November 2012
www.barmagazine.co.uk
Developing premium bar excellence
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The mainstream media love a health scare, as we saw last month with the fears over liquid nitrogen in drinks. Despite its safe use for years, one tragic accident in Lancaster highlighted the dangers of poorly trained staff playing with something they don’t understand. The Sun newspaper was particularly tough in its attack on “dangerous cocktails”, citing the units of alcohol in drinks such as a Zombie, Pornstar Martini, Sazerac and Long Island Iced Tea – although it didn’t point out the number of units was generally around the same as a pint of (cheaper) premium lager. It was interesting to hear that Papaji’s in Bristol, one of the bars featured in The Sun, saw a threefold increase in sales of its Zombies after the article appeared. However, the suffering of the poor girl in Lancaster was a one-off incident and should not reflect on the industry as a whole. It serves as a warning on the importance of training for bar staff and will probably lead to a ban on liquid nitrogen in making drinks. Fortunately, we work in an industry where generally standards of professionalism and responsibility are better than ever. But with ministers looking for excuses to regulate our industry, all bars need to be on their guard.
Mark Ludmon Editor
Cover picture: Di Antonio Amaretto Cream: available from Toorank UK on 01865 343395 and all good local wholesalers nationwide.
EDITOR Mark Ludmon • mark@cimltd.co.uk Tel 020 7627 4506 PUBLICATION MANAGER Manjeet Griffiths • manjeet@cimltd.co.uk Tel 01795 509109 Fax 01795 591065 ACCOUNT EXECUTIVES Lewis Thorne • lewis@cimltd.co.uk Bree Davies • bree@cimltd.co.uk Tel 01795 509109 Fax 01795 591065
CONTENTS NOVEMBER
08
41
14 Regulars 05 Industry news 66 Barhopper diary Profiles 08 High Pavement, Warwick 10 Red’s, Leeds 12 Club One, Ascot 14 Old Bengal Bar, London 16 Bitter Sweet, London 18 Hakkasan Group CHIEF EXECUTIVE John Denning • jdenning@cimltd.co.uk STUDIO MANAGER Paula Smith • paula@cimltd.co.uk DESIGN & PRODUCTION Grant Waters • grant@cimltd.co.uk James Taylor • james@cimltd.co.uk ACCOUNTS Vickie Crawford • vickie@cimltd.co.uk Tel 01795 509103 www.barmagazine.co.uk www.twitter.com/barmagazine
Drink 21 Drinks news 31 Scotch whisky 36 Mixology Features 41 Plan for Christmas 42 Win a Jack Daniel’s barrel 47 Christmas food 51 Design for the future 57 Bar fittings and accessories © 2012 CIM Online Limited, The Goods Shed, Jubilee Way, Whitstable Road, Faversham, Kent, ME13 8GD. No part of this magazine may be reproduced or stored in a retrieval system or transmitted in any form – electronic, mechanical or physical – without express prior permission and written consent of the publisher. Contributions are invited and when not accepted will be returned only if accompanied by a fully stamped and addressed envelope. Manuscripts should be type written. No responsibility can be taken for drawings, photographs or literary contributions during transmission or in the editor’s hands. In the absence of an agreement the copyright of all contributions, literary, photographic or artistic, belongs to CIM Online Limited. The publisher accepts no responsibility in respect of advertisements appearing in the magazine and the opinions expressed do not necessarily represent the views of the Publisher. The Publisher cannot accept liability for any loss arising from the late appearance or non publication of any advertisement.
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news
Bars warned over liquid nitrogen in drinks
Bars have been delivered a warning about the use of liquid nitrogen in cocktails after an 18-year-old girl needed emergency surgery to remove part of her stomach. Gaby Scanlon was taken ill during a night-out at Oscar’s in Lancaster city centre last month after drinking a “Nitro Jäger” where a smoky “cauldron effect” had been created with liquid nitrogen. While the use of liquid nitrogen in drinks is common and legal, it has to be used with care and not ingested as its extreme cold temperature makes it unsafe for people to drink. Last month, Gaby’s local MP, Andrew Martin, was planning to table a motion in Parliament calling for a ban. The Food Standards Agency (FSA) issued a warning to bars. Its head of incident management, Colin Houston, said: “It is the
business owner’s responsibility to make sure that their staff have been trained and are aware of the potential risks of using liquid nitrogen. They also have to have appropriate safety measures in place to protect both their staff and consumers. “The FSA will be making local enforcement officers aware of the practice of using liquid nitrogen in the use of cocktails and it will be something officers can incorporate as part of their inspection regime.” Safe alternatives to liquid nitrogen include NiteOwl which uses glassware technology that stores dry ice crystals (CO2 crystals) at the base of the glass, with perforations allowing the pellets to cause the drink to bubble, vibrate, cool and emit clouds of smoke with no risk to the drinker. More at www.barmagazine.co.uk and page 36.
London bar tops world’s 50 best
A tired wet-led community pub in Epsom, Surrey, has been transformed into a stylish bar, Acorn 30, by Stuart Keene and Stephen Fleury. It is their third lease with Scottish & Newcastle Pub Company and follows the opening of Acorn 20 in nearby Kingston Upon Thames. They have added cocktails and premium spirits and wines and, with Leeds-based JS Design Partnership, created a classic, vintage-chic interior with a minimalist look.
Green hour comes for Blanc A range of absinthes has been added at Brasserie Blanc, which was opened in May by Raymond Blanc in the former Chez Gérard in Covent Garden Piazza in London. It lists Jade 1898 VS,Vieux Pontarlier, La Maison Fontaine, Enigma, Pernod Absinthe and La Fée’s XS, Parisienne, Bohemian and Blanche. The stand-alone Bar Blanc features a new mural created with Pernod Absinthe, and offers absinthe fountains for serving the spirit traditionally with chilled water dripped through a sugar cube. Absinthe cocktails include a Corpse Reviver No 2 and a Sazerac as well as a Green Monster made with Pernod Absinthe, cucumber, mint, lemon juice and soda plus Angostura Bitters on top.
The Artesian Bar at London’s Langham Hotel pushed New York City’s PDT off the number-one spot in this year’s league table of the World’s 50 Best Bars. It was one of six London bars in the top 10, with the Nightjar at three, The Connaught Bar at four, the Savoy’s American Bar at five, 69 Colebrooke Row at eight and Callooh Callay at nine. Happiness Forgets was at 12, Zetter Townhouse at 15, Portobello Star at 27, Worship Street Whistling Shop at 33, the Savoy’s Beaufort Bar at 37, Milk & Honey London at 40 and Salvatore at Playboy at 46. The only UK bar outside of London was Bramble in Edinburgh in 10th place. The list, compiled by Drinks International, featured bars from all over the world, with New York City performing highly, including PDT in second place, Death & Co in sixth and Employees Only at 11. The seventh best bar was Baxter Inn in Sydney.
Alex Kratena and Simone Caporale of The Artesian
The new Hilton London Wembley hotel has opened, providing a new bar, Icons (pictured), with views over Wembley Stadium. It offers classic cocktails as well as contemporary drinks including a Pink Orchid made with Grey Goose vodka, cranberry juice and watermelon liqueur. It also has a ninth-floor roof bar, Sky Bar 9, which is available exclusively for private hire and has an outdoor terrace for up to 150 people. The Barracuda Pub Company has completed a restructuring that has led to it changing its name to the Bramwell Pub Company. It will also have a new chairman, Adam Fowle, former chief executive of Mitchells & Butlers. Baa Bar Group is continuing expansion outside of its Merseyside heartland with its first bar in Leeds this month. The new Baa Bar will be in Cookridge Street in the Millennium Square area and will be the Liverpool-based company’s 11th bar. It also has sites in Manchester and Nottingham. The group plans to open 10 new bars over the next five years across the UK and is currently looking at Yorkshire including Sheffield and York. More at www.barmagazine. co.uk.
A new destination bar is due to open in November at the fivestar Hyatt Regency Hotel The Churchill in Portman Square in London’s West End. The Churchill Bar & Terrace, pictured as an artist’s impression, will specialise in tailored classic cocktails and premium brands and include a new late-night year-round private terrace. It has been designed by Bespoke by Brigitta Spinocchia. www.barmagazine.co.uk |5
news Nola Grennell from Chaplin’s and the Cellar Bar in Bournemouth has been named national winner in the Best Bar None scheme. At an event at the House of Lords, the Chaplin’s team were praised for their work as part of Bournemouth’s Best Bar None scheme for improving the quality of the city’s nightlife. Other national finalists were Mark Simmonite of Henry’s in Sheffield, Lee Price of Royal Pier in Aberystwyth, Andrew Nicholson of Varsity in Durham, Andrew Kearney of K2/The Venue in Consett, and John Walsh of Coco Ice in Doncaster.
The owners of Archer Street bar in Soho, London, have appointed new general manager David Akalu Börjesson, who was formerly at Novus Leisure working at London bars such as Jewel Piccadilly, Tiger Tiger and Kanaloa where he was responsible for a revamp and streamlining of the business. After opening a year ago, Archer Street has relaunched its basement Alpinestyle bar (pictured) as a nightclub called Piste with its own cocktail menu and DJs. Bramble in Edinburgh heads a list of the best bars outside of London compiled by consumer reviews site Qype, based on positive reviews. It is one of three Edinburgh bars in the top five of venues outside of London: at number two is Cabaret Voltaire and at four is Dragonfly. The other top bars are Evil Eye Lounge in York and Amoeba in Bristol. In London, the list is headed by the Oxo Tower followed by Shoreditch House, the Old School Yard in Borough, Hawksmoor Spitalfields and Hush in Mayfair. More at www.barmagazine.co.uk. Independent brewer Bath Ales has signed a lease for a new venue in Bath that will be its biggest outlet yet at just over 5,000 square feet. The site next to Bath Spa train station will be its third Graze Bar, Brewery and Chophouse concept and will open before Christmas.
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Existing operators lead continuing London bar boom Operators of existing bars are driving the continuing explosion of new venues opening up in London despite the ongoing recession. London’s Adventure Bar group has acquired the lease of Ministry of Sound’s former Hed Kandi bar in Clapham High Street, south London. It will be converted into the group’s fifth Adventure Bar. The owners of neighbouring Clapham bar 64th & Social are opening a second site, The Southsider Cocktail Club, in a former Thai restaurant in nearby Battersea Rise. The team behind Bourne & Hollingsworth in Fitzrovia have launched Reverend JW Simpson in Goodge Street. It focuses on high-quality cocktails including Fizzes, Flips, Cobblers, Smashes and Sours, with the service levels of a hotel bar in an intimate setting. Barrio Bars, headed by Ferdie Ahmed, is to open a third bar in November after Barrio North in Islington and Barrio Central in Soho. Barrio East, in the former Avalon in Shoreditch High Street, will offer street food, cocktails and late-night music, inspired by Latin and South America. Mixologist Dré Masso and bar operator Eric Yu are this month opening Opium Cocktail & Dim Sum Parlour in Gerrard Street, Chinatown, inspired by 19th-century Chinese opium dens. It will cover three floors of a historic townhouse with nine different rooms, including a Chinese Apothecary bar, a carriage-
saloon reminiscent of the Orient-Express, and the attic Academy with a “bartenders table”. Eric is also planning a second site in London for Salvador & Amanda. Gerry Calabrese, the former bartender who launched The Hoxton Pony in Shoreditch, has opened Baroque in Mayfair. With design by CID Interiors, it has an extensive list of vintage champagnes alongside “a retro mix of oldschool vintage-style Martini drinks”. A pisco bar opens this month as part of new Peruvian restaurant Coya, set up by Arjun Waney, the restaurateur behind Zuma, La Petite Maison and The Arts Club. With interiors by David D’Almada, it will have a menu of pisco-based cocktails and infusions. The team behind Dishoom in Covent Garden have opened another Dishoom inspired by classic Bombay cafés. The site in Boundary Street, Shoreditch, includes The Permit Room bar, with original cocktails inspired by Mumbai. The former Albert & Pearl bar in Islington has been transformed into House of Wolf, a three-storey “Victorian lair”, by Damian Frizzell and Jennifer Anderson-Mann of Brighton bar Madame Geisha with a third director Matthew Fleming, formerly bar manager at Shoreditch House and general manager for Proud Group. Others involved include head mixologist and bar manager Stephen Quainton, formerly bar manager at Soho House, and Alexa Perrin, founder of the Experimental Food Society.
Turin-born entrepreneur Stefano Patrone has opened a small Italian bar in Covent Garden, London, offering aperitivo with wine – buffet-style snacks from 5.30pm to 8.30pm for just a £3 extra charge. As well as a selection of Italian wines, Il Tempo offers classic and twisted Italian cocktails such as a Spritz made with Campari, Martini Bianco, blueberry jam and grapefruit juice, topped up with prosecco, devised by bartender Riccardo Viozzi, formerly manager at Café Kick in Shoreditch, London.
Stonegate invests in new look for Yates’s the Newport venue, acting as a Stonegate Pub Company is Yates’s Manchester backdrop to the dance floor. investing in its Yates’s and Slug The Manchester bar showcases and Lettuce bars as part of a new chandelier of light tubes a multimillion-pound spend that project and reflect light so it across its whole estate. It can be showering down light one has completed over 70 minute and creating a chaos of refurbishments since last colour the next. September, including more than Chief executive Toby Smith said: “We work £1million on six bars and pubs in Liverpool. closely with our design teams to ensure that Investment in Yates’s in Newport on the Isle we continue to evolve each concept and they of Wight and in Portland Street, Manchester stay fresh, incorporating the latest technologies has brought the latest brand redesign as part as well as facilities our customers expect to of the refurbishments. This includes an LED see from us.” video screen from the floor to the ceiling in
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venue profile Picture: Jim Ellam Photography
High Pavement Former bar manager Paul Brown has opened a contemporary cocktail bar and dining room in Warwick
A
fter running bars for other people, Paul Brown has realised his ambition of running his own venue.With a business partner, the former bartender has launched High Pavement in the historic heart of the market town of Warwick, serving up premium drinks and cocktails alongside a dining room specialising in freshly cooked “small plates”. Taking over the former site of a Prezzo restaurant, they have spent about £500,000 on revamping the premises, bringing in leading hospitality specialist Steve Howie Design. Steve Howie and his designer Tres Stone have created a contemporary industrial concept that Paul says “would not look out of place in parts of Manhattan”. However, it is in an historic building and goes by the old historical name for Warwick’s High Street. Steve says he was nervous about some of the less conventional ideas used in the cutting-edge design but the result is a success. It mixes a lot of metalwork with multi-coloured bricks and luxury seating, while the colour scheme combines neutrals in the background with primary colours such as the turquoise furniture and some of the wall-padded features. Steve points out that a wall hanging mixing the modern with medieval, with a stone pavement slab at the bottom, was designed as a talking point. The existing flooring was sanded down and re-stained.
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The customised oak bar has two sloping curves at either side – which Steve says was a challenge for construction – alongside a lower bar area of stainless steel. Instead of conventional glass, the back bar uses 12-metre clear Perspex shelving which allows the LEDs placed on either side to illuminate the entire shelf – which creates a much better illuminated result. Behind the bar, Paul has drawn on his broad experience to create original cocktails and his own infusions. He was previously bars manager at the Lacemarket Hotel in Nottingham, where he was trained by Giles Looker and Michael Butt of Soulshakers, and worked at Mitchells & Butlers’ Premium Country Dining Group (PCDG) pubs and as general manager of pub company Peach’s Rose & Crown in Warwick. At High Pavement, he has put together a premium drinks list led by brands such as Belvedere as well as his own
Where to find it 1-3 High Street Warwick CV34 4AP Tel: 01926 494725 www.highpavementwarwick.com
Who did it Design: Steve Howie Design Flooring: Higher Ground Bar equipment: IMC
infusions. These include an Earl Grey-infused Doorly’s rum which is mixed with lime juice and agave syrup to make a cocktail called 50 Shades. Other cocktails – all priced £7.50 – range from the Mandarin High Tea, made with Belvedere Orange and lemon juice and topped up with Earl Grey foam, to the Spiced Ananas, using Belvedere Bloody Mary mixed with pineapple juice and smoked paprika. Other options include Soul Happiness, combining Jose Cuervo Reposado tequila with watermelon syrup and orange bitters. “I’ve put together a London cocktail menu but for a sleepy market town,” Paul says. With its affluent clientele, the wine list includes several champagnes, from Moët & Chandon and Veuve Clicquot Brut NV up to Dom Pérignon 2000. Trading till midnight during the week and 12.30 Fridays and Saturdays, it has DJs at weekends but, at the same time, is open for breakfast from 9am at weekends. “In the morning, it opens as a boutique coffeehouse and rolls on into the evening when it becomes a New York-style cocktail bar,” Paul says. He says the business, called Ventner & Brown Leisure, is already on the lookout for a second site in similar towns in neighbouring counties such as Oxfordshire or Berkshire. “In terms of what we offer in Warwick, there is nothing like us. We are completely unique.”
Designers & Builders of High Pavement Call Steve Howie on 07778949887
i n f o @ s t e v e h o w i e . c o . u k see Steves Work @ www.stevehowie.co.uk
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www.barmagazine.co.uk |9
venue profile Where to find it Unit 1 Cloth Hall Street Leeds LS1 2HD Tel: 0113 834 5834 www.truebarbecue.com
Who did it Design: JMDA Branding: Warm Design Fit-out: Dawnvale Decorative lighting: Northern Lights Flooring: Priory Hardwoods, Havwoods Tiles Caesars Ceramics Some furniture: Andy Thornton
Red’s M
atching food and cocktails is a challenge that has defeated many, but at new Leeds restaurant Red’s True Barbecue, they know their meat and what goes well with it. Looking at the drinks list, they suggest their Applejack Rabbit cocktail – made with applejack whiskey, maple syrup, orange and lemon juice plus a light dusting of cinnamon – pairs perfectly with their pork ribs. If you’re eating jalapeño peppers, they recommend a classic Aviation, mixing gin with maraschino liqueur, lemon juice and crème de violette. This is just one detail of the high-profile launch from three entrepreneurs who are passionate about American-style barbecue: James Douglas, Scott Munro and Clint Britz. They travelled extensively in the US to get inspiration for the venue in Cloth Hall Street, off Call Lane. Drawing inspiration from the Deep South, they serve up meat that has been soaked in a blend of marinades for at least 24 hours and then cooked “low ‘n’ slow” for up to 18 hours over hickory and fruit woods inside custommade Oklahoman smokers.
