Category: Those That Serve Them

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Those That Serve Them

Bartending Fun-damentals

(First published 2014)

As is obvious to anyone with anyone with even half a brain that  my writing is a sideline for me… an adjunct to my training and just a way of emptying the filing cabinets of my mind of the stuff I accumulate, observe and admire in my travels. To that end most of it is descriptive rather than prescriptive. But as a nod to my (nearly two) decades describing in the bar business and as a result of some recent observations I feel compelled to get on my soap box, draw a line in the sand and hold my piece no more.

I started bartending in 2 B.C.… that’s two years before cranberry juice was available widely in the UK. In my day (god I sound old saying that) a Long Island Iced Tea was a sophisticated drink and a Woo Woo was about as mixological as it got. So we as bartenders did not have such a repertoire of drinks or products to make a guest’s evening (as in “a barman makes your drinks, a bartender makes your evening”) that today’s intoxicologists have. We had to use a totally different range of skills to earn our money: conversation, attentive service, sense of humour. We were not Mixologists, cocktailians, drinksmiths, spirit technicians or bar chefs… we were bartenders and could pour you a glass of water and make you think it was a good bar.

            In my time I have seen many changes and ages in ‘modern bartending’. First in the mid 1990s came the  “Age of Ingredients” with the sudden  use of fresh ingredients and fresh fruits in particular but also a rise in the range of products available with authentic Eastern vodkas, aged rums, aged tequila, decent bourbon and crafted liqueurs… Purees also started to make an appearance as well as fruits and herbs of all different varieties.

This led to the second age in around 2000 the “Age of Technique” as the rise in new ingredient led to a re-assessment of techniques and especially those techniques that our unfortunate brothers in the kitchen use with muddling coming to the fore but also rolling, throwing, foaming, gel-ing, caviar-making and the like.

Most recently we have seen “The Age of Scrutiny and Authenticity”  where it is no longer enough to make a simple Cocktail… it must have a full historical provenance and use at least 1 re-creation of a long lost product (bitters being a prime example). Cocktail lists now come from the oldest school with Crustas and Golden Fizzes and Rickeys and the like. Accepted histories and stories are being torn down and challenged but we all know exactly how old the Cocktail is to the Day (May 13th 1806 of course).

            But in all this remembering and all this research and all this experimentation I fear we have forgotten that drinking (and hence bars) is supposed to be fun and enjoyable. We don’t just go to bars for history lessons, fabulous flavours and delicious drinks. We go to feel welcome, comfortable, important. We go to be entertained and have fun… and the bartender must remember that and figure out how best to achieve that for each and every guest.

            Firstly personality goes a long way… the great bartenders in history were and still are the sort of characters you would not mind being stuck in a lift with. A wide range of conversational topics, the ability to remember names/faces and an interest in people are all necessary attributes… remember that although they are civilians they are also guests and not customers.

            Secondly the ability to use language in an interesting way in order to personalise an experience and also to be a more creative salesman. The purchase and use of a thesaurus will be hugely beneficial. I personally also have a lot of admiration for the Soda Jerks in America in the 1930s who developed a whole code/language to be able to talk in front of guests and managers… the term 86 (meaning out of stock) is a legacy of that. Also the bartenders should be a Toast Master of sorts with a ready slew of short, pity, witty and memorable toasts… “May the best of our past be the worst of our future” is my current choice tho with some of the drinks I have had recently the backhanded toast “may we never drink worse that this” is sadly all too frequent.

            Knowing some of the stories behind the invention/naming of drinks is also a useful attribute. A shot of Tequila served with a cigarette is called a Robert Mitchum (as this was the last thing he consumed before he died) and knowing that will sell far more of them than knowing the size of the staves in the barrel that aged the tequila… and lets try and be careful with our naming of drinks so that they leap off the menu and engage the guest with humour and impact… “Let me take you to a Glayva” is my current favourite…(after the Electric Six tune) though the drink W.Y.B.M.A.D.I.I.T.Y* is awesome too

            The ‘delivery’ of the drink is also a very easy way to make the whole experience more fun. Hollowed out pineapples, drilled coconuts and Volcano bowls are now being seen around the world and I challenge anyone to drink from one without a grin.. Pimp my Drink is a trend that still has legs and the Treasure Chest from Mahiki is one of their best selling drinks, even at 100 pounds a throw. My own personal fave is the Cecil Baker where the recipe for the drink includes a requirement for the bartender to make up an outrageous explanation for who Cecil Baker was…I have been told it is the name that Robert DeNiro checks into hotels under as well is being the name of Brad Pitt’s “bottom double”….

