ISSUE 19
ISSN 2052 0603
SPRING 2016
THE
ISSUE
The people, the places, the drinks With Dale DeGroff / Philip Duff / Simon Ford / Lynnette Marrero / Jack McGarry / Jim Meehan / Ivy Mix / Sean Muldoon / gaz regan / Julie Reiner / Audrey Saunders / Charlotte Voisey / David Wondrich / Naren Young and many more
IN-tro
B RO N X
M A N H AT TA N
LO N G I S L A N D
RED HOOK
B R O O K L Y N We’re talking cocktails, not neighbourhoods and any city which has inspired so many drinks (and counting) is fine with us. That's just one reason why we’ve dedicated this issue to New York and its bars. The other is that you can’t be a serious cocktail lover without having it on your must-visit list. So where will you be drinking when you get there? Forget the guide books, they may be good for where to stay and what to see but they don’t really cut it on the bars front. If you want to know the real places to go and why, you need to get your tips from the top. Which is where this issue comes in. We’ve spoken to New York's finest, we're talking the likes of Dale DeGroff and Julie Reiner, and we've asked them for their definitive drinking spots. Find out where you should be heading and take their tips for getting the most from the New York bar experience on p. 24. Drinks historian David Wondrich settles comfortably In the Hotseat and tells us about the past and present of drinking in New York (p. 10), while another drinks legend, Audrey Saunders, reveals how she almost became the second woman to head up the American Bar at the Savoy Hotel in London (p. 52). Speaking of phenomenal women, we headed over to New York to photograph some of its most prominent females as part of our continuing Leading Ladies of Drinks series (p. 38). And of course, it would have been plain foolish of us not to enjoy a few cocktails while we were there. Find out where we went on p. 62. The British pub gets a look in, too. Giuseppe González and Leo Robitschek tell us how in Take Two New York Bars, (p. 22). That just leaves the drinks. Raise your glasses to our pick of the best Born in the USA, photographed by Addie Chinn (p. 30).
Happy imbibing! Ms S & Mr G
thecocktaillovers.com
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IN-gredients
6. IN-the know 25 reasons to be a cocktail lover this season Skinning up, getting stoned and messing with our minds (all legitimately, of course), just a few of the things we're looking forward to in the next few months
10. IN-the hotseat David Wondrich If anyone knows about the history of American cocktails, it's David Wondrich, erstwhile English professor turned world authority on drinks
14. In-spire Biting into the Big Apple Ever dreamed of kicking your career into shape in New York? We get the downlow from five people who crossed the Atlantic to do just that
22. IN-spire Take two New York bars Giuseppe González and Leo Robitschek talk about the look, feel and rationale behind their two very distinctive bars
24. IN-spire The A team Forget the guide books, if you really want to know which bars to visit when you're in New York, here's the definitive list. As told by those in the know
30. IN-the spotlight Born in the USA Four drinks with American accents together with their signature serves. Photography by Addie Chinn
36. IN-dulge The wheel deal 10 cool drinks trollies for people who take entertaining at home seriously
38. IN-style Leading ladies of New York drinks One studio, 13 women making waves Stateside in the drinks industry. Photography by Shannon Sturgis
46. IN-focus As time goes by gaz regan reminisces about sweet-and-
sour mixes, fast-melting ice and the joys of mixology in the Big Apple circa 1970
48. IN-focus Meehan's moments Jim Meehan gives his views on the speakeasy phenomenon, leaving New York and bars then and now
50. IN-focus I love New York Living out those movie moments, shopping 'til we drop and of course, drinking in its bars; things we love about New York
52. IN-dustry greats Libation Goddess "Audrey wouldn't do a Gin & Tonic, she'd do gin with 24 tonics until she found the one that worked best. That's Audrey." Dale DeGroff on our Industry Great, Audrey Saunders
