Fifth and Vermouth proudly presents Madeleine MacDonald, the Food & Beverage Service Instructor at SAIT (Southern Alberta Institute of Technology), and her story on how she has impacted the Calgary cocktail scene. Madeleine has been in the hospitality industry for over 17 years!
Starting her journey in the kitchen and then pursuing a Hospitality Management Diploma at SAIT, she then fell in love with cocktails after starting a job as a bartender at Model Milk in Calgary. Madeleine went on to compete and win Mademoiselle Cointreau Alberta in 2014, which allowed her to visit the Cointreau distillery with female bartenders from across Canada. She has completed her Certified Specialist of Spirits through the Wine Educators of Canada and was chosen as one of the only Canadians for Drink Factory London’s summer stage program.
Madeleine was soon after named Beverage Director at Model Milk, Pigeonhole, and Model Citizen and was named one of the top 5 people to watch in Calgary’s food scene by Avenue Magazine in 2016. After leaving Model Milk, Madeleine helped open Calcutta Cricket Club and won a White Hat award for outstanding service in beverage as well as being nominated for the Mayor’s White Hat award in 2018. She continues to inspire the next generation of hospitality professionals in her role as a Food and Beverage Service instructor at SAIT Polytechnic. Madeleine has been an overwhelming voice within the Calgary cocktail scene, hosting events, doing community outreach, and working as the Alberta contact for Speed Rack Canada. Due to the recent events affecting the hospitality industry, Madeleine joined the team from the Bartenders Benevolent Fund to assist out-of-work hospitality workers to gain funding during this overwhelming time of need.
Madeleine presents to us, a cocktail from her experiences at Model Milk. Named after the song Goodbye Horses by Q Lazzarus, this cocktail is a floral variation of a whiskey sour. While working at Model Milk, this song was on the opening playlist. “We had one regular that would come in, commandeer the sound system and immediately put it on. I decided to name a cocktail after these antics. No complaints here since I actually do enjoy the song….and the cocktail!” – Madeleine MacDonald.
Goodbye Horses by Madeleine MacDonald
Ingredients:
- 5 oz Buffalo Trace Bourbon
- 5 oz St. Germain Elderflower Liqueur
- 1 oz. Fresh Lemon Juice
- 5 oz Gewurztraminer Wine Simple Syrup
- 1 Dash of Scrappy’s Cardamom Bitters
- 2 Dashes of Angostura Bitters
Preparing the Gewurztraminer Wine Simple Syrup:
Ingredients:
- 750 mL of Gewurztraminer Wine
- 2 cups of Sugar
Process:
Add all of the ingredients into a saucepan, heat on medium-low, and stir frequently. Remove from the heat once the sugar is completely dissolved. Cool and store in a food-safe container for up to 2 weeks.
The Cocktail Process:
Add all the ingredients into your Boston shaker. From there, add ice and shake until chilled. Double strain with your Hawthorne Strainer and your fine mesh strainer into a coupe glass. Enjoy!
If you want to learn more about Madeleine MacDonald, please check out her social media handle @madeleinemac or by visiting her Facebook page by clicking on the link here. If you want to know more about the great things SAIT is doing for hospitality & tourism, check out their Instagram @saithospitality.