            The last bit is to merely reflect and remember the sheer madness that is drinking intoxicating drinks. From the Droodle (a half doodle, half riddle art form developed for the cocktail napkin) to the Martini Sandwich (a small beer, a dry martini then a small beer) fun is had on the other side of the bar all the time. We run the risk as ‘mixologists’ of taking ourselves, or more importantly the drink, far too seriously… and as you can tell, I for one am not a fan of that at all….

* Will You Buy Me A Drink If I Tell You

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Those That Serve Them

Books

(first published in 2012)

Ask any bartender worth his salt and they will have a favourite bar book. It might be The Fine Art of Mixing Drinks (Dick Bradsell), the Savoy Cocktail Book (Paul Martin) or the Waldorf Astoria Bar Book (Paul Harrington). I myself am a fan of the 1971 Playboy Host and Bar book – but the less said about that the better. Books are knowledge and knowledge is power and be you professional or home bartender a reference manual is paramount for mixology. 

I was brought up to have a healthy respect for books and the written word. From childhood with author father to student life at Oxford I have relied on, and been entranced by, books. “You can never learn less” was drummed into me early and I see books as the physical proof of that. As I moved more into bars and out of libraries my only reading was the labels on bottles and trashy novels early in the morning when you can’t sleep. Yes I had Mr Boston’s and the Bartenders Bible but who didn’t? It was when I was interviewing Dale deGroff in 1998 and he showed me his office and some of his ‘Library’ that I caught the bug again and realised my two passions of drinks and books did mix perfectly…

Not many of you may know but I have been given the dubious title of “walking drinks encyclopaedia” by several people in my time  and it is a title I take some pride in, however undeserved it is. Part of it is due to my constant reading of books about cocktails and I thought I might take this short opportunity to talk about the role of literature and the writer in both teaching and inspiring me in what I, and what you dear reader, do.

When I started bartending over 23 years ago the job was significantly simpler to be honest and the books I could buy and read on the subject reflected that. There was no interest in the ‘old ways’ and so all the vintage books that are now so highly prized where unknown to all but the historically minded. And with so few products and cocktails available or being popular it was easier to seem an expert. But our industry has exploded and the amount of knowledge, cocktails, trends and tips that we need has grown to match.

My library has grown accordingly in that time to include now nearly 800 books. From the ancient texts like Harry Johnson and O.H. Byron to cutting edge e-books from hip cool bars in foreign cities. From obscure and technical tomes on distillation to ‘civilian’ books like the History of the Pineapple my shelves and mind groan with the mass of literature and information.

 We now have recipe books (both general and also bar specific as bartenders have become the new chefs and got published), technique books to teach about new-fangled ways, we have memoirs and advice for the novice mixer and we have books packed to the end-pages with product and brand information. So what books do I think every Modern Professional Bartender should, as my old history teacher used to  say “read, mark , learn and inwardly digest”?

  1. The Fine Art of Mixing Drinks (David Embury): the most academic and intellectual book about the mechanics of creating cocktails written by an American lawyer no less. His detachment from the industry gives perspective. Considered by many to be the greatest classic text this book was very much the first time that drinks mixing was seen as a topic that merited intellectual thought and investigation leading to theory as well as practice. He looked at how his drinks were mixed and why they tasted as they did and then projected his learnings into his own shaker.
  2. The Gentleman’s Companion (Charles Baker): filled not just with great recipes obtained by CHB in his travels but also written with humour and style that makes the experiences of the drinks come to life. It is eloquent and knowledgeably written and brings out the joie de vivre and style of drinking cocktails (on a side note this is the book that everyone says I should try and copy as I am a modern day Baker)
  3. The Joy of Mixology (Gary Regan): one of the Gurus of today wrote a simple yet comprehensive book about both technique but also philosophy of bartending and service. Best described as reviewed on Amazon as “That rare, highly distinguished, distinctive and classical product that represents a benchmark within its category. A standard against which its peers can be measured. A product of extraordinary quality, scope and character which transcends price”
  4. Difford’s Guide (Simon Difford): the recipe book to end all recipe books that is updated every year and so stays current and fashionable yet with Classics aplenty. Simon Difford can be seen as the publisher of record for the London Bar Scene and this, his recipe book, is a must have snapshot of that scene.
  5. Imbibe (David Wondrich): aka the ‘Historical Oracle’ this book not only covers a biography of the father of bartending (Jerry Thomas) but also his drinks and other ancient cocktails. Perhaps the most academic of books on the list but it explains why we are all ‘standing on the shoulders of giants’ and details the first Golden Age of the Bartender (we are now in the Second)
  6.  The Ultimate Bar Book (Andre Domine): a massive tome of a book that looks dull but is perhaps the most comprehensive book for product knowledge I have read for many years. Worth it. And worth reading. And more importantly worth remembering. If I had to choose a single book on this list that  would want my bartenders to learn then this would be it.
  7. The PDT Cocktail Book: The Complete Bartender’s Guide from the Celebrated Speakeasy (Jim Meehan): not just a great snapshot into the world of the modern American “speakeasy” and bartending renaissance but also to show how good and influential one man/bar can be. Truly aspirational as well as educational.