Editors: Sandrae Lawrence Gary Sharpen Editorial Assistant: Miranda Langford Sub-editor: Sally Briggs Creative Director: James Cheverton at Burnt Studio burntstudio.com Photography: Addie Chinn addiechinn.com Shannon Sturgis shannonsturgis.com Contributors: Louise McGuane Chris Moore gaz regan The Departure Lounge Sigrid Sarv Lauryn Tomlinson
55. IN-dependent spirits Craft rising Louise McGuane joins the American Distilling Institute Annual Craft Distilling Conference in San Diego to find out what's the next big thing
56. IN-formed Word up Alex James from Blur shares his last drink with us, The Cocktail Girl checks into Sexy Fish and The Departure Lounge compile the ultimate playlist to capture the spirit of the US
60. IN-sider's guide London calling – a 31 day bar voyage While most people were embarking on a Dry January, Chris Moore resolved to drink one cocktail in a different bar each day for the month. We asked him to document the results
62. IN-ternational The New York Hot List 11 bars to have on your radar right now
For all editorial and advertising enquiries, please contact: mail@thecocktaillovers.com 020 7242 2546 thecocktaillovers.com Printed by Polestar UK Print Limited. Reproduction in whole or part of any contents of The Cocktail Lovers magazine without prior permission from the editors is strictly prohibited. Cover shot: The New York issue Illustration by James Cheverton The Cocktail Lovers Issue No. 19 Spring 2016 The Cocktail Lovers magazine is published by The Cocktail Lovers Ltd. in London, UK
PLEASE DRINK RESPONSIBLY
The Cocktail Lovers are proud to be listed on The London Evening Standard Progress 1000 – London’s Most Influential People 2015 and global top four Best Cocktail & Spirits Publication Tales of the Cocktail Spirited Awards 2015
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REASONS TO BE A COCKTAIL LOVER THIS SEASON Going undercover, praying for sun and nailing our cocktail habit – just a few of the things we’re looking forward to in the next few months
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Can’t get no satisfaction? You will if you book up for 'Exhibitionism', the first major retrospective showcasing the rock and roll lives and very good times of The Rolling Stones. Spanning nine galleries, it takes in art, design, film, fashion, performance and rare sound archives. To drink? It's what an Old-Fashioned made with Brown Sugar syrup was invented for. Running to September 2016 at Saatchi Gallery, London. stonesexhibitionism.com
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ROLLING STONES ARCHIVE
Getting Stoned
IN-the know
TWO
03
Smelling good enough to eat
Zoning in on G&Ts
Seriously. Teetotal G 'n' T from The Temperance Spirits Company is just that – a ginless, botanical-led tonic created with abstaining tipplers in mind. Simply add ice and a slice. ttscompany.co.uk
We’ll pass on whiffing of horseradish or a bacon sandwich thanks, but a fragrance that smells and tastes of Piña Colada or Pirate Rum? Bring it on! Edible Fragrances from lickmeimdelicious.com
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Creating a bucket list
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Feeling bitter
…in a good way. Thanks to the boys at Hella Bitters in Brooklyn, we’ll be making our own – bitters that is. Try the D.I.Y. kit for yourself. hellabitters.com
Worried you’re sailing through life without sampling all the potions the world has to offer? New drinking bible 101 Cocktails To Try Before You Die by François Monti is one to have on your list. octopusbooks.co.uk
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Elevating our glassware
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SENDING OUT AN S.O.S. Message in a bottle? This quirky palm tree-shaped opener is perfect for desert island drinking. hm.com
GOING UNDERCOVER
Looking for an apron to up your bar game? Check out Amalia Tsekoura’s cool leather, suede and denim designs. We can’t guarantee your drinks will taste better but at least you’ll look the business making them. facebook.com/Amates-the-project
NINE...
