Closing cocktail

Jean-Sébastien Michel is a Quebec entrepreneur born in Sept-Iles in 1981 who specializes in cocktail ingredients, glassware and bar accessories, wines and spirits. After graduate studies at Concordia and UdeM in political science with a focus on alcohol prohibitions and discourses, he decided to combine his passion for liquids and human behavior by working in the retail sector. First managing the oldest wine accessories store in Montreal, he launched Alambika in 2012, a precursor to the current cocktail trend.

Today, the company, with boutique and online presence, supplies hundreds of bars and restaurants across Canada and the US, has a national distribution line representing some 50 artisanal houses and develops original accessories and glasses with various Quebec trades. Described as the “secret weapon of the Montreal cocktail scene” by Eater magazine, it now promotes the Quebec offer through partnerships with the wine and cocktail world, SIAL, La Grande Dégustation de Montréal, event support, educational workshops and a cocktail column in Le Devoir.