That’s it. Just seven must read books. Of course there are a huge amount of specialised books on spirits and liqueurs but they will go into far more depth than you will ever need to know and will never use.

And that’s part of the ‘problem’. Books are great for knowledge but bartending is not just about knowledge – it’s about people primarily. Modern Bartenders seem to think that they become ‘better bartenders’ by reading more books but they don’t – they become more educated bartenders but as we all know having your nose stuck in a book often means you miss out on other things.  That’s why I suggest only 7 books and why after you buy them when you finish reading this article you should go out and talk to people, smell the coffee and enjoy life – cos that will make you  a far better bartender than books ever will!

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Drinkers Drinks Those That Serve Them

Nicely toasted…

“I drink to your health when I am with you,

I drink to you health when I’m alone,

I drink to your health so often

I’m beginning to worry about my own”

            Those people who know me will know that I have a great passion for drinks, drinking, drinkers and bartending. I freely admit that I like the whole ritual of drinking and bartending: often I think that cocktails are so interesting because they can be  more about the process by which they are made than by the actual ingredients themselves. Also those people who have met me know that I am a slightly ‘pukka’ person with my British tailoring, handkerchiefs etc. Thus hopefully this months topic will be no big surprise. I am attempting to resurrect the ancient ritual of The Toast.

            A toast is defined as “ to call to an admired  person (normally a woman) or object”. How ever a better description is that a toast is a basic form of human expression that can be used for any emotion from love to rage. They can be sentimental, cheesy, cynical, defiant, comic, poetic, long ,short or even one word. What they do very well is mark a drink or drinking occasion. It makes a drink more personalised as well as the experience of drinking it. Some have said that when one toasts something truly special then the glasses should be broken afterwards to ensure they are never toasted with again!

            My interest in toasts however is not to drive up your glassware costs but to help make drinks and drinking more enjoyable to the drinker. A good/funny toast or remark when serving a drink or drink order can surely only help make it more memorable. The toast, tho’ coming after the order can definitely be an upselling tool or good service practice.

            No-one is entirely sure who the first toast was for but the custom of drinking to health permeated the ancient world with mentions in the Odyssey, The Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire and Shakespeare. The habit of clinking glasses is said to have come from the need to  make bell-like sounds to ward off evil spirits when drinking – devils being banished by bells . Mostly the act of toasting occurred at organised dinners and the like with imbibers drinking to gods, then rulers then friends/guests and then even absent friends! Toasting became less pragmatic and more social in the 17th century: as one unnamed Englishman said “to drink at table… without drinking to the health of someone special, would be considered drinking on the sly, and as an act of incivility”.

            Toasting became even more pervasive in the 18th century when they solidified their formal aspects (Nelson himself decreed that every day in his officers’ wardroom would have a different toast – Monday “our ships at sea”, Tuesday “our men”, wed “ourselves”, thurs “a bloody war or a sickly season”, Fri. “a willing foe and a sea room”, sat “sweethearts and wives” and finally “absent friends”. But also with this the Toast was used as an opportunity to show some wit and banter: “these were not an excuse for speeches but for wit and wine” as one expert toaster put it.

            More toasts of course led to excessive drinking and in many places the practice was banned or outlawed. Louis XIV forbade the offering of toasts at his court and Massachusetts put into place a law banning the “abominable… and useless ceremony” of drinking to another’s health. One of the major concerns with the Temperance Movement (founded 1517) was to abolish the custom of toasting whish they saw leading to debauchery. Others saw it differently with a toast being described as “ a quality as pleasant as a handshake, as warm as a kiss” by an unnamed Victorian.

            Some toasts are well known to all – especially what is seen as “National” such as “cheers” in the UK and US, Santé in France, Skål in Danish etc. We all surely know “here’s looking at you kid” from Casablanca. Even “here’s mud in your eye” is well known but interestingly it is a shortened version of a longer “ here’s mud in your eye while I look over your lovely sweetheart”… makes more sense now doesn’t it. Many great Toasts of course have already been said and I shall end this article with a selection that I use and find that they work. How do I mean work? Well if you drop them in at the right time they will make the customer feel more like a guest. They will feel more human and the experience more personal. You might want to choose a shorter one for 9.30pm on a Friday but I hope you will find that they make people smile and make you more money. Cheers!

