August 2013 Bar Business Magazine

Number 08

What’s Brewing?

What does it take to get a brewpub off the ground?

The How-To Publication

BAR BUSINE$$ August 2013

M A G A Z I N E

Bar Business Magazine

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On Tap august 2013

CONTENTS

14

HOW TO

Hometown FlavorS

21

14

17

21

Home Sweet Home?

track and analyze

tHe bar or tHe brewery

Taking a chance on the challenges of opening a venue in your hometown can pay off, if done right.

Two growing industry information tech companies team up to bring bar owners more comprehensive data.

In West Virginia, two beer-loving brothers explain how to know if a brewpub is the right choice for you.

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August 2013 Bar Business Magazine

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On Tap

BAR BUSINE$$

CONTENTS

Features 24 brand growtH

10 Departments 4 bar room drawl

38 big Six

6 booze newS

In New York City, two well known nightlife names team up to open Watermark Bar, a testament to recovery after Hurricane Sandy.

A Pioneering new sound; SKYY Vodka sets sale for America’s Cup; Pop-up bar follows; Aviation Gin goes national with new sales agreement; Midnight Moon moves moonshine sales needle.

10 liquid aSSetS The wonderful world of whiskey, whether spelled with an ‘e’ or not, is always worth a visit, and this month Deb Harris breaks down the brown.

44 inventory 46 Holiday HappeningS 48 letterS to tHe editor

Our cover story looks at the venerable McCormick Distillery and its continued efforts to stay modern and prominent in 2013.

30 wHy compete Contributing Editor Adam Levy looks into the benefits of participating in spirits competitions—for brands and bars alike.

34 Soldiering on Giant drinks company Diageo is helping fund several organizations that directly benefit American military personnel home and abroad.

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“Bar Business Magazine” (ISSN 1944-7531 [print], ISSN 2161-5071 [digital]) (USPS# 000-342) is published February, April, June, August, October, & December for $45.00 per year and January, March, May, July, September, & November will only be offered in a digital format at no charge by Simmons-Boardman, 55 Broad St 26th Fl., New York, NY 10004. Periodicals postage paid at New York, NY and additional mailing offices. Copyright © 2013 Simmons-Boardman. All rights reserved. Printed in the U.S.A. No part of the magazine may be reproduced in any fashion without the expressed written consent of Simmons-Boardman. Qualified U.S. bar owners may request a free subscription. Non-qualified U.S. Subscriptions printed or digital version: 1 year US $45.00; Canada $90.00; foreign $189.00; foreign, air mail $289.00.

2 years US 75.00; Canada $120.00; foreign $300.00; foreign, air mail $500.00. BOTH Print and Digital Versions: 1 year US 68.00; Canada $135.00; foreign $284.00; foreign, air mail $384.00. 2 years US $113.00; Canada $180.00; foreign $450.00; foreign, air mail $650.00. Single Copies are $10.00 each. Subscriptions must be paid for in U.S. funds only. For Subscriptions, address changes, and adjustments, write to: Bar Business Magazine, PO Box 10, Omaha, NE 68101-0010. Instructional information in this magazine should only be performed by skilled crafts people with the proper equipment. The publisher and authors of information provided herein advise all reader to exercise care when engaging in any o the how-to activities published in the magazine. Further, the publisher and authors assume no liability for damages or injuries resulting from projects contained herein. All rights reserved. POSTMASTER: Send address changes to Bar Business Magazine, PO Box 10, Omaha, NE 68101-0010.

Bar Business Magazine August 2013

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Bar Room Drawl

By Chris Ytuarte editor-in-Chief

The Wild World of Whiskey Perhaps the most commonly asked question I hear from some friends and family less ensconced in the spirits industry than myself is this: “Is the correct spelling of whiskey with or without an ‘e’”? In response, I often tell them it doesn’t matter.

Of course, you and I know that’s not totally true. In general, the rule of thumb is that American and Irish manufacturers tend to label it “whiskey,” while Canadians and Scotch (and more recently, the Japanese) refer to it as “whisky.” And while this may seem mostly a semantic matter, in essence affirming my notion that the spelling doesn’t matter, in fact is does help us better understand the product we may be about to experience, in terms of its origin and therefore its flavor profile and general approach.

But in the grand scheme of things, whiskey (being an American publication) is less name, more experience, no matter how you spell it.

So we find ourselves in this issue hammering on and hovering over the world of whiskey with several of our feature articles, news items, and product announcements. Quite unintentionally, but telling nonetheless, this is a whiskey-centric edition of Bar Business, which in my opinion speaks volumes about the category: Even if not the intended focus, it finds its way into the discussion.

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Bar Business Magazine August 2013

Nowhere is that expressed more elegantly than in Deb Harris’ exploration of the American experience with whiskey in this month’s Liquid Assets column, wherein we learn about our country’s history and continued love affair with this brown elixir. We also include some amazing whiskey recipes, and even a few brand recommendations from experts like H. Joseph Ehrmann, he of revered San Francisco cocktail den Elixir.

"Always carry a flagon of whiskey in case of snakebite; furthermore, always carry a small snake."

— W.C. Fields Our cover story is a chat with McCormick Distilling Chairman Ed Pechar, who tells about his company’s efforts to jump into the whiskey segment with the new Triple Crown North American Blended Whiskey.

Pechar talks about keeping his company modern and on the forefront by bringing this spirit to market—once again, a testament to the strength of whiskey, considering a storied 150-year-old organization like McCormick is looking to the power of brown to stay down with today’s trends.

Two other features touch on whiskey as well. Contributing Editor Adam Levy examines the effectiveness of spirits competitions, most of which these days see an uptick in whiskey entries. And in one of our most heartwarming stories of the year, we look at ways in which drinks giant Diageo is helping American soldiers at home and abroad, which often times involves purple bags of Crown Royal Canadian Whisky, but really entails so much more. Cheers.

BAR BUSINE$$ MAGAZINE

August 2013 Vol. 6, No. 8 Bar Business Magazine (ISSN 1944-7531) is published by Simmons-Boardman Publishing Corporation 55 Broad St 26th Fl., New York, NY 10004 executive offices

President and Publisher Arthur J. McGinnis, Jr. Associate Publisher Arthur J. Sutley 212-620-7200; fax: 212-633-1863 asutley@sbpub.com editorial

Editor-in-Chief Chris Ytuarte 212-620-7223; fax: 212-633-1863 cytuarte@sbpub.com Contributing Editor Beer, Wine, and Spirits Adam Levy art

Creative Director Wendy Williams wwilliams@sbpub.com Art Director Sarah Vogwill svogwill@sbpub.com production

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Art Sutley 212-620-7247; fax: 212-633-1863 asutley@sbpub.com circulation department

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Booze News Pioneer to Fully immerse Club-goers in great sound Quality

T

he Pioneer Electronics (USA) Inc. Professional Sound and Visual Division (Pioneer DJ) recently introduced new professional audio speakers, the GS-WAVE and XY series, designed for commercial, nightclub, restaurant, bar and lounge applications.

The stackable GS-WAVE series speaker system utilizes a subwoofer enclosure with dual 18-inch subwoofers, dual 15-inch back-loaded bass enclosure, twin acoustic lens and horn-loaded compression drivers, and an omni-directional super tweeter pod to deliver massive and extremely powerful sound with exceptional detail into large or extralarge club-type room environments. As a separate or complementary offering to the GS-WAVE system, Pioneer offers the XY series designed for smaller venues such as lounges and bars, composed of an 18-inch subwoofer, quasibandpass enclosure with two 15-inch subwoofers, and two full-range speakers with a choice of 12-inch woofer and 1.4inch compression driver or 8-inch woofer with 1-inch compression driver.

“Behind the DJ booth, Pioneer is well known for its highly advanced electronic products and our goal with these new professional speakers is to provide a fully immersive Pioneer club-going experience,” said Maury Dent, director of product planning, Professional Sound and Visual Division for Pioneer Electronics (USA) Inc. “We’re working with well-known companies such as Gary Stewart Audio and Powersoft with the goal of providing the absolute best sound quality output that can be delivered in large venues such as nightclubs and bars.”

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Bar Business Magazine August 2013

With the assistance of Gary Stewart Audio™, known for designing nightclub speakers for more than 45 years, Pioneer developed the GS-WAVE as a “stacked” dance floor speaker system utilizing three sets of component speakers and a hanging tweeter pod. The GS-WAVE series delivers deep, warm sound with high-impact and crystal clear high frequencies established using a stackable system, which is preferred by most nightclub audio technicians. ● Hyperbolic Horn Subwoofer: The WAV-SUB hyperbolic subwoofer enclosure uses two 18-inch LF drivers to produce extreme low sub frequencies. ● Mid-bass Cabinet: To produce low to mid frequencies, the WAV-LOW enclosure uses two highly efficient 15-inch drivers. ● Acoustic Lens: For highly efficient output of mid to high frequencies, Pioneer’s WAV-LENS uses an exclusive horn design attaching two coaxial compression drivers to a uniquely-shaped acoustic lens. ● Super Tweeter Pod: Pioneer uses four super tweeter bullets installed in a small square enclosure for reproducing ultra-high frequencies above 5 kHz. Designed to be hung.

Pioneer’s XY Series is designed for use as PA/monitor speakers. The compact speakers are ideal for near-field monitoring to deliver high quality audio both to a room full of listeners and to the DJ performer. To power both speaker systems, Pioneer recommends the use of Powersoft’s K6DSP, K3DSP and the K2DSP K-series amplifiers for their sound quality, high output performance and power efficiency. All three models can produce power of up to 3600 Watts X 2. www.barbizmag.com

sKyy® VodKa sets sail For THE 34TH AMERICA’S CUP

The mosT Thrilling and presTigious evenT on the water is about to raise its sails in the Golden State, with SKYY® Vodka serving as the perfect spectator refresher for all the high-stakes action. SKYY Vodka is kicking off its role as official 2013 sponsor and the exclusive vodka supplier of Emirates Team New Zealand as they challenge for the 34th America’s Cup races, including the Louis Vuitton Cup and the America’s Cup Finals. As part of the excitement, SKYY is unveiling a Limited Edition Bottle to honor this historical occasion taking place in its hometown of San Francisco.

The Limited Edition Bottle, available during racing season, features a custom designed sailing inspired label to celebrate SKYY Vodka’s sponsorship of Emirates Team New Zealand. Available exclusively in California, the bottle will be featured at retail accounts across the state.

SKYY will be featured during exclusive Emirates Team New Zealand events as well as hospitality opportunities taking place in SKYY’s founding city of San Francisco.

AmericA’s cup pop up BAr

eric rubin (Hog & Rocks, Tres Agaves) and Karl hasz (Cyrus, Farina, Tres Agaves)have teamed up withAmerica’s Cupto officially open theAmerica’s Cup Sports Bar as Co-Chairmen. Open as of July 4th, the world’s largest popup bar at the world’s greatest sailing event will feature

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The ultimate team sport, the America’s Cup, combines cutting edge technology with true glitz and glamour and is considered “The Greatest Show on Water.” SKYY Vodka will be participating in all the action in conjunction with Emirates Team New Zealand, not only with SKYY logos on the boats, but through exciting activities and glamorous parties off the water for SKYY fans to enjoy. For those not on-site who want to partake in the Emirates Team New Zealand events and boating action, SKYY Vodka will introduce a roster of thrilling signature cocktails that the adventureseeking consumer can create at home while enjoying the races.