Sure, these beauts cost more than your average glasses but then these glasses are far from average. Whether filled with wine at one end, or espresso at the other, they knock spots off the competition. verreum.com
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Telling it straight
You have been warned (wine, whisky or Champagne will also do nicely, ta very much). morethanwords.uk.com The Cocktail Lovers - 7
IN-the know
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TAKING TEA WITH A STAR
Audrey Hepburn one day, Humphrey Bogart the next – with Cup of Fame you get to call the shots. harveynichols.com
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Bringing on the heat
Who needs a bog-standard kettle when you can heat your drinks (or soups) tableside in the vessel of your choice? The fact it looks pretty fly also helps… miito.com
THIRTEEN
Skinning up
Skin gets thirsty too you know. Give yours a boost with Vitness Tonics, a supersonic drink bursting with complexion-friendly ingredients. wearevitness.com
AVOIDING DISASTER Just the ticket for house-proud cocktail lovers: clean surfaces and nifty drinks recipes all in one. Bam! chroniclebooks.com
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14 …then slather on Raw Veggie Cocktail. It’s 100% organic, contains vegan and ethical ingredients and packs a helluva hydrating punch. gaiacreams.com
Praying for sun
Just how cool are these limited-edition Glenmorangie Originals sunglasses? Very, we think you’ll find. Crafted from white oak casks and individually numbered, they’re what the best dressed faces will be wearing this season. finlayandco.com
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15 Bottling it!
Forget watering cans, pop one of these nifty heads on your empty champers bottles and get your plants soaked in style. donkey-products.com
SEVENTEEN
…Rewined have found a way to repurpose used receptacles: turning the bases into candle holders. Choose from an array of wine-based scents including Cabernet, Champagne and Chardonnay. rewinedcandles.com
IN-the know
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Driving to the top
If Rolls Royce did a tabletop bar, we bet it would look like this. But wait, they do and it does! Dream over. rolls-roycemotorcars.com
18. MESSING
WITH OUR MINDS
Drinks you can eat? Everyone’s at it. Bite into treats like Spice Pear Martini, Jamaican Rum Snowballs and Blood Orange Negroni in the But First, Cocktails! Bento Box from Sugarfina. Available from harveynichols.com
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Becoming bookworms Take your spirit library on to a whole new level with these stylish bottles, a student project designed to slot secretly between your books. Yes! behance.net/kasperisalovaara
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NAILING OUR COCKTAIL HABIT Job done. Nail art by Emma Zentner. boomnails.co.uk
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Giving it large
GROWING OUR GARNISHES This tabletop herb holder looks as good on the bar as it does at home. Green fingers not included. elho.com
When size matters, trade up your shorty shaker for a Sasquatch – at 110oz capacity,
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…but there is a time and a place for minis; like in your hotel. We like these in-room offerings by Peg + Patriot for Town Hall in Bethnal Green. Happy days. townhallhotel.com
you’ll be the life and soul of any party. homewetbar.com
25 Rethinking cider Dropping the 'i' and going for 'y' – small change, big difference. Upgrade to Hobo East Coast Cyder made with discerning drinkers in mind. hobobeerandco.co.uk
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IN THE HOTSEAT
DAVID WONDRICH
DRINKS HISTORIAN AND EXPERT You started writing about drinks in 1999, who was your audience then? Readers of Esquire and anybody interested in reading about cocktails on the internet. Who is your audience now? Tattooed young bartenders, cocktail geeks of all ages and descriptions. Hoodie-wearing guys, stylish young women, young married couples – the audience is very diverse. This whole cocktail thing has become semi-mainstream and a lot of people are paying attention. Has your writing style and the subjects you write about changed to accommodate this diversity? I look back at the earlier stuff and I think I was doing a better job then – I try to keep the standards but I don't
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have quite the same sense of excitement. Back then there were very few people working in cocktail history and there were diamonds laying on the ground waiting to be found. These days it's more like mining, but I still find the fun in it. As an authority on drinks, when would you say the most important period in drinking history was and why? There were two: one was the late 1600s when mixed drinks went global, the second was the first half of the 1800s when American-style drinks went around the world; they were evolving and changing and included ice and doing all this new crazy stuff. Both were radical times that lead to people drinking very differently. And what are the most pivotal moments in modern cocktail history? Now! It's possible to recreate the high points of the past, we’ve got all the ingredients as well as some wildly creative, hospitable people – it's pretty exciting. Other
