in the Mix Summer 2016 issuu

Vol. 48 Summer 2016

I N N OVAT E

I N D U L G E

E X P L O R E

Jeffery Bartfield, Vice President National Accounts &

John Niekrash,

Director of Sales, National Accounts PROXIMO SPIRITS

California Table Wine, Š2016 William Hill Estate, Napa, CA. All Rights Reserved. 16-1642207- WHE-129-571989 2

in the Mix Magazine

PUBLISHER’S LETTER

Memorable Customer Service

The on-premise hospitality business lives and dies on customer service. Everyone has a training program in place, but what are the core ingredients for a successful customer service program?

With regard to the hotel business, most hotels have unique operation and ownership structures. Most are not owned by the flag name of the hotel on the door. However, every hotel flag has a specific culture they wish to project.

Hotel owners and management organizations utilize financial outcomes such as average daily rate, occupancy and revenue per available room (RevPAR) to evaluate the effective financial growth and achieve efficient inventory control. These financial measures are typically managed through the sales, marketing and yield management functions, which are mostly lagging indicators because they are byproducts of a transaction and not necessarily influenced by the customer experience.

Financial systems are generally inadequate in forecasting customer loyalty derived by the customer experience because they measure sales transactions and not the value derived from such a purchase. This approach does not account for other possible variables that influence a purchase decision, such as customer attitudinal loyalty shaped by the customer experience.

We talked to several companies who pride themselves in achieving a successful memorable customer engagement and below are some of their insights.

It is said that everything starts with an emotional connection. This is illustrated by five of the key service principles set forth by James Eggimann, Senior Manager, Global Learning Solutions with Ritz-Carlton.

The key is to set realistic customer expectations and then not to just meet them, but to exceed them preferably in unexpected and helpful ways.”

We define the experience RICHARD BRANSON through the service we provide.”

ISADORE SHARP, Founder and Chairman, Four Seasons Hotels and Resorts

THESE PRINCIPLES ARE PRETTY STRAIGHTFORWARD: 1. Do not over-complicate customer service.

2. Turn every customer interaction in a defining moment.

3. Do not underestimate the importance of the service experience.

4. Service is about the five senses, and 5. Attention to detail and one extra degree of effort.

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Mr. Eggimann further states, “Start by determining what your customer wants. Prepare a written service strategy. Your customer has expressed and unexpressed service expectations. The first is to fulfill what you promise and the second is to achieve the unexpected – to rise beyond the expected and requested, and deliver memorable experiences.”

Several of the companies I researched apply the basic tenets found in Abraham Maslow’s theory of the hierarchy of human needs. Companies like Marriott, Four Seasons, Ritz-Carlton, Disney, Hilton and IHG have established effective customer-centric training using principles derived, in varying degrees, from Maslow’s “A Theory of Human Motivation.”

An example of the prevalence of this idea is Chip Conley’s great book written just a few years ago, Peak: How Great Companies Get Their Mojo from Maslow.

Ritz-Carlton uses a simple pyramid chart to demonstrate their basic approach and call it “The Power of Surprise & Delight.”

The Power of Surprise & Delight DEGREE OF DELIGHT

Experience will ALWAYS be remembered Experience will PROBABLY be remembered Experience will NOT be remembered

DEGREE OF EXPECTATION

DELIGHTED

REQUESTED

BILL KIMPTON Bill Kimpton also points out that happiness arises within the guest or employee as a result of something genuine that lies outside the realm of rules or guidelines.

Stirring that sense of joy at Kimpton is a direct result of empowerment, because the actions employees take to serve the guest are inspired from within, and this, ultimately, is the magic that is uniquely Kimpton.

in the Mix Magazine

Expected response

EXPECTED

You can’t legislate a smile.”

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Unexpected response

The cornerstone of our culture has always been ‘take care of your employees and they will take care of your customers.”

J.W. “BILL” MARRIOTT, JR., Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, Marriott International

Here is a flowchart that demonstrates the customer service experience:

Internal Service Quality

Employee Satisfaction

Employee Retention

External Service Quality

Customer Satisfaction

Customer Loyalty

Employee Productivity

Revenue Growth

Profitablity

Service Concept results for customers

Service designed and delivered to meet customer’s needs

Retention Repeat Business Referral

Source: Heskett et al. (2008, July - August). Putting the Service-Profit Chain to Work. Harvard Business Review, 86 (7), 118-129.

Do what you do so well that they will want to see it again and bring their friends.”

WALT DISNEY

Unless you have 100% customer satisfaction, you must improve.”

So what does all this mean? Well, it means that Maslow had it right: Service value and staff service delivery, although intangibles, are critical to the bottom line.

People comprise customer service, and in the end, it’s your service staff that is your front line. There has to be a positive emotional connection from the service – and there will be when it is designed and delivered to meet customers’ needs. This creates customer loyalty, which translates into revenue growth and profitability for your business.