“The America’s Cup is one of the most adrenaline provoking, elegant sporting events in the world and we couldn’t be more excited to partner with Emirates Team New Zealand as they head to the finish line of this outstanding spectacle,” said Umberto Luchini, Head of Marketing, Campari America. “Due to the race’s global nature, this partnership has provided San Francisco’s own SKYY Vodka with a unique opportunity to reach a massive community who crave a thrilling yet luxurious lifestyle.”

Twice winner of the America’s Cup, Emirates Team New Zealand is considered among the top challengers for 2013.

The competition combines exciting new boats, a new racing format, and television and web coverage that will take the viewer into the racing as never before. The action kicks off with the Louis Vuitton Cup held in San Francisco beginning July 4th to September 1st. It all wraps up with the America’s Cup Finals starting September 7th - the first time the finals have been held in the United States in 18 years.

both outdoor and indoor service and encompass over 12,000 square feet on Pier 27 (which will later become the Cruise Ship Terminal). The space sits beside 13 private SuperYacht slips at the America’s CupBasin.America’s Cup Sports Barwill have private lounge areas and also large private event spaces. The space will hold 500 people and will be San Francisco’s new, “go-to” after work spot.

Famed local cocktail designer Scott Beattie has been named Beverage Director and will create and oversee the innovative cocktail program. Menu items and dishes will feature local, artisan purveyors. (Specific names to come.)

America’s Cupraces will take place from July 4th– September 21stand will be continuously broadcast. The venue will also provide local televised sports events on multiple screens, including San Francisco Giants and Oakland A’s games, when available.

August 2013 Bar Business Magazine

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Booze News AVIATION AMERICAN GIN SIGNS NATIONAL SALES AGREEMENT

H

ouse spiriTs disTillery, the Portland-based craft distillery that is co-owned by NFL legend Joe Montana, recently announced a national sales partnership with Blackheath Beverage Group (BBG) to capitalize on the strong momentum of its flagship Aviation American Gin. BBG specializes in providing spirits brands with an efficient alternative to direct sales and importers while producing greater distribution, marketing and sales results. Under the agreement, BBG’s team will partner with House Spirits’ in-house sales organization to unleash Aviation American Gin’s full potential.

“Over the past year, Aviation American Gin grew from limited regional to full national distribution coverage, as we launched the brand in over two dozen states. With national distribution now in place, our partnership with Blackheath Beverage Group will fuel explosive volume growth throughout the country,” said Thomas Mooney, co-owner and CEO of House Spirits Distillery. “Aviation American Gin is the pioneer of a new, more balanced expression of gin, and the highest rated gin in the world

by Wine Enthusiast (97 points). Blackheath Beverage Group complements our strength as innovators, providing deep industry expertise, and sharing a similar entrepreneurial energy. Jay Harkins and his team have delivered remarkable results for a variety of celebrated spirits brands, and we’re thrilled to have them on board as a national sales partner.”

Jay Harkins, CEO of BBG, said “Our relationship with House Spirits and their flagship brand, Aviation American Gin, further solidifies our positioning and commitment to working with only the finest brands and people in the industry. We st rive to partner with high-potential and innovative brands that need the support and industry expertise that is necessary to succeed in the rapidly growing and overcrowded spirits segment.”

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Bar Business Magazine August 2013

midnight moon leads exPlosiVe growth oF moonshine industry moonshine booTlegging legend and NASCAR Hall of Famer, Junior Johnson is celebrating the explosive growth of his family’s moonshine and reveling in his position as America’s number one selling moonshine. Since its launch in 2007, Midnight Moon continues to outpace the competition by 2:1 and is on track to sell more than 500,000, nine-liter cases this year, making them the unequivocal leader in the moonshine industry.

“The recent interest and excitement around moonshine is sweeping the nation and we are thrilled that Midnight Moon is leading this American moonshine revolution,” said Joe Michalek, Founder of Piedmont Distillers, makers of Midnight Moon. “We attribute our growth to the fact that we make the most authentic moonshine you can buy in stores. Midnight Moon follows the Johnson family moonshine traditions of handcrafting in small batches, including the additional time and expense required to hand-pack every jar with real fruit.

This is how moonshine was meant to be made and the only way to truly make the best tasting moonshine.”

Junior Johnson started selling his family’s moonshine when he was 14 but now at 81, he’s selling it legally! A celebrity in his own right, Johnson’s colorful past as a bootlegger and NASCAR legend was featured in an Esquire article in 1965 that was turned into a critically acclaimed film starring Jeff Bridges, entitled The Last American Hero.

Even Bruce Springsteen gives Johnson a shout-out in his song Cadillac Ranch.

Johnson was never apprehended for running ‘shine’ because authorities could never catch him due to his extraordinary driving skills that later earned him 50 NASCAR victories. “Lose on the track and you go home, lose with a load of whisky and you go to jail,” Johnson said.

It wasn’t until 1956 when Johnson fired up his family’s still that he was arrested by 18 federal agents lying in wait.

Johnson served 11 months of a two-year sentence and later received a presidential pardon from Ronald Regan, which he cites as the greatest moment of his life.

“Our fruit flavored moonshines taste like real fruit, because they are made with real fruit that we hand-pack into mason jars,” said Michalek. “The fruits infuse inside the jar with 100 proof Midnight Moon and without any artificial flavor or color, and last without refrigeration.” www.barbizmag.com

Liquid Assets

Craft MoveMents: the rise of aMeriCan Whiskey Whether pub, club or spirits lounge, brown liquors are a centuries-old staple on the back-bar. From Irish whiskeys to bourbons to ryes, these malted spirits offer a strong base for cocktails and will always be served for straight sipping.

By DeBorah harris

O

ver the past decade the whiskey industry has experienced significant brand penetration met with increased customer demand. Exponential growth can be seen, especially on the US domestic production front. “American whiskey is a huge portion of every bar program in the city. It’s a trend that I don’t see an end to in the near future,” states Matt Grippo, bar manager at San Francisco’s Blackbird. Josh Mazza of Vintry Wine & Whiskey agrees. “The American palate has made a shift back towards whiskey in the past few years. It is a rapidly expanding category,” one he feels is moving towards the craft brewing movement and away from the standard corporate model.

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American Whiskey is the invention of a colorful past. From the farmland to the frontier it is a history worth exploring and a spirits revolution worth keeping track of.

The History Whiskey was historically created to transform surplus grains into a valuable, tradable, and transportable commodity. Brought to the US by European farmers, domestic whiskey production began with mostly rye-based spirits, gradually integrating corn into the whiskey mash introducing the sweeter Kentucky bourbon we know today. With the expansion of the Kentucky/ Ohio corn belt and the unfavorable cost/benefit ratio of grain www.barbizmag.com

“Each whiskey is different. There’s one for every mood and every moment. There is one for every style.”

transportation, farmers began distilling the grain into un-perishable spirits more easily shipped, stored or bartered. By the 1800s whiskey was flowing and the industry was booming in the United States. By the turn of the 20th century, bloody battles over taxes were endured, followed by the imposition of government regulations, all leaving the industry crippled. Insurmountable price increases and higher quality standards put hundreds of distilleries out of business. And we can’t forget about Prohibition.

For the decades following Prohibition, few remaining distilleries continued to operate, and those who remained trod carefully. Liquor production post-Prohibition was tenuous, and during this time large firms such as Seagram, Hiram Walker, National Distillers, and Brown-Forman took the lead while new entrants faced a high barrier to entry. Throughout the second half of the 1900’s beer gained popularity, clear and sweet spirits found new momentum and our “browns” were offered little growth opportunity. … Until today. The American whiskeys we knew for the better part of the 80’s and 90’s have now been joined by an exploding docket of boutique brands. Over 300 American whiskey distilleries and independent bottlers can currently be counted. This number dwarfs the dozen or so that existed in the US not 15 years ago.

A Micro-brewing Culture “The US has the strongest microbrew culture in the world,” states Mazza. “The customer is incredibly knowledgeable and also very keen to learn.” Paul Joseph, owner of the Black Maple Hill brand, believes this trend is in part attributable to the wine revolution that began some thirty years ago. “I started in the wine business in 1979 because we saw a lack of sophistication in the market and we thought we could find and import better wines than what we were seeing.” He goes on to state, “I think the palate of the American public improved with wine, and that transferred to specialty artisanal spirits.”

But where did this sudden whiskey boom come from?

The Good, the Bad and the Boom The market has been ready and waiting for a shift, but the country itself was not entirely capable. That is, until recently, when relaxing state and city distilling laws allowed craft distilleries to take hold. And of course the true driving force— the emergence of a more demanding audience. www.barbizmag.com

With a rapidly expanding market, Mazza explains that the territory can be a minefield. H. Joseph Ehrmann of Elixir agrees. “I don’t believe you can cheat time when it comes to making great whiskey, and the same holds true for great companies,” he says. Whiskeys need some age and maturation and distilleries need to discover the best flavor profile through testing and refining their recipes and techniques.

Needless to say, there are bumps and bruises to navigate along the way. Products have been presented too early to market, some are unable to produce to demand, others struggle with margin, marketing or distribution avenues. Yet the boutique expansion has also brought beautiful spirits to market, such as Black Maple Hill Bourbon.

The Marketplace Launching in the year 2000, as the bourbon tide began to turn, Black Maple Hill was conceived in San Carlos, California. As an NDP (non-distiller producer), this brand sources, blends and bottles its spirit in small batches, making its coveted bottles harder to come by, though the brand is projecting an expansion over the coming months.

Not as easy as one may expect, blending requires nuance and knowledge. Paul Joseph, owner of Black Maple Hill Bourbon, possesses this understanding of spirit profile contributors, and he elaborates on the clear art-come-science to blending the ideal whiskey. “We aim for casks that are heavily charred, giving the burnt sugar quality you find in Black Maple Hill. We also seek out casks that have been exposed to hot weather because that brings out the quality of the wood and the vanilla.

“We usually end up with a blend somewhere between seven and eight years of age—a great age for a bourbon,” he continues. “It has its youth and its appeal and yet it has the maturity that comes through as well.” And whether sipping or mixing, Joseph endeavors to generate a product that exhibits a high-grade complexity when sipped neat. It is a spirit reflecting tones of sweet smoke and brown sugar, smooth amber hues with a warmth that does not overtake and an ever present caramel-honey-vanilla, offset by a bit of spice.

But, in the wake of this craft whiskey boom, do not count the big guys out. Possessing years of experience and coffers August 2013 Bar Business Magazine

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Liquid Assets

The Gold Rush Courtesy of Josh Mazza ~ Vintry Wine & Whiskey

Il CoRno Courtesy of Matt Gripoo ~ Blackbird 1 ½ oz Evan Williams Single Barrel Bourbon ¾ oz Carpano Antica Sweet Vermouth ½ oz Zucca Rabarbaro ¼ oz Luxardo bitters

fit for R&D and acquisitions, major labels are showing up proudly in this rapidly expanding market. Julio Izquierdo, owner of Mason’s Cellar liquor store in Rutherford, New Jersey, notes, “large distilleries are responding with more ‘aged and reserve’ options.” Matt Grippo agrees. “Whiskey houses have very interesting tiers of product lines.

Heaven Hill and Sazerac basically have three mash bills. By blending barrels and controlling aging they can yield a dozen different products from three basic recipes. This makes it easier to turn a customer onto something new while staying loyal to a brand they like.”