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Red’s True Barbecue in Leeds serves up a carefully crafted menu of meat and cocktails
The trio worked with Newcastle-based brand agency Warm Design and design practice JMDA, headed by Jonathon Morgan, which has worked on hospitality projects such as Chaophraya restaurants. “While wholly American in its origin, the brand was developed with almost no obvious Americana being present,” Jonathon says. “No union flags, no Uncle Sam pointing at you from the wall, and certainly none of the usual Gibson Guitars hung on the walls.” Biblical iconography is used on menus and general branding, subtly referring to fire-and-brimstone preachers of the Deep South. JMDA’s designs use reclaimed, roughsawn timbers, distressed floors and exposed brickwork as a backdrop. Rustic metal display cages are positioned as points of interest, showcasing products available. Jonathon says the exhibition kitchen is the centre of the drama. “Diners see first hand the ‘pitmasters’ smoking and finishing huge racks of ribs, towering burgers, succulent steaks, pulled pork, beef brisket sandwiches and meal plates.” The pass is formed in rough-hewn granite with concealed red
LED lighting washing down the corrugated metal frontage. The fit-out and project management was by Dawnvale, including the kitchen, granite server, new solid timber floors, fixed and banquette seating, tables and high stools. The drinks list also points to its North American influences, offering bottled US beers such as Brooklyn Lager, Dixie, Goose Island Honkers and Anchor Steam Liberty Ale plus Coors on draught. At the same time, Scotland’s BrewDog beers are available in bottles plus its Californian-style pale ale Dead Pony Club on tap. The menu also promotes Boilermakers, a selection of bourbons and rums matched to beer. While the wine list is short, there is a broad range of cocktails, created by consultant and trainer Pete Slade at Fling Bar Services. They include a Hickory Daiquiri Cox – said to be perfect with Buffalo wings – made of aged rum, lime and home-made spice syrup with pressed apple juice, and all smoked in hickory. To one side of the 2,600 sq ft venue, a minimalist, informal seating area features large communal tables with tall stools for groups. Diners can also eat at scrubbed timber tables, with a mix of antique church pews and chapel chairs as well as an eclectic mix of 1950s-style painted metal chairs. The theme of the washrooms is big and bold, with oversized scullery sinks and impressive gilt mirrors. With floor-to-ceiling windows onto the street, Red’s invites people in with signage provided by black-and-white linear LED backlit sign boxes, as well as bold red neon. Plans are already under way for a second site, within an established out-of-town development, with more sites planned across the UK soon after. Scott says: “Our plan is to expand the business as soon as possible without losing sight of the core values of what we started with.” James adds: “Although we have an aggressive plan for expansion and big ideas for the business long term, it won’t be done by watering down the offering that’s taken so long to create.”
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venue profile Where to find it
Club One Rohan Thompson has updated his club next to Ascot Racecourse into a London-style club
1 High Street, Ascot Berkshire SL5 7JF Tel: 01344 874500 www.cluboneascot.com
Who did it Furniture: Fitz Impressions LED lighting, moving heads: Lanta Lighting Upholstery: Panaz Cladding: Geometric Fabrics
W
hen Club One opened in Ascot in Berkshire 11 years ago, it was one of the region’s leading music venues, attracting some of the greatest soul singers of all time from Alexander O’Neill and Faith Evans to The Temptations. But times change, and owner Rohan Thompson has been investing in the site over the past year to transform it into a Mayfair-style club for today’s market. “It was all about the music back then – our tagline was ‘Real music for real people’,” he recalls. “We ran it like that for 10 years and it was great but it was time to change.” At the same time, the venue plugged the gap for a nightclub for over-25s on Fridays and Saturdays but Rohan says: “Ten years on, our customers have grown up and moved on so, moving forward, we needed to do something different with the club.” He has been doing the work in phases since March, redesigning the interior himself. Working with furniture specialist Fitz Impressions, he installed five booths with champagne-style vodka tables, each sponsored by a different vodka brand: Ciroc, Belvedere, Stolichnaya, Absolut and Grey Goose. Seating up to 10 people, the banquettes are luxuriously upholstered in red wine-coloured faux leather from Panaz. Each booth has an ornate mirror plus a crystal chandelier hanging above. These proved such a hit that Rohan added a larger booth, seating up to 20 people, again with a crystal chandelier above. Sponsored by Dom Pérignon, this champagne booth serves as the VIP area. “It gives us another wow factor when people come into the club,” Rohan says. In the final phase of the front-of-house revamp, he added three more champagne booths, each seating 12 to 15 people and, like the Dom Pérignon banquette, all upholstered in lighter tan faux leather. These are sponsored by Louis Roederer Cristal, Dom Pérignon Rosé, and Veuve Clicquot. Other improvements include new colourchanging LED downlighting and moving heads, while the pillars, bar panels and some walls have been clad in Geometric Fabrics’ white Shine faux leather with a floating button finish. The space, which retains a dancefloor, has also been opened up by
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replacing stone balustrading with glass and chrome panels to divide up the areas and reflect the light. “The whole club looks bigger, crisper and cleaner,” Rohan says. With two bars, Club One provides table service, with a focus on sales of spirits and champagnes by the bottle. Accompanied by mixers for spirits, bottles are carried to the table with sparklers to add theatre. Champagnes range from Taittinger, Moët & Chandon, Laurent-Perrier and Veuve Clicquot to Bollinger, Dom Pérignon and Cristal. There is a list of over 100 cocktails. Club One is at the back of Rohan’s other business, Bar One, which he created out of a former pub nearly seven years ago. This includes a restaurant which means
customers can enjoy food and drinks in there and then move on to the club for late-night partying. Rohan, who has been in clubs for 20 years and started as a DJ himself, still has live music at Club One, with recent acts such as jazz artist Peter White and R&B singer Alexa Goddard. Ascot is an affluent area, and Club One is right next door to Ascot Racecourse. Rohan says this means it attracts a mix of local people and out-of-towners, open Fridays and Saturdays from 10pm to 3am. “People were going to London so we thought we needed to give them a reason to stay,” he adds. “Now we have really transformed the club again, we say we are a London-style club in Ascot.”
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venue profile
Old Bengal Bar
Mark Ludmon discovers an oasis for well crafted cocktails in a stylish setting in a historic former warehouse
T
he East India Company’s 18thcentury warehouse in the City of London once stored spices, tea, cigars and port and, over 250 years later, it is once again a place for exotic flavours and luxurious drinks. Restaurant operator D&D London has transformed the Grade II listed building, covering over 10,000 square feet, into a range of places to eat and drink, including The Old Bengal Bar. Over the road from the bustling Liverpool Street station, the bar is a new oasis for enjoying superb cocktails in a relaxed, stylish setting. Designer Tina Norden of Conran & Partners was inspired by the building’s history and the items once stored there. She worked on all four of the new spaces in the former warehouse – the bar, the Fish Market and New Street Grill restaurants
Wine Shop The Old Bengal Warehouse site includes the New Street Wine Shop which not only stocks 600 varied bins for takeout, including rare and fine wines, but also has tables and chairs for drinking on site. With a capacity of 25, it charges £8 corkage. Three Enomatic dispensers allow people to sample a selection of wines and there are snacks including charcuterie, cheese and olives.
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and the New Street Wine Shop (see panel). “Each of the four spaces has a very distinct character, both due to the architecture and due to its function, which we emphasised by analogies with storage items and historic elements of the East India Company history,” she says. “Each offers a completely different atmosphere, but they share a sensibility of being raw yet refined in a subtle way and aim to be welcoming with a feel as if they have always been there.” In The Old Bengal Bar, the design pays homage to the building’s past with timber flooring, exposed brickwork, circular pendant lighting, etched mirror panelling and columns of old ships masts. Tables are made from distressed metal and complemented by chic, plush lounge seating. Behind the impressive white marble bar are classiclooking cabinets illuminating the impressive spirits collection. At the entrance is a luxurious all-weather outside terrace with lounge seating, heaters and canopies. The bar team, recruited from leading bars, hotels and restaurants, is led by Serbian-born bar manager Milos Popovic who worked at Claridge’s Bar and, most recently, D&D London’s Le Pont de la Tour. Others include head bartender Paresh Vadher, formerly at Devonshire Square, and bartenders László Nyiri, previously of Bár-ka in Karcag in Hungary, and Luca Esposito from London’s Riding House Café. Milos has put together what he calls a “simple” list of about 70 original and twisted classic cocktails, divided into categories such as Martinis, Bubbles, Bloody Marys and different base spirits. While most cocktails are priced at £9.50, stand-out drinks include the Royal Daiquiri – costing £195 – made with Bacardi Gold 1930 rum. Signature cocktails include Milos’s own
Where to find it 16 New Street, London EC2M 4TR Tel: 020 3503 0780 ww.oldbengalbar.com
Who did it Design: Conran & Partners Bespoke light fixtures: Into Lighting Furniture: Conran Contracts Bars and wine wall: Concept Bars Joinery and fit-out: Crane Interiors Outdoor tables: Tolix Outdoor chairs: Cane-line Bar chairs: Gervasoni Fleur De Lis, created while at Claridge’s, made with Rémy Martin XO cognac stirred with French sweet vermouth, a dash of sugar syrup and a drop of Angostura Aromatic Bitters. Some of the cocktails also use infused spirits, such as vodka infused with nutmeg, cinnamon and clove for a Bengal Spiced Bloody Mary. Being in the City, rare spirits are in demand so there are bottles of Darroze Une Larme d’Armagnac, 60-year-old Lemorton Rareté calvados and Louis XIII de Rémy Martin cognac. There is also a fine selection of champagnes, led by a Krug, with its Clos d’Ambonnay 1998 and Grande Cuvée available by the glass. Linked to the New Street Grill next door, the bar also offers food such as the Bengal Burger made of Black Angus steak and served with dopiaza onion sauce, raita and tamarind chutney Milos is also passionate about the use of ice so they carve their own ice behind the bar. “This is a theatre where we are making drinks and educating people,” Milos adds, “but what is really important to me is customer service.”
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venue profile Where to find it 4 Kingly Court, Soho London W1B 5PW Tel: 0844 371 2550 www.bittersweetsoho.co.uk
Who did it Design, bespoke lighting: Grapes Design Banquette seating: Fitz Impressions Loose furniture: Inova Furniture Contracts Artwork:Vault 49 Signage, mirrors: Technical Signs
Bitter Sweet CG Restaurants & Bars has reinvented an iconic site in London’s Soho
B
ack in the 1960s,The Pinstripe Club was a hangout for the likes of Oliver Reed, Peter O’Toole and Marilyn Monroe before being closed in the wake of the Profumo Scandal as the place where Christine Keeler met her Russian spy. More recently, the Soho site was The Kingly Club, Dezzi Mc Causland’s iconic members’ club, known for its cosy booths and cocktails. Now it is in the hands of CG Restaurants & Bars, the owners of London’s Dirty Martini bars and Tuttons and Fire & Stone restaurants.With a new look, it has been reborn as Bitter Sweet, a more inclusive cocktail bar. Tucked away in Kingly Court off Carnaby Street, it has a contemporary, stylish new interior designed by bar specialist Darren Grapes of Grapes Design. Aware of its history, he set out to “put back the former soul of the venue”, with exquisite details and bespoke textures creating the illusion of an exclusive members’ club. The entrance is a bronze sculpted vault, washed by LED lighting, with rustic metallic tiling and copper light fittings, leading through to the main lounge. The focus here is the bespoke illuminated artwork, reflected in the polished porcelain tiles. The areas are defined by aluminium laser-cut screens, while two arches lead into chic private
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vaults, each with its own exclusive furniture and intimate lighting. The new illuminated bar features a glass tiered bottle display, where each bottle is placed on a light source, casting light effects onto the curved polished plaster lining the vaulted ceiling. The drinks list includes a section inspired by the bar’s name, with bitter and sweet cocktails alongside other classic and signature cocktails. On the bitter side is the Bitter Zesty, made with Plymouth Gin shaken with Martini Extra Dry vermouth, pink grapefruit, egg white, caster sugar and grapefruit bitters, while the Bitter Sweet Iced Tea combines grapefruit and lemon juice with Plymouth Gin and orgeat syrup, lengthened with breakfast tea. On the sweet side, there is the Bon Bon Cerise, made with crème de cerise and crème de cacao, topped with prosecco and served in a champagne flute, or the Vanilla
Monk – a decadent mix of vanilla vodka, Frangelico and Kahlúa shaken with fresh cream and served in a coupe. The drinks have been devised by general manager Matt Quick and assistant general manager Simon Formichi, who both came over from Dirty Martini in Hanover Square. Happy hour is an important part of the offering, running from 5pm to 10pm Sunday to Thursday and 5pm to 8pm Saturdays. During this time, cocktails and bottles of wine are half price and there is £10 off bottles of champagne. “It is a much more complex cocktail list than you would normally get for a happy hour,” Matt adds. Bitter Sweet is run separately from Dirty Martini cocktail bars in Hanover Square and Covent Garden and, if successful, could be developed into another brand for CG Restaurants & Bars. “Bitter Sweet is brighter and more contemporary than Dirty Martini,” Matt says. “It’s a relaxing place to chill out after work and gets more clubby later but still very cocktail led.” Bitter Sweet is open from 5pm seven days a week, until 3am Thursday to Saturday and till 1am Sunday to Wednesday. Because of historic licensing regulations, it has to remain officially a members’ club from 9pm but, before that time, it is open to anybody. However, membership is free and, even after 9pm, people can sign up on the night for temporary membership. Member benefits include priority entry, invitations to exclusive events and cocktail tastings, a free cocktail of the month and a “birthday treat”. “We don’t see it as a traditional members’ club,” Matt insists. “We are trying to keep it more friendly than that and do something fresh. To reinvent such an iconic venue in Carnaby Street is an incredible opportunity. We’re offering customers a fun and glamorous night out in intimate surroundings with an impressive cocktail list.”
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trade profile Ni Ju San
Pearl River Rock at NeNe
East meets West As Hakkasan Group expands in London and overseas, Mark Ludmon meets senior bar manager George Matzaridis
O
ver the past 11 years, the Hakkasan name has grown from being one Chinese restaurant and bar in London’s West End to a global empire that stretches to San Francisco, Abu Dhabi and Mumbai. Alongside this global expansion, London has not been forgotten, and this autumn sees new restaurants and bars coming onto the scene, with no dilution in the company’s high standards of bartending and cocktails. The latest venture is Chrysan in the Broadgate West development on the eastern edge of the City of London. This Japanese restaurant is a joint venture with Michelin-starred chef Yoshihiro Murata and, after opening in September, it will be followed in December by the opening of Chinese banqueting concept HKK next door. While much of the focus has been on the food, Chrysan has a separate bar called NeNe which still needs some final design touches but is already serving up a sophisticated menu of cocktails and spirits. An Asian flavour can be seen in the cocktail names and a few of the ingredients,
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but NeNe’s list is about well crafted drinks, although there is a Japanese-style attention to ice. They include the Chrysan Shinobi, made with plum sake, Diplomático Reserva rum, raspberries, pineapple, pomegranate and ginger bitters, or there is the quirky Himitus combining a citrus vodka with blackberry and raspberry liqueurs, maple syrup and Marmite. Mexican mezcal Del Maguey Vida is used in the stirred Pearl River Rock, mixed with ginger, pear liqueur and peach bitters. As with all the group’s bars in London and the Middle East, NeNe is ultimately headed by Swedish-born senior bar manager George Matzaridis. He was at the first Hakkasan in Hanway Place, Fitzrovia, at the start, apart from a three-year spell running his own bar, Cinco Lounge in Lisbon, before returning to the fold in 2007. He now looks after the bar operations for Hakkasan in Fitzrovia and Mayfair, which opened in 2010, as well as Chinese restaurant Yauatcha in Soho, which opened in 2004 before founder Alan Yau sold his businesses in 2007 to Abu Dhabi investment company Tasameem.
George also looks after the bar at Japanese restaurant Sake No Hana which Tasameem bought from Jamie Barber last year. The luxurious bamboo-clad bar was relaunched as Ni Ju San, which means simply “23”. Here, the list includes the Kiki Sakura, made with Shiroku yuzu sake, cherry liqueur, Elements 8 Platinum rum and apricot, as well as the Charentais Breakfast which combines Hennessy Fine cognac, tamarillo fruit, sweet vermouth, yuzu marmalade and apricot. The latest development in London is back where it all began at Hanway Place. From November, the restaurant will “morph” each evening into a late-night lounge concept called Ling Ling – the name given to the bar area when it was first opened by Yau. This concept, featuring top DJs and animated artwork, is said to be inspired by the Parisian-style late-night lounge concept at places such as Hotel Costes that in Paris are “destination nights for an achingly fashionable crowd”. Alongside champagne and spirits by the bottle, the drinks list will offer over 20 of Hakkasan’s signature cocktails including the Lychee Martini and the Hakka – Belvedere vodka, Akashi-tai sake, lychee juice, lime, coconut and fresh passion fruit. If this takes off, the concept will be extended to other Hakkasan sites, which can now be found in New York, Miami, San Francisco, Las Vegas, Abu Dhabi, Dubai and, before long, Doha in Qatar. While George flits around London and the Middle East, he says creation of cocktails is now devolved to individual bar managers at each site and their team of bartenders. “If they have a good idea, we don’t want to stop it,” he says. “If they have something good going on in the Middle East, we will bring it back here, and the other way round. We want to encourage them to develop and grow. We never stop looking at ways to improve, whether it is glasses, menus, spirits or cocktails.”
drink
November 2012
www.barmagazine.co.uk
A Bar magazine supplement
Party time Food and drink ideas to make Christmas sparkle
Inside: Scotch and Japanese whiskies – mixology – drinks news
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news
Jim Beam grows bourbon with Devil’s Cut
Maxxium UK has launched Devil’s Cut, a new premium expression in the Jim Beam family of bourbons aimed particularly at top-end bars. Filling used Jim Beam casks with water, a unique technique extracts the bourbon or “devil’s cut” infused into the barrel during ageing – inspired by the “angel’s share” which is the spirit that evaporates during maturation. The liquid, which takes on the natural elements of the wood, is added to six-year-old Jim Beam bourbon and bottled at 45 per cent ABV, resulting in a bourbon that is deep bold in taste and colour. It is
being promoted for classic-style and original cocktails such as a twist on a Sour. Suitable for drinking neat or mixed, Devil’s Cut was launched in the US last year and is initially available only in the UK on-trade and selected luxury off-trade outlets. Maxxium UK’s marketing controller for imported whiskeys, Eileen Livingston, said: “Devil’s Cut portrays an edgy brand personality and, with its unique product story, is set to capture the imagination of consumers whilst strengthening our position in the premium bourbon market.”
Pre-mixed cocktail for clubs A pre-mixed Sex On The Beach cocktail, called XB, has been launched into the UK club market, debuting at an event at Dstrkt in London supported by rapper Busta Rhymes. The recipe combines strong flavours with a fruity twist – orange, cranberry, peach and grape – blended with smooth triple-distilled grain vodka, for serving over ice. The bottle design draws on the heritage and glamour of the French Riviera combined with 1950s imagery. Distributed by Vanquish Drinks, it is targeted at top-end clubs in Mayfair and the West End. At 12.5 per cent ABV, it is available in 250ml cans as well as 750ml, 1.75-litre and three-litre bottles.
Japanese-style drink gains bar listings Koji, a new premium soft drink inspired by a traditional Japanese infusion process, has been introduced to the ontrade by Future Drinks. It has 49 calories per bottle and is an additive-free and crisp lightly sparkling fruit drink. It is available in two flavours in 330ml bottles: Lemon & Ginger and Mandarin & Cranberry, with more flavour combinations in the pipeline. Future Drinks has secured listings in Loungers’ 22 Lounge bars and five Cosy Clubs. It is produced and bottled in collaboration with Brothers Drinks.