HORST SCHULTZ, Former President, Ritz-Carlton Hotel Company

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Enjoy SanpellegrinoÂŽ Sparkling Fruit Beverages and treat yourself to the refreshing taste of sun-ripened citruses.

An Italian tradition since 1932, these delicious sparkling beverages offer a distinct taste, style and quality.

Try all seven flavors chilled, served over ice or in your favorite cocktail.

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The Art of Mixology Sparkling Cocktails with a Dash of Deliziosa

Runway Gimlet

Riviera Fizz

1 oz. Orange Vodka 2 oz. Aranciata Rossa 3 oz. Prosecco

1 1⁄2 oz. Aperol 2 oz. Orange Juice 6 oz. Aranciata

Serve in a rocks glass with a blood orange round

Serve on the rocks in a highball glass with half of an orange round

Capitano Cooler

Classic Italian 75

1 oz. White Rum 1 ⁄2 oz. Jamaican Rum 2 oz. Pompelmo 3 ⁄4 oz. Lime Juice 3 ⁄4 oz. Honey

⁄4 oz. Gin 3 oz. Limonata 3 oz. Prosecco

Serve on the rocks with half of a grapefruit wheel and/or a lime wedge

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Serve in a flute or coupe glass with a twist of lemon peel

Find more cocktail recipes at sanpellegrinofruitbeverages.com.

For more information, contact Nicole Thurman at Nicole.Thurman@waters.nestle.com ©2016 Nestlé Waters North America Inc.

NWNA14902_4

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54 40

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INNOVATE 24. Take 5 Interview with Rhonda Carano, Co-Owner and Vice President of Ferrari-Carano Vineyards and Winery; and Sarah Quider, Executive Winemaker at Ferrari-Carano Vineyards and Winery 40. Marriott Global Beverage Partners – CORE meeting

by Brian Yost 42.

Hospitality Executive Exchange West

54. Cover Story – Interview with Jeffery Bartfield, Vice President National Accounts, and John Niekrash, Director of Sales, National Accounts, of Proximo Spirits 72. Technology – Time to Invest in the Guest

by Adam Billings 76. Take 5 Interview with Pernod Ricard National Mixologist, Kevin Denton

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66 78

INDULGE 32. The Renaissance of Bourbon, America’s Native Spirit

by Edward M. Korry, CHE CSS CWE 48. Pre-Batching for Success: Cocktails on Tap and Bottled Cocktails

by Kathy Casey 66. Millennials in a Bottle: Next Generation Wine Entrepreneurs Josh Phelps and Carlo Trinchero 70.

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Juicy Story: Sage Restaurant Group’s A Zero-Proof Offerings

by Jack Robertiello

78. Shanghai Surprises

by Elyse Glickman 90. Malfy Gin: The First Luxury Italian Gin to be Imported into the United States 92. Ultimate Beverage Challenge – Top 10 Añejo Tequilas 97. Tequila Cocktails

by Gary Gruver

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48

Start the party with RumChata!

Strawberry

FrappaChata RumChata

Root Beer Float

RumChata

Colada

RumChata

Iced Coffee

RumChata®, Caribbean Rum with Real Dairy Cream, Natural and Artificial Flavors, 13.75% alc./vol.

Produced and Bottled by Agave Loco Brands, Pewaukee, WI 53072. Please Enjoy Responsibly.

RUMCHATA and CHATA are Registered Trademarks of Agave Loco, LLC.

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EXPLORE 18.

he Adventures of George: Genever T

by Tony Abou-Ganim

28. Chicago Athletic Association Hotel, a Commune Hotel

by Mike Raven 74. Making the Rounds With Helen Benefield Billings – An Aviation at Morton’s The Steakhouse 94.

94

CORE: A Christmas in May

96. Wine Quiz

by The Society of Wine Educators 98. Crossword Puzzle

by Barry Wiss, CWE CSS, of Trinchero Family Estates

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A DV E RTO R I A L

An American Company Representing Best in Class Vodkas and Heritage Brands BLOOD ORANGE MOSCOW MULE 2 parts ½ part ½ part 3 parts

Russian Standard Vodka Blood orange syrup Lime juice Ginger beer

Russian Standard Original is the standard for world class Vodka. It is created by combining state-of-the-art distillation techniques with time-honored traditions.

Build into an iced Russian Standard copper mug, and enjoy a unique citrus twist on the Classic Moscow Mule.

Russian Standard Platinum employs a proprietary silver filtration system known for its unique natural refining values.

This exclusive process produces an extraordinary silky smooth Vodka with an ultra-clean finish.