“only the young die good”

“here’s to you… no matter how old you are you don’t look it”

“here’s champagne for our real friends and real pain to our sham friends”

“joy to the world and especially to you”

“may your sex life be as good as your credit”

In English beer/with English cheer/to the right little/tight little island”

“eat drink and be merry for tomorrow we diet”

“may the hinges of friendship never rust and the wings of love never lose a feather”

“blue skies and green lights”

“may the most you wish for be the least you get”

“may we be happy and our enemies know it”

“may our house be too small to hold all our friends”

“here’s to your health! You make Age curious, Time furious and all of us envious”

“here’s to my car and your car and may they never meet”

“may you be hung drawn and quartered… yes – hung with diamonds, drawn in a coach and for and quartered in the best houses in the land”

and finally when you have served a “nasty” drink or been served one by a bartender:

“may we never drink worse than this”

“I used to know a clever toast,

But doh! I cannot think of it – so fill your glass to anything

And, bless your souls, I’ll drink it”

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Those That Serve Them

The Second Golden Age of the Bartender

So I am in a difficult position. I do not have enough grey hairs to be considered a Bartending Grand Master alongside with Dorelli, Regan, Schumann and DeGroff and yet I don’t not have enough hair full stop to be considered a young stud. And yet I figure I have been in the game long enough and flown enough miles to make a few comments about the state of our Industry now as opposed to when I started in 2 B.C. (two years before cranberry juice).  To quote English Prime Minister Harold McMillan “we have never had it so good” – we are in the midst of perhaps the greatest Golden Age of bartending since the late 19th century and here is why.

Firstly we are seeing a meta-trend among our consumers for three main desires. On the main our people are searching for Authenticity in their activities and their consumption. No longer do we want instant coffee when we can have espresso; no longer do we want boy bands when we can listen to real musicians playing real instruments; no longer do we want package holidays where someone else tells us where to go and what to be impressed by and no longer do we want mass produced products.  Increasingly people are searching for products and experiences that seem more ‘real’ and  have heritage. Nextly we are seeing a rise in Connoisseurship whereby we want to be seen to be discerning in our choices of products, services and experiences: we want to show our sophistication and knowledge to explain why we are drinking our brands or where we drink them. Finally we are seeing a desire for increased Flavour in our food and drink – we want slow food and not fast food and we want big, bold and flavoursome experiences. All three of these together give us as bartenders a willing audience to show of our skills to.

And our skills are being developed as never before. Again firstly shows like the Australian Bar Show, Tales of the Cocktail, Bar Convent Berlin, Paris’ Cocktails and Spirits and several others exist where 10 years ago Trade Shows were dull conferences where sales reps mingled with sales reps. Now the cream of the industry pontificates and educates and inspires and what’s more bartenders from around the planet are travelling to see what other nations are doing.  Secondly Brands are training bartenders in increasingly large numbers where in my day they relied on cool T-shirts and branded bar tools to convince us to sell their products (tho’ I have to say the loss of the Bar T Shirt is a great one that I miss dreadfully). Finally the rise of the ‘Academic Bartender’ and the increased availability of bartending books both old and new means that old skills are being revised, histories are being learned and the profession of the Bartender is being revived and understood.

Finally as I referred to in my opening with the BC comment the average bartender of today has a back bar that most older bartenders would have killed for. Twenty years ago when I started behind the stick if we had two ‘brands’ of vodka, gin, bourbon etc we were smug bastards. Yet now there are a wider array of brands and also whole categories that we never dreamed of like Anejo Tequilas, Agricole rums, Rye whisky, Old Tom gin and the like…never before has the back bar offered such opportunity and such choice and thank god because of the above trends we get to use them.

Yet we must be extra careful with our position as nothing lasts forever. Yes it may be nice to have a choice of 20 tequila brands in 3 styles of each and yet if we do not sell them regularly we will go out of business. Yes it is nice to be called Mixologists in the media and yet if we can serve the wine drinker and the beer drinker and even the non drinker and make them feel welcome and important we shall disappear up our own collective backsides.  We must still remember to be humble and understanding with our guests, be business-like in our whims and also give suitable respect to those that have gone before us and seen times when they were not as golden as today… like me for example!