Red Bull plans roll-out for flavours Red Bull is preparing to roll out its first flavour extensions with the launch of Red Bull Special Editions after successful trials. The cranberry-flavoured Red Edition, the lime-flavoured Silver Edition and the blueberry-flavoured Blue Edition are due to be launched into the UK on-trade in the first three months of 2013. It follows trials in bars and pubs operated by Stonegate Pub Company. Gavin Lissimore, Red Bull strategy and planning manager, said: “The launch of Red Bull Special Editions is a really exciting piece of activity for us and one that we expect will add value to the category and drive profits for pubs and bars. “We know that some consumers don’t buy into the category because they don’t like the taste of energy drinks so, by offering them a range of new flavours, using the strength of the Red Bull brand will deliver against these concerns and ultimately drive penetration into the category.”
Maxxium UK has brought back the limited-edition Sourz Spirited Apple & Cranberry to its Sourz liqueur range for this winter after consumer demand via Facebook. It is promoted for serving straight or mixed in long drinks and pitchers, with drinks recipes at www. sourz.co.uk. There will also be promotional material and online competitions for Christmas and New Year. American ale Red Chair IPA from Deschutes Brewery in Oregon has been named the world’s best beer in the World Beer Awards. Category winners included best lager Waldhaus Spezial Gold from Waldhaus Privatbräuerei in BadenWürttemberg, Germany, while best wheat beer was Weihenstephaner Vitus from Bayerische Staatsbräuerei Weihenstephan in Freising, Germany. Winners in other categories included British brewers Brakspear, Thornbridge, Harvey’s, Thwaites, Innis & Gunn, Greene King, Sambrook and Marston’s.Visit www.worldbeerawards.com. Craig Harper, who was most recently a training manager at Bacardi Brown-Forman Brands, has joined drinks company Fever-Tree as on-trade sales manager. He was previously head of sales for Martin Miller’s Gin. Managing director Tim Warrillow said: “Our on-trade sales grew by over 50 per cent last year, and with bars, restaurants and pubs needing to offer their customers the very best-quality drinking experience, there is still great potential for Fever-Tree in this sector.” Sampling is under way for Press 81, the cider from Aston Manor, linking it with fashion. The latest activity has been at Style Live events in Birmingham and London. The sampling aims to build the profile of the cider brand and extend distribution. www.barmagazine.co.uk |21
news The 2012 vintage of Alaskan Smoked Porter will be arriving in the UK exclusively from speciality beer importer James Clay in November. Created by The Alaskan Brewing Company, the 6.5 per cent ABV limited-edition beer has a dark robust body and pronounced smoky flavour which comes from smoking barley malts in small batches with Alaskan alder wood. It is brewed in limited vintages every November 1 and improves with age.
A new beer, Joshua Jane, has been created by Ilkley Brewery with the help of winners in its Leeds Home Brew competition. The rich, nut-brown Yorkshire bitter, with an ABV of 3.7 per cent, is also the first beer to showcase Ilkley Brewery’s new brand identity. Competition winners David Bishop and Matt Lovell from Leeds helped Ilkley’s Luke Raven (pictured) and the brew team create the beer which joins the brewery’s core range. Scottish brewer Innis & Gunn has launched an oak-matured porter, made with treacle, The LimitedEdition Winter Treacle Porter, with an ABV of 7.4 per cent, is inspired by a recipe dating back over 100 years from Florence Marion McNeill’s book, A Scots Cellar. It incorporates treacle in the brewing process to add complexity and sweetness. Premium Parisian beer Gallia has been introduced to the UK through its new UK distributor Coles Trading. Gallia Paris, with a delicate sweet and bitter balance and an ABV of 5.5 per cent, was first launched in 1890 but ceased production in 1968. It was relaunched in 2010 by Guillaume Roy.
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Cuervo steps up spend on ‘original’ Tradicional Cuervo International is increasing its marketing spend “significantly” on its 100 per cent agave tequila, Tradicional, in the UK over the next three years. Activities aimed at consumers and bartenders are focusing on its authenticity as the original tequila produced by the Cuervo family. Each year, only a limited quantity is released in tall, elegant 50cl bottles, numbered and marked with the year of production. The new drive for Tradicional follows a growing trend in the UK for bars to favour tequilas made 100 per cent from agave in contrast to mixto tequilas such as Jose Cuervo. Tradicional has become the top-
performing 100 per cent agave tequila brand in the UK on-trade in value terms and grown volume by 34 per cent year on year. Supported by UK brand ambassador Tim Homewood, it is promoted for serving ice cold in a small tumbler for sipping as well as in cocktails. Last month, Cuervo partnered with supper club The Art of Dining to run the pop-up Tradicional After Supper Club at MC Motors and Ruby’s Bar in Dalston, east London. Inspired by traditional Mexican sangrita drinks, it featured the “Deconstructed Sangrita” served on a tray as halved cherry tomatoes for dipping in celery salt, pepper and sugar, followed by a sip of Tradicional.
New English vodka takes ‘green’ approach
Firm points to US craft beer growth
A new English artisanal vodka has been launched that uses a refill system that makes it greener by reducing packaging, transportation and carbon costs. Element 29 has been developed by Mark Douglas Hill, creator of Bloodshot Vodka, the Bloody Maryflavour spirit. It is made from East Anglian winter wheat and distilled at the Langley Distillery near Birmingham, with final dilution to 40 per cent ABV using water from the Weald of Sussex. It takes its name from the 29th element of the periodic table, copper, because of its final distillation in antique copper stills which gives it natural sweetness, smoothness and flavour. The spirit is supplied in 12-bottle “refill reservoirs” which are used to refill the distinctive frosted bottle. This reduces packaging by 95 per cent as well as the price.
Predictions of growth for American craft beers in the UK have led a team to set up a company to develop brands for the on-trade and retail market. The American Craft Beer Company aims to grow its roster of brands but is initially focusing on five brews from the award-winning 155-year-old Stevens Point Brewery in Wisconsin. The beers are: Point Belgian White, a smooth Belgian-style white beer at 5.4 per cent ABV; Point Pale Ale, with a fragrant hop bouquet and soft malt palate at 5.4 per cent ABV; Point Black Ale, rich and roasty at 5.2 per cent ABV; the Vienna-style Point Amber Lager at 4.7 per cent ABV; and the crisp Point IPA, with a complex taste and bold hop aroma. The firm was set up by Mark Smith, formerly at Molson Coors, with Huw Williams from Bass and Ed Firth.
New London distillery plans gin and vodka A new distillery will open in central London this month alongside a new bar, with plans for a vodka and gin under master distiller Jamie Baxter, formerly of Chase Distillery. The City of London Distillery (COLD) in Bride Lane, off Fleet Street, will be the first working distillery to open within the City for over 200 years and be a free visitor attraction.
It will produce COLD Vodka and City of London Dry Gin in two copper stills which will be framed behind huge glass windows as a stunning visual focus for the venue. The bar will open in the evenings, offering more than 140 gins, with gin flights and different tonics and garnishes to complement different gins.
NEW WKD CLUB EDITION. MADE FOR LATE NIGHTS.
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The SHS Group Drinks Division is a member of the Portman Group - promoting responsible drinking. UK Distribution Enquiries: SHS Sales & Marketing. Tel: 01452 378 500 Email: info@shs-sales.co.uk WKD Club Edition is available to purchase via selected supply routes in 24 x 275ml NRB format.
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news Team Bristol won the first leg of The Great Brugal Rumble cocktail competition run by distributor Maxxium UK at the Boutique Bar Show in London. Captained by Matt Fairhurst from The Milk Thistle, they beat two teams from London, and teams from Bath, Bournemouth and Brighton in the competition’s southern heat. Reports at www. barlifeuk.com. Premium Swedish cider Rekorderlig has introduced its newest flavour, MangoRaspberry, across the on trade after an exclusive six-month listing with Stonegate Pub Company. Mango-Raspberry proved to be the second bestperforming flavour behind Rekorderlig Strawberry-Lime. It is now available through wholesalers including Matthew Clark, WaverleyTBS, Molson Coors and LWC.
Simone Mahdi (pictured) from Sheffield bar Henry’s has been named the Stella Artois 2012 UK Draught Master after winning the national final in London. The competition is an annual search for craftsmanship in pouring beer, run across 26 countries. Simone qualified in the regional heat in Manchester before advancing to the UK finals in London to compete against 16 other participants. She defeated Julie Bonney from Blackpool in the final stage and was due to represent the UK in the world final in Montreal, Canada, in late October. Staffordshire-based Freedom Brewery has launched a limitededition wheat beer, based on the original Freedom Wheat Beer that it made when it was in Fulham, London. With an ABV of 4.9 per cent, orange peel and coriander have been added at the end of the boil and a special wheat yeast has been used to create a fruity aroma. It comes in 50-litre kegs while stocks last.
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Smirnoff looks globally with drinks and nightlife A campaign has been launched for Smirnoff vodka under the banner of “World’s Best Drinks”, inspired by ingredients and cultures from around the world including New York, Rio, Moscow and Jamaica. It offers new serve suggestions including the Smirnoff New York Cranberry and Lime, Smirnoff Jamaican Sunrise, Smirnoff Rio Caipiroska and Smirnoff Moscow Mule. Appearing across outdoor, print, TV and digital advertising, it is supported in the on-trade with a World’s Best Drinks menu with Smirnoff signature pitchers. Selected outlets will also host the “barman’s challenge”, a competition where bartenders demonstrate how
to make a cocktail and then challenge consumers to compete against their friends to see who can best recreate it. In another campaign, Smirnoff is working with individuals in the UK music and nightlife industry to identify ideas for new “nightlife experiences”. Supported by a 60-second TV ad, these ideas will be shared globally across YouTube, Facebook and Twitter, where consumers can provide their own ideas via the hashtag #YoursForTheMaking. The best ideas will lead to Smirnoff Nightlife Experiment events, including an activation package for the on-trade, in the first three months of 2013.Visit www.facebook.com/smirnoffgb.
WKD promotes sharing Cask ale grows in bars drinks in kettles Cask ale volumes are back in growth in the UK, New kettle-shaped cocktail pitchers are being made available to the UK on-trade for leading RTD brand WKD. Tens of thousands of the “cocktail-kettles” are being sent out to generate theatre in outlets and deliver a “wow” factor. With a two-pint capacity, plus room for plenty of ice, they are designed for sharing WKD cocktails. Inspired by WKD Iron Brew, the kettles are marked with the slogan, “Fancy a Brew?” In-outlet point-of-sale materials, such as hanging kettle-shaped mobiles and bar-runners, will highlight the activity, raise awareness and build sales.
partly driven by increased penetration into the bar sector, according to the brewing industry’s latest Cask Report. Volumes increased in 2011 for the first time in 20 years, rising by 1.6 per cent to 2.2million barrels of cask, equal to about 633million pints. The Cask Report’s author, Pete Brown, said the growth was partly due to an increase in cask ale in bars – dubbed “café bars and town centre circuit venues” – demonstrating its growing appeal to younger drinkers. While cask drinkers remain predominantly male and upmarket, interest from younger and female drinkers is holding steady after significant recruitment from these groups. The Cask Report found that 58 per cent of cask ale drinkers said they first tried it when aged 18 to 24, proving its appeal to emerging drinkers. More at www.barmagazine.co.uk.
UK launch for South African vodka liqueurs South African vodka liqueur Lovoka has launched into the UK after its sales made it the second-biggest cream liqueur in its home country in just two years. It is available as Lovoka Chocolate and Lovoka Caramel, with an ABV of 30 per cent. It is drunk neat or in mixed drinks in South Africa but the focus in the UK has been on cocktails so far. “Cocktail culture isn’t as big in South Africa as it is in the UK,” explains UK and Europe chief executive Richard Caldeira.
The first on-trade listing was London bar-restaurants Beach Blanket Babylon in Notting Hill and Shoreditch where the launch was held during London Cocktail Week last month. It is also available exclusively at Harvey Nichols shops nationally as well as its bars. A range of 20 cocktails has also been created by Christian Ozzati from consultancy Strategic Drinking such as the Lovoka Liquid Gold which mixes Lovoka Caramel with Passoä, gomme, apple juice, passion fruit, raspberries and crushed ice.
Whisky accounts for 31% share of ‘after dinner’ spirits consumption in December*
Vodka accounts for 42% of total spirit serves in December †
Cocktails can increase spirits sales in outlet by 36%. Mojitos dominate the category with 55% share † †
The No.1 Deluxe Blended Whisky in the UK**
The No.1 Premium Vodka in the UK †
For the authentic Cuban mojito
*Alcovision Consumer Attitudes at Christmas April 2012 **IWSC 2011 † CGA Total GB to 07.07.2012 † † CGA Cocktail Report 2012
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news
Botrán adds aged white rum A new limited-edition aged white rum is due to be released into the UK to add to the Botrán range from Guatemala. Ron Botrán Reserva Blanca is a complex, fullbodied white rum with hints of dry fruit and wood notes. It is made using the same solera
Russ Ward (pictured) from TGI Friday’s in Sheffield has won the 2012 TGI Friday’s UK Bartender Championship. He beat 300 competitors from TGIs across the country and faced six other finalists in Manchester. Russ will represent the UK at the TGI Friday’s World Bartender Championships in the US next year.Visit www.facebook. com/tgifridaysUK for videos of the final.
Italian wine bar Super Tuscan (pictured) in Spitalfields, east London, is handing control of its wine list to its customers. At monthly Battle of the Bottles events each month, people taste and choose from four wines selected by owner Nick Grossi and four by wine writer Tom Harrow of WineChap. The best wines go onto the list, with one guest winning a bottle of the top-scoring wine. Tickets cost £49 including food. The next event is November 20. The Morgenrot Group has agreed to distribute and develop two iconic beers from the historic family-run Sleeman Breweries in Canada. The beers, positioned as “notoriously good”, are a traditional India Pale Ale and a Honey Brown Lager, both with ABV of 4.8 per cent. Both beers are available on draught and are being targeted at pubs, restaurants and bars.
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techniques as Botrán Solera 1893 and Botrán Añejo Reserva and is charcoal filtered to remove colour while retaining the flavours. Due for release in the UK in 2013 through drinks company Distillnation, it is promoted for drinking on the rocks or in cocktails.
Awards for best rums and brand ambassadors St Nicholas Abbey, Plantation and Appleton Estate rums were among the winners of the Golden Rum Barrel Awards, held as part of Rumfest in London in October. Alexandre Gabriel, the founder of Cognac Ferrand in France, was named rum blender of the year for his Plantation rums. Best new white rum went to Plantation 3 Stars, made with rums from Barbados, Trinidad and Jamaica. The award for rum distillery went to St Nicholas Abbey in Barbados. Launching a new white rum, it also won the award for best white rum on show at Boutique Rumfest, the trade-only part of Rumfest at London ExCel. Best new gold rum was Appleton Estate 50 Year Old, made from rums set down
New Brown-Forman push for US whiskeys A new twin pack of rye whiskeys has been added to the Master’s Collection of premium small-batch bourbons from BrownForman’s Woodford Reserve. There are only 155 cases available of the twin pack of Woodford Reserve New Cask Rye and Woodford Reserve Aged Cask Rye, both of which come in 350ml bottles. Each whiskey uses the same recipe and is made from a 100 per cent rye mash, but one is matured in fresh, charred oak and the other in a used barrel. Brown-Forman has also appointed bartender Tom Vernon as American whiskey ambassador. He will drive excitement around Woodford Reserve and Brown-Forman’s other whiskey brands, Jack Daniel’s Single Barrel and Gentleman Jack. His background includes general manager of Socio Rehab in Manchester and Portobello Star in London.
50 years ago for celebrating the 50th anniversary of Jamaica’s independence this year. The award for best UK brand ambassador went to Bacardi’s Shervene Shahbazkhani, while best international brand ambassador was Stefanie Holt of El Dorado. Master distiller of the year was Roberto Serralles of Puerto Rico’s Serralles Distillery, home to rums such as DonQ, Palo Viejo, and Caliche. He also won the Rum Experience Pioneer Award. The award for best gold rum at Boutique Rumfest went to Bristol Spirits’ Rockley Still Barbados 1986. More at www.barmagazine.co.uk.
Excellia rolls out to bars The premium range of Excellia tequilas is gaining listings in top bars after being introduced to the UK by EWG Spirits & Wine and distributor Boutique Brands. Produced from 100 per cent agave, it comprises a blanco, reposado and añejo, made by blending spirit that has been matured in Grand Cru sauternes wine casks and cognac barrels. Jean-Sébastien Robicquet, founder of EWG, which also produces G’Vine Gin and June liqueur, worked with consultant blender Alban Petiteaux to develop the unique ageing method. The range is led by the light and smooth reposado, which is for mixing or sipping, while the blanco is ideal for cocktails and the 18-month añejo is for sipping. It is aimed both at tequila aficionados and at a broader market because of its smoothness and accessibility. Mixologist Andreas Tsanos of Baku in Sloane Street, London, is supporting on cocktails and other activities. Listings in the capital include El Camion, Morton’s and Wahaca.
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The extraordinary Art o
T
he meticulous attention to detail and blending of art with nature is a defining characteristic of Japanese culture. Over nearly 90 years, Japanese whisky distillers have evolved an approach defined as the Art of Japanese Whisky. Bartenders in premium hotels and style bars are already discovering such distinctive whiskies as the Yamazaki and Hakushu 12 year old single malts or the Hibiki 17 year old blended whisky. And no wonder. The Yamazaki, Hakushu and Hibiki ranges have become the most honoured whiskies in the world with over 60 trophies and medals for excellence from internationally-recognised competitions such as the International Wine and Spirit Competition and the International Spirit Challenge. The sudden world awakening to the qualities of Japanese whisky began in 2003 when Suntory’s Yamazaki 12 year old won a gold medal at the International Spirits Challenge in London. Remarkably, in 2010 Suntory, Japan’s leading distiller of premium whiskies, was awarded the title of Best Distiller in the World, the first time such a title had gone to a Japanese company. Then Hibiki 21 year old was named World’s Best Blended Whisky, for the second year in succession. In fact, the Hibiki brand, whether for the 30 year-old or the 21 year-old, has held this much-envied title for the last four years. If that were not enough, the Yamazaki 25 year old was named Best Single Malt Whisky in the World this year. The same title was held by Yamazaki 1984 in 2011.