PLATINUM WHITE RUSSIAN 2 parts

1 part 1 part 2 dashes

Russian Standard Platinum Premium coffee liqueur Fresh cream Chocolate bitters

Pour coffee liqueur, Russian Standard Vodka and bitters into an old fashioned glass filled with ice. Float fresh cream on top and let your guests swirl the ingredients to their taste.

For more information on ROUST products please contact Linda Lofstom.

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linda.lofstrom@roust.com |

P

847.456.6521

A DV E RTO R I A L

Żubrówka Vodka, or “ZU” as it is called, has over 600 years of tradition and history, and is infused with bison grass from UNESCO-protected Polish forests. One taste and you will discover the Elixir revered by mixologists worldwide.

ELIXIR DAIQUIRI 2 parts 1 part ½ part ½ part 1

BI SOME THYME 2 parts ½ part ½ part ½ part 4 2 drops 1 sprig

ZU Bison Grass Fresh lime juice Simple syrup Vanilla syrup Lemon twist for garnish

Shake all ingredients with ice until ice cold, strain into coupe glass. Enjoy the best daiquiri, with the intriguing aromas and flavor of UNESCO protected Bison Grass.

ZU Bison Grass Crème de Violette liqueur Fresh lemon juice Simple Syrup Fresh raspberries Orange bitters Fresh thyme

Shake all ingredients with ice and double strain into a chilled coupe glass. You will want to buy more time enjoying another!

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CONTRIBUTING WRITERS

Media Print

Tony Abou-Ganim, known as “The Modern Mixologist,” is an accomplished bar chef, speaker and consultant who has created several original cocktail recipes, including the Cable Car, Sunsplash and Starlight.

He has recently authored his second book, Vodka Distilled (Agate Surrey, publisher).

Edward Korry is an Associate Professor and Chair of the Beverage & Dining Service Department in the College of Culinary Arts at Johnson & Wales University, Providence, R.I. Edward carries many certifications as well as being President of the Society of Wine Educators and an executive board member of the U.S. Bartenders’ Guild Master Accreditation program.

Jack Robertiello writes about spirits, cocktails, wine, beer and food from Brooklyn, New York.

His article is courtesy of Flavor & The Menu. www.getflavor.com

Digital

Web

Video

PUBLISHER Don Billings EDITORIAL AND DESIGN Editor – Michael Raven Designed by – Connie Guess, ThinkWorks Creative Copy Editor & Proofreader – Christine Neal Associate Editor – Celeste Dinos Associate Editor – Helen Benefield Billings ADVERTISING SALES mike@itmmag.com EDITORIAL AND BUSINESS OFFICE 1196 Buckhead Crossing, Woodstock, GA 30189 PHONE 770-928-1980 | FAX 770-517- 8849 EMAIL mike@itmmag.com WEB ITMmag.com

in the Mix magazine is published quarterly by IMI Agency. All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reprinted or otherwise reproduced without written permission from the publisher.

Adam Billings is the Director of Creative, Technology and Innovation at iMi Agency, a full-service marketing agency in the hospitality industry. He manages adult beverage programs for chain restaurant, hotel and concession clients.

in the Mix is exclusively operated and owned

by Incentive Marketing Inc. SUBMISSIONS Incentive Marketing Inc. assumes no responsibility for unsolicited manuscripts or photographs.Visit our website, intheMixMagazine.com, for guidelines on how to submit inquiries or contact our editors.

Hospitality and travel writer, Helen Benefield Billings has been with in the Mix since its inception in 2004.

Helen lives in her native childhood home of Sea Island, Ga. when not traveling or attending industry functions with her husband, Don.

Kathy Casey, an accomplished writer, is the author of 10 cookbooks, including the James Beard Awardnominated Kathy Casey’s Northwest Table and Sips & Apps. Her newest book is D’Lish Deviled Eggs.

Kathy is the owner of Kathy Casey Food Studios® Liquid Kitchen®, a global food, beverage and concept development and innovation agency, specializing in all things delicious.

Larry McGinn, Partner Celeste Dinos, Partner Don Billings, Founding Partner

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IMI SPOTLIGHT:

EDITOR’S LETTER

Sarah Hojnacki, ACCOUNT MANAGER

Where do you live? Miami, Florida. hen did you start with IMI? W January 2016.

What are your responsibilities with IMI? Account Manager for Applebee’s Grill & Bar and Norwegian Cruise Lines.

What do you like best about working at IMI? Learning a new side of the beverage business. I have worked in restaurants my whole career and worked at the corporate level for a couple of restaurant companies within their marketing department, and now I am seeing the other side of things. I enjoy connecting our supplier partners with our clients and coming up with successful initiatives that will benefit them both.

What is your favorite travel destination? Italy. I studied abroad in college in northern Italy. I fell in love with their food, culture, wine, language and the beautiful places I visited.