Leading the corporate “craft” movement is Diageo, which acquired Bulleit from Seagram in 2000. This popular whiskey is distilled at the Kirin Brewing Company Four Roses distillery in relatively small production. Winning gold and double gold at the San Francisco World Spirits Competition, Bulleit Bourbon and Rye demonstrate recognized refinement under a large label. They also possess a story befitting that of a craft brew (check out their website for the Legend of Bulleit). Notably, hundreds of 12

Bar Business Magazine August 2013

2 oz Cyrus Noble San Francisco Bourbon Whiskey 1 oz Tasmanian Leatherwood Honey Solution 3/4 oz fresh lemon juice 1 dash Angostura bitters Combine all ingredients, shake then fine-straine into a chilled coup. Garnish with a lemon twist.

sumo WResTleR Courtesy of Shawn Vergara ~ Blackbird 1 ½ oz Evan Williams Bourbon ½ oz Nigori sake ½ oz yuzu puree Heaping barspoon yuzu marmalade Shake dirty and pour into Collins glass.

years of history lead this brand to develop palate-pleasing small-batch bourbons and rye whiskeys with contemporary complexity and character—products that fly off the back-bar.

An Expanding Palate “Each whiskey is different. There’s one for every mood or moment. There are notes in each whiskey that can lead a cocktail down very different paths, and finding them helps you to understand whiskey even better. They can be strong, assertive, and brusque, or soft, soothing and relaxing. There’s a whiskey for every style of cocktail out there,” imparts H. Joseph Ehrmann.

As the American palate develops, so will continue the evolution of spirits.

Though the competition is increasing, certain standards and crafts rise to the top collecting accolades, selling off shelves and elevating American whiskeys to new levels. “Tradition meets innovation” seems to be the theme of this whiskey revolution.

“That’s what is great about this industry, it’s creative and inventive. You can never be bored,” says Izquierdo.

G.e.m.

Courtesy of Jonathan Champaign ~ Alobar 1 oz of rye 1 oz of white rum 1 oz Luxardo Cherry Juice ½ oz of Amaro Combine all ingredients with ice and stir. Strain into a martini glass. www.barbizmag.com

Whiskey Selections from the Experts H. Joseph Ehrmann (Elixir), John Champaign (Alobar), Matt Grippo & Shawn Vergara (Blackbird), Julio Izquierdo (Mason’s Loft) and Josh Mazza (Vintry Wine & Whiskey) all rang in and here are a few of their favorites: Brand

Tasting notes

Blantons Bourbon

Aroma of dried citrus and orange peel. Soft, smooth body of rich caramel and cloves and a citrusy, honey finish.

Bulleit BourBon

Rich Oak with a hint of vanilla and spice. Long, smooth, smoky finish.

Jefferson’s reserve

Aroma of peach and vanilla. Thick, velvety body with sweet hints of vanilla and caramel. Fruity notes of dates blackberry and orange.

Black Maple Hill

Aroma of honey, oak and a hint of spice. Thick body with sweet corn, brown sugar, oaky vanilla and warm cinnamon.

Bird dog BlackBerry WHiskey

Strong blackberry fruit up front with warm notes of vanilla and a smooth sweet finish.

JaMes e. pepper 1776 rye

Rich, complex and full bodied. Notes of caramel, chocolate, orange and honey with a hint of clove spice.

Balcones true Blue

Aroma of chocolate, toffee, butter and oak with a hint of red chile spice and Cask cinnamon. Smooth palate with fresh oak, leather, fudge, caramel, orange and cinnamon spice. Warm, long spicy finish.

george dickel Barrel select

Aroma of sweet tobacco, honey, corn and maple syrup. Well-rounded palate of oneyed dried apricots, vanilla and fresh oak with a warming wood, cinnamon and h allspice finish.

Willet faMily reserve

Silky palate of vanilla, maple syrup and toffee balanced with mint, cinnamon, and 1 7/11/13 8:57 AM nutmeg spice. Clean deep flavors and well-defined spice.

Bourbon

Bourbon

Bourbon

Flavored Whiskey Rye

Strength Corn Whisky

Tennessee Whisky

Rye

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How To:

Build a Bar in Your Hometown

There’s No Place Like Home Marble Modern American Steakhouse is a newly opened venue that serves cultivated cuts and craft cocktails to a carved collection of locals and beyond, and the two cousins who brought it to life want nothing more than to see their hometown be home to a world-class nightlife and dining destination.

By Chris Ytuarte

W

hile most folks who open a bar or club seek the optimal nightlife environment to make the business work—big city, heavy foot traffic, established party scene, etc.—some prefer the notion of knowing personally their clientele as well as their employees, and opt to open a venue in their hometown, sourcing locals and friends for staff and appealing to longtime neighbors and word-of-mouth to keep the crowds coming in.

Of course, as with any nightlife endeavor, this homegrown approach can have its challenges as well as its rewards. Hiring friends and familiar faces, albeit those with service experience, can come with its own trappings, just as hiring complete strangers through resumes can do the same; Relying on the patronage of people you know in the

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neighborhood can be just as dangerous as relying on the kindness of strangers. Sometimes, your business and personal relationships simply don't mix.

In the small town of Floral Park, New York, some 20 miles east of Manhattan, this very type of experiment is underway. Lifelong resident Christopher Corbett and his cousin Matthew recently partnered to open Marble Modern American Steakhouse, a full-scale bar and restaurant in the heart of town. Christopher, already part of an ownership group at a local tavern, J Fallon's Tap Room, brings his working knowledge of the bar business to the table as the proprietor; Matthew, with a top-flight culinary background at venues like Todd English's Ça Va, operates as partner and executive chef, overseeing all food service. Combined, the

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pair is working with a wealth of service industry experience, and more so, a vibrant and longtime connection to the neighborhood they are serving. Not a bad place to start for two cousins.

“Ever since I got into this industry with Fallon's, I've wanted to do a restaurant with Matt because I followed him over his 20-year career cooking in Manhattan and I know how great his food is,” says Christopher. “But he always said 'No,' until I lured him in with some pre-design pictures of a restaurant that didn't even exist yet. He intially said 'No' again, but somehow I was able to change his mind this time.”

The Corbetts are deeply rooted in the local community.

Christopher is a volunteer fire fighter in town, and has hired many locals in his time at Fallon's. With such a wide net of neighborhood connections, when it came time to staff Marble, the hiring pool seemed rich with experienced adults and eager youth, all excited to play a role in bringing something new and special the area. But were the Corbetts confident about hiring locally?

“I was actually hesistant about hiring Floral Park people, because if you eventually have to let someone go, it's very difficult to do so without harming a chunk of your loyalty,” explains Christopher. “That said, I did want the hostesses to have local ties because I always imagined it would have a nice feel for local residents to see a recognizable face as soon as they entered the restaurant.”

Marble is a modern American steakhouse that combines the sophistication of nearby Manhattan with the neighborhood restaurant feel the Corbetts know well. With a soaring skylight ceiling, a balcony-raised, glass-enclosed wine room, elegant lighting, and a cool color palate, Marble is a 132-seat restaurant with a 14-seat full-service bar that

provides the Long Island nightlife scene with a destination venue serving approachable steakhouse fare.

“From the beginning we wanted to provide service above and beyond what this area was used to, and we knew we would have to search all over the island and city for staff to make that happen,” says Christopher. “Plus, I hired a banquet manager, because, as I learned at Fallon's, all your friends want to host parties for cheaper than the next guy.

Still, it's nice seeing people you know, that watched you grow up, leave with a smile and tell you how blown away they are.”

Adjacent to the restaurant’s main dining room is an energetic, upscale bar showcasing exclusive and rare bourbons, single malt Scotches, and a smaller lounge menu for quick bites. Bar Manager Doug Brickel steers the ship with a deep spirits knowledge and a quick wit, both of which go well beyond his youth. His affable bar-room banter and curiosity for all things mixology put him light-years ahead of the typical bartender his age.

Before showing us the bar’s prized bottle of Pappy Van Winkle Bourbon (good luck finding that elsewhere in this town, or any other for that matter), Brickel offered a taste of some cherries he’d been soaking in Buffalo Trace bourbon for several days (plus a nip of the soaking bourbon itself, which now had a beautiful, sweet inflection from the fruit).

His expert handling of the environment, from top to bottom, makes this less of a service bar and more of a focal point within Marble.

For guests who may want to unwind in a more tranquil environment, we move upstairs to a lounge area aptly named “Carrara.” [Carrara is a city in Italy notable for the white or blue-grey marble quarried there—in other words, it’s a place closely associated with Marble.] This lounge area is available

Marble is elegant and sophisticated, from the bar to the dining room. www.barbizmag.com

August 2013 Bar Business Magazine

15

How To: to accommodate private dining events for up to 32 guests, and Marble will eventually host monthly theme dinners here, centered around the great wines of the world and local craft beers. From Carrara, guests have a sweeping view of the first floor dining area as well as the wall-length wine storage room opposite its wide, swinging balcony doors. The Corbetts’ decision to re-brand this second-floor nook with a unique name allows them to create options for selective clientele seeking the air of a more exclusive scene, even if just steps up from the main bar.

Despite its localized roots and appeal, Marble does aim to cater to all tastes and appetites, which is why it features a “petite cuts” section of its dining menu, a core staple of the service here. These offerings are designed to provide the same top-flight steaks at a more modest portion, and Marble takes a fresh approach to traditional recipes with modern style while paying reverence to tried-and-true cooking techniques. Executive Chef Matthew Corbett, plus local hire Eric Skar—another professionally trained chef who happens to be a Floral Park native—make this happen on a daily basis, and the response from customers proves as much.

“I’ve lived in the next town over my entire adult life, and it’s always nice to see local kids grow up and bring something d-KUf-prt-BarBusiness-Aug2013-halfpgAd-v1.pdf 1 7/8/13 to the neighborhood like this,” says Connie Buckley, a recent

Marble customer from nearby Bellerose. “I came in for the brunch on Sunday, to see how the food and the mimosas are, but also to see the live acoustic music by Eric Justvig, another local kid I’ve known since he was in the fifth grade.

They’ve gotten so many people involved here. It’s nice to see everyone from the area coming in and supporting it. And of course, the brunch was amazing.”

Here’s what’s interesting: The fundamental concept behind Marble is the notion of serving world-class steaks in portion sizes suitable for smaller appetites. In a sense, this approach actually embodies any hometown bar’s start-up scenario: Take what is well known from big-city nightlife and bring it down to a more manageable size while providing the 10:54 AM same level of value to your customers. Well done.

A very smart man once said, "You can't control what you don't measure."

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Bar Business Magazine August 2013

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How To:

uge a G & r e h t a G Customer Info

Knowing Is Half the Battle

Two Tech companies have Teamed up To provide bar owners wiTh some of The mosT valuable, in-depTh demographic and sales informaTion The indusTry has seen, Thanks To a clever cross-referencing approach To each oTher’s daTa.

By Chris Ytuarte

Y

es, I borrowed the title of this article from the G.I. Joe cartoons of my youth, the phrase being the tag line for each episode’s safety tip epilogue. Yo Joe! But in the bar business, this simple slogan rings especially true: Knowing is half the battle. And thanks to an innovative new approach by two on-premise tech companies, your knowledge of customer demographics and sales patterns in your venue can now overlap and reveal some vital information for your bottom line.

SceneTap, a company that collects foot traffic and demographic data, and BarVision, a company that collects liquor pour data, have entered an exclusive partnership to offer a combined technology solution around consumer behavior for retail and hospitality establishments. For the first time, operators can view time-stamped reports on their crowd flow, gender, and age trends alongside data on what those customers are drinking and when.

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“This is the holy grail for hospitality businesses,” says Cole Harper, CEO and co-founder of SceneTap. “SceneTap’s data is powerful on its own, but adding the BarVision data tells the entire story of what went on in a given establishment at any moment in time.”

The BarVision technology is somewhat more familiar to most bar owners than, say, some of SceneTap’s facial detection software. (Big Brother conspiracy theorists out there, you can relax. SceneTap uses something known as s Anonymous Video Analytics [AVA] to scan and collect demographic data on bar clientele. AVA is constructed with Privacy by Design principles, meaning the software was built with embedded privacy protections to ensure privacy standards). That said, the BarVision pour spouts go beyond what we traditional see.

