Acerum: 100% Quebec maple alcohol

By Teilor Stoneon in News

L’acerum: l’alcool d’ 100% Quebec maple  /></p> <p>Gin, whiskey, cream, liqueur… Maple has long been mixed with all kinds of alcohols. While we seem to have made the rounds, a newcomer is starting to make its mark: acerum, a maple eau-de-vie from our region.  </p> <p>“Les Scots have scotch, French have cognac, Mexicans have mezcal, Americans have bourbon — Quebecers now have acerum,” the Union of Maple Spirits Distillers proclaims on its website. But what is acerum, first of all? </p> <p>It is actually a spirit obtained by the distillation of alcohol from the fermentation of maple sap. “<em>Acerum</em> comes from the contraction of the Latin words <em>acer</em>meaning <em>maple</em> and English <em>rum</em> meaning <em>rum</em>, thus referring to a fermentation and distillation of the same type as for rum, but where the sugar of cane is replaced by that of maple”, specifies the Union of distillers of maple spirits. </p> <p>To ensure that it is an exclusively Quebec alcohol, the Union of Maple Spirits Distillers has even registered the “acerum” certification mark with the Canadian Intellectual Property Office. According to its specifications, only maple water from Quebec, maple water concentrate from Quebec or maple syrup from Quebec can be used as raw materials for fermentation and 100% of each product must have been fermented, distilled and bottled in a distillery located in Quebec. </p> <h3><strong>Maple differently</strong> </h3> <p>Different from alcohol-maple mixtures, acerum also allows “to discover maple syrup in a whole new facet”, underlines Rose Simard, founder of <em>1 or 2 Cocktails</em>. </p> <p>“Previously, maple syrup has always been used to flavor an alcohol, for example, a maple whiskey, she illustrates. Now, rather than flavoring it, it becomes the base of the drink.” </p> <p>The taste of acerum is also completely different from that of other maple alcohols. Far from the very sweet taste of maple as we know it, “acerum can taste like coconut, pear or apple”, explains Rose Simard.   </p> <p>On is “halfway between rum and whiskey”, acerum being “sweeter than whiskey, less than rum”, specifies the expert, who recommends it precisely to lovers of brown spirits. </p> <h3><strong>First steps</strong> </h3> <p>Although there are now a few bottles at the SAQ, acerum, first marketed by the Shefford Distillery, has only been around since 2017 and is still very marginal. The distillers who produce it are few for the moment: in addition to the Shefford Distillery (Shefford), there are notably the Distillerie du St. Laurent (Rimouski), the O'Dwyer Distillerie Gaspésienne (Gaspé), at Domaine Acer (Auclair) and at Domaine Small in Sainte-Agathe-de-Lotbinière. </p> <p>This rarity is explained in particular by the high value of its raw material, maple, which is very expensive. The distilleries that make it therefore do so above all to differentiate themselves from the competition, to create a product that is out of the ordinary, and that is 100% Quebecois, believes Rose Simard. And perhaps also because many “have gone around gin”, she laughs.  </p> <p>Over time, acerum should however become popular and win even more in quality, says the spirits lover. “As everyone is still in their first <em>batches</em>, there is a lot of room for improvement,” she concludes. </p> <h3 id=The Daiquiri with acerum by Rose Simard 

Ingredients 

For 1 glass 

• 2 oz of Acerum, Distillerie du St. Laurent 

• 1 oz fresh lime juice

• 0.75 oz simple syrup

Garnish 

Homemade mixture of salt and nori sheets (for frosting)  

To make this mixture, grind 4 nori sheets and 1 tbsp. tablespoons coarse sea salt together in a blender or using a mortar.

Steps 

• Rim a glass by squeezing a wedge of lime around its edge, then passing it through a plate containing the salt mixture and nori leaves. 

• Pour all the ingredients into a shaker. 

• Add ice cubes and shake vigorously. 

• Double strain through chilled frosted glass using a fine strainer. 

Teilor Stone has been a reporter on the news desk since 2013. Before that she wrote about young adolescence and family dynamics for Styles and was the legal affairs correspondent for the Metro desk. Before joining The Bobr Times, Teilor Stone worked as a staff writer at the Village Voice and a freelancer for Newsday, The Wall Street Journal, GQ and Mirabella. To get in touch, contact me through my teilor@nizhtimes.com 1-800-268-7116
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