welded together by a close
friend of the company. This one-of-a-kind
still design allows the direct-fire heat source
to caramelize some of the unfermented
sugars, which gives Mad Laboratory’s final
products a memorable rich and toasty finish.
The majority of the equipment found
at Mad Laboratory, such as the Cornelius
kegs – built into a carbon filter – and the
innovative manual gravity feed, are made
from modified gear that’s been repurposed
to meet the distillery’s exact needs.
“Our shop was built on the idea that if
it wasn’t an absolute necessity, we would
need to do without it,” said Thompson.
“Our cash was low at the start, but we
made it work; originally brewing in a
small open vessel and stirring by hand,
and then finding creative ways to lauter
our mash. All of our processes are painfully
manual and we get to see a true
melding of art and science, incorporating
human interaction into each and every
step along the way. I believe that the time
we take with our spirits is showcased in
our final products.”
Mad Laboratory currently produces
two vodkas (the double distilled Viking
Vodka and the triple-distilled Mad Lab
Vodka), a cucumber gin (Mad Laboratory
Gin6) and a white single malt (Mad Dog
Single Malt). The distillery also offers two
popular flavours of Kombucha Cordial
(Blueberry and Cranberry-Orange), which
have become hits with customers because
of the low sugar content and complex flavours.
Kombucha Cordial is a great cocktail
ingredient that adds a big, juicy component
without tossing in a lot of sugar. In
the same vein, Mad Laboratory’s Turkishstyle
raki (created with aniseed and raisin),
ULKERaki, contains only four grams
of sugar per bottle, but possesses a big, bold
flavour with fantastic smoothness.
Like a father, Thompson is truly proud
of every product his distillery comes up
with and considers picking a favourite
product like trying to choose a favourite
child. Mad Laboratory comes up with
each new recipe by first selecting a flavour
profile and then creating small-sample
batch tests and blends until it hits the
right balance of flavour, sweetness and
smoothness; taking inspiration from food
and drink, and attempting to capture or
complement a specific flavour.
“Most of the things that we are currently
producing are based on traditional
spirits, and we try to be as true to the
classic as possible,” said Thompson. “And
while our still may not be the most efficient
design out there – in fact it may be
one of the least efficient – it allows us to
carefully select what we want to remain
in our spirit, and what we want to get
rid of. It lets us cleanly pull out the harsh
chemicals while still retaining the flavours
and characteristics we desire in our
final product.”
12 § POURED CANADA § www.poured.ca
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