BarVision spouts are a small, wireless advanced-RFID tag that is attached to an open liquor bottle. When an event

August 2013 Bar Business Magazine

17

How To:

The BarVision spout technology provides vital data and statistics for analyzing your liquor sales. occurs (a bottle is poured, or a pour spout is either placed on or taken off of a bottle), the tag immediately transmits the information to an antenna. The BarVision Software talks to the antenna and keeps a journal of all activities. The system tracks the details of every pour: the bottle poured, the amount dispensed, time of event, type of liquor, cost, price category and location.

Reports can be run at any time to review liquor usage, pouring patterns, trends, pour costs and exceptions.

“The beauty of our product is that we’re very low impact in a establishment,” says Robert Birks, CEO of BarVision. “Our pour spouts are actually liquor standard industry metal pour spouts. As opposed to some of our competition, they have a slower pour rate in order for them to do their calculations.”

The SceneTap technology, on the other hand, can at times feel like something out of science fiction, though its usefulness is hard to deny. “It’s actually two different sensors,” explains Harper. “One sensor is automatically counting people if they walk in or depart the venue, so we can tell from that crowd size the inflow versus outflow. And we have a second sensor that also does what’s called a ‘facial detection,’ where it’s anonymously picking up estimates of what people

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Bar Business Magazine August 2013

look like as they come in. And from that it’s extracting gender and age of every single person. Just by merely walking in to the establishment we can collect all of this information, and then we can provide that in the form of reports and other data insights to the operators of the establishments.”

Installed and properly utilized independently, both of these innovations can provide valuable insight to bar owners about what is happening in their venue, down to some extreme detail. Combines, however, with retrieved date from both technologies properly cross-referenced, the possibilities are staggering.

“This is a situation where the whole is greater than the sum of its parts,” says Birks. “Both systems not only save businesses money, but also highlight opportunities to generate more revenue, maximize product use, and optimize staffing.”

Historically, venue operators have relied heavily on sales data to measure success. With the alliance between SceneTap and BarVision, bar owners can now receive a more complete picture: When is a place busiest and what is selling at that time? Which products are most successful with men and women across different age ranges?

How are unique specials impacting the bottom line, and what kind of crowd is

taking advantage of them?

“There’s a reason why the average bar lasts under five years, and the average nightclub lasts under three, and that’s because sales is not a predictive measure,” says Harper. “That’s looking at the past. It’s saying, ‘What happened yesterday?’ And that stuff doesn’t matter. What matters is what’s going to happen tomorrow. What are the trends?

By being able to show bar owners the patterns of what goes happens on their Wednesday nights, or in the month of June, or whatever it is, for both their inventory as well as their crowd size and their demographics, they can react to that in near real time.”

An example of how the two systems work in tandem, as illustrated by Harper, shows how the data being collected by both technologies meshes to create a truly vital picture. From the BarVision report, a bar owner sees that on a Thursday he sold 100 shots of Jim Beam, and then on Friday he sold another 100 shots of Jim Beam. The twototals might be equal, but they aren’t the same, because on Thursday there were 60 people in the venue, and on Friday they had 600 people. So why was there such a big drop off? By then examining the demographic data collected by the SceneTap system, the bar owner can deduce who those 60 people were that drank 100 shots of Jim

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Beam, versus the same shot total amongst 600 people on Friday, and deduce that whatever type of crowd that was on Thursday—well, they really liked bourbon. So what? So, Thursday night just became your bourbon special night.

“Being able to understand that is just as critical to keeping their business going the next week, the next month, the next year,” says Harper. “But also, look for those opportunities to say, ‘Okay, what should my well drink be with this demographic?’ And if you understand your demographics, and you understand what your sales and pour information are, you can take advantage of all of those questions. It’s basically automating the operation of the business.”

The automation and simplicity of SceneTap and BarVision help operators manage their business without interrupting day-to-day operations. The technology requires no involvement from staff or customers to work properly. Data may be collected immediately after the proprietary technologies are set up, a process that has been refined to take under three hours to complete.

At Three Kings Public House in St. Louis, Missouri, owner Derek Deaver implemented both SceneTap ten months ago, then bar vision four months later, an was one of the “guinea pig” bars to use both systems together on-premise. “The SceneTap technology is amazing,” says Deaver. “They scanned me and it said I was 38, and I’m 40, so it’s pretty accurate. And then the BarVision system went on 50 of our bottles and four of our draft beer taps, and it’s all hooked into our security system. We knew on the first day that our bartender poured two shots of Jameson at three in the afternoon and they were not rung in. Our liquor costs here were 27%, and I was happy with that. But now our liquor cost is down to 22% with BarVision.”

“We do monthly inventory, but I only knew if my costs were off at the end of 30 days. And now I can see what our peak hours are, how many guests

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were in, and who they were. That helps with staffing, for one, and it’s data that proves what my managers need to do at certain times and on certain days.”

Harper agrees. “You can see, ‘Alright, if I have 500 people in my establishment, does that mean my sales are higher than when I have 400 people in my establishment? It should. But maybe it’s

not because I’m understaffed.’

“We’re still looking for other solutions providers to make this an even more robust system, but I think with SceneTap and BarVision we have something very powerful, and I have yet to meet a bar owner or manager that has said ‘No’ to the offer.”

What do you say?

August 2013 Bar Business Magazine

19

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How To:

Build a Better Brewpub

Building and

Brewing Two native West Virginians with a passion for brewing opened three brewpubs and launched a beer brand known statewide. But what did it take to get there?

By Chris ytuarte

T

he brewpub is a curious configuration within the bar business: A self-contained entity that can wholly exist on its own, with little importing from the outside world, should one choose to run it so. After all, the main product—delicious craft beer—is created on-premise, and this can have its benefits. But nobody has ever said such commercial autonomy comes easy.

“If you can have people going right to your door and buying your products, you have to do it that way, right?” says Brian Arnett, owner and co-founder of Mountain State Brewing Company “But we started this business on $65,000 and eight years of extremely hard work. I was working two fulltime jobs while starting this up.”

Sound appealing? Well, maybe it should. Anyone who has opened a bar knows the process can be labor-intensive and downright exhausting. Now try to imagine incorporating a working brewery into the equation, with all the logistics and

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technical knowledge required to make that work. “I started home brewing in junior high because my dad had books from the ‘70s on how to make wine and beer,” explains Arnett.

“But I ended up at a corporate job in a cubicle, before a buddy of mine talked me into taking four months off and hitchhiking across New Zealand. And the whole time I was trying to think of ways to avoid going back to my cubicle. So I ended up in Spain, where I met a guy from Belgium who told me about a malting and brewing science curriculum in Ludlum. So I hopped a flight.”

Arnett’s romantic pursuit of the brewing life stalled, however, when his efforts to attend the Belgian beer program fell short. “It takes an act of God to get into a school over there," says Arnett. "So I went home and started reading books left and right, and I started home brewing like crazy.

Then I landed a job as the assistant brewer at a small beer pub in Baltimore.”

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How To:

Mountain State Brewing Company, rustic and real.

Within two months, Arnett had taken over the entire operation— harvesting yeast, brewing the development, ordering grains, and doing tank maintenance. His love for —and knowledge of—the brewing process was growing every day. Around this time, he began talking with his stepbrother, Willie Lehmann, about their mutual interest in opening a brewery. Piece by piece, the two built a working facility on their own, integrating all the equipment, knowhow, and ingredients into one beercentric lifestyle. “We lived like hippies on the floor for six months while we built it,” says Arnett. “And for three years, we bartended, brewed beer, transferred beer, delivered beer—we did everything beer.”

The all-encompassing world of beer that Arnett and Lehmann built around themselves served only to strengthen their confidence in the notion that they could run their own brewery. But they wondered if it be successful purely as a wholesaler of craft beer, wherein the proprietors of outside venues would

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Bar Business Magazine August 2013

profit from the consumption more so than Arnett and Lehmann themselves.

“I was talking to the owner of the Fordham Brewing Company one night and I said, ‘By the way, I’m going to be opening my own brewery in West Virginia,’” recalls Arnett. “And he said, ‘Oh yeah? How big is your bar gonna be?’ And I said, ‘Well, we’re not gonna have a bar.’ And he said, ‘Well, how big is your bar gonna be?' He was letting us know that we needed to have a bar.

So, yes, the bar portion of Mountain

State Brewing Company was, in fact, an afterthought.”

Some afterthought. Today, Mountain State Brewing Company is the largest full-scale microbrewery and distributor in the state of West Virginia, with two locations in Thomas and Morgantown, and one in Deep Creek Lake, Maryland. As the owners and co-founders, Arnett and Lehmann have focused on bringing their easy-drinking, well-rounded beers to a clientele that isn’t always accustomed to craft brews,

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but appreciates the laid-back approach of each venue. “We had people coming in for six months asking for Bud Light, and we only had our beers at the bar,” says Arnett. “Now, nobody asks for Bud Light.”

Mountain State Brewing Company is currently brewing some amazing ales as well as an oatmeal stout. Cold Trail Ale is an American blonde beer with a healthy dose of oats and wheat, while the Seneca Indian Pale Ale is a highlyhopped, moderate-bodied brew that comes in at 5.4% ABV. And of course you have “Almost Heaven” Amber Ale. Nut brown in color and lightly hopped, it’s named after the first line of John Denver’s ode to West Virginia, “Country Roads.” Fittingly, the picture on the tap handle is the Mountain State Brewing logo, showing the peaks and summits of the Allegheny Highlands.

“We have one of the most beautiful spots to dine in Garrett County,” says Arnett. “In the summertime, one window looks out over the ski resorts; one window looks out over nice rolling farm hills to a sunset, and there’s nothing people would rather watch than the sun going down at night, while eating a nice flatbread and drinking craft beer.”

Those flatbreads, in fact, were the brainchild of Arnett’s wife, Erin, who suggested the inclusion of a woodburning oven when the team prepared to open the Deep Creek Lake venue.

“My wife is originally from New York, so she loves pizza,” says Arnett. “So I thought, ‘Why not do the same brewery concept and add pizza to it?’ So it’s a full-on restaurant in Deep Creek. And the pizzas became flatbreads.”

In all three Mountain State Brewing Company locations, Arnett and Lehmann are careful to promote the kind of environment they want to bring to each community—family-friendly beer appreciation and casual dining.

“We protect our atmosphere, and our atmosphere is not ‘Come in and get totally drunk on cheap beer and trash the place,’” Arnett emphasizes. “We have integrity. We think beer is an integral part of socially hanging out, but we’re not a binge drinking place.”

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Did they make the right decision?

Was opening a brewpub, as opposed to just running a brewery or just operating a bar, the best path to follow? In all likelihood, their shared love of the brewing process left them little choice.

“In hindsight, I always knew the importance of having a bar in addition to the brewery,” says Arnett. “When you have your own bar to push product, you’re selling the beer you made for $500 a keg when you total up sales. If

you’re just delivering beer from your brewery, you’re selling it to someone else’s bar for $100 a keg.”

That said, Arnett and Lehmann are protective of their brand, and don’t want to over-saturate their local markets with the good thing they’ve got going.

“We opened each venue within seven months," says Arnett. “The older I get, it’s like, I can’t do that anymore.”

Less building, more brewing. We're ok with that.

August 2013 Bar Business Magazine

23

The Spirit of Expansion

D I S T I L L I N G

C O . ,

I N C .

W E S T O N ,

M O

By Chris Ytuarte

The Triple Crown Winner of Whiskey.