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The Yamazaki distillery at the confluence of three rivers
Hakushu in wooded alpine scenery
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t of Japanese whisky Where the Art began
T
he art of Suntory whiskies begins in 1923 with the pioneering Shinjiro Torrii who created the first Japanese distillery. He sought a subtle, humid climate with a good source of clear water. His choice fell on the vale of Yamazaki, south-west of Kyoto, above the meeting place of three rivers. The distillery houses 12 pot stills, six of them in varying shapes to produce spirit of different weights and flavours expressed in flowery, fruity aromas with sweet finishes.Yamazaki 12 year old, bottled at an ABV of 43 per cent, contrasts a nose of cedar wood, honey, cloves and candied orange peel with a palate of spiced wood, cranberries, orange marmalade and honey. Yamazaki 18 year old, also at 43 per cent ABV, is aged in sherry casks imparting aromas of raisins, maraschino cherries and coffee cream chocolate and flavours of dark chocolate, rum, raisin toffee and coffee. The tastes linger. Fifty years later, Suntory opened a second distillery called Hakushu, south-west of Tokyo in the southern alps. Sited at 700 metres among pine forests on the slopes of Mount Kaikomagatake, Hakushu has one of
Zoran Peric
the highest locations for a distillery. In this beautiful environment, rain and snowmelt are filtered through rock to deliver pure spring water to the stills. The Hakushu single malts are sold in expressions of 12, 18 and 25 years. The Hakushu 12 year old assails the nose with pears, crushed bracken, citrus and a hint of smoked oak. The flavours speak of vanilla, oak and sweet, poached pears. The nature of the wood in which the whiskies are matured is vital. In addition to American white oak casks in varying sizes as well as sherry butts, Suntory whiskies are unique in using a native Japanese oak called Mizunara. The wood conveys aromas which leading whisky writer Dave Broom describes as the scent of incense. The result of the different still shapes and wood has created a vast store of unblended whiskies. From thirty of these whiskies the harmonious Hibiki 17 year old premium blend is created. The Japanese word Hibiki means harmony and, like the marriage of art and craftsmanship or nature and the seasons, this is key. Moreover, the whisky is presented in a striking decanter bevelled
Shinjiro Torrii
with 24 facets to echo the 24 traditional seasons. The names of the seasons have a delightful charm, such as Rikka (the first week in May, the beginning of summer) or Shousho (in July, the “small heat”), leading to Taisho (the “great heat”). Hibiki 17 year old blended whisky at 43 per cent ABV reflects all these influences. The nose of ripe banana, vanilla cream and citrus freshness leads to a discovery of toffee bananas, butter cream and vanilla on the palate. The Hibiki range spans three other blends. Hibiki 12, 21 and 30 years old. Zoran Peric, mixologist, luxury bar manager and Brand Ambassador for Suntory whiskies, says: “Japanese whiskies taste like no others. They were inspired by Scotch whisky and transformed by Japanese culture. And then there is the water. Water is key to the quality of whisky. In Japan it is regarded as a precious element and a source of spiritual inspiration.” He continues: “People who have never tried whisky find Japanese whisky so smooth, flavourful, and with a variety of taste sensations, that they quickly become whisky lovers.”
Suntory whiskies are distributed by Cellar Trends. For all information contact: 01283 217703 www.cellartrends.co.uk www.barmagazine.co.uk |29
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whisky
Into the woods Innovation in cask selection and wood finishes are part of continuing excitement and exploration in the whisky category in the UK, reports Mark Ludmon
W
hisky may have been pushed by vodka into second place as Britons’ favourite spirit, but there is still a thirst for it. Even before Ardbeg Distillery released its 12-year-old Galileo in September, many suppliers had sold out. With only a few thousand cases available, the Islay single malt was in as much demand as the distillery’s previous limited editions, with orders placed well in advance. And last month, tickets for The Whisky Exchange Whisky Show in London were selling out in advance, making it the most successful yet. Interest is coming from innovation in the use of wood as well as vintages and age statements. According to research by whisky company Chivas Brothers, 94 per cent of consumers believe the age statement serves as an indicator of quality and 89 per cent actively look for an age statement when making a decision to purchase. This insight informs its global campaign Age Matters The Balvenie dog at the Connaught Bar
Cocktails at Monkey Shoulder’s pop-up bar with The Bon Vivant
and the current ad campaign comparing the making of whisky with the creation of great wonders of the world such as the Great Pyramid of Giza which took 18 years to complete. Age is just one of the indicators used in the whisky portfolio of International Beverage Holdings, which includes Old Pulteney, Balblair and anCnoc. “Age statements are still the default for consumers, especially in emerging markets,” admits head of malts Iain Baxter. “Numbers are easier for people to understand than abstract things such as number of fills. But having no age statement can allow you to be more innovative with the whisky.” Age is important for Old Pulteney, where the focus is on the 12-year-old, 17-year-old and 21-year-old. Well established in the off-trade, International Beverage is driving distribution in the on-trade, especially in top bars where the 21-year-old is particularly in demand after being named world whisky of
the year in last year’s edition of Jim Murray’s Whisky Bible. The latest release is the much-anticipated Old Pulteney 40 Year Old which, Iain says, highlights another opportunity for the bar trade. “With the emergence of a whisky collectors’ market over the past 10 years, high-age whiskies are rarely ever drunk because they are an investment. But for bars, there is an opportunity from big spenders and enthusiasts who will take the only chance in their life to have a drink of a 40-year-old malt whisky for tens of pounds rather than thousands of pounds. It is a great solution for the on-trade as it draws in consumers and could make your bar a destination.” In contrast, Balblair has always been about vintages, as demonstrated by the second release of the 1997 vintage of the Highland single malt last month. Nonchill-filtered, the 46 per cent ABV whisky means there are now four vintages in the core Balblair range along with 1975, 1989 and 2002. As the first release from the 1997 vintage was in 2007, the new expression has been aged for another five years. “Vintages are a different way of looking at whisky,” Iain adds. “When we launched Balblair as vintage only, we expected people who understand wine vintage concepts to come to it.” The Glenrothes is another whisky that focuses on vintages rather than age statements. While the popular Select www.barmagazine.co.uk |31
whisky Reserve was the first whisky from The Glenrothes to be bottled from casks from different years, the current vintages are 1978, 1991, 1995 and 1998. Owner Berry Bros & Rudd has now unveiled a series of single-cask bottlings from the late 1960s and early 1970s, as the Extraordinary Cask Collection, after a cache of casks was located by brands heritage director Ronnie Cox. The first release is a whisky distilled in 1970 and matured in an ex-bourbon hogshead, cask number 10573, but, due to demand, the 179 bottles are available on allocation only, in hand-blown lead-crystal decanters. Despite consumers’ dependence on age statements, the importance of wood is being understood more widely by mainstream consumers. The new-look range of Glengoyne Highland single malts highlights the use of oloroso sherry casks in its maturation as well as the age statement, with three new malts joining the range: a premium Glengoyne 15-year-old malt, a cask-strength expression to replace the current 12-year-old cask-strength, and an 18-year-old replacing the 17-year-old. They join the 10-year-old, 12-year-old and 21-year-old. Wemyss Malts continues to launch single cask whiskies named after their natural taste and aroma as well as their age. The latest are the 30-year-old Sugared Almonds from Aultmore distillery, the 26-year-old Autumn Berries from Blair Athol, the 16-year-old Lemon Smoke from Caol Ila and the 14-year-old Beach Bonfires from Laphroaig distillery. The combination of wood and age runs through The Balvenie’s range, with the addition in November of The Balvenie DoubleWood 17 Year Old. With the same honeyed, spicy characteristics as the Chivas Regal Winter Warmer
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Japanese whiskies Suntory has added excitement to the already-booming Japanese whisky category with the launch of a rare collection of limited-edition releases aged in different woods. With an ABV of 48 per cent, they include the unusual Yamazaki Mizunara, which is aged in the loosely-grained mizunara oak from Japan, giving it notes of sandalwood and cinnamon. The Cask Collection, which carries no age statements, also comprises the
popular DoubleWood 12 Year Old, the new release has deeper vanilla notes and hints of green apple and creamy toffee. The name refers to the technique of maturing the whisky first in American oak barrels and then transferring it to European oak sherry casks. The launch marks the completion of the new-look core range of The Balvenie after the UK arrival of The Balvenie 14 Year Old Caribbean Cask in September. This has been matured for 14 years in traditional oak whisky casks and then transferred to casks that previously held Caribbean rum for finishing. The Balvenie’s marketing manager Jonny Cornthwaite from distributor First Drinks says: “Age statements are important but not the sole drivers of quality. The new core range is more consumer-friendly in terms of providing a straightforward ladder with age, which is great for the consumer who is not
Yamazaki Bourbon Barrel, the rich and dark Yamazaki Sherry Cask, which uses wood seasoned with oloroso sherry, and the smooth Yamazaki Puncheon, which is matured more slowly in larger American grain whiskey oak casks that have been slightly toasted. All the barrels are used in Yamazaki’s 12-year-old, 18-year-old and 25-year-old single malts. Suntory’s other whisky brands include Hibiki and Hakushu. a complete whisky nut, but also with the joy of cask finishing. It’s also something interesting for the connoisseur, using age as a ladder but also playing with second maturation.” First Drinks is bringing an exclusive new “ritual serve” to the on-trade for The Balvenie with the introduction of “dipping dogs” that tap into whisky’s heritage. Working with the distillery’s own coppersmith Dennis McBain, they have developed a serving vessel based on the illegal “dogs” that were used in the past to steal whisky from the warehouse. These small metal tubes would be lowered by a piece of string into a barrel to fill with liquid and then hidden down the thief’s trousers. The new dogs hold 100ml of The Balvenie and are carried to the table with two glasses. “It gives the bartender a reason to upsell, adds value for the outlet
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whisky and engages the consumer to get them to drink high-value, high-margin product,” Jonny explains. The first bars to use them are the Coburg and Connaught bars at London’s Connaught Hotel, the Athenaeum in London, The Bonham hotel in Edinburgh and Roslin Beach Hotel in Southendon-Sea, Essex. Age statements have been dropped for single malt whisky The Macallan for its high-profile new 1824 Series, which are each named after the colour of the whiskies from their maturation. Distributed by Maxxium UK, it has started with The Macallan Gold, which is matured in sherry seasoned oak casks to give it a burnished gold colour and notes of vanilla and dark chocolate. In spring 2013, it will be followed by Amber, Sienna and Ruby – again colours of the whiskies. Ken Grier, director of malts at brand owner Edrington, says: “As some 60 per cent of the aroma and flavour of The Macallan derives from the oak maturation casks, this new range is a genuine opportunity to demonstrate the critical role of these exceptional casks and also to challenge perceptions about bottling at arbitrary ages.” Major investment in the whisky category is also coming from Diageo both for its single malts and its blends. For the connoisseurs, it has launched its annual Special Releases single malt whiskies which this year includes a 35-year-old Talisker, a 32-year-old Port Ellen, a 25-year-old Dalwhinnie, a 21-yearold Lagavulin and a 14-year-old Caol Ila. Diageo GB has also been promoting The Singleton of Dufftown single malts to new audiences with initiatives such as The Singleton Taste Room – a consumer “experience” in London in September curated by chef Mark Hix, DJ Gilles Peterson and designers Dominic Wilcox, Max Lamb and Daniel Poole. It focused on the 12-year-old Singleton, promoting it for drinking neat or with ginger ale. Diageo also unveiled two new blends – with no age statements – in a revamp of its core Johnnie Walker range this summer. Tapping into the growth in premium spirits, Johnnie Walker Platinum Label is a blend of malt and grain whiskies that have been matured for at least 18 years, for drinking neat. Gold Label Reserve is made up of master blender Jim Beveridge’s favourite whiskies, including casks of Clynelish malt, but is aimed at the upmarket club sector and for mixing. “Gold Label is intended to be served in lots of different ways – it’s great to mix
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or to drink with ice and a chunk of orange,” Jim adds. The mixability of whisky is a route taken only by a few brands, such as Maxxium UK’s leading blends, The Famous Grouse, and its stablemates, The Naked Grouse and The Snow Grouse. During London Cocktail Week in October, First Drinks was promoting cocktails for Monkey Shoulder whisky at a pop-up bar with Edinburgh’s The Bon Vivant. This is part of a wider series of One Night Only events running to November, themed around classic serves such as a Rob Roy and a Blazer. Whisky cocktails are part of the strategy for Chivas Regal within its global Crafted for the Senses campaign. At the top end, Chivas Brothers has been working with leading bartenders, such as Giovanni Spezziga of London restaurant and bar Benares and Oliver Blackburn of Claridges Bar, to create new cocktails using Chivas Regal 18 Year Old, linked to publication of a new book celebrating craftsmen, whisky and whisky-based cocktails. In the mainstream, Pernod Ricard UK is promoting Chivas Regal 12 Year Old for the globally successful Chivas & Green Tea serve, mixing it with green tea, lemon juice and honey syrup, served in a branded teapot with cups. Chivas Regal 12 is also being promoted for two simple winter serves – a Winter Warmer that mixes it with sugar, hot water and grated nutmeg, and a Christmas Berry mixing it with soda water and either raspberries or blackberries. “Developed to feature on Christmas food menus, the serves will help to drive consumer footfall and awareness of Chivas Regal in the on-trade,” adds Pernod Ricard’s on-trade channel director for spirits, Ian Peart.
Ballantine’s 17 Year Old blend has been named both Scotch whisky of the year and the world’s third best whisky in the 2013 edition of Jim Murray’s Whisky Bible. It was beaten to the top two spots by six-year-old Thomas Handy Sazerac rye whiskey and bourbon William Larue Weller, both from Sazerac’s Buffalo Trace Distillery. European whisky of the year was the limited-release portwoodmatured Swansea City Single Cask from Penderyn in Wales, best known for its Madeira and Sherrywood single malts. Winners in the Whisky Bible’s single malt categories were Ardbeg Day and Balblair 1965, while winners in the age statement categories included Glen Grant 10, Lagavulin 12, Old Pulteney 17, Highland Park 25, Macallan Masters Of Photography 1989, Benromach 30, Caol Ila 33, The Balvenie 40 Batch 2, Highland Park 50 and Johnnie Walker’s Blue Label Casks Edition and Black Label 12 Year Old. London restaurant Roast has embraced Japanese whiskies. Bar manager Sebastien Guesdon, formerly of The Ritz, has created three Hibiki whisky infusions: lily; sultana and vanilla; and orange and cinnamon. He has also devised a cocktail to celebrate the 2013 opening of The View at the top of The Shard – its skyscraper neighbour at London Bridge. The Shard Sour (pictured) mixes Hakushu 12 Year Old with lemon juice, egg white and cherry juice. A popular whisky from the bar is the 25-year-old Yamazaki, which was named world’s best single malt whisky in the 2012 World Whiskies Awards. It is also running monthly hour-long Japanese whisky tastings, costing £60 per person. Boutique spirits company Wemyss Malts has entered the premium blended Scotch whisky market with the launch of the 15-year-old Lord Elcho. It is named after Wemyss Malts founder’s 18thcentury ancestor who supported Bonnie Prince Charlie in the Jacobite uprising. The whisky is rich and smooth, crafted from a selection of malt and grain whiskies, each aged at least 15 years, with an emphasis on malt whisky matured in sherry casks.
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mixology
Mixologist and brand consultant Michael Stringer talks liquid nitrogen and the future of molecular mixology
Where there’s smoke I have been receiving numerous calls and emails from national newspapers asking the same question: “How do you use liquid nitrogen in cocktails safely?” This comes after an 18-year-old girl went into a bar in Lancaster to celebrate her birthday and was served a “Nitro Jäger” (quite simply a shot of Jägermeister topped with liquid nitrogen to chill it down). She was then rushed to hospital to have her stomach removed as the liquid nitrogen had destroyed her stomach lining which is potentially fatal. Liquid nitrogen is a chemical at minus 200 degrees Centigrade, which is used in the ontrade to rapidly freeze things such as glassware. Sometimes bartenders will add a small amount of the chemical to the top of a drink to cause it to freeze and smoke. This should then be consumed only once the gas has dissipated and the liquid evaporated. Unfortunately in this case the drink was served immediately after the nitrogen was poured on top. So how can liquid nitrogen be used safely? My answer to the press was simply not to use the ingredient. Liquid nitrogen should only be used by bartenders who have been fully trained in the techniques of how to use it. A key point that I feel needs to be
understood is that liquid nitrogen is a tool, not an ingredient. If you would like to get the “smoky effect” on a drink then use dry ice, available for a much cheaper price, and serve it in a product such as a ChilliStick which means the consumer never comes into contact with the dry ice itself. Where does this leave the future of molecular mixology? My gut instinct is that people will become very wary of the usage of nitrogen and dry ice. I believe the law will change around the usage of them, and quite rightly so. Many bars have jumped on the bandwagon without getting the proper training. I feel only bartenders who have done a certificated course should be allowed to use these “chemicals” within their drinks. This has become a big national news story which seems to have critics everywhere raging about the bar industry, although this is one accident, which has seen one girl severely injured. What I would like to know is when has a story been this big surrounding deaths by food poisoning, when there were 35 in the UK in 2010? Why does there seem to be so much focus put onto the bar industry when something goes wrong but not on the gastronomy scene?
Mixologist Karol Rybicki has created a new cocktail list at Bar Seven (pictured), the bar below Italian restaurant Sette, owned by former jockey Frankie Dettori, chef Marco Pierre White and Peter Burrell. The bar in Chelsea, London, offers classic and original cocktails, with a special cabinet for serving Martinis made with Purity Vodka. Karol was previously at the May Fair Hotel, Akbar in Soho, and the Gleneagles Hotel. The signature cocktail is Frankie’s Sette, made with seven ingredients in honour of Dettori’s record of riding seven winning horses in seven races on the same day at Ascot in 1996. It is made with Purity Vodka, Mirto myrtle liqueur, Campari, Aperol, Montenegro amaro, grapefruit juice and Angostura Bitters.
Mixologists’ corner Rhubarb Rhubarb Ciprian Lazar, mixologist at the Thamesside Richmond hotel The Bingham, created a cocktail with Sipsmith Gin for London Cocktail Week. 35ml Sipsmith Gin 20ml Menzana Verde apple liqueur 30ml Rhubarb puree (homemade) 15ml Lemon juice 15ml Sugar syrup 10ml Black muscat dessert wine Shake all the ingredients and double-pour into a tall slim glass.Top up with crushed ice and drizzle the black muscat on top. Add a caramelised slice of rhubarb to garnish.
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Tiramisu As part of London Chocolate Week last month, London bar Après teamed up with Mozart Distillerie for a themed cocktail list, including this recipe, plus “choctail” workshops for consumers. 25ml Mozart Dark chocolate liqueur 25ml Chilled espresso 25ml Van Wees Chocolate liqueur 25ml Coffee Heering liqueur 5ml Xanath vanilla liqueur Stir and serve up, layered with shaken mascarpone and double cream, dusted with dark chocolate powder. ML
A new cocktail menu has been created by mixologist Pedro Solorzano at Hush Mayfair in London as part of a revamp of the first-floor bar by designer Alex Michaelis of Michaelis Boyd. It includes four spritzers, from the sweet Pinot Grigio and Strawberry to the refreshing Chenin Blanc & Elderflower. “At the moment, spritzers are very popular and I wanted to create a series of drinks which are a little more adventurous,” Pedro said. “Whereas traditional spritzers are an acquired taste and don’t have much variation, our new range of spritzers are tailored to individual tastes in wine, giving a more personalised drinking experience.”
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Ice ice baby! In the seventh instalment of mixxit maintenance, mixxit global manager Wayne Collins discusses the next hot topic: ice
A
lthough ice is technically an ingredient, it is crucial in the preparation and serving of mixed drinks and is one of the most important tools of our trade. A bartender without ice is like a bricklayer without cement. Almost all mixed drinks are made with ice as it’s essential for the best balance of flavour, dilution, temperature, consistency and texture. Ice should always be hard, clean, clear and of a decent size, although quality varies considerably from bar to bar. Using plenty of ice when making drinks is paramount, particularly in long drinks as it keeps ice cold for longer and maintains consistency in taste from start to finish. Look at it this way: if you put an ice cube in a swimming pool it would melt, but if you put an iceberg in instead it would remain an iceberg. Bartender knowledge and expertise is constantly evolving and recently there has been a hugely inspiring focus on the subject of ice. I welcome this but I have some reservations… Look at the old-school guidelines of using good cubed ice in mixed drinks. For a shaking method, add ingredients first, then fill the shaker with ice. Shake hard for around 10 seconds. For stirring methods, where possible use a large 20oz mixing glass. Fill with ice first, then pour over ingredients and stir briskly for around 20 seconds. Personally, this works for me. However, many bartenders add the ice after the ingredients for both above methods. They do this for two reasons. Firstly because leaving a drink over ice for too long can over-dilute them so adding it afterwards controls dilution. Secondly they tend to stir in a Boston glass which has a smaller surface area or in a tin which conducts heat. I challenge this, as shaking and stirring create different transfers of energy and rate of dilution in their surface areas. Shaking a drink conducts heat more than stirring does and also adds aeration. Believe it or not, a drink properly stirred will stay colder for longer than a shaken one when served straight up. That’s one reason not to shake Martinis and Manhattans. The key is to understand what you are trying to achieve with dilution versus temperature.
