Eau Claire Cherry Gin Collins 4PK Cans

Distillery

Originally written by Evan in a blog post for KWM's 2019 Whisky Calendar. Updated in February 2025.

Time flies. Eau Claire Distillery in the Diamond Valley is now just about a decade in on the whisky game.

Let’s go back a few years. Eau Claire Distillery was originally founded in 2013 by David Farran, making it the first modern craft distillery to launch in Alberta after provincial government regulations were changed to make smaller-scale commercial distilling possible. It resides in Diamond Valley (the town was formerly known as Turner Valley, but was amalgamated with the nearby Black Diamond in 2023) within about an hour’s drive southwest of Calgary. The Distillery was installed in what was once Diamond Valley’s movie theatre and Dance Hall, a building that was originally built in 1929.

Eau Claire always planned to make whisky – more than that – they wanted to make whisky using grain from local fields when possible, even going old school and horse harvesting when they could. In order to do this, the distillery, of course, needed income, and to enable this they have been making Vodka, Gin, and other spirits, and even their own tonic water. This is party of the template for opening a distillery, and Eau Claire was the first craft distillery to do it in Alberta, though many others have followed since.

All of Eau Claire's products have been well-received both within Alberta and outside the province, not just their whisky. Their story and operation gets people to make the trek to the distillery itself as well, or at the very least to go see their booth at the Calgary Farmer’s Market. Caitlin Quinn, Eau Claire's Master Distiller, has been with the company since 2016 and has been the leader for just about all of their spirit and whisky releases.

So far, the future seems bright for the Eau Claire Distillery, so let's pour a glass of their Single Malt Whisky and offer them a toast before jumping into the glass ourselves!