THE ENTERTAINER! MAGAZINE JUNE 2016
THE NIGHTOWL
73
SIP » UNLEASH » MIX » MINGLE » PULSE » SHAKE
MAD MIXOLOGIST
Getting down and dirty with the Valley’s hottest shot slingers Behind the bar, it is my job to give people an experience and make them happy. It isn’t my place to judge anything anyone wants (even mascarpone cheese drinks). That being said, given the sweet notes of both the rum and Coke, I might try to suggest some other cocktails to try later with those same characteristics— maybe a flavored vodka-inspired cocktail or even a wine-based cocktail. Or, if they want to stick with the rum and Coke, I may suggest a different brand of rum to mix things up as well.
What is one cocktail would love for us to feature in the magazine this month? The Vino Spritz
What do you like about this drink?
Alison Bailin Batz » The Entertainer!
K
yle Mason is the winner of last summer’s “Bar Brawl” series at the Sanctuary on Camelback Mountain’s famed Jade Bar. A service industry veteran, who was inducted into Jade Bar’s esteemed Hall of Fame earlier this year along with friends and fellow bar legends Micah Olson, Jason Asher, Clint Spotleson, Jillian Vose, and Tyson Buhler, took over as the general manager of La Bocca Urban Kitchen + Wine Bar on High Street less than a year ago and is already making his mark. Since taking on the role, Mason has helped to innovate a new cocktail program for the High Street location as well as its sister restaurants in Tempe and (soonto-be open) Chandler. This summer, he will also launch an extensive wine program that will rival the best wine and cocktail bars statewide, including the addition of a new wine preservation system behind the bar that will allow guests to sample hard-to-get brands and varietals by the glass or ounce for a fraction of the cost of
purchasing a bottle. The new dad is also engaged!
Tell me about the oddest drink request you’ve gotten. Believe it or not, someone once challenged me to dream up a cocktail using mascarpone cheese. Yes...one of the most buttery, richest, creamiest of all the cheeses—in a drink. Now, before you stop reading this for fear of me describing the grossest cocktail concoction of all time, hear me out. I actually had some experience in making cheesecake martinis—albeit with flavored liqueurs—so I took a chance and used the cheese as a base ingredient along with Orgeat, black pepper, gin, lemon, heavy cream and a few other flavor profiles, eventually shaking silly until it was the consistency of a chocolate dessert martini. As a former college baseball player in addition to bartender, I like to think the result was a complete homerun.
What is your No. 1 pet peeve when working? Time is money in the bar business.
You have to be as fast as you are accurate and creative in making each drink. Organization is essential. So, if even one person on the team is messy, it throws everyone off their games. And it costs all of us money.
What is your go-to drink when you’re at a bar other than your own? Like Mark Twain, Winston Churchill and James Joyce, I love a good bourbon. And while I may order a Sazerac or Old Fashioned—both whiskey/bourbon-based cocktails—once in a while, I love nothing more than talking to other bartenders around the Valley about the latest, greatest and classic bourbon offerings on their menus. Like so many bourbon lovers, the $1,000 bottle of Pappy Van Winkle’s Family Reserve 20-Year Bourbon is on my bucket list, but most of the time, I am completely happy with a nice Maker’s Mark on the Rocks.
What does ordering rum and coke say about a person? You know what? Absolutely nothing!
First and foremost, the cocktail is a totally new recipe and also a symbol of the types of drinks we want to innovate moving forward at La Bocca. We are an urban wine bar that wants to show off killer cocktails inspired by all sorts of wines, beyond just sangrias (which we also made in-house and are to die for, by the way!). Wine and spirits are meant for each other! I like this drink specifically because it is perfect for the summer with its light watermelon notes. It is balanced, easy and uncomplicated—like a perfect summer itself.
CHOSEN COCKTAIL RECIPE 1 1/2 ounces Ketel One Vodka 1 ounce Pinot Grigio 3/4 ounce watermelon syrup 3/4 ounce lemon juice Put all ingredients into a shaker with ice and shake for about 10 seconds. Strain into a martini or rocks glass, depending on your mood.
La Bocca
5415 E. High Street, Phoenix, 480.840.1799, laboccapizzeria.com WWW.ENTERTAINERMAG.COM