Crushed ice is often overlooked, as some people don’t know when to add it to drinks. Never pour the alcohol and mixers over crushed ice – I’ve seen many a Mojito and Caipirihna ruined this way. During my mixxit training sessions I ask people to add it last, swizzle to achieve the correct dilution and top up with more crushed ice. Quality is also important – crushed ice should be nicely pebbled, but slushy snowlike ice is pointless, unless used for blending drinks.
Crystal-clear block ice has become a recent phenomenon in top-end bars. Here bartenders understand the whys and wherefores of introducing another ice dimension and the different outcomes, particularly in texture. But again I have reservations: block ice has become an integral part of cocktail competitions of late but I am not a fan of shaking with it as it doesn’t achieve the right dilution or temperature for me. On the other hand, stirring a drink like an Old Fashioned over good cubed ice and then pouring it over a block of ice works a treat as does stirring frozen gin over an ice block for a Martini as it creates a nice texture. I will throw caution to the wind and say I have had drinks stirred with block ice, thrown with block ice and built with block ice. I question some of the outcomes in terms of temperature, dilution and texture but have drunk cocktails like this done correctly with thought, with amazing outcomes. But proceed with caution. Experiment with different types of ice, but do it for a reason, not just for the sake of it, as style over substance never works. Your mechanic: @mixxit_wayne For information about mixxit, log onto www.mixxit.co.uk or email mixxit.uk@maxxium.com.
The Macallan Frame Ingredients: 50ml Macallan 12, 1 sliver of lemon peel, 2 dashes of whisky bitters, 5ml vanilla syrup Glass: Whisky tumbler Method: Stir all ingredients with ice and strain over a block of ice Garnish: Orange twist Units: 2
No3 Martini Ingredients: Ingredients: 50ml Frozen No3 Gin, 2 dashes of orange bitters, 15ml Dolin Dry Vermouth Glass: Frozen cocktail Method: Stir all ingredients over two chunks of cut ice and strain Garnish: Lemon Twist Units: 2.5
www.drinkaware.co.uk
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Rhuby names winners in all-female contest Elliot Ball (pictured centre) of Shaker & Company bar near Euston, London, has won the 2012 Luxardo Masters of Maraschino competition. His prize is a visit to the home of Luxardo near Venice in Italy and a rare 1950s bottle of Luxardo Maraschino. Runner-up was Daniel O’Reilly of Havanas in Chester, while third prize went to Pie Panah of Little House, Mayfair in London. More at www. barmagazine.co.uk.
hibiscus-infused pisco, lemon Naomi Fletcher from Hawksmoor Naomi Fletcher juice, pink muscat wine and black Spitalfields in London has won pepper bitters. the UK’s first all-female bartender The judges praised the creativity, competition run by Swedish passion and knowledge of all the rhubarb liqueur Rhuby. finalists. The others were Ash She mixed the all-natural Bovey from Sahara in Reading, liqueur with tequila, vanilla syrup, Jolene Cadwell from Papaji’s Angostura Bitters, an egg and in Bristol, Isabella Newman lemon zest to create a Flip-style from Circo in Bath, Rosie cocktail. Paterson from The Voodoo She faced six other finalists from Rooms in Edinburgh, and Dee across the UK to win the Pink Ann Quinones from 69 Colebrooke Row Your Drink competition at London Cocktail Club in Shaftesbury Avenue. Judges included Ivy in London. All their recipes are at www. barmagazine.co.uk. Mix and Lynnette Marrero, founders of the US It supported Ylva’s Pink Your Drink initiative all-female Speed-Rack bartender competitions. which raises money for the Pink Ribbon Runner-up was Elsa Holmberg of Brass Foundation for women with breast cancer. Monkey in Nottingham who mixed Rhuby with
Bristol bartender wins UK’s Monin Cup
Cinnamon bar at Hilton London Canary Wharf has created three exotic new cocktails. The Cinnamon Mojito mixes The Kraken Black Spiced Rum with cinnamon liqueur and mint, while the Rosso Di Sera combines the rosé Martini Rosato with raspberry and mint, served with cookies and cream. For extra spice, a sharing cocktail mixes fresh strawberries with chocolate liqueur, vodka and double cream, shaken with half a chilli. Balans restaurants and bars in London will offer a Red Ribbon cocktail to mark World Aids Day on December 1, with all profits from sales of the drink going to the Elton John Aids Foundation. It is made by mixing Chase Vodka with fresh raspberry puree and vanilla syrup with a side shot of champagne, on sale for £9.95. It is available at all six sites from November 19 to December 2.
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William Humphery from Hausbar in Bristol will be heading for Paris to compete for the title of ultimate champion after winning at the Monin UK Cocktail Cup Final. In the event at Paramount in London, he won the under-27 category while Susie Wong from Epernay in Manchester won the over-27 category. Both will go to France in December, with William chosen to represent the UK at the international final against winners from more than 30 countries. Second place in the over-27 category went to Nick Fox of Neon Cactus in Leeds, with third place going to Henry Yates of World Service, Nottingham. In the under-27 category, second place was awarded to Andy Mil of London Cocktail Club, with last year’s winner Máté Csatlós of The Dorchester in London coming third. More at www.barmagazine.co.uk.
Art de triomphe of UK bartender Richard Woods (pictured) of Sushisamba and Duck & Waffle in London triumphed over top bartenders from around the world at the end of a voyage of discovery into Grey Goose Vodka. He was the only British bartender in a group of 10 to be part of “The Grey Goose 10 Le Voyage”, which took them to the home of Grey Goose in Cognac, France. On the trip, they were challenged to create a cocktail inspired by their home country, with the five winners going on to make a twist on a French classic cocktail. The final three had to craft a cocktail inspired by “Le Voyage”. They were judged by Grey Goose cellar master François Thibault, global brand ambassador Dimi Lezinska and US drinks writer Camper English. Richard won an engraved cocktail shaker from French silverware maker Christofle and will travel to Los Angeles in February to see one of his winning cocktails served at a Grey Goose pre-Oscars party.
Devil’s work for Mix-Off winner Robb Collins (pictured), bar manager at the Waterhouse Bar at the Hilton Brighton Metropole hotel, has won the annual Mix Off Competition to determine the best bartender in Brighton and Hove. He was challenged to create
two cocktails using new Jim Beam Devil’s Cut bourbon. With winners decided by “tip” tokens, second place went to Dave Clarke from Brighton’s Grand hotel. Full story and recipes at www. barmagazine.co.uk.
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Angostura names 2013 cocktail challenge UK winner
Jamie Stephenson
A report on the UK heat of the 2013 Angostura aromatic bitters Global Cocktail Challenge
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enowned mixologist Jamie Stephenson triumphed over some of the best bartenders in the UK to win the UK heat of the 2013 Angostura aromatic bitters Global Cocktail Challenge. The 39-year-old will head to Port of Spain, Trinidad, in February next year to represent the UK in the Global Cocktail Challenge alongside 12 other finalists from around the world including India, New Zealand, Russia and South America. Second place went to Elliot Ball, bar manager at Shaker and Company in Camden, London, while third place went to Máté Csatlós, who works at China Tang at The Dorchester in London. They were among 12 bartenders who took part in the UK heat at The Club at The Ivy in London last month during London Cocktail Week. Compered by global rum ambassador and UK RumFest founder Ian Burrell, it was judged by last year’s global winner David Delaney Jnr of Citizen in Boston, Peter Holland from rum blog The Floating Rum Shack, and Mark Ludmon, editor of Bar magazine. Jamie, who was most recently running Fluid Bars’ pop-up Dock Bar in Salford’s MediaCityUK piazza, is hoping to reclaim his title after winning the final of the Global Cocktail Challenge in 2008. He said: “This is a great achievement for me and it was a fantastic experience competing against everyone in the final. To win this amazing opportunity for the second time is a dream come true and I’m really looking forward to flying out to Trinidad to try and reclaim my former title as Global Champion.” Now in its sixth year, the highly anticipated contest gave bartenders from across the
UK the chance to showcase their talents by creating two unique cocktails using Angostura aromatic bitters. To enter, they had to create an original cocktail recipe with a minimum of five dashes of the bitters and complete a short entry form on www.facebook.com/ AngosturaUK. Each bartender presented two original recipes, which were judged based on appearance, aroma and taste. They had to demonstrate the versatility and mixability of Angostura aromatic bitters. Jamie, who also works as a consultant mixologist, will be flown on an all-expensespaid trip to Trinidad and Tobago for an unforgettable trip. The winner of the global cocktail challenge will be named Angostura aromatic bitters Global Brand Ambassador and receive a $10,000 prize. In addition, all the finalists will participate in the party capital of the Caribbean’s Trinidad Carnival in full costume. This spectacular two-day event is a colourful celebration of music, dance and elaborate dress from everyone involved, and a once-in-a-lifetime experience. Alison Gibb, international brand manager for Angostura, said: “Jamie was a truly worthy winner and his creations using Angostura aromatic bitters and Angostura 1919 rum blew away our judges who were thoroughly impressed with what they were presented. “The calibre of entrants to this year’s UK contest was truly amazing and to host this in The Ivy during London Cocktail Week made the whole experience that little bit more special. Our thanks to everyone who entered and congratulations again to Jamie who can now look forward to taking part in the final in Trinidad – again.”
Jamie Stephenson’s cocktails were The Rutherford, inspired by Ernest Rutherford who worked out how to split the atom while working at the university in Manchester, where the Yorkshire-born bartender is now based. This is reflected in the “split” maraschino cherry garnish. His Hanuman cocktail is named after the Hindu god whose 85ft statue he came across in Carapichaima on Trinidad.
The Rutherford
50ml Angostura 1919 10ml Sacred Spiced Vermouth 10ml Volare Apricot Brandy 1 barspoon of acacia honey 8 dashes of Angostura aromatic bitters Stir well and strain into a chilled cocktail glass. Garnish with a maraschino cherry cut in half.
Hanuman
50ml Edmond Briottet Rhubarb Liqueur 25ml Lemon juice Half an egg white 10ml Monin Butterscotch Syrup 5 dashes of Angostura aromatic bitters Rinse of Angostura 1919 rum Shake well and strain into a chilled coupette rinsed with Angostura 1919. Garnish with a lemon twist. www.barmagazine.co.uk |39
christmas Santa’s Winter Warmer, made with Bottlegreen Spiced Berry Cordial and brandy
Season to be jolly As the party season approaches, Mark Ludmon looks at some of the ideas for adding festive flavours to your drinks menu
A
fter a tough year, this Christmas will, more than ever, be a time for people to let their hair down – and a time to splash out on drinks. Premium spirits are bucking the downward trends of mainstream drinks by continuing to grow in 2012, and research shows that consumers are more prepared to treat themselves to better drinking at Christmas. “People spend more per occasion in the on-trade in December compared to what they typically spend on occasions the rest of the year,” points out Ian Peart, ontrade channel director at Pernod Ricard UK, whose brands include Beefeater, Havana Club, Chivas Regal and Absolut. The proof is in figures from research group CGA which reported that premium spirits saw an uplift of 34 per cent over Christmas last year, while research from Kantar shows that vodka, liqueurs and whisky are the biggest high flyers. Ian at Pernod Ricard adds: “Based on people’s
Monin cocktails
willingness to spend more on quality spirits at this time of year and the fact that certain spirit categories tend to over-perform, on-trade retailers should ensure they offer an upsell alternative in these key spirit categories and present them to consumers in an engaging way.” Pernod Ricard UK is helping licensees by offering ideas for seasonal cocktails using its spirits and liqueurs as well as its Jacob’s Creek wines. This follows the continued expansion of cocktails into mainstream bars and pubs, with CGA reporting 36 per cent more outlets offering cocktails year on year. This growth has been made possible by the likes of Funkin with its cocktail mixes and purees. Funkin chief executive Andrew King notes: “Maximising festive takings is about tapping into the psyche of your customers and recognising their changed behaviors. During celebratory periods like Christmas, people are much more open to changing from their standard drinks choices and this offers pubs the opportunity to upsell to higher-margin cocktails.” Simple ideas from Funkin include adding cinnamon sprinkles to add festive spice to a Mojito made with dark rum or spiced rum. On the back of CGA’s research, drinks company Cellar Trends predicts that this Christmas will see the highest-ever demand for cocktails across the on-trade. The Finest Call range of cocktail mixes is tapping into
this with mixes for top-sellers such as a Cosmopolitan, Mojito and Piña Colada, which just need the addition of a spirit. “Cocktails are a great sales opportunity, and Christmas time is the perfect occasion to sell to customers who are treating themselves with something different,” explains brand manager Peter Thornton. “However many do not have staff with the right expertise, or are unwilling to invest in perishable fruit and juices.” Monin syrups provide bars with a simple way of adding a seasonal twist to drinks. “Champagne is a Christmas favourite that can be so easily adapted into a champagne cocktail with a small dash of Monin syrup,” points out Monin UK brand ambassador James Coston. “Adding a flavour such as Monin
Christmas cocktails with Funkin
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christmas
Win a barrel from Jack Daniel’s Christmas barrel tree A 26ft Christmas tree made from genuine Jack Daniel’s barrels is to be built in Covent Garden Piazza. Officially turning on its lights on November 25, the tree is made up of 140 barrels from the distillery in Lynchburg, Tennessee – and you could win one for your bar. Although empty, the genuine Jack Daniel’s barrels will provide a talking point and help your bar stand out from the competition. Each barrel has been used to store and mature the Tennessee whiskey after it has travelled drip by drip through 10 feet of maple charcoal, making them as unique as the whiskey they hold. For a chance to win a barrel for your bar, email your name, the name of your bar and your postal address to jackdaniels@publicasity.co.uk by November 30.
Passion Fruit or Monin Pink Grapefruit to a flute of champagne creates something stylish and different, especially if it is presented well. To keep things simple, adapt existing recipes by changing a Monin flavour or ingredient and giving it an appropriately festive name. This way you can offer a great deal of choice without taking up too much staff time with a bewildering array of styles and techniques.” Two Monin products available for the first time this Christmas are Monin Black Forest syrup and Monin Chocolate Hazelnut sauce.
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Festive menus of simple serves for Christmas are available to bars through the Create a Menu application on Bacardi Brown-Forman Brands’ trade website, Pourfection. Ian McLaren, BBFB’s head of product training and mixology, says: “The new festive offerings from ‘Create a Menu’ provide outlets with a simple way of making their bar stand out against the competition during this key trading period.” The Pourfection site also provides tips on how licensees can make the most of the opportunities at this time of year. Two key serves from BBFB’s portfolio come into their own for Christmas partying: the Grey Goose Le Fizz, serving the vodka with elderflower cordial, lime juice and soda in a champagne flute, and the Martini Royale, a mix of Martini Bianco and Martini Prosecco in a large ice-filled wine glass with a squeeze of lime and a sprig of mint. “They are good examples of party drinks that can be created simply and both have the indulgent feel consumers are seeking,” Ian says. His other tips include an increased emphasis on sharing and pitcher serves. “People are out to enjoy the party season and want to spend as much time with those they are with, as opposed to waiting at the bar. Sharing drinks really come into their own at this time of year as they keep groups of people away from the bar for longer easing any bottlenecks.” Ian recommends bar owners also think about merchandising, music and lighting. “A festive feel can be achieved by changing the lighting scheme in your venue. Carefully sited clusters of chunky church candles and adding some warm-coloured gels to lighting can create a fireside glow for a more relaxing Christmas mood. Blues, whites and silvers will give a more, icy cool vibe to the party season.” The premium opportunity for bars has also been identified by drinks company Diageo GB, which is supporting licensees with point-of-sale materials and upsell ideas. To give customers a more premium
Global Brands has developed “Refreshingly Cool Winter pitcher” serves for its fruity RTD brand Reef, supported by perfect serve guides and posters. Recipes include the Winter Cosmo, made mixing two 275ml bottles of Reef with 50ml of Cointreau, topped up with cranberry and garnished with orange slices. Maggie’s, the 1980s-themed nightclub in London’s Chelsea, will be dedicated to Wham! this Christmas. Its existing Wham! booth will be transformed into a kissing corner with mistletoe, while limited-edition cocktails are being developed for serving in Wham! mugs. Britvic has re-introduced its seasonal limited-edition J2O Glitter Berry variant. It is a combination of red grape, cherry and a hint of spice with edible gold glitter that sparkles when the bottle is shaken. Hundreds of baubles will be used to transform the Bon Bon Bar at London club Volupté into the Bauble Bar for Christmas. Five festive cocktails will include Rudolph’s Tipple, mixing Earl Grey-infused Buffalo Trace bourbon with Antica Formula infused with cloves, orange and cinnamon, plus Mandarine Napoléon and cherry liqueur. The Merrily Mary mixes vodka with Grand Marnier, Bénédictine, Punt e Mes vermouth and cranberry sauce, garnished with orange peel. Three limited-edition beers are being launched by Suffolk brewer Adnams for autumn and winter. Topaz Gold pale ale, with an ABV of four per cent, has a medium body and bitterness with a crisp finish, while English Red is a hearty, fruity red ale with an ABV of 4.5 per cent. For Christmas, the scarlet red Jingle Bells ale, with an ABV of 3.9 per cent, has a citrus aroma and slight toffee notes.