O

“Our vision, as always, was about Triple Crown North American Blended ver the course of some 155 years, operating in all 50 U.S. states ‘What haven’t we done?’ and ‘What is Whiskey, which is launching this month.” and 51 countries worldwide, it about time that we do?’” explains With a longstanding history as a value McCormick Distilling has surely McCormick Distilling Chairman Pechar. spirits company, McCormick Distilling Quality“SoThe Finest North American Ingredients. It starts with the purest water on Earth. We then under went a c hange in barley owner ship about looking atplus how we North seen it and done it all. Well, almost. take a strain ofwe yeastwent perfected over generations, the best American small-grain rye, malted return to our whiskey roots with nearly two decades ago, whereupon The company was founded in 1856and ascorncould to create our premium small-grain bourbon. a whiskey distillery, and over the years a product that is premium in nature and new management immediately started Tastedifferent.

DelicatelyThe Smooth andof Rich With our small-grain usingportfolio to reconfigure thebourbon existing result that is Character. our new Wetoblend evolved into a full line spirits supplier. a proprietary process that produces a whiskey with a deep amber color and signature notes of caramel and

24

toffee. The final product finishes delicately smooth, and rich with character.

Bar Business Magazine August 2013

Value

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The Best Tasting Whiskey at Any Price. The finest ingredients, a master distiller, and 70 years experience. Triple Crown is the highest quality, best tasting North American Blended Whiskey at any price.

Despite being in business for more than 150 years anD listeD on the national register of historic places as the olDest continuously operating Distillery west of the mississippi, mccormick Distilling has no intentions of resting on its laurels. in fact, this venerable company is expanDing its portfolio with new forays into the whiskey anD spiceD rum categories. we spoke with chairman eD pechar about the process, anD about keeping mccormick moDern anD moving forwarD. include a selection of premium goods to be sold amongst the traditional and established brands. The company excelled in providing premium value products at popular prices, and has been very successful at doing just that, says Pechar. “McCormick Vodka is a two-million-case brand [annually]. But we started to branch out into other ventures with brands like Tequila Rose and Tarantula Tequila, and then several years back with 360 Vodka, a premium vodka offering with an inherently ecofriendly nature, which has been a big success for us.”

But in this industry, every new day brings a new idea and a growing trend, and McCormick had no intentions of missing out on any of them. As the popularity of whiskey continues to swell with drinkers [Ed Note: See Deb Harris’ in-depth look at the category on page 10], Pechar and his team knew it was time to go energetically back into the whiskey business and capitalize on McCormick’s substantial whiskey heritage.

“We went about it by creating what we c all a Nor t h Amer ic an Blended Whiskey,” says Pechar. “No one else had e ver specif ied t hat c at egor y.

There is certainly American blended whiskey and there’s Canadian whiskey and there’s all other forms of blended spirits. But North American Blended Whiskey is the designation we put on this, and it’s different, it’s premium in taste and manufacture, and that’s where we’re going.

Triple Crown North American Blended Whiskey starts with the purest water on Earth. Throw in a strain of yeast www.barbizmag.com

perfected over generations, plus the best North American small-grain rye and malted barley and corn, and you have a premium, small-grain bourbon.

Triple Crown’s bourbon has a mash bill that consists of 40% small grain ingredients, 36% Canadian rye, and 4% barley malt. The remaining 60% of the bill is made with the finest bourbongrade corn available.

Delicately smooth and rich with character, that small-grain bourbon is blended using a proprietary process that produces a whiskey with a deep amber color and signature notes of caramel and toffee. “We wanted to put something out there that the public would see and say, ‘There’s something I haven’t tried, let me see what it’s like,’” says Pechar. “We’ve created a ver y pleasant, smooth taste, and it’s all in the details of the water and the process.

Ever y t hing we’ve done is with the mindset that we’re going to provide the best taste, quality, and value available.”

T he e x cit e me n t (and ef f or t) of launching a new whiskey into an industry starved for quality spirits would likely be enough for most organizations to handle in one year, but McCormick didn’t stop there. Almost simultaneously, the company is releasing its first ever line of spiced rums to the marketplace, with Hook’s Spiced Rum and Hooks’ Black.

“We want to be on the shelf where the sales are happening, and spiced rum in particular has been enormously successful over the past few years,” says Pechar. “And we just haven’t been there. We do a

MccorMick enters the spiced ruM Market with hook’s August 2013 Bar Business Magazine

25

considerable amount of regular rum business, and it’s a nice business for us, but we hadn’t been in the spiced category and we believe there is ample room for a great tasting, well packaged Spiced Rum.” Hook’s Spiced Rum is a premium Caribbean Rum with a rich amber color, velvety texture, and distinct tropical flavor, crafted with hints of cinnamon, clove, and vanilla. Its sister brand, Hooks’ Black, is 92 proof, with rich notes of cinnamon, clove, and sweet vanilla, overlaid with an oaky charred finish.

The clear bottle allows the richness of the black rum to shine through, while the label conjures images of swashbuckling pirates, keeping with the nautical theme of the spiced rum category.

McCormick is also developing a line of beverage pouches, offering single shot and double shot servings of several of its liquors in a convenient, soft, graband-go packaging. “We had seen pouches before, but we thought the graphics were kind of bland and the packaging didn’t exactly jump off the shelf and say ‘Buy me,’” explains Pechar. “So when we decided to go into it, we looked at how we could billboard this thing and get our labels on them in a very visible and eye-catching fashion. The printing and the gravure type work that’s out there today is just remarkable, and we have some very good looking pouches. I saw the Triple Crown pouches for the first time last week when I was at the plant and they’re really ver y attractive.”

The 50ml “single” and 100ml “double” pouches, including Triple Crown Whiskey, 360 Vodka, Hook’s Spiced Rum, McCormick Vodka, and eventually, says Pechar, some of the more popular 360 Vodka flavors, are currently shipping nationwide.

“We’ve got a very aggressive and dedicated sales force, and they are our frontline people,” says Pechar.

“When they go out and see consumer excitement and distributor excitement and retail excitement, that carries back and our crew feeds on that. That’s the short course on what’s going on at McC or mic k— ne w pr oduc t s, ne w packaging, and improving our portfolio in every way that we can.”

Even after 155 years, there is no standstill in this organization.

recipes

hook’s Black and storMy

triple crown Manhattan

1.5 oz Hook’s Black Spiced Rum 3 oz ginger ale Garnish with lime wedge.

triple crown on the rocks

hook’s Black Mai tai

hook’s spiced pirates pearl

1 oz Hook’s Spiced Rum 1.5 oz orange juice 1.5 oz pineapple juice 0.5 oz grenadine Shake above ingredients with ice.

Pour over ice.

Top with 1 oz Hook’s Black Spiced Rum Garnish with orange slice and cherry.

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Bar Business Magazine August 2013

2 oz Triple Crown Whiskey Pour over ice and serve.

1.5 oz Hook’s Spiced Rum 0.5 oz blue curacao 1 oz pineapple juice 1 oz sweet & sour mix Shake and pour over ice.

Garnish with pineapple wedge and cherry.

2 oz Triple Crown Whiskey 1/4 oz sweet vermouth 2 dashes of Angostura Bitters Shake with ice.

Garnish with cherry.

hook’s spiced Mojito 8 each mint leaves 0.5 oz simple syrup Muddle above ingredients.

1.5 oz Hook’s Spiced Rum 0.5 oz fresh lime juice Shake above ingredients with ice.

Top with splash of club soda.

Garnish with mint sprig and lime wedge.

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marks the spot... leading to the dark, dangerous taste of Hook’s Black Caribbean Spiced Rum. At 92 proof, this premium rum gives a kick worthy of the mightiest swordsman—with rich notes of cinnamon, clove and sweet vanilla, overlaid with an oaky charred finish.

Sip it straight or mix it up. Either way, adventure lies ahead.

HooksRum.com

©2013 Produced and Bottled By Hook’s Rum Import Co., Weston, MO. 46% alc./vol. (92 PROOF) Drink Responsibly. Drive Responsibly.

A Storied HiStory : From the old days to modern trendsetters The MccorMick DisTilling coMpany is located in Weston, Missouri. Opened originally by Benjamin J. Holladay in 1856 under the name Holladay Distillery, its distillery has been registered in the National Register of Historic Places and has been operating continuously at the same location longer than any other distillery in the United States.

The area for the distillery was chosen for the natural limestone springs that ran underground. After opening the Holladay Distillery in 1856, Benjamin J. Holladay went on to develop the Pony Express route to San Francisco as well as build steamships and railroad lines in western America. In 1860, Holladay turned the distillery over to his brother, Major David Holladay, who then ran the Distillery until 1894 when it was sold to George Shawhan and became the Shawhan Distillery. During the period of Prohibition in the United States, the

distillery remained open by producing whisky for medicinal purposes. The distillery was sold to Isadore Singer in 1936, and was renamed as the Old Weston Distillery. Singer then purchased the McCormick brand name from a neighboring plant at Waldon, Missouri, and renamed the distillery as the McCormick Distillery. In 1950, the company was purchased by Cloud Cray of Midwest Grain Products.

Pechar and Mike Griesser then bought the company in 1992. Under Pechar and Griesser’s ownership and management, McCormick Distilling expanded from 35 employees and $50 million in sales in 1992 to 186 employees and $150 million in sales in 2006. As of 2011, McCormick Distilling remains a privately held corporation owned by company chairman Ed Pechar, the estate of Mike Griesser, and a small group of employee partners who comprise the Board of Directors.

McCormick’s 360 Vodka has received awards for taste and innovation including the 2009 gold medal and 2008 bronze medal for best vodka at the San Francisco World Spirits Competition; a gold medal from the Beverage Tasting institute (2010), gold medal from the Los Angeles Wine and Spirits competition (2009) and a platinum medal from the SIP awards (2010) for 360 Double Chocolate. 360 Vodka is bottled using 85% recycled glass, 100% recycled paper and waterbased UV inks. The grains used are grown less than 95 miles from the distillery to minimize the fossil-fuel consumption associated with transporting the grain. Consumers are allowed to return the bottle’s swingtop closure to the company to be recycled, and for every top recycled, McCormick Distilling donates $1.00 to Global Green USA.

The breaDTh h of branDs keeps MccorMicks icks fresh

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ThaT COMPETITIVE SPIrIT We spoke with several spirit industry insiders from different channels of the beverage trade to talk about the benefit of the modern spirits competition and how it enables them to make better, informed decisions on product purchases. By AdAm Levy

A

s a Contr i buti ng Ed itor to Bar Business Magazine covering beer, wine, and spirits, I wr ite from a personal insight into this seg ment gleaned fr om my year s of r u n ning a t r io of be v e r a g e compe t it ion s —T h e Ne w Yor k Inter national Spir its Compe tition (N Y ISC), T he New York International Wine Competition (N YIWC), and The New York International Beer Competition

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(N YIBC). What I’ve learned from each experience, and particularly from the judging process at my events, is that the spectrum of spirits folk who get involved with these competitions—from buyers to bar owners to mixologists and beyond—all take away something different and beneficial from the process. Hopefully, you can too. Here is what a few them had to say.

www.barbizmag.com

FlAvien Desoblin

Do you recommend established brands participate in the NYISC? Every established brand should be present, as only to serve as quality and price benchmarks. They are normally good values and well balanced, both points often neglected by newcomers and “craft”.

Do you recommend new brands participate in the NYISC? If so, why?

Owner, Spirit Sommelier, and Librarian Brandy Library, New York City How long have you been in the industry and what roles have you had? Have you and/or your venue won any industry awards?

