National Caesar Day, a day to honour the nation’s official cocktail, falls on May 17th this year. Canucks, nationwide, will be raising a glass to welcome a long-awaited summer while paying homage to Walter Chell, the Calgarian restaurant manager who invented the cocktail in 1969.

The American-made Mott’s Clamato has been the mix leader since entering the market that same year, but as the population hankers for more artisanal and local product, the field has opened for other clam-tomato cocktail products to join the party. Enter Simp’s Serious Caesar Mix from Kelowna.

It’s serious, alright. The weighty liquid in the “regular” flavour is bursting with rich tomato, made-from-scratch “Worcestershire”, a proprietary blend of spices, and horseradish; and the dill pickle flavour has some extra zip for a little more yippie in your ki-yay! The umami that’s derived from clams in other mixes is replaced with tamarind and balsamic vinegar here, and you won’t find high fructose corn syrup like you will in Mott’s; Sip’s is sweetened with maple syrup—earning Eat North’s stamp of approval for that proudly Canadian touch.

It’s also vegan friendly, gluten free and contains no MSG. A Caesar mix for all mankind, you could say, and made with Canadian-sourced ingredients (except for the lemons, which only get to be squeezed here, not grown).

In 2016, a Caesar made with Simp’s prototypical mix—crafted by mixologists Jerry Jobe and Dave Simpson—won top spot against 11 other competitors in the Caesar Brands/Competitors in the Absolut Vodka Caesar Competition held in B.C. Pretty impressive for a product that wasn’t yet on store shelves. As of today, you can find Simp’s Caesar mix in almost 300 stores across the country.

Here’s a sassy Caesar recipe to help you celebrate. Do like Simp’s and #CaesTheDay.