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christmas
experience, outlets are being encouraged to offer Tanqueray Gin as an alternative to Gordon’s in an Elderflower Gin and Tonic, using Bottlegreen Elderflower Cordial. It is also promoting the use of Quattro glassware for serving Tanqueray with tonic, ice and lemon. “This will help to increase festive profits as introducing the Quattro serve in-outlet has been proven to increase the rate of sale of Tanqueray by 360 per cent and can add an incremental 40p to 50p per serve,” points out Andrew Leat, senior category development manager for the ontrade at Diageo GB. Bottlegreen’s range is well suited for alcoholic and non-alcoholic drinks – hot or cold – this Christmas, such as its spicy Ginger & Lemongrass cordial. Simon Speers, managing director at Bottlegreen Drinks Co, highlights the Spiced Berry cordial as particularly useful: “Combining blackcurrants and aronia berries with a range of aromatic spices, the result sees a rich and satisfying cordial that can be used as an ingredient in a range of cocktails for a delicious festive alcoholic drink.” Recipes include Santa’s Winter Warmer, mixing 25ml of brandy with 25ml of Spiced Berry Cordial and 25ml of cranberry juice, topped up with hot water plus a sprinkle of nutmeg. New cordials from Belvoir Fruit Farms have been introduced for licensees to offer warm soft drinks as an alternative to mulled wine. The two new products are Honey Lemon & Ginger Cordial and Apple Plum & Cinnamon Cordial, joining the likes of Spiced Winter Berries Cordial in the range. From Maynard House Orchards comes all the ingredients for using one of its apple juices to make Warm Spiced Apple Juice, with sachets and bags containing cinnamon, cloves, allspice and other spices. Warm cider-based drinks are becoming increasingly popular each year, led by the likes of Aspall Mulled Cyder which has been reintroduced this winter with increased on-trade
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distribution. This is made from Aspall Draught Suffolk Cyder to which apple juice and mulling spices have been added. The resulting 4.7 per cent ABV mulled cider is available on draught for serving in Aspallbranded glasses with a handle, with slices of orange and extra spices added if needed. Westons Cider has launched Westons Twist Mulled Cider exclusively in the ontrade for serving hot or cold, supported by branded pump clips. “This style is a fantastic way of attracting new consumers into the cider category and particularly apt for the festive cheer surrounding the Christmas season,” says Helen McIlveen, on-trade customer marketing manager at Westons Cider. Investment in Rekorderlig’s Winter Cider variant has been tripled for this year, including the pop-up Rekorderlig Winter Forest Bar in the Old Truman Brewery, east London, from October 26 to November 6. This has seen the debut of a range of cocktails created by leading young mixologist Michael Stringer using Rekorderlig Winter Cider which is made with apples and infused with cinnamon and vanilla. His ideas include a Winter Collins, mixing the cider with gin and lemon juice, and a Svenska Mojito mixing the cider with a spiced rum, lime juice, cranberries and mint leaves. Other recipes use ingredients such as Fireball cinnamon whiskey, apple brandy, vodka, maraschino liqueur, Chambord, amaretto and tequila. Drinks supplier CWF is investing heavily in the warm winter drinks category this year through its brands, Winter Warmer Mulled Wine at 10 per cent ABV and Harvest Fruits cherry wine Mulled Wine at eight per cent ABV. With the need to save time and money, both offer a no-fuss option as they are ready to heat up with no need to steep red wine with flavours. CWF managing director John Shinwell says value is more important than ever because consumers are still worried about jobs and finances. “As a result consumers are looking for products that offer affordability and value but don’t compromise their experience and pleasure.” Because it has been a tough year, consumers will be looking for popular and familiar serves, suggests Jeremy Hill, chairman of Hi-Spirits, which distributes brands such as Buffalo Trace and Antica sambucas. “Customers looking to have the best possible time on a budget are more likely to order a drink they know they enjoy rather than experiment,” he explains. “Customers will be out to have a good time, but at the end of what has been another tough year, they’ll be looking to get the best value for their buck.”
A Brazilian twist on warm winter cocktails comes from Love Drinks, which is promoting Abelha cachaça for a traditional Quentão (meaning “very hot”). Abelha Organic Cachaça Gold is heated in a pan with orange zest, orange juice, cinnamon sticks, cloves, chopped ginger and brown sugar.Visit www. lovedrinks.com for the recipe. Festive cocktails are being promoted for Zubrowka bisongrass vodka, created by brand ambassador Pawel Rolka. They include the warm Polish Toddy, stirring 30ml of Zubrowka with 30ml of hot water, 25ml of fresh lemon juice, two barspoons of honey, a pinch of cinnamon and nutmeg and a dash of orange bitters, garnished with orange and lemon zest and a cinnamon stick. The Ginger Fizz (pictured) mixes it with peach puree and ginger and chilli syrup, topped up with prosecco.
Drake & Morgan’s London bars are running Christmas-themed cocktail classes for its customers, teaching them how to make festive drinks from the menu. They include the Sleigh Bells (pictured), made with six muddled raspberries shaken with 20ml of amaretto, 15ml of Drambuie and 15ml of crème de pêche, strained into a sugarrimmed Martini glass and garnished with a mint leaf and blackberries.
Season with flavour
Ideas to add festive flavour to Christmas parties in your bar, from ice cream treats to snacks and dippers
D
espite the continuing recession, spending on office Christmas parties is set to rise this year, according to reports from the events industry.With the economy still struggling, bars, pubs and clubs are in a great position to tap into the need for good-value party options with a big “wow” factor but without a big “wow” price tag. “The festive season is a great opportunity for outlets to maximise the sales opportunity through ensuring they cater for the kind of shared events that really come into their own at this time of year,” says Jayne Hall, marketing manager at leading supplier Moy Park Foodservice. “This will also ensure they end a challenging year with a good festive sales performance.” Buffets are ideal for larger group bookings, she adds, with festive sharing platters for smaller groups. With its “It’s Time to Party” concept, Moy Park’s products include popular seasonal items such as crispy coated baby camembert and brie wedges served with a cranberry sauce, or plain mushroom boats with a sour cream and chive dip. “The bonus is that these items are easy to prepare in just a few minutes by people with limited cooking skills which means they are perfect for outlets that do not have a full-time chef or any chef at all,” Jayne adds. For bars with a small kitchen operation, companies such as Gilbert’s Foods offer
Christmas pizza at Bunga Bunga
dishes that are ready to be heated from chilled, frozen or room temperature and can be cooked in a bain-marie for 20 to 25 minutes or in an oven or microwave. It is already reporting a “marked” increase of 23 per cent in demand for its classic winter dishes. Gaining popularity this year are Lamb Henry in a redcurrant and mint jus, beef rib in Italian red wine with tomato and shallot, and its pork loin steak in fruity apple and sage sauce. “Putting tasty, cost-effective popular dishes on the menu is important to meet customer demand in the run-up to Christmas and over the festive season,” adds Gilbert’s Foods managing director Peter Smith. As an alternative to a roast turkey, London bar and restaurant Bunga Bunga has stuck to its Italian kitsch roots by introducing the Buon Natale pizza topped with turkey and cranberries. It is part of a “Buon Natale Tranquillo” set menu which is one of several options for different types of Christmas partying, from a buffet menu to a canapé menu of Italian treats. Mediterranean snacks for festive parties are available from supplier Cheese Cellar. Its range of Dell’ami olives includes Puttanesca, a blend of pitted green Halkidiki olives, sundried tomatoes, capers, garlic and chilli, and El Jadida, a colourful mix of wrinkled natural black Beldi olives with semisundried tomatoes. Other options are its Mediterranean Mix of olives, chopped red
bar food
Food news>>
A luxurious new dish has been introduced at London restaurant and bar group Boisdale. They are serving caviar and chips for £40, with 30g of Gourmet House Italian Baerii caviar. The caviar is also served with other classic dishes including Dunkeld Scottish smoked salmon, Aberdeenshire steak tartar and ceviche of diver-caught Isle of Mull king scallops. Burts Chips has teamed up with Guinness to launch the world’s first Guinnessflavoured crisps. Guinness Burts Chips were launched last month in the on-trade, aimed especially at men and sporting occasions. They come in 40g and 150g packets.
Grand Union bars in London have added a dirty new dish to their menus. Its Dirty Dogs are classic American-style hot dogs, with six-inch pork frankfurters. Starting at £6.50, options include the Hell Dog (pictured), with chorizo, “super-hot” jalapeños, melted cheese and a fiery sauce, served in a toasted bun. The Dog’s Dinner is a classic hot dog topped with bacon, cheese and barbecue sauce with three onion rings.
Mr Scratchings Pork Crunch
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bar food New Forest Mince Pie Ice Cream
peppers, sweet white garlic cloves and bay leaves, or Cheese Cellar offers rich, soft and creamy cheeses such as Vacherin Mont d’Or from the Swiss Alps. “They are a truly seasonal savoury treat during the festive period,” adds Cheese Cellar’s commercial director, Jonnie Archer. One snacking trend that will come into its own this Christmas is pork scratchings. Premium brand Mr Scratchings, made to a special blend with the finest ingredients, includes the full-blown Pork Crunch, which is suitable as a sharing dipper with a smooth
Win Pierre Ledent chocolate treats For a treat at Christmas parties and events, bars can stock up on indulgent, premium chocolates from Pierre Ledent, a leading supplier of luxury chocolates. The new, exclusive 30-strong range of Belgian chocolates, pralines and ganaches is created to individual unique recipes, with each containing at least 70 per cent cocoa. They can be served with coffee, with cocktails or on a serving plate for sampling. Via www.pierreledent.co.uk, they are available loose in bulk quantities or in boxes of various sizes, branded with corporate logos depending on quantities and specific requirements. They can also be placed in Pierre Ledent’s luxurious sleek black jewellery boxes, which hold between 10 and 60 chocolates. Pierre Ledent is giving one Bar magazine reader the chance to win £70 of its stylish, luxury chocolates. The winner will receive a three-tier jewellery box containing 60 chocolates. For your chance to win, email PLBarcomp@jampr. co.uk before November 30 with your name and the name of your bar.
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Gilbert’s Lamb Henry in redcurrant and mint jus
chilli or apple sauce dip or can be an accompaniment with sandwiches instead of crisps or tortilla. Atlantic Foods has launched its own upmarket versions of the traditional snack with its Pork Crackling and Pork Crunch. Promoted for sharing platters, they come in a plain flavour or can be supplied with a selection of seasonings such as salsa or lemon and black pepper that can be sprinkled over the product before serving. Supplied ambient, they can be frozen and then take three minutes to cook in a deepfat fryer. They can be served hot alongside chipotle jam, warm apple sauce or salsa dip. For ice-cold indulgent treats, New Forest Ice Cream has come up with seasonal ideas for bars and pubs such as its Mulled Wine Sorbet, made using traditional mulled wine. For the perfect Christmas treat, its dairy range has introduced a new Mince Pie flavour which combines brandy ice cream with shortcake pastry and real mincemeat pieces. “The aromatic, lightly spiced mincemeat and rich pastry emits a real sense of Christmas,” says Christina Veal, director at New Forest Ice Cream “Our new Mince Pie Ice Cream has a tempting warming flavour, perfect for the time of year and an ideal way to keep your customers coming back for more, time and time again. In the mind of the consumer, the festive period is a time for indulgence, treats and good food – something bars can exploit to increase sales, spend per head and repeat business.”
Baby camembert from Moy Park
Food news>>
Classic desserts have inspired two new “retro” flavours from Beechdean Farmhouse Dairy Ice Cream, which is made from fresh Jersey milk and natural ingredients with no additives. The Eton Mess is full of crispy meringue chunks and strawberry ice cream containing real strawberry pieces, while Peach Melba is peach flavoured with peach pieces and butterscotch chunks mixed in with a raspberry ripple sauce. Its seasonal flavours include Mince Pie Ice Cream (pictured).
Holland’s Pies is launching new ranges into the on-trade after building distribution in stores and fish and chip shops. Wrapped in French puff pastry, the unbaked range includes a chicken curry slice, creamy chicken slice, chunky steak slice, sausage rolls and a bacon and cheese turnover. It has also introduced its unbaked 200g puff pastry pies: steak and kidney pie, minced beef and onion pie, and chicken and mushroom pie.
Popcorn manufacturer Savoury & Sweet has launched a premium range of popcorn called Lord Poppington’s. Aimed at bars, it comes in four flavours including Sweet and Salty, combining Golden Barbados sugar blended with Cornish Sea Salt Company salt, which comes in 30g and 100g bags. The other flavours – Chilli and Lime, Lightly SeaSalted and Four Cheeses – come in 20g and 75g bags.
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interior design
Design for the future From vintage furniture to high-tech design, the newest bar and club interiors display a mix of traditional and modern, reports Mark Ludmon
M
odern bar and club design is not just about good looks but about the whole experience. “With the plethora of bar and restaurant openings, owners more than ever are looking for something different to attract the right clientele,” says James White, director of architecture and interior design studio March & White. “What has been becoming apparent is that restaurant and bar owners aren’t just commissioning designs that act as a backdrop but looking at how interiors can create an experience for customers. This trend for experiential design can either be found in subtle references – for example, the underground unbranded spaces that are more like living rooms than bars – or more glitzy spaces that immerse you in the world of Great Gatsby-esque interiors.” March & White helped chef Virgilio Martinez and Gabriel and Jose Gonzalez to create a Peruvian experience at new
Lima
London restaurant and pisco bar Lima. With a playful but elegant design, the venue has strong native influences throughout to create a taste of Peru in Fitzrovia. James was also part of the design team that revamped The Arts Club in London’s Mayfair. “In the last year, I’ve seen a number of clients return to the idea of the members club, showing that even in an economic downturn there is an appetite for more exclusive environments that use design to express their individuality and personality.” Some of the latest trends in interior design were showcased this September as part of the London Design Festival and exhibitions such as 100% Design, Designjunction and Tent London. Bold graphic patterns were a recurrent feature in the latest work from designers, according to Tom Philipson, a director of design specialist Your Studio. Researching future trends, he found geometric patterns were the most stand-out graphic style, from fabrics and furniture to interior walls and floors. “In fashion there has been a steer towards African-inspired colourful patterns which is a trend we are definitely now seeing working its way into interiors,” he adds. Highlights for Tom at September’s events included Camille Walala’s designs from Darkroom, featuring bold black-and-white squares, circles and zigzags for ceramic plates, while chair manufacturer Ercol used a soft-toned pastel-coloured geometric pattern, from large-scale graphics on the
The Factory House
Apero The history of South Kensington as a centre of culture since the 19th century inspired the interiors at Apero, the new restaurant and bar in the 19th-century vaults of London’s Ampersand Hotel. The design was created by Dexter Moren Associates in collaboration with Gorgeous Group, with features including a five-metre-tall cabinet of curiosities. Guests enter via a brash-mesh staircase, while a chandelier shaped from intermingling aluminium rods illuminates the entrance. A marble bar runs along one side of the room, with seats upholstered in cobalt blue leather. Further seating is tucked around the original Victorian arches, with banquettes and chairs upholstered in tan leather. Some areas of the original brick walls have been painted white, while others have been left as exposed brick. Warm brass finishes to the joinery complement the tones of an antique brass mirror. www.barmagazine.co.uk |51
interior design
South Place Art installations and contemporary design can be seen throughout the City of London’s new South Place Hotel – the first hotel from restaurant and bar operator D&D London. Designed by Conran & Partners, it includes the ground-floor cocktail bar 3 South Place which has a mix of modern and vintage furniture. This is complemented by artwork commissioned from artists such as John Vincent Aranda. Upstairs is the equally stylish Atrium Bar, a covered outdoor terrace with a bespoke sculpture by Grace and Webb.
wall to fabrics on its furniture. “Applying these graphic patterns correctly and creatively will really give a bar interior a strong identity, so expect to see more of this over the next few years,” Tom says. He notes that London Design Festival events also confirmed the continuing popularity of vintage furniture, which has become a standard feature of many new bars and restaurants. “This trend was not only born out of wanting the vintage look but also from bar owners wanting a stylish look on a low budget,” he says but points out there is now demand for higher-quality pieces, reflected in higher pricing. He also saw furniture designers exploring creative design modifications and up-cycling. “Expect Edwardian and 2574 chairs from Geometric Furniture
Union Jacks in Covent Garden
this trend to continue to become more and more inventive as recycling gains more importance and more vintage-inspired design is created,” Tom predicts. The trend towards vintage furniture is reflected in the latest collections from hospitality specialist Geometric Furniture. Examples include an Edwardian chair and 1940s-style carver but Geometric furniture designer Jennifer Brobbin points out: “Our customers choose to have a mix of both classic and contemporary furniture.” Another trend represented in Geometric’s collections is demand for painted furniture as an alternative to a lacquered finish, she adds. Examples include its 2574 dining chair from its Elements brochure, which has been supplied to a gastropub group. Manufactured from solid beech, the chair has a sleek appearance with an “all in one” fashioned seat and back. Furniture and lighting company Andy Thornton introduced its Vintage Urban
collection this year to meet demand for “lived-in” industrial-style and eclectic interiors. It offers lighting, tables, chairs, stools, sofas and shelving in a mix of materials from aged leather and distressed denim to reclaimed pine and heavy-duty cast iron. It proved a good source for Martin Brudnizki Design Studio for Jamie Oliver’s Union Jacks in Covent Garden, which has a retro, cool and quintessentially British look, with lots of vintage detailing. The vintage-style seating from Andy Thornton included draughtman’s bar stools in a mix of pewter and weathered yellow finish. The round curved bar stools have a wooden seat and back rest on a tubular steel frame, suitable for casual eating at the bar or the tall restaurant tables. Andy Thornton also supplied three special Detroit iron refectory tables with reclaimed pine tops stained in turquoise and distressed metal. A playful industrial design contributes to the experience of The Factory House, the new restaurant and bar in the City of London from bar operator Davy’s with input from drinks consultancy Fluid Movement. The design by hospitality specialist Mystery alludes to the Victorian age of innovation and industry with a contemporary and sometimes humorous nod to the modern City. Passing an oldstyle “clocking in” station, guests descend a helical staircase to a copper-faced bar and the 180-cover dining room. Key features include vintage machines and inventions to echo the factory feel such as reclaimed antique train station clocks as wall sculptures, decorative gauges, pipe
Amber Lounge Lyndon Design, a leading British manufacturer of handcrafted upholstered furniture, has provided a bespoke range of luxurious soft seating for Amber Lounge, the luxurious Monaco nightclub owned by Sonia Irvine. Featuring elegant, sleek white sofas in a crisp cotton fabric, Lyndon’s collection blends traditional craftsmanship with modern design and boasts clean lines with uncluttered form. Incorporating a hardwood frame with polished beech legs, the range offers many different assembly options and features alongside the bars, dance floors and terraces.
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interior design work and valves on the walls, a gold-framed oil painting of an 18th-century industrialist wearing a digital watch, and a Victorian coffee roaster that has been renovated as a functioning waiter station. Dan Einzig of Mystery explains: “We have tried to re-interpret the trend for urban interiors by having fun imagining a subterranean gentlemen’s club – where the original great industrialist thinkers might have met and exchanged big ideas – and by designing an irreverent premium brand that celebrates them and the inventions that built their fame and fortunes.” He adds that it was important for Mystery to create a more engaging and long-lasting brand experience through humour in design. “That often means breaking out of the realms of working graphically in two dimensions and instead creating an array of 3D artwork installations, large and small, that we hope customers will have fun discovering over time a little more with each subsequent visit.” Art installations are an established feature of the interior of Urban Leisure Group’s bar Graphic in Soho, London, where artists such as Ben Allen, Eine and Mark Wallinger have helped to create a unique look. The latest six-month installation is by Jim Sharp, a renowned 3D artist, in collaboration with Bombay Sapphire Gin. He has produced images on the walls and in the menus that look tranquil and simple until viewed through 3D glasses available at the bar. Charlie Gilkes and Duncan Stirling have worked with artist Thom Headley for a UV mural that has been added to the eclectic 1980s interior of their club Maggie’s in Chelsea, London. Using special UV paint on top of the painted design, the back-bar mural depicts 80s images such as Margaret Thatcher, Pacman and Mr T from The A-Team, illuminated by UV lighting. Bars and clubs are starting to integrate tablet technology into their design to enhance the experience for customers. While technology companies such as Socket Mobile, Bleep and Aptito are making it possible for interactive digital menus, iPad docking stations were integrated along the bar at Chaophraya Group’s Palm Sugar Lounge bar in Liverpool in a refurbishment by design practice JMDA. Manufacturer Disgo has started to target the bar and club sector after developing a successful valueCube furniture from Sui Generis
54| www.barmagazine.co.uk
Artist’s impression
Filini
Boujis
Scottish design practice Graven Images has been shortlisted for its work on Chicago’s Radisson Blu Aqua Hotel in the global Gold Key Awards for hospitality designers – the only British design studio on the shortlist for best mid-scale to upscale hotel design. In a project including its Italian restaurant and bar Filini, creative director Jim Hamilton selected features and materials reflective of Chicago, including the use of steelwork throughout to pay homage to the city’s skyscrapers. The winners are announced in December.