I have 19 years in the industry at all positions, starting at dishwasher and up to general manager, and now nine years as an owner. I have a Masters Degree in Wines and Spirits from Dijon Business School, a diploma in distilling from the IBD [Institute of Brewing & Distilling, UK], I was named International Cognac Personality of the Year 2010, and I’m scheduled to be honored as “Musketeer of Armagnac” this coming September, and Keeper of the Quaich in Spring 2014.

As for the Brandy Library, it has received countless awards of all kind and has been rated 27, 26, 25 by Zagat the last three years running.

Yes, if only to see if there is anything really wrong with their product, they should. Each producer believes he’s making the best or a best product, but they’re not buying...If it’s got to touch the public...get in touch with him first! The quality seal brought about the NYISC is only of great value if great amounts of entries compete against one another.

In your opinion, how does the NYISC separate itself from other competitions in the industry?

By looking at the sacred price bracket versus just the category, and by including judges from so many horizons.

Do you like judging the spirit by its category and actual price?

I love it. It’s fair for everybody and it’s just plain logic. If these bottles were free to the consumer, it would all be different. It has the added advantage of erasing the marketing/packaging power.

Do you like the judging selection, with a mix of trade buyers, retail store buyers, mixologists, restaurant owners) coming to consensus?

Indeed, it is an ideal mix, and the logic is obvious: You don’t find a Macallan 12 labeled for the retail, a different one for the bartender, and yet another for the journalist. In the very end, the consumer is all the same—one product, one voice.

recommendations, and they talk up new spirits they just tasted or brought in. The competition gives established and new brands an equal opportunity to succeed in a real blind tasting environment.

Patrick Mccarthy

How does the NYISC separate itself, in your opinion, from other competitions in the industry?

Spirits Buyer Bayway World of Liquor How long have you been in the industry and what roles have you had? Have you and/or your venues won any industry awards?

I am a 40-year veteran of the industry and have built one of the most respected Scotch, Irish and bourbon whiskey selections in the industry. Last year I was inducted and became a member of the Keeper of the Quaich.

Do you recommend established brands to participate in the NYISC? I think it’s very important for both new and established brands to compete. Too often, the established brands are overlooked by store and bar personnel when customer asks for www.barbizmag.com

NYISC’s concept of grouping by type and judging the spirit by its actual price sets it apart and is definitely more like the real world, where I might really like something I’m sampling for the store only to find out it’s overpriced and not right for my customers. Also, I love finding something I like and finding it’s a great value and whether it will make the customers very happy. The other trade buyers at the competition are also looking for that winner that came out of left field.

Do you like the judging selection with a mix of trade buyers, retail store buyers, mixologists, restaurant owners?

I think it is great that on my panel we had myself, a retail stor e buyer, a high-end r estaurant buyer, and a top brown-spirit-focused bar owner judging the spirits. All of us interact with our customers, get honest feedback, and know what sells and at what price. We each had interesting observations and real discussions on why to award or not award a spirit a medal. This competition is not a medal factory, and we took that seriously.

August 2013 Bar Business Magazine

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NYIWC TOaSTS ThE BEST IN WINE The new York international Wine Competition (nYiWC) was held on May 5th at the 3 West Club, located across from the world famous Rockefeller Center in new York City. Adam levy, Contributing editor, beer, Wine & spirits at bar business Magazine and founder of the 3rd Annual nYiWC, said close to 1,000 wines from over 26 countries were submitted from around the world. The nYiWC is the only international wine competition where all the judges are real trade buyers who judge the wine by its category and actual price, as if they were buying it for their restaurant and retail store. some of the top wine buyers in the world were part of the judging panel.

courtenay Greenleaf

Do you recommend established brands to participate in the NYISC? If so, why?

Of course, it’s always good to have the judges taste up against an already established brand. It allows all brands to be judged equally against already exisiting, established brands. Labels are non-existent. Only price point and quality is important.

It allows me and the other trade buyers to reconnect with an established brand.

Do you recommend new brands to participate in the NYISC? Tequila Librarian, Richard Sandoval Restaurants Beverage Manager, Zengo New York City Why do you judge in the NYISC? It’s a great opportunity to apply as well as challenge my skills. To sit down with other great buyers and influencers and really blind taste tequila and mescal is an opportunity I always welcome.

How long have you been in the industry and what roles have you had? Any special recognitions?

I have been in this industry for almost 20 years. I have worked in all FOS departments, which allows me to have appreciation for all departments of operating a restaurant. I started as a hostess, worked as a busser, started serving (fell in love with the food) and giving the guests an amazing experience, serving an amazing cuisine. I quickly began bartending and exploring all spirits, wine and mixology. I moved to New York City to open La Biblioteca to host and guide all through the spirits of Mexico, mainly tequila, but expanding vastly with mezcal. I specialize in tequila and mezcal. We have the largest tequila selection in New York City. I have been profiled in many national consumer magazines as the Tequila Librarian.

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Yes, I recommend all brands participate if they stand behind their product. This is a great opportunity to get real feedback from real trade buyers.

In your opinion, how does the NYISC separate itself from other competitions in the industry?

By judging the spirit in its categories along with price point and quality. We don’t hand out medals randomly and my fellow judges take it seriously.

Do you like the concept of judging the spirit by its category and actual price?

It’s a different type of judging, in its truest form. It’s a way to categorize a spirit. To recreate the experience of buying a tequila and mescal, when I sit down to taste and buy for our restaurants.

Do you like the judging selection, with a mix of trade buyers (retail store buyers, mixologists, restaurant owners) coming to a consensus? If so, why?

Yes. Though I am judging with an importer/distributor along side a mixologist, we are all selling a product in a different environment and setting. To me, this is important—each of us having a wide range of consumers we are selling this liquid to. www.barbizmag.com

FRAnCis sChoTT

Do you like the concept of judging the spirit by its category and actual price? If so, why?

Of course. In judging artwork, the price is irrelevant. But we’re not judging The Mona Lisa. We’re judging things people buy with money and then drink. Judging a consumable (even a hand-crafted, artisanal spirit) without taking price into consideration is useless.

Do you like the judging selection with a mix of trade buyers (retail store buyers, mixologists, restaurant owners) coming to a consensus?

Yes. In the small and medium businesses that make up New York/New Jersey, this is the mix of people who decide what gets carried. These are also the people that are responsible for deciding if a new product is worth it and figuring out how to explain it to a guest or how to use it in a cocktail or other wise during service, and if it’s a good price value relationship. Does just being a mixologist or owner qualify one to sit on this panel? No. NYSIC does a great job of finding out who knows their stuff.

Co-owner of Stage Left and Catherine Lombardi Restaurants, New Brunswick, New Jersey, Co-host of RestaurantGuysRadio Why do you judge in the NYISC? I judge in the NYISC because I believe it’s important to the industry to have a professional buyers’ perspective. I have a lot of respect for my fellow judges.

They’re folks with great palates and great taste. Professional spirits buyers buy spirits for a living every day, and we’re keenly sensitive to price/value ratio.

We’re disciplined by the market whenever we get it wrong in our day jobs. That gives us unique expertise and perspective.

How long have you been in the industry and what roles have you had? Have you and/or your venues won any industry awards?

I started as a bartender 28 years ago and have been in beverage ever since.

I r un beverage for t wo of my own restaurants (Stage Left and Catherine Lombardi) (28 Zagat and 24 Zagat). I consult for other restaurants and bar programs. I’ve opened and run my own wine shop for years. I’ve worked as a wine director, sommelier. Food and Wine Magazine rated Catherine Lombardi among the top 100 Cocktail Bars in the country a few years back.

Do you recommend established brands to participate in the NYISC .

If so, why?

Sure. I recommended Barr Hill/Caledonia Spirits participate last year. They’re a small company but they took a medal and they’ve been very happy with the results. People in the industry respect NYISC, and even if they don’t know about it, when a producer with a medal explains t o a buyer t hat it r epr esent s t he opinions of other buyers, it gets respect. www.barbizmag.com

HIRE Better Bartenders on Shiftgig.com/barbiz

Shiftgig.com/barbiz August 2013 Bar Business Magazine

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A Soldier’s Fortune

In recently announcing a $200,000 contribution to three unique organizations directly benefitting active American soldiers, the Diageo Salutes the Troops initiative puts the premium drinks company on the front line of forward-thinking philanthropy aimed at the brave men and women who keep our country safe at home and abroad.

By Chris Ytuarte

K

athleen Lewis runs a charitable organization called Packages From Home, which she started in 2004 when her son, Christian, was deployed to Iraq as a member of the Army’s 1st Infantry Division.

It’s a relatively small, grassroots program that does an inordinately large amount of good. Then, this summer, along came Diageo, the global spirits company with product in more than 180 countries around the world.

“I would call it a David and Goliath story, but in that story, one of them is a bad guy,” says Lewis. “There are no bad guys in this story.”

Diageo, as par t of its Diageo Salutes the Troops initiative, recently announced it has contr ibuted $200,000 to three organizations dedicated to supporting our military troops both at home and abroad: iPads for Soldiers, the independent research organization NORC at the University of Chicago, and Lewis’ Packages From Home. This marks the latest effort in Diageo’s ongoing commitment to support veterans and active duty military through brand promotions for military f a m i l i e s , e mp lo y e e v o lu nte e r i s m a n d f i n a n c i a l contributions to military nonprofits.

“It’s a huge thing for Diageo to be working with us,”

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says Lewis. “The Red Crosses and the USO’s of the world, they’re very important and we need them and they’ve been around forever, thank God. But we have this special niche, where we know we’re supposed to be, as does iPads For Soldiers, and we’re so appreciative that a giant like Diageo would look at us and say, ‘Hey, they’re doing a good job,’ and then check us out and come on board with us.”

To Le wis’ point, large cor porations donating to eq ually large char ities is, than k f ully, a reg ular occurrence in A merica, and organizations like the Red Cross and the USO do great work on a grand scale.

In this case, however, Diageo is working directly with three groups—in particular Packages From Home and iPads For Soldiers—that present tangible and useful products and goods to soldiers, making for a unique partnership that allows a global conglomerate like Diageo to see, firsthand, the effects of its efforts.

“Diageo Salutes the Troops is really a collective effort from all of our brand teams to give back in a way, shape, and form that is relevant and supportive of the service people and their families, in a way that is a little bit more than they normally get,” explains Marc Strachan, www.barbizmag.com

Diageo is helping to fund grassroots charities like iPads For Soldiers and Packages From Home, as well as the independent research organization NORC, all of which benefit American military personnel.

Vice President, Multicultural Marketing, Diageo North America. “Clearly there is a need for all of the wonderful things that ar e out ther e, li k e housing suppor t, education, family structure, etc. Where our programs and our activations go, we try to make sure we provide situations where the families can come together and truly interact. Many of our brands that were actively involved for a period of over 12 months will coordinate efforts and activations that allow the soldiers and their families to experience things they normally wouldn’t, like a night out in New York City to experience some of the best theater in the world; we just sent a number of families down to St. Croix to experience the wonderful adventure of Captain Morgan. A nd that was really about bringing those families something above and beyond, and allowing them to bond, allowing them an opportunity to reconnect, allowing them to really share some special moments on behalf of those special brands.”

Over the past year, Diageo has provided iPads for Soldiers and Packages From Home with grants that were used to equip soldiers and veterans with muchneeded resources, including iPads so soldiers can talk face-to-face with their children and spouses while in the field, and home comforts like beef jerky, extra toilet paper, and playing cards.