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Those That Serve Them

The Modern Professional Bartender

Much, if not all, of what I write is aimed at what I call the “Modern Professional Bartender”. As to what this means, many people seem confused. To explain I use the analogy that the MPB is like the London Cabbie of the drinks world as opposed to a minicab driver: both drive people places for a living yet the Black Cab is supreme. They know every right way and every wrong way; they immediately bring a safe and comfortable feeling; they have done so much hard work to become a driver before you ever get in that you trust them. Thus is it with the MPB. To this end I thought I would set up a “code of conduct” or creed for the MPB… if only to start some debate.

  1. The MPB shall always behave in a manner that befits the responsibility of the role. Firstly they need to remember they are dispensing ‘drugs’ and need to take clearheaded decisions; they must at all times be aware they have legal obligations on who, when and how they serve and should take all reasonable action to ensure these; also be aware of the social responsibility of their role; money handling and trustworthiness.
  1. The MPB shall at all times promote the role of the bartender as a Trade and a career and shall help spread professionalism throughout the industry.
  1. The MPB shall be knowledgeable about every product they serve: what it tastes of; what it is made from; where it comes from; how strong it is; how it is made; if and how it is aged; all of the main brands available on the market globally. 
  1. The MPB shall realise the importance of proper training at all levels of their career and that knowledge is infinite.
  1. The MPB shall know how to properly serve all the products they stand in front of: the 15 basic recipes using each spirit; the basic categories of serves for each spirit; correct glassware; basic wine knowledge of the affect of region, grape and year; proper wine service; knowledge of major beer types and serving styles; knowledge of soft drinks, juices and non alcoholic drinks.
  1. The MPB shall know at least 3 ‘selling points’ for each product – whatever the MPB personally feels make the drink/brand more interesting be it technical, trivial or personal.
  1. Knowledge of all tools and actions of a cocktail bar, high volume bar or restaurant bar: bottles and how handle them; pourers and pouring accurately in legal measures; glassware types and how to handle/care for glasses; shakers, mixing glasses; barspoons and stirring, layering; strainers; drinks mats; blended drinks; ice types and usage; basic bar set-up; cellar and stock management; coffee and hot drinks service; cleaning procedures and importance; fridges and chilling; 
  2. The MPB always leaves their problems at the front door and act as such for the duration of their shift: they should be knowledgeable of  major current affairs but have no public opinions on race, religion and politics; they should allow their personality be seen but not exposed and realise that opinions vary.
  1. The MPB shall always treat every person as a guest and not just a customer and shall the respect them as such: never mentioning a guests previous visit; judge the level of involvement the particular guest wants and cater to that; recommend improvements in their drinking habits if asked yet serve every drink with the utmost care and attention; acting as a ‘host’ to all your guests and acting accordingly.
  1. The MPB shall be not racist nor sexist nor ageist or  display any prejudicial opinions or actions while at work (or preferably not too!) nor shall they tolerate any such  displays by their guests.
  1. The MPB shall be aware of the profit motivation of bars and as such will be aware of relationships with suppliers: ways of increasing sales and executing your employers’ goals for market success; positive selling techniques and the use of point of sale promotions and materials.
  1. The MPB shall be aware that drinks names and recipes vary from bar to bar and as such it is their responsibility to learn exactly how drinks are made in the bar they work in as well as generally and shall have a method of learning new recipes.
  1. The MPB shall be aware of the physics of drinking in relation to drinks making techniques such as chilling, ice types, specific densities, hot and cold drinks.
  1. The MPB shall be aware of all the Biological elements of their job: the way alcohol is processed by the human body, the Blood Alcohol Concentration, the nature of overindulgence; the factors that affect alcohol absorption; the principles of pragmatic responsible drinking.
  1. The MPB shall have an understanding of the palate in relation to taste categories and the mechanics of tasting in order to produce balanced drinks and how ingredients affect taste.
  1. They should have an understanding of the DNA of cocktails and how ‘mixology’ works at a base level: the Classic Cocktail Recipe of “Strong/Weak & Sweet/Tart”; the roles of base/modifier/accent; the Aperitif; the Digestif; the major cocktail types.
  1. The MPB knows and respects the role of managers in catering and will act accordingly knowing they will back the MPB up and respect their judgement. 
  1. The MPB shall try and make every drink to demonstrate the skills of the bartender: they shall be aware of ways to improve speed and efficiency of drinks making without compromising the quality of the product.
  1. The MPB shall know how drinking habits, the alcohol industry and drinking culture have evolved and are evolving in order to understand drinks making.
  1. The MPB shall be impeccably clean, neat and tidy in their personal appearance and also in their working habits; they shall also maintain the highest standards of  hygiene in their workplace.