photography: danny valdez
IN-terview
IN-terview
than now I'd say the mid 19th century. If you could go to a grand American bar in the 1840s-1850s it would be pretty spectacular. There was a lot of excitement, showmanship, bartenders with real character; they were all actors in the grand pageant of the sporting life. Do you think modern bartenders are trying to emulate that showmanship? They're reaching for it but in my opinion, they're spending too much time thinking about the drinks – they're a substitute for personality. It’s partly because a lot of the bartenders are very young; they don't have a lifetime of anecdotes and experiences like Dale DeGroff or Salvatore Calabrese so the technical side comes out more. There are some shining exceptions moving towards that showmanship though, that kind of sportiness where there is a wild, lively personality that's on show to everyone. The old bartenders were good at that, it was part of the job. Any examples of modern bartenders who you consider to be doing it well? Jeffrey Morgenthaler on the West Coast; there are tons in London who are really showing off – Jake Burger from Portobello Star springs to mind. And in New York, there's Ivy Mix. Who would you cite as being most responsible for elevating the drinking scene to the level we have today? Here in New York, Dale DeGroff and his boss Joe Baum at Rainbow Room – without them none of us would be here. Sasha Petraske opened at Milk & Honey on a wing and prayer and did things right, that was a big deal. In London, the late Dick Bradsell was very important. Suddenly there was a mixology friendly bartender with a good palate who was at the centre of the entertainment. What impact has America had on the way the rest of the world drinks today? Any bar where the bartender stands behind the bar making individual drinks to order with ice is an American bar; that was our influence. By the 1850s, you saw American bars in London, Liverpool, Paris, Florence – by the end of the 19th century it had gone completely global. We built the structure based on English models with a bit of this and that thrown in and it came together very well. You write about Jerry Thomas being the father of the American bar. How long have you spent researching his life and times? It started when Ted Haigh and I were working on a booklet at the end of 2002 for a tribute to Thomas at The Plaza. Ted's very obsessive about his graphic design
By the 1850s, you saw American bars in London, Liverpool, Paris, Florence – by the end of the 19th century it had gone completely global and I wanted to write something that would match the quality of his work. So I decided to write a book and I've been researching his life ever since. I certainly didn't think it would take up so much of my time. What is it about him that appeals? He's a useful figure of illumination of his age – some things about him are just so eye-popping. In his bar there was a shooting gallery in the basement, pool tables, a lifesized statue of him mixing drinks as you walked in, and a double life-sized painting of him on the wall. This was not a speakeasy bar! It was an open place and very different to what we think of as a cocktail bar today. It's almost too fantastic, do you think he made any of it up for dramatic effect? The famous drinks, yes, but I do believe he invented some, like the Blue Blazer. He didn't make up the details of his life though, everything is either documented or highly plausible. The years when he grew up were the wonder years for the US, when anything was possible and a person could be anybody. We have a document of him sailing the ship he said he sailed on and he was there at the Gold Rush. It was wide-open territory for a big talker and a person with drive like himself. He really was the right personality at the right time. What was it about bartending that captured his imagination do you think? It was a job with a lot of status in a narrow slice of life. The sporting fraternity as it was called, was perfect for him. If you were inclined to be sporty, (which he was; he attended bare knuckle fighting), being a bartender was a position of status. People came to see you; you were a performer, a star. When he reopened his bar in 1873 every sporting gentleman in New York was there. If they were elsewhere they sent telegraphs. For someone with that kind of personality, I can't imagine a better job.
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