“We’re honored that Diageo has selected us to be a face of their generosity,” says Winnie Pritchett, founder of iPads For Soldiers. “It’s amazing for such a grassroots organization—it’s really just my husband and I—to have Diageo recognize us on the ground www.barbizmag.com

level like we are. They could just donate to the USO or other big organizations like that and just go into the fold of all the other corporate sponsors, whereas they really make a program like us able to survive. Without Diageo’s suppor t w e’d hav e a har d ti me stay i ng afloat, because every penny we get goes directly to purchasing iPads. We don’t have any administrative costs, so every penny goes to the soldiers. Every dollar Diageo gives us is incredible.” iPads for Soldiers is the charitable fund-raising operation of T he C.H.R .I.S. Foundation, collecting donations to purchase iPads for U.S. soldiers serving in Afghanistan. In 2010, Pritchett, whose son Wes was serving in Afghanistan, realized the needs of troops risking their lives far away from their homes and loved ones. Recognizing that those serving in the more remote regions have no T V or cell phone, and no way to carry heavy books or computers in their 110-pound rucksacks, she decided to do something about it. Since then, more than 2,500 iPads have been donated to deserving heroes.

“We have many stories of guys watching the birth of their children on the iPad or getting a college or high school degree on an iPad,” says Pritchett. “The first day we went to Walter Reed Hospital to deliver iPads, most of these guys were there just a few days when we show up. And when they’re pulled out of the war arena, they don’t have anything—no clothes, no cell phone, no wallet, nothing. That all comes back with their troupe later on. So we’re able to go there and see them as soon as they get back and give them an iPad August 2013 Bar Business Magazine

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Soldiers use iPads in the field to keep in touch with family at home.

Recovering on

isoldiers

line

Essentials like Crown Royal are often included in packages.

iPads For Soldiers gets the technology into the right hands.

lending a hand so they’re able to connect with their families and their fellow soldiers back out in the field.”

Likewise, Packages From Home is a 501(c) 3 nonprofit organization whose mission is to send care and comfort packages to deployed American military heroes who are stationed in active duty theaters around the world, as well as to facilitate activities that elevate morale of all veterans. The organization has sent more than 130,000 care packages to deployed troops overseas since its inception.

“A ll of us—Diageo, iPads For Soldiers, Packages From Home—we’re all working for the troops,” says Lewis. “And when you have people who love the troops, who are working for the troops, and trying to make a difference—all of that is just pure goodness. There is no ulterior motive.”

Mov ing for ward, Diageo w ill expand its Diageo Salutes the Troops program to include additional m i lita r y- con nected i n itiativ es that w i l l pr o v ide backing to the brave men and women who serve the United States. These programs will vary from driving more volunteer efforts to offering additional grants to wor thy char ities to funding research that will suppor t veterans. Programs that will re ward and pamper military spouses and families will be expanded while there will be a renewed focus on seeking out new nonprofits that will benefit military personnel, similar to the work already being done by NORC at the University of Chicago.

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“Working for the troops is just pure goodness.

There is no ulterior motive.”

Bar Business Magazine August 2013

crowning achieve

ment

NORC is an independent research organization that collaborates with government agencies, foundations, education institutions, nonprofit organizations, and businesses to provide data and analysis that support informed decision making in key areas including health, education, crime, justice, energ y, security and the environment. Diageo has helped fund NORC’s development of a program to train militar y health personnel to conduct alcohol screenings and brief interventions for soldiers and veterans as needed.

“What we want to do with the University of Chicago a n d N O R C i s be o n t h e f r o nt- e n d o f pr e v e nt iv e oppor tunities, identifying situations where people might misuse alcohol, many of which can be brought on by stress,” says Strachan. “Being in the military and in stressful situations defending our country and our borders, we want to make sure that those types of studies and initiatives, which are preventative, are leading the paradigm of insight and discussion into support of the military long-term.” ** Visit iPads for Soldiers (ipadsforsoldiers.org) to help donate thousands of iPads each year to soldiers in battle and to wounded warriors. ** Visit Packages from Home (www.packagesfromhome. org) to help create care packages including food, personal care, and recreational items that are sent to American troops. www.barbizmag.com

Pacakges From Home has sent more than 130,000 care packages to the troops.

A box of essentials can often make for an instant morale boost.

Just what she needed

ry

e special deliv

"We have a special niche, where we know we’re supposed to be."

thumbs up

Packages From Home delivers goods and good wishes.

A big thank you

All you need to keep your bar running smoothly.

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Making its Mark In a waterfront neighborhood of Manhattan that took a ferocious hit from Hurricane Sandy last year, two New York City nightlife stalwarts are teaming up to make a mark on the recovery process near the South Street Seaport with their new venue, Watermark Bar.

By CHRIS YTUARTE

N

early a year ago, Hurricane Sandy slammed into the East Coast, and the rising waters of the East River decimated the tourist destinations in and around the South Street Seaport in New York City.

Restaurants, bars, shops, and boating exhibits were destroyed. In terms of commercial property damage, it was one of the most hard-hit areas in the city.

So it makes sense that two of the heaviest hitters in New York City nightlife, Telly Hatzigeorgiou and Abraham

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Merchant, have teamed up to do their part to help the resurgence of this neighborhood by opening a spectacular waterfront venue, aptly named Watermark Bar. Abraham Merchant is President of Merchants Hospitality, a full service hospitality company behind the brands SouthWest NY, Merchants NY, Merchants Cigar Bar, Neelys Barbecue Parlor, Merchants River House, Quality Burger, Pound and Pence Pub & Restaurant, Oaxaca Mexican Grill and most recently Black Hound, among others. Telly

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Hatzigeorgiou is owner of Lure Group, the masterminds behind Beekman Beer Garden, Governors Beach Club and Slate, all in New York City. Hatzigeorgiou also owns Governors Beach Club on Governors Island, a concert venue on the New York waterfront, and will be opening Maiden Lane Pavilion in the South Street Seaport area (viewable from Watermark) and Clinton Hall, an upscale beer hall located in Battery Park and named after the first beer garden in America, Castle Clinton.

In other words, these two gentlemen know New York nightlife. And for the first time, they are working together to create a space suited for the recovery efforts along the East River.

“We’re thrilled about the opening of Watermark Bar,” says Merchant. “We think locals and visitors alike will appreciate a lounge that merges an innovative upscale nightlife Three of lower concept with ultimate Manhattan’s bridge serenity and various crossings can be seen. entertainment elements.”

Perched on the edge of the Watermark Bar’s stunning new double level Pier double-deck design is 15 adjacent to NYC’s historic completely unique.

South Street Seaport, Watermark Bar will be the latest addition to New York City’s two-mile East River esplanade, which is part of the NYC Economic Development Corporation’s East River Waterfront project creating a continuous “greenway” from 125th Street all the way down to Battery. “Mayor Michael Bloomberg wanted all the waterfront developed, and he’s been taking a great initiative in both the East side and the West side and everything by the water is now amazing to see,” says Merchant. “You can sit on the water and have a drink and have something to eat and it’s just an amazing place to be in New York.”

Located at the end of the Pier on the East River, Watermark Bar aims to enhance appreciation of the waterfront through a sophisticated and stylish, yet serene bar and lounge atmosphere with an unparalleled panorama of the New York Harbor and Brooklyn Bridge.

“What’s exciting is that New York City is taking this great turn towards developing the waterfront,” says Hatzigeorgiou. “To be part of this fantastic redevelopment that the EDC is great.”

The stunning 3,500 squarefoot venue with indoor and outdoor space is already becoming one of New York City’s premier getaway destination for visitors and locals. Patrons can take in the eye-catching views of the Seaport’s historic vessels docked nearby while indulging in a wide variety of locally and domestically sourced craft beers, top-shelf liquor options

“To be part of this great waterfront redevelopment is an honor for us.”

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August 2013 Bar Business Magazine

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Watermark Bar’s sleek, modern design was expertly blended with Pier 15’s nautical nature to create a futuristic look without losing the history of the location.

and signature cocktails crafted by in-house mixologist extraordinaire Jeremy Strawn. In the kitchen, Executive Chef Jason Mayer offers a gourmet twist to American Grille cuisine, including a signature burger selection unique to Watermark Bar. “We’ve kept our food very basic,” says Merchant. “We use all-natural beef, and all-natural products, and keep our food very simple because we’re able to provide people all the food they would normally enjoy while sitting on a pier—fish and chips, burgers, a great lobster roll, etc. We also have some super craft beers we’ll start changing on a monthly basis once things are all lined up.”

Therein lies Hatzigeorgiou’s expertise. “There’s a part of the market that not only offers craft beers like Blue Moon and the Stella, but there are these breweries now in parts of New York with local single-batch beers that are hard to get and they only make a couple of kegs at a time,” he says. “So we want to bring in those brew masters and have them talk about these beers and put them on display, because they’re quite amazing. The beer industry is expanding with some great products.”

Coupled with Pier 15’s futuristic architecture of the Pavilion created by ShoP Architects, Watermark Bar will feature cutting-edge interior design by Wid Chapman

ShoP Architects and Wid Chapman Architects created the exterior and interior looks.

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Bar Business Magazine August 2013

Architects that emulates the historic nature of the location.

Accommodating up to 200 seated indoor and outdoor, guests can choose from the cherry red bar stools that punctuate the bar’s dark reclaimed wood décor with a pop of color, or take a seat on any of the wooden tables and benches.

“This particular pier has day slips,” says Merchant. “In other words, you can bring a yacht or a boat over and come in and enjoy the day and then ship right out. It’s not an overnight berthing space. You can just come up to the pier, enjoy some drinks and food, and then sail right back out without an overnight stay.”

Steel and glass make up the structure of the venue, and floor-to-ceiling windows seamlessly separate the indoor and outdoor areas, framing a picturesque view of the waterfront that can be enjoyed all year. The eight HD-TV’s surrounding the space, coupled with the state-of-the-art sound system, ensures guests won’t miss a beat of the entertainment from any seat in the house. On the western facing portion of the location, Cones Café will operate a full service ice-cream and coffee shop featuring twelve Ben & Jerry’s flavors and a rotation of kid-favorite movies.

“We had the opportunity to come in and say, ‘What can we do with this space that will attract the locals and the tourists and business?’” explains Merchant. “And Watermark was a perfect answer. It’s friendly and it’s approachable. We wanted to include everyone in the area, and we wanted to let the views and everything else speak for themselves.”

But in the end, both men are more thrilled about being part of the recovery process in this hard-hit area than anything else. One of Hatzigeorgiou’s venues, Beekman Beer Garden, is located just south of Watermark Bar, on the water, and was decimated by Hurricane Sandy. He relishes the idea of helping the area make its comback.

“We’re very excited to be part of the resurgence down here after Sandy,” says Hatzigeorgiou. “Beekman Beer Garden, which is two piers down, was demolished. We were lucky to at least be able to rebuild for another season. So we’re very excited. Some parts of the area are still affected, unfortunately, but it’s coming back quickly.”

As for two New York City nightlife giants working together, they may have created a monster. “It’s a fantastic partnership because we’re always throwing ideas off of each other and I think it’s a good making for a great relationship,” says Hatzigeorgiou. “And it’s been a lot of fun.”

I have a feeling these two may be raising a toast over an East River sunset as we speak. www.barbizmag.com

Inventory anCnoc Whisky Releases Peter Arkle Limited Edition Series

Bayou® Rum Celebrates Global Launch

anCnoc Highland Single Malt Scotch Whisky announced the third release in its Peter Arkle’s series, “Bricks.” In the spirit of the brands “modern tradition,” anCnoc has teamed up with renowned illustrator Peter Arkle to produce a series of Limited Edition releases, each celebrating a unique aspect of the whisky. The latest version offers striking and distinctive packaging that is inspired by the brick walls of anCnoc’s Knockdhu Distillery, which first opened in 1894. Hand selected

by Distillery Manager, Gordon Bruce, “Bricks” has signature honey and lemon notes with a spicy taste of citrus, sherry and dark chocolate. Strictly limited to only 1,000 cases worldwide, “Bricks” is available beginning July 1st at specialist retailers. The first edition in the limited design collection was matured entirely in Spanish sherry casks, in which Peter visually captured all of anCnoc’s ingredients within the package design. Please visit www.anCnoc.com.