The London-based Ignite Group brought in British design practice Blacksheep to create the interiors for the latest overseas outpost of its Boujis club concept. Due to open in October, the club in Hong Kong encapsulates British design aesthetic, with Georgian-inspired decoration and traditional furniture including a union flag image glowing out of a gold-smoked mirror set in the bar. The venue features timber panelling, stained deep blue, and luxurious turquoise banquette seating alongside modern LED lighting in the bar and hightech AV systems and large HD video screens on the ceiling and walls of the club area.
based proposition for consumers with its range of Android-based tablets. “They can be used in bars and restaurants to provide a wow factor,” explains Disgo’s purchasing director Luke Noonan. “It gives a bar or restaurant an element of kudos if they are using tablets, making them look trendy.” The most popular application is for digital menus where customers can browse food and drinks, but Luke says it is easy to create bespoke applications for Android-based tablets that would allow individual venues to go further. “The customer could build their own cocktail and send the order straight to the bartender,” he suggests. “It has taken off in the US so it’s only a matter of time before it comes to the UK.” Other uses have been tablets hard-wired into tables in sports bars where customers can access sports-related content. Technological advances are also presenting new options for furniture, such as fibreflass. “Fibreglass furniture has become very popular for bars and clubs as it can be manufactured into any shape, size or colour, which lends itself very well to ultra-contemporary designs,” explains Mark Went, managing director of manufacturer UV mural at Maggie’s
Sui Generis Landscape. “It’s also been warmly welcomed by nightclub and bar managers as products made from fibreglass can be wiped clean, are weatherproof and last a lifetime. Fibreglass is very lightweight which allows all members of staff to move furniture around in all outdoor areas to create different ambiences and seating arrangements throughout the day.” For the future, bar interiors continue to reflect both the contemporary and the vintage, depending on their different markets. “Many popular concepts currently feature a soft, traditional comfortable seating area as well as a design-led, modern bar area,” points out Vaughann Turnbull, national sales manager at hospitality furniture supplier GO IN (UK). “Others seek the organic, ‘natural’ look throughout, using beech and oak to good effect, albeit with contemporary design twist. Laminates are making a comeback and look great in a range of colours.” Vaughann adds that strong colour mixes are popular, with designers seeking a wide choice of colours. “Trends are constantly changing, and modern takes on antique golds and greens are still popular, while others are looking at blacks, greys and reds. Patterned fabrics can be dynamically mixed and matched with plain materials and leathers to striking effect. Leather is still a popular look, and by specifying the excellent modern imitation materials, this ‘look and feel’ is easily achievable, practical and costeffective.”
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bar fittings and accessories
Hakkasan Group
Gibraltar Twist glass from Artis
Fit for purpose The choice of equipment, accessories and layout behind the bar plays a key part in the success and operations of a venue’s business
I
n a competitive environment, bar owners are looking more and more to all-day opening, from breakfast and coffees through to late-night cocktails. In this market, flexibility is more important than ever when it comes to installing bar counters and systems, leading to licensees choosing modular solutions, says Sandro Formisano, chairman of bar interiors specialist New Concept Glasgow. “The beauty of a modular bar is that it can do whatever the owner requires,” he explains. “We’ve seen a surge in demand for these types of bars as space is always such an issue. Owners can add to them, include displays or serveries and even move them completely if the layout of the premises has to change.There’s a big focus on food in venues now, so modular bars allow you to include displays for sandwiches or desserts.” Sandro adds that modular bars are particularly good for bars that serve cocktails, with New Concept Glasgow’s Italian bars proving particularly suitable. “They’re state of the art with everything built in. The ice stores, blenders, condiment racks, speed rails and areas to cut fruit are all part of it, so it’s intuitively designed for the bartenders,” he
Lime & Lemon Squeezer from Artis
explains. New Concept, which supplies catering equipment to the licensed trade across the UK, has also been receiving an increasing number of enquiries about coffee machines, such as its La San Marco range. “It’s an easy way to boost daytime profits,” Sandro says. “We’ve found that when our customers introduce loyalty cards and advertise their coffee offer on A-boards outside their venue, their sales go through the roof.” It is important to consider the entire structure of a bar, as the counter, back fitting and system are essential for it to run effectively, advises Andrew Kneeshaw, commercial director at principal contractor Sanderson. The company, which has worked on projects such as Inventive Leisure’s Revolucion de Cuba bars, has its own purpose-made bar frame system, created from square section steel, which was designed by its managing director, Ian Sanderson. “When designing a bar, the key factors to bear in mind are practicality, appearance and storage,” Andrew points out. “Starting with practicality, a well-designed bar system should include an appropriate service void for necessary pipe work. This is a feature we automatically incorporate into all of our designs. Appearance is always a top priority as a good-looking bar will attract customers. With this in mind, a bar must
George Matzaridis is passionate about attention to detail. From glassware to bar workstations, he wants everything to be perfect for both bartenders and their customers in his role as senior bar manager for Hakkasan Group’s bars and restaurants in London and the Middle East. At the new NeNe bar at Chrysan in the City of London, he worked with stainless steel specialist Insitu to design workstations, back bar and coolers that fitted exactly with the kinds of top-class drinks they want to serve. Other details at the group’s bars include bespoke trays for holding condiments and a customised caddy for napkins while, at NeNe, the back bar includes a dedicated stainless-steel station specifically for cutting ice blocks. They have also designed exclusive glassware for individual bars with specialist John Jenkins & Sons, such as a tactile ridging effect at the base of the Martini, goblet and tumbler glasses at NeNe (pictured). More on Hakkasan Group on page 18.
have the structural stability to carry any finishing solution applied to the counter and frontage, which will help to preserve the bar’s materials and keep the structure in good condition.” Keeping a bar tidy and well stocked is always key so it is important to account for storage, Andrew continues. “Our bar systems are designed with enough space underneath the counter for bespoke stainless-steel systems, which can be used to store drinks, mixers and other bar equipment. Finally, it’s worth remembering that a bar must be easy to maintain and clean to ensure it retains the wow factor.” The need to cut down on behind-thewww.barmagazine.co.uk |57
bar fittings and accessories
the caterer’s companion
The Fridge Factor:
True or False? True backs its refrigeration with a 3-year parts and labour warranty and a 5-year warranty on the compressor
True
When asking about refrigeration, the answer is always
bar clutter has added to the appeal of a range of two-in-one bar accessories from leading supplier Artis. Its Lemon & Lime Squeezer removes the need for two different squeezers, while the Tasting and Muddling Spoon again serves two purposes. “The challenge for operators is to make sure they buy bar tools and accessories sensibly, picking products that are practical, look good and serve multiple purposes, thereby adding value to their establishment and their offering,” says Kathy Birch, marketing manager at Artis. Artis is best known for its extensive range of glassware, and most recently introduced the Gibraltar Twist from Libbey, which has updated its iconic Gibraltar tumbler that was launched 40 years ago. Featuring the same eight-sided design as the original tumbler, the new “twist” has a quirky edge and looks like it has been twisted during firing. Artis offers other glass accessories for bars such as its 65cl Large Mixing Glass that is not only for mixing drinks but has a pouring lip that means it can also be used for serving drinks attractively. The choice of glasswasher needs to be taken carefully, based on how busy a bar gets at peak times and how many glasses will be needed in an hour, points out Henry Stephenson, managing director at bar equipment supplier Stephensons. “We would always advise customers to consider using a hot water feed, as this will decrease the time needed to clean the glassware because the washer can be continually used and there is no waiting time between washes to factor in, whereas with a cold water feed there is up to a three-minute wait per wash. He adds that another essential item for any bar is a lipstick remover. “We always recommend the Quash Lipstick Remover System for the pre-wash removal of grease and lipstick from glasses, as lipstick-marked glasses leave a poor impression, not to mention the drain on profits through replaced drinks.” Henry says that, with cocktails growing, more venues are using bar caddies with a number of storage slots for items such as cocktail straws,
When you choose True, you’re buying more than a fridge. We back all our products with the best possible aftersales customer service, technical support and R&D – not to mention our extended warranties. True Food International, Inc.(UK) 0800.783.2049 ph 01709.888.080 fax 01709.880.838 trueintl@truemfg.com www.truemfg.com/uk
True TDD-3 at The Lamb
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Bureau By The Lough Belfast bar and restaurant Bureau By The Lough has installed a new bar as part of a £250,000 redesign. One of its stunning features is a long bar front clad with Oberflex American Walnut – a real wood laminate from Abet Laminati – with a mottled hammered finish. The venue’s new design by architects Marchini Curran Associates was inspired by the work of Northern Irish post-impressionist painter Paul Henry. Oberflex was used as it brings the natural beauty of a real wood finish but with the durability and other advantages of high-pressure laminate.
toothpicks, cocktail napkins and other bar accessories. “New to the market is a stainlesssteel bar caddy, growing in popularity and taking over from the old chrome-effect plastic version.” High-quality ice buckets are also popular, he adds. “Double-walled stainless-steel ice buckets continue to be a good seller, as the double wall prevents condensation appearing on the exterior, avoids a wet counter and keeps the ice frozen for longer. Aluminium or plastic Drainer Ice Scoops are perfect for keeping melted ice from entering your drinks. The ice scoops feature large drainage holes which allow the water to drain away before entering the glass, ideal for use with ice buckets.” One of the key – and often forgotten
MonthlyCatering Catering Auctions Monthly Auctions
We hold a main catering auction on about the 3rd week of every month with a vast range and new and used catering equipment, flooring and furniture. Everything you will need for any style of Restaurant. We hold a main catering auction on about the 3rd week of every month with a vast range We also hold many site clearance sales, just check out www.bidspotter.co.uk, register your and new and used cateringdetails equipment, flooring and furniture. Everything you will need and you will get updates of next auction. for any style Restaurant. If you have equipment you would like to enterof in to our next sale, or if you are refurbishing or closing down and looking to just sell everything then please don’t hesitate to contact us. We also purchase equipment for cash.
register your details We also hold many site clearance sales, just check out info@mcleancommercial.co.uk or call 01242 701288 email us onand you will get updates of next auction. Unit 2, 550 Shannon Way, Tewkesbury, Gloucs, GL50 8SL If you have equipment you would like to enter in to our next sale, or if you are refurbishing or closing down and looking to just sell everything then please don’t hesitate to contact us. We also purchase equipment for cash. email us on info@mcleancommercial.co.uk or call 01684 290368
Unit 2, 550 Shannon Way, Tewkesbury, Gloucs, GL20 8SL
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bar fittings and accessories ingredients – of cocktails is ice. “Ice machines allow bars to serve highquality and visually superior drinks when there is demand from consumers for premium products,” says Tim Davis, UK branch manager for Hoshizaki, a leading supplier to top-end bars. “Modern bars should not sideline ice as a cooling agent or underestimate its importance. Ice is fundamental in cocktails as it balances the overpowering taste of strong spirits. Quality
Tips on buying a fridge Paul McAndrew of commercial supplier Fridgeland explains what to look for when buying fridges Bar fridges take a lot of abuse: bottles and cans are heavy and staff are careless. A metal interior can withstand impacts far more than a plastic interior lining, which can crack easily. Some manufacturers of plastic-lined beer fridges hide the inside of their fridge on photos by showing them loaded with products. If the picture and specification don’t make it very clear that the interior is metal, it is likely to be plastic. Unlike most products, beer goes into fridges not pre-chilled. The fridge then has to chill the bottles as quickly as possible, which a good bar fridge does by moving the air very quickly over the bottles with a fan. Some cheap units are not fan-assisted which means beer bottles take a very long time to chill down – no good on a busy Saturday night. Avoid plastic shelves which bow, break easily and discolour. Chrome rigid shelves don’t bow, they are very tough and they don’t discolour. Make sure the unit is supplied with a full parts and labour warranty. Many suppliers provide a parts-only warranty, which leaves the buyer with a big expense if any fault occurs with their purchase. Bar fridges are a vital part of your business. Don’t compromise on quality.
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of ice is also imperative as it can make the difference between a watery mess and a first-class drink. Not using the appropriate ice cube or the right quantity can spell disaster. Essentially, the ice that goes into a cocktail is as vital as the spirits, juices and mixers.” Factors to consider when buying an ice machine include how much they minimise the risk of bacterial contamination as well as energy efficiency, Tim adds. “Reducing water wastage is key for ice machines in order to be efficient and eco-friendly. Principally, all Hoshizaki ice machines are injected with polyurethane foam and made with precision doors to insulate the ice environment, which minimises melting and consequently decreases the number of ice production cycles.” The ability for compact machines to produce a variety of ice is also increasingly important for cocktail bars, with Hoshizaki offering cubes, cubelets, cylinders, crescents, flakes, nuggets, balls and star-shaped and heart-shaped ice. True Refrigeration has a range of costeffective, back-bar refrigeration units including glass door merchandisers and bottle coolers but it also specialises in direct-draw beer dispensers. Standards need not drop if setting up a bar in an outside space, with dispense technology now available from True to make sure beer is just as good as from the bar inside. The True TDD-3 is a free-standing draught beer dispenser that is easy to set up wherever an additional bar area is needed. It holds three 11-gallon kegs at one time to keep a steady supply over a long serving period. Once in position, the unit chills draught beer rapidly. When serving, cold air is directed into the beer column to reduce foaming and wastage. Four TDD-3 systems were bought by Phil Lampey of The Lamb in Berkhamsted – one for an outside bar and three more for hiring out for events. “I needed a solution to take the pressure off my main bar during busy periods but didn’t want to just offer bottled beer in my outside bar area,” Phil explains. The bonus with offering it for events too is that he can charge a fee for the keg. “So I’m selling beer to customers who wouldn’t have been in the pub on these particular days or evenings.” The result has been incremental sales for the business and a quick return on investment.
Stainless-steel bar caddy from Stephensons
Accessories>>
Wine and spirits merchant Berry Bros & Rudd has launched premium glassware to enhance the experience of drinking wine. The range of seven hand-made glasses has been designed by John Jenkins & Sons with the help of Berry Bros’ five masters of wine. Named The Wine Merchant’s Glasses, they comprise glasses for red Bordeaux, champagne, white Burgundy, red Burgundy, port and sauternes, and white Bordeaux plus a glass for whisky and water. Iconic carbonation system SodaStream has launching a limited-edition machine and flavours for making cocktails with fizz. The Night Spirit machine, which comes in four colours, is aimed at consumers but SodaStream believe it will be of interest to bars looking for something quirky. It has introduced three flavours, not containing alcohol: Margarita, Cosmopolitan and Mojito.
A range of brightly coloured hurricane glasses has been introduced for bars, pubs and clubs by leading supplier GET UK. Designed to hold 15oz, they take 16oz (473ml) up to the rim. They come in six colours and are made from dishwasher-safe, durable polycarbonate. “As more and more licensing authorities insist on the use of plastic drinkware to reduce the number of glass-related injuries, pub and bar operators are under pressure to offer safe, attractive and long-lasting alternatives to traditional glasses, “ says Lynn Johnson, managing director of GET UK. “Not only do they look great and feel good to hold, but they are a much safer option for use in busy bars, restaurants and nightclubs, especially during the busy festive season or for special events, when the risk of glass breakage and accidental injury can increase significantly.”
bar essentials
Stand out with Warings
Gain the Advantage
Statement furniture pieces are hugely popular with interior designers as they provide talking points and inject real personality into a space. The Solair chair is just one example of the stunning stand-out pieces crafted by Warings Furniture. With its own in-house manufacturing and product design service and highly skilled team of upholsterers, Warings create truly unique pieces by modifying the shape of the frame, upholstery design and fabrics used. For the full range, visit www.waringsfurniture. com or call 01953 499949 to discuss your individual requirements.
Advantage is Nelson’s latest and most advanced range of undercounter glasswashers. All stainless steel, it is aimed at the top end but retains a realistic price tag. With a super-specified design, features include thermal insulation to the wash tank, wash chamber, door and boiler while the wash tank is acoustically insulated for a near-silent working environment. Water usage is minimised: hot clean rinse water drawn for each rinse cycle is used in the next cycle. Call 020 8993 6198 or visit www.nelsonwash.co.uk.
Green and clean
Test your knowledge
Winterhalter’s UC Series of undercounter dishwashers has won a Green Apple Award, which will be presented in the House of Commons in November. The awards, organised by The Green Organisation, recognise environmental endeavour and sustainable development. The UC Series offers a variety of resource – and cost-saving features. For example, an optional “Eco” mode minimises resource consumption while extending the washing cycle, saving up to 11 per cent in running costs. Call 01908 359000 or visit www.winterhalter-scout.biz.
Rational’s SelfCookingCenter whitefficiency is a quantum leap forward in terms of efficiency, output and cooking quality. The company is looking for a chef to match, with a competition to find the SelfCookingCenter whitefficiency Professional 2012. Chefs can test their knowledge of the SelfCookingCenter whitefficiency, demonstrating their skills and competing against colleagues around the world. The prize includes a personalised Rational chef’s jacket and a Laguiole knife set. Enter at www.club-rational.com before November 30.
Save space and energy
DC keeps costs low
The Amber range from Williams offers robust, stylish, economically priced cabinets that can fit into the tightest of spaces. It is available in upright and undercounter versions and a choice of three sizes. The smallest, the HA135, measures 805mm (h) x 606mm (w) x 577mm (d), with a capacity of 133 litres and a front-venting system for fitting under the counter or in tight spaces. The cabinets feature a low-noise design and come in white PVC or stainless-steel finishes.Visit www.williams-refrigeration.co.uk.
If you need a standard-range dishwasher that saves energy and also promises low running costs, the SXD50 under-counter model from DC Products is the answer thanks to its insulated boiler. It has a choice of two cycle times (120 and 180 seconds), a double-skinned cabinet to reduce noise and heat emissions and an upgraded boiler element that improves recovery times. The 26-litre wash tank houses a 500 x 500mm basket that can handle 18 dinner plates per cycle. Call 01749 870055 or visit www.dcproducts.co.uk.
Artis winter offers
Sparkling solutions
Glassware and tableware supplier Artis has released its winter season promotional discount product list, available until December 24. It has discounts of up to 30 per cent off list price and items from many popular, high-quality ranges of cutlery, tableware, glassware and warewashing racks, such as the high-end Royale range of Sparkx crystal glasses from Luigi Bormioli (pictured). The full discount list is at www.artis-uk.com/winteroffers. Orders can be placed online, at sales@artis-uk.com, or call 020 88391 5544.