Through a series of highly entertaining events heralding Cajun culture and the return of Louisiana sugar cane rum, Bayou® Rum marked its global launch at the world’s premier cocktail festival, Tales of the Cocktail® July 17-21. One sip of Bayou Rum and you’ll appreciate the marked flavor difference this rum offers, uniquely made with Louisiana molasses and raw, unprocessed Louisiana sugar. Many top restaurants and bars have already made buying commitments for the distillery’s first two expressions: Silver Bayou and Spiced Bayou Rum. There’s a spirit that runs through the bayous of the land and veins of the residents of Louisiana that’s like no place on earth. Visit bayourum.com for more information.

Greenhook Ginsmiths Releases 2nd Batch of Peach Plum Gin Liqueur Greenhook Ginsmiths, Brooklyn’s boutique based distillery, released its second run of the highly regarded small batch BEACH PLUM GIN LIQUEUR—and it’s even better than before. As the only one of its kind available on the market, this vibrant and unique gin liqueur is a testament to the distillery’s continued passionate commitment to making artisanal, innovative and high-quality craft spirits that are approachable and delicious. The Beach Plum Gin Liqueur was created solely with New York in mind and it continues to honor that dedication in the release of its second batch. There is no artificial syrupy fruit flavor in Greenhook’s Beach Plum Gin Liqueur. Find out more at www.greenhookgin.com.

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Bar Business Magazine August 2013

Pour a Glass of Summer with June Liqueur EWG Spirits & Wine (EuroWineGate), the French company specializing in luxury hand-crafted spirits inspired by the nobility of the grape, celebratef the anniversary of its vine flower liqueur June, named after the month of June. June Liqueur is a unique, rare liqueur crafted with the fleeting vine-flowers of Ugni Blanc, Merlot, Cabernet Sauvignon and other grape varietals, blossoming for only a few days in June. Warm, shining and intriguing, June Liqueur celebrates the month of June and captures the emotions when life blossoms. In June, as the sun warms the earth, something unique happens: tiny white flowers bloom on the vine, for just a couple of days. Their birth is a critical moment, the reward for the year-long, meticulous care given to the vineyard. These rare flowers are so delicate they can only be picked by hand and must be harvested immediately.

Visit www.juneliqueur.com.

www.barbizmag.com

Nicki Minaj is in The Myx! The introduction of Myx Fusions brings an innovative new taste, look and style to the beverage marketplace.

The fruit-infused, single serve moscato wine beverage boasts a partnership with superstar Nicki Minaj, chic packaging, a convenient single size and a delicious flavor based on the fastestgrowing wine varietal in the U.S. It is more than something new and different: Myx is poised to change the way young women and men enjoy their wine. As the next evolution in the wave of moscato mania sweeping the country, Myx Fusions leverages the explosive popularity of the wine and improves on the experience of drinking it. All natural and refreshingly carbonated, the three delicious flavors - coconut, peach and original moscato - are packaged in a sleek, perfectly sized 6.3-oz signature cobalt blue bottle. Please visit us online at www.myxfusions.com.

Tending with Some Flair The Precision Pour Fair Tin upgrades a bartender's standard mixing shaker in a multitude of visually appealing, exciting and revenuegenerating ways all while saving the establishments "Pour Cost." It is transparent so that sponsor logos can be featured, while customers are able to watch their drinks being poured and mixed. The stainless steel pin inside the Precision Pour Fair Tin functions both as a measuring tool (liquid poured to its height creates the perfect pour) and as a stopper to allow multiple Precision Pour Fair Tins to be stacked so that even a beginner bartender can perform exciting tip-generating multi-drink pours. Just as the Precision Pour Fair Tins has a variety of ingenuous uses, so too does TIN PLAY's 4-in-1 muddle. This open-ended jagged-tooth device was designed to fit over the pin of the 32oz. Shaker for seamless use of the products. The cavity of the muddle is also a jigger, complete with measuring lines, and the top of the muddle is a bottle cap/can opener. Visit www.tinplay.com.

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Launch of Red Star Vodka, Made in America Lake Distilling proudly introduces its first brand of vodka, Red Star. Why Red Star? When people think of vodka, that’s the first thing that comes to mind. Vodka and Russia go handin0hand. How is it possible to have “real vodka” made in the U.S. and not Russia? We started by building a distillery. It was not easy. It took seven long years of planning and building.

Red Star honors the heroes of Russia.

The story included technologists from Russia for flow design; American knowhow to execute the distilling process; and lots of work and stress. Red Star is made from wheat grown in the Finger Lakes’ glacial soils and water drawn from limestone rock, giving it a water quality needed to produce world class vodka. It is produced in small batches from the hearts of New York white wheat, giving it a soft taste with a burn. Find out more at www.lakedistilling.com.

The Time is Ripe for Berentzen Wild Cherry Berentzen, the world’s most versatile liqueur, announces the introduction of Berentzen Wild Cherry Liqueur, a light fruit liqueur with the refreshing flavor of wild cherries. Made with fresh, all-natural ingredients, Wild Cherry joins Berentzen Apple and Berentzen Pear to offer consumers a crisp, light beverage alternative that can be enjoyed straight-up or mixed in cocktails anytime, anywhere.

Berentzen, founded in Germany in 1758, has been producing delicious, high quality liqueurs for more than 250 years. The core of every Berentzen flavor comes from 100% winter wheat, which produces a smoother, cleaner taste. The freshest, all natural flavors are then added resulting in liqueurs of unparalleled quality that provide consumers with distinct and enhanced drinking experiences. Sun-ripened cherries provide Berentzen Wild Cherry with its distinctly sweet and fresh taste. Wild cherry notes first fill the nose leading to a crisp, well-balanced, fruit-forward flavor. Please visit www.BerentzenUSA.com for cocktail ideas.

August 2013 Bar Business Magazine

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Holiday Happenings

September 2013

2

1 Sept 1: Emma M. Nutt Day. This holiday celebrates the world’s first female telephone operator, who started her job on this day in 1878. Let’s honor her by insisting that every one of your patrons turn off their damn cell phones for the night!

15 Sept 15: Felt Hat Day. On this day each year, men usually put away their felt hats for the season. Why? I don’t know. Why do they own one in the first place?

Unless your bar is in Williamsburg, Brooklyn, you probably don’t know either.

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Sept. 2: National Beheading Day. Nice and easy, all in one motion, make it quick and swift so everyone can see; take that shiny blade and cut the head right off that beer!

18 Sept 18: Chiropractor Founders Day. On this day in 1895, Dr. Daniel David Palmer administered the first specific chiropractic adjustment on his patient, Harvey Lillard in Davenport, Iowa. It’s unknown if Harvey’s back issues stemmed from leaning over a bar all day, but I’m sure you have a few customers who could use an adjustment by this point.

Bar Business Magazine August 2013

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Sept. 8: International Literacy Day. Celebrate this special day by placing copies of Bar Business Magazine throughout your venue to encourage your customers to read, read, read!

Sept 9: Wonderful Weirdoes Day. Otherwise known as every single day in the life of a bar owner.

Sept 12: Chocolate Milk Shake Day. On this day, bring out the best in your chocolate milk shakes by spiking them with some Naughty Cow chocolate milk liqueur.

Mooooooove over, man.

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25

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Sept 25: National Comic Book Day. Nerds of the world unite, leave your parents’ basement, and head for the nearest pub to try your very first beer. There are better ways to get a buzz than sniffing stillwet comic book ink. So get out there!

Sept 29: Confucius Day. Good ol’ Confucius said this: “It does not matter how slowly you go so long as you do not stop.” This should apply to each customer drinking in your bar.

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Sept 21: Oktoberfest.

The world’s greatest beer celebration kicks off today. Get your beer boots ready!

www.barbizmag.com

index of advertisers

Company

web site address

page #

Barzz.net

www.barzz.net

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Casio

www.casiolampfree.com

19

IDscan.net

www.idscan.net

23

HARBORTOUCH

www.iharbortouch.com

C4

Kardwell International Inc

www.DrinkTokens.com

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McCormick Distilling Co Inc

www.HooksRum.com

27

Modern Line Furniture

www.modernlinefurniture.com

C2

Moving Targets

www.MovingTargets.com

20

Pernod Richard-Absolut

www.BESTBLOODY.THRILLIST.COM

3

Pernod Richard-Kahlua

www.pernod-richard-usa.com

9

Shiftgig.com

www.shiftgig.com

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TouchTunes

www.touchtunes.com

5

Western Spirits

www.BIRDDOGWHISKEY.COM

16

Western Spirits

www.KUHLVODKA.com

13

World Tavern Entertainment

www.worldtavernentertainment.com

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inventory Companies anCnoc whisky

www.ancnoc.com

bayou rum

www.bayourum.com

berentzen Liqueur

www.berentzenusa.com

greenhook gin

www.greenhookgin.com

June Liqueur

www.juneliqueur.com

myx Fusions

www.myxfusions.com

red star Vodka

www.lakedistilling.com

tinplay

www.tinplay.com

To advertise in Bar Business Magazine contact, Art Sutley, Ph: 212-620-7247, e-mail: asutley@sbpub.com

www.barbizmag.com

August 2013 Bar Business Magazine

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Letters to the Editor Reader reactions to responsible BAR BUSINESS

Our June 2013 issue contained two editorial components that emphasized a responsible approach to bar ownership and management, a topic that very obviously hit home with many of our readers.

The first two letters below come from readers who agreed with June’s editor’s column, Bar Room Drawl; The “How To” article titled “Drinking On the Job,” written by Bob Johnson, garnered the second response:

The Era of Accountability?

Drinking on the Job

Dear Chris, Your editorial was right on. [Bar Business, June 2013, pg. 6, The Era of Accountability?] I think the word responsible has different definitions based on which side of the bar you are on. Not many magazines write about accountability but it is a serious and complicated topic. Good article, clear and concise.

– Steven Wesler, RDP Group, Avon, CT, Producers of The Holiday 2013 Buying Show www.holidaybarbuyingshow.com

Bob, I just wanted to drop you a line to let you know that I thought your article “Drinking on the Job?” in Bar Business Magazine was excellent. [Bar Business, June 2013, p. 26, by Bob Johnson] Condoning drinking on the job is a disaster waiting to happen, but that doesn’t seem to dissuade many establishments.

Hopefully your article will have an impact.

I believe it will.

– Mark B. Stumer, Esq., Mark B. Stumer & Associates, P.C., Attorneys at Law, New York, New York

Editor-in-Chief Ytuarte: Excellent, “spot on” column! I salute your wisdom and insight.

Kindest regards, –Rich Unger, Owner, PromotingNightclubs.com To read the full editor’s column, “The Era of Accountability?” by Bar Business Magazine Editor-in-Chief Chris Ytuarte, go to: http://issuu. com/barbusinessmagazine/docs/june_2013_bar_business_magazine/6 48

Bar Business Magazine August 2013

To read Bob Johnson’s full article, “Drinking On the Job,” go to: http://issuu.com/barbusinessmagazine/docs/june_2013_bar_business_ magazine/28 As always, we weclome and encourage any feedback you'd like to send our way, so feel free to email us cytuarte@sbpub.com. www.barbizmag.com

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