‘Tis the season to sparkle and, with extra customers coming through the doors, it’s essential to impress with Christmas drinks. Simple to use, Classeq’s Eau de Vie system filters and chills the mains supply to produce still and sparkling water that can be dispensed into stylish branded bottles. Ice-O-Matic ice machines, distributed in the UK by Classeq, include the ICE Series cube ice machines, for premium-quality cube and halfcube ice, and flake or pearl ice machines. Call 0844 225 9249 or visit www.classeq.co.uk. www.barmagazine.co.uk |61
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diningchairsuk
indoor/outdoor
Contract Furniture Solutions
Regardless of whether you own a bar or a superclub, your venue earns you your living. Tables Outdoor furniture Fixed Seating Sofas & Armchairs
All venues are at risk of complaints, from members of the public, local businesses, competitors even. Your local EHO team has a duty to investigate these complaints and where necessary... act. The law says that your venue must not cause sound or light pollution, and there are no defined limits, it is up to the individual EHO to decide what is and what isn’t a problem.
crystal £83
hero £79
dejavu £60
elizabeth lucca £59
£25
mr bibi £45
mr bobo £45
Dining Chairs UK Unit 7c, Pintail House, Pintail Close, Netherfield, Nottingham NG4 2SG t: 0115 965 9030 f: 0115 965 9039 e: info@diningchairsuk.com w: www.diningchairsuk.com
diva £29
Brat Audio have years of experience working with EHO’s and councils, we have all the means at our disposal to ensure any complaint and follow up action can be dealt with quickly and effectively. Email: mh@brat-audio.co.uk Tel: 0845 475 1580 www.brat-audio.co.uk
diningchairsuk Contract Furniture Solutions
Bistro Low Stool
£35
Industrial High Stool
Bistro High Stool
£95
£49
Crank Table 700 Ø / 700 sq.
prices from £44
French Bistro Table 720mm Square £92
£249
Industrial Low Stool
£79
Oblong Crank Table 1800 x 800 £479
Dining Chairs UK Unit 7c, Pintail House, Pintail Close, Netherfield, Nottingham NG4 2SG t: 0115 965 9030 f: 0115 965 9039 e: info@diningchairsuk.com w: www.diningchairsuk.com
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...put your contacts to work Call Manjeet on 01795 509109 • manjeet@cimltd.co.uk
JESSICASIMONE I N T E R I O R
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BarMag Advert09_60x35mm.qxp
Samuel Snawdon Making quality furniture since 1843 Bar and reception counters Restaurant refurbishment Design and installation across the south west Tel: 01752 880420 samuelsnawdon@tiscali.co.uk www.samuelsnawdon.co.uk
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Creed Design Associates creative design solutions
t : 0116 275 2592 f : 0116 275 2593 e : info@creeddesign.co.uk w : www.creeddesign.co.uk
Raw Design 118 Hewlett Road, Cheltenham, GL52 6AT T: 01242 227342 E: design@matthewrawlinson.co.uk W: www.raw-design.com
0121 747 1111 info@tibbatts.com www.tibbattsabel.com
TIBBATTS ABEL
INTERIOR DESIGN CONSULTANTS T 01484 660400
INTERIORS ARCHITECTURE
M 07957 762280
SS BarMag Ad-v1a.pdf 13/01/2011 10:39:53
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DESIGN CLD - Interior Design - Graphic Design - Project Management TEL: 020 8426 8259
w w w. d e s i g n c l d . c o. u k
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fitzimpressions
NEW
0845 052 3635
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contemporary upholstery & fixed seating specialist
fitzimpressions.co.uk
james bullen designs printed interior and fashion accessories 07808232084 www.jamesbullendesigns.co.uk jbullendesign@btinternet.com
The iconic Gibraltar glass, with a twist
T: 020 8391 5544 F: 020 8391 4595 sales@artis-uk.com www.artis-uk.com/twist
Contemporary Upholstery and Fixed Seating Seating, Bar & Restaurant Furniture.
Does your venue need a facelift before christmas? Specialits, Banquette Seating, Booth
Spcializing in Contemporary and traditional upholstery Fitz Impressions are quickly becoming established as the leading upholstery, bespoke furniture and fixed seating specialists in the country.
Partnering with leading pub and dining companies we operate from our 10,000 sq ft workshop in Cheshire. With quality installations from Aberdeen to Bournemouth our service offering covers the UK.
You only get one chance to impress make it Fitzimpressions
With significant investment in the latest CNC machinery we can work with your designs or we offer a design based service. We guarantee a quality product and service at a very reasonable rate.. Dont just take our word for it...
Add the ‘Wow Factor’ to your venue
“Their work has always been carried out by dedicated professional craftsmen to the highest standard. They work very effectively especially to our very tight time scales and are always willing to help us with other requirements at short notice” General Manager Cheshire 5* Golf Resort & Spa Give us a call to discuss your ideas but be quick you dont have long before the christmas parties begin.
Call 0845 052 3635 or email info@fitzimpressions.co.uk www.fitzimpressions.co.uk
TOUCH SCREEN KARAOKE from KARAOKE UK LTD This machine will print out A-Z Artist or Track List Karaoke Song books in Excel 3. Song Packages are available.
Visit www.karaoke-uk.co.uk or call 0161 449 0441
Deralam is a family run business established for over 25 years. We are nationwide distributors of High Pressure Laminates, Kitchen Worktops and Melamine Faced Products offering immediate delivery from Wigan and Dunstable. Head Office: West Coast Park, Bradley Lane, Standish, Wigan, Lancashire WN6 0YR Tel: 01257 478540 sales@deralam.co.uk www.deralam.co.uk
Leisure Interior Solutions
Interior fit out & Bar specialists Bars . Fit-Out & Refurbishment . Furniture Commercial Kitchens . Air Conditioning Bespoke Fabrication . Design & Build +44 (0)161 684 7879 sales@dawnvale.com www.dawnvale.com
Connections ALCOHOLIC BEVERAGES Nasha Beverages Ltd The Gosford Arms, 65-66 Far Gosford street, Coventry CV1 5DZ UK T: 07940573480 E: sales@nashawines.com W: www.nashawines.com
AUDIO VISUAL ENHANCE THE CUSTOMER EXPERIENCE WITH A BOSE SOUND SOLUTION
Bose Professional Systems Division 1 Ambley Green, Gillingham Business Park, Kent, ME8 0NJ T: 0870 741 4500 E: uk_pro@bose.com W: www.bose.co.uk/business_solutions
CCR Systems 142 Bebington Road, New Ferry, Wirral, CH62 5BJ T: 01516448296 F: 01516458981 W: www.ccrsystems.co.uk
iControl Hospitality Ltd Amberside, Wood Lane, Hemel Hempstead, Hertforshire, HP2 4TP T: 0330 010 1000 / 0800 6122 868 F: 03300101001 E: info@icontrolepos.com W: www.icontrolepos.com Partner Tech UK Unit 11, Berkeley Court, Manor Park, Runcorn, Cheshire, WA7 1TQ T: 01928 579 707 F: 01928 571 308 E: sales@partnertech-uk.com W: www.partnertech-uk.com
BALLOONS, BUNTING & FLAGS
BAR ACCESSORIES
Including : napkins, coasters, stirrers, beer-mats
Supercover Ltd Sovereign House, Trinity Business Park, Wakefield, WF2 8EF T: 0845 844 5000 F: 01924 200010 E: info@supercoverltd.co.uk W: www.supercoverltd.co.uk County Insurance Northwest County Insurance Northwest Block N2, Chorley Business & Technology Centre, Euxton Lane, Chorley, Lancashire PR7 6TE T: 0800 781 8604 E: phillipk@countyinsurancenw.com W: www.countyinsurancenw.com
Comtrex Systems Ltd Contact: Clive Keywood, Sales Manager, 2 Gatwick Metro Centre, Balcombe, Road, Horley, Surrey, RH6 9GA E: sales@comtrex.co.uk Point of sale with Comtrex Everything Posible W: www.comtrex.co.uk
Avonics Ltd Northstage, 78 Broadway, Salford, M50 2UW T: 0161 872 7001 F: 0161 872 7002 E: info@avonics.co.uk W: www.avonics.co.uk
B-Loony Ltd Sunnyside Road, Chesham, Bucks, HP5 2AR T: 01494 774376 F: 01494 791268 E: sales@b-loony.co.uk W: www.b-loony.com
INSURANCE
EPOS
Socket Mobile T: 07787112109 E: emea@socketmobile.com W: www.socketmobile.com
INTERIOR FIT OUT & BAR SPECIALISTS Dawnvale Units 1&2, Albert Street, Hollinwood, Oldham, Greater Manchester, OL8 3QP T: 0161 684 7879 E: sales@dawnvale.com W: www.dawnvale.com
LIGHTING Dali Lighting Ltd Walker Avenue, Stratford Office Village, Wolverton Mill, Milton Keynes, MK12 5TW T: 01908 324050 E: sales@dalilite.com W: www.dalilite.com
ESPRESSO MACHINES Francino T: 0121 328 5757 E: sales@francino.com W: www.francino.com
Celebration Paper & Plastics Ltd Stanley Street, Burton Upon Trent, Staffordshire, DE14 1DY T: 01283 538259 F: 01283 510085 E: sales@celebration.co.uk W: www.celebration.co.uk
Deltalight UK 94 Webber Street, Waterloo London, SE1 0QN T: 0870 757 7087 F: 0207 620 0985 E: design@deltalight.co.uk W: www.deltalight.co.uk
OUTDOOR SOLUTIONS
BAR EQUIPMENT IMC Unit 1, Abbey Road, Wrexham Industrial Estate, Wrexham, LL13 9RF T: 01978 661155 F: 01978 729990 E: garyb@imco.co.uk W: www.imco.co.uk
inn-fresco Newmarket Approach, Leeds, LS9 0RJ T: 0870 80 30 199 F: 0113 249 2228 E: info@inn-fresco.co.uk W: www.inn-fresco.co.uk
FLOORING Broadleaf Head Office: 01269 851 910 London: 0207 371 0088 W: www.broadleaftimber.com/commercial
BESPOKE DIGITAL WALLPAPER Digetex Contract 1, Waterside, Old Trafford, M17 1WD T: 0161 873 8891 E: sales@digetexcontract.com W: www.digetexcontract.com
Junckers T: 01376 534700 F: 01376 514401 E: sales@junckers.co.uk W: www.junckers.co.uk
Feather & Jones 517 Garstang Road, Broughton, Preston, Lancashire, PR3 5JA T: 0845 370 0134 E: info@featherandjones.com W: www.featherandjones.com
Atkinson & Kirby T: Ormskirk 01695 573234, T: London 0208 577 1100, E: sales@akirby.co.uk W: www.akirby.co.uk
CATERING EQUIPMENT Shop-Equip Limited Park View, North Street, Langwith, Mansfield, Notts, NG20 9BN T: 01623 741500 F: 01623 741505 E: info@shop-equip.com W: www.shop-equip.com
CCTV & SECURITY NFS Hospitality NFS House, 15 Harforde Court, John Tate Road, Foxholes Business Park, Hertford, SG13 7NW T: 01920 485725 F: 01920 485723 W: www.nfs-hospitality.com
DRINKS DISTRIBUTION Nectar Imports Ltd The Old Hatcheries, Bells Lane Zeals, Wiltshire, BA12 6LY T: 01747 840100 F: 01747 840467 E: sales@nectar.net W: www.nectar.net
DRAINAGE Auline Group Cyprian Torralba, 59-62 Briindley Road Astmoor Industrial Estate, Runcorn, WA4 1NU T: 01928 563532 F: 01928580224 E: enquiry@alulinegroup.com W: www.alulinegroup.com
SEAMLESS RESIN FLOORING Resdev Limited Pumaflor House, Ainleys Industrial Estate, Elland, HX5 9JP T: +44 1422 379131 F: +44 1422 370943 M: +44 7711 404744 E: jillc@resdev.co.uk
SIGNAGE Heath Advertising Pub Signs T: 01299 877605 M: 07778564882 E: pubsignsuk@aol.com W: www.heathadvertising.co.uk
FURNITURE Craftwork Premier House, Barras Street, Leeds, LS12 4JS T: 0113 290 7939 E: sales@craftworkupholstery.com W: www.craftworkupholstery.com Geometric Furniture Ltd Geometric House, Lark Hill, Townley Street, Middleton, Manchester, M24 1AT T: 0161 653 2233 F: 0161 653 2299 E: sales@geometric-furniture.co.uk W: www.geometric-furniture.co.uk Hill Cross Furniture Cramble Cross, North Cowton, Northallerton, North Yorkshire, DL7 0HL T: 01325 378 307 F: 01325 378858 E: info@hillcrossfurniture.co.uk W: www.hillcrossfurniture.co.uk Wish Interiors Rowlands House, King Edward Street Grimsby, North East Lincolnshire, DN31 3LA T: 01472 230332 T: 07802382732 E: info@wishinteriors.com W: www.wishinteriors.com
GIANT UMBRELLAS & OUT DOOR PRODUCTS M&D GEE LLP Churchill House, Stiring Way, Borehamwood, Herts WD6 2HP T: 020 8736 0536 F: 020 8736 0537 E: enquiries@mdgee.com W: www.mdgee.com
SOFT DRINKS Tynant Spring Water T: 44 (0) 1974 272 111 F: 44 (0) 1974 272 123 E: info@tynant.com W: www.tynant.com
SOUND TECHNOLOGY Velocity Event Tech Ltd Banks Mill, 71 Bridge Street, Derby, DE13LB T: 01332 268619 E: info@velocityeventtech.co.uk W: www.velocityeventtech.co.uk
TECHNOLOGY Retail Systems Technology Campsie Industrial Estate, Mclean Road, Eglington, Londonderry, BT47 3XX T: 02871 860069 F: 02871 860517 E: ciaran.coyle@rstepos.com W: www.rstepos.com
TOILET & DRAIN TOOLS Monument Tools No.1 in the No.2 Business T/F: 07092 894 317 E: sales-team@drain-tools.com Use Partner/ Promotion Code BARDIR for 15% Discount W: www.drain-tools.com
To ad ve r tise on our conne ctions page s c all 01795 50 910 9
diary
bar The Maestro, Salvatore Calabrese, has earned a place for himself in the record books by officially making the world’s most expensive cocktail. None of this malarkey about using expensive glassware or dropping in diamond rings; instead Salvatore plundered his vintage spirits collection at his London bar, Salvatore at Playboy, to create Salvatore’s Legacy. It was made with Clos de Griffier Vieux Cognac from 1778, Kummel liqueur from 1770, Dubb Orange Curaçao from about 1860 and Angostura Aromatic Bitters from the 1900s – the full recipe is at www.barmagazine.co.uk. With a Guinness World Record adjudicator at hand, a customer paid £5,500 for the cocktail to seal Salvatore’s role in the “liquid history” books.
The Sazerac Company, which owns Buffalo Trace Distillery, seems to be continuing its efforts globally to establish its Sazerac whiskey as the official ingredient of a Sazerac cocktail. While the original 19th-century cocktail was made with cognac Sazeracde-Forge et Fils, the US company has been stopping “misuses of the Sazerac trademark” on cocktail menus and in marketing. In the US, these “misuses” have led to lawyers’ letters
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Books >> Books on bartending in time for Christmas pointing out that an official Sazerac must be made with Sazerac rye whiskey – or Buffalo Trace bourbon. During London Cocktail Week, this prompted one pop-up bar in Covent Garden to rename its Sazerac – using Scotch whisky – as “The Cocktail Formerly Known As The Sazerac”.
Salvatore’s record-breaking was part of last month’s London Cocktail Week which, at time of going to press, seems to have broken its own records this year in terms of attendance. Focused around the Seven Dials area, it featured over 100 events and pop-up bars. Among the many highlights was a masterclass with Buffalo Trace’s master blender, Drew Mayville, at the pop-up Bourbon Empire bar (pictured), covered in one of the latest posts on the Bar magazine blog at www. barmagazine.wordpress.com.
Among all the pop-up bars in Covent Garden for London Cocktail Week, we were rather taken by this alternative approach from long-established basement bar Freud.
I When it comes to museums, we have always been a fan of Vinopolis, a museum dedicated to all things alcoholic. While it has always focused on wine, it has featured sections on gin and absinthe. After a multimillionpound refurbishment, we are pleased to see it now has a Spirits Lounge which, among other things, offers a chance to sample absinthe. Continuing the museum’s previous partnership with La Fée, an Enomatic machine allows you to try 10ml of the Blanche, Parisienne, Suisse and XS Française from the range. With two absinthe fountains, visitors can find out how to louche it with a slotted spoon and sugar cube alongside a potted myth-busting history of the spirit. Other spirits featured include Bloodshot Bloody Mary vodka and Whitley Neill gin.
Tom Sandham and Ben McFarland (pictured) have been continuing to tour the country with their show, The Thinking Drinker’s Guide To Alcohol, an anarchic history of alcohol. After selling out at Edinburgh Festival Fringe in August, they most recently turned up at the Cheltenham Literature Festival last month, thanks to Westons Cider, alongside the likes of TV funnyman Dom Joly. Their next outing is a return visit to London’s Soho Theatre from November 8 to 10.
f you are looking for the perfect gift for your favourite bartender, a new book has come out by Tony Conigliaro, world-leading cocktail specialist from London’s 69 Colebrooke Row and Zetter Townhouse. Called simply Drinks, it captures Tony’s pioneering exploration into the science of flavours and ingredients, updating 50 classic recipes in exciting and original ways. They range from his own modern classic The Twinkle to drinks based on perfume, such as the Lipstick Rose. It also looks at barrel-ageing of cocktails and the use of savoury ingredients in drinks such as a White Truffle Martini. It is priced £25 from Ebury Press. More of the world’s leading bartenders feature in a glossy new book published in time for Christmas, World’s Best Cocktails. Alex Kratena of the Artesian Bar, Jake Burger of Portobello Star, Erik Lorincz of the Savoy’s American Bar and Ago Perrone of the Connaught Bar pop up as part of the book’s look at 25 of the world’s top bars, which also includes PDT in New York and Experimental Cocktail Club in Paris. But, as the title suggests, the heart of the book is its 500 illustrated “couture cocktails” from around the globe, accompanied by entertaining and informative text by drinks writer Tom Sandham, one half of The Thinking Drinker’s Guide to Alcohol shows. It also tells the story of the cocktail from first attempts at distillation in BC China via its golden age in early 20th-century America to the global cutting-edge recipes of today. It is priced £30 from Jacqui Small.
Sheer coffee pleasure…at its most luxurious and self-indulgent
GIGA 9
XJ 9
The GIGA X7 and X9 ( illustrated ) are top of the range machines with two or three thermoblocks, dual ceramic grinders, delivering superb coffee effortlessly and in seconds through Swiss precision engineering. The IMPRESSA XJ9 Professional. A clear, symmetrical design, a 3.5” TFT colour display, sophisticated chrome plated bean container and a brilliant finish add a touch of charisma. Latte, Espresso, Café Crème, Cappuccino and more…the luxurious flavour and aroma demanded by discerning coffee lovers, every time.
For further details on the new GIGA X7 , X9 and XJ9 Professional commercial machines contact: JURA Products Ltd, Vivary Mill, Vivary Way, Colne, Lancashire, BB8 9NW Tel: 01282 868266 Fax: 01282 863411 sales@uk.jura.com www.jurauk.com
GIGA 9 XJ9 Bar Magazine ad.indd 1
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