What hobbies do you have? Cooking, trying out new restaurants, traveling and staying active. I enjoy biking, running and going to group classes – trying new and different things like boxing, Pilates and other cardiobased workouts.

What is your favorite adult beverage? Champagne – best start to every night. Also Pinot Noir, and you can’t go wrong with a slightly dirty Vodka martini.

Your favorite food? Thai food or any Asian dish … and bacon … or a loaded hotdog.

Your favorite sports teams? Arkansas Razorbacks as my alma mater, Oklahoma Sooners for my husband and the Texas Rangers. I’m starting to get into all of the local Miami teams.

Mike Raven, Managing Editor, in the Mix Media

Summer is finally here. The rooftop restaurants and clubs are all open, the sidewalks are full of patrons sitting at bistro tables, and the pool bars are hopping all across the country. We have features that take you away to Amsterdam, Chicago and Shanghai.

This year we are going to start a new spotlight series. We will introduce you to the people at IMI Agency – “Building Better Beverage Business” is what they do for you. This issue, we feature Sarah Hojnacki. Sarah was getting married at the time we went to press, so we extend a big congratulations from all of us!

Mike Raven Managing Editor, in the Mix Media

One thing you can’t live without? Family. Having that support system is something I can always count on and don’t know what I would do without them.

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The Adventures of George

by Tony Abou-Ganim

– GENEVER – Long Island Bar Cosmopolitan.

Photo by Al Rodriguez Photography.

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in the Mix Magazine

George, finding himself spending more and more time in Las Vegas, decided to check out the bar and restaurant scene downtown. His first stop would be Container Park, an open-air shopping center filled with several unique restaurants and bars for him to explore.

Upon entering, he quickly stumbled into Bin 702, a small but well played-out wine bar literally housed in an old shipping container. As it was still early, George was able to locate a seat at the small bar and was swiftly greeted by the gentleman behind the counter.

“I’m Sonny, and welcome to Bin 702. We offer the most comprehensive selection of wine available on tap in Las Vegas. Here’s our menu.”

George perused the menu and decided on a half carafe of Spy Ranch Sauvignon Blanc, and the cheese and charcuterie board aptly named “The Bin.” His food and wine arrived quickly, and he found the wine to be light, fresh and crisp and the perfect accompaniment to the meats and rich cheeses.

“Fantastic!” George proclaimed. “I love your place. Where do you suggest I visit next?”

“If you’re a cocktail fan, you need to check out Chris and Vito at Oak & Ivy,” Sonny replied.

George paid his check, thanked Sonny for his hospitality and recommendation, and began the short stroll to Oak & Ivy. As he approached, he couldn’t help but notice that virtually everyone gathered outside the tiny bar was wearing orange. He worked his way through the crowd and found a spot at the bar.

“Hi. Are you Vito?” George asked. “Sonny, from Bin 702, recommended I come by for a cocktail.”

“No, my name is Chris. That’s Vito, and yes, you’ve come to the right place,” replied the barman.

“So why all the orange?” George inquired.

“It’s King’s Day, a national holiday in the Kingdom of the Netherlands celebrating the birth of King WillemAlexander. Most of these folks are Dutch,” Chris replied. “Here’s our cocktail menu. We’re featuring the Holland House for the occasion.”

Just then, a couple dressed in orange squeezed up to the bar beside George and ordered drinks from Chris. George watched as he placed two small tulipshaped glasses in front of them, which he proceeded to fill full to the very rim from a tall bottle, and set a Heineken next to each. George thought that the couple would surely spill some of the liquid if they attempted to lift the shots. Then he watched as they each bent over the bar and together, took the first sip without lifting the glass. They then picked them up, said “Proost!” and finished the remaining liquid, followed by the cold beer.

George could not help himself. “Hi, I’m George.

What was it that you just drank?”

“I’m Anthony and this is Moniek, and we just shared a glass of Bols Genever with a beer chaser, a famous tradition in Holland called a ‘Kopstootje’ or a ‘little head-butt,’” he responded. “It is also known as a ‘slurp’ as that is the sound you make taking the first sip.

Would you like to try one with us?”

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George, never before experiencing Genever, knew this was not an opportunity to miss. “Absolutely!”

He found the chilled Genever to be grainy and malty, almost like a young Whiskey but with notes of herbs, spices and juniper berries. The cold pilsner beer was the perfect companion to this newly discovered distillate.

“People really don’t understand Genever. They want to lump it in with Gin but it’s really a category of its own,” Anthony explained. “Gin is based on a neutral spirit where Genever is fashioned from a Whiskey-like distillate called malt wine.”

“To truly understand the beauty of Genever, you really need to visit the Netherlands,” Moniek added.

“One more round of Kopstootjes,” George requested. “Proost! And thank you for introducing me to Genever!”

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George paid his check, thanked Chris for welcoming him at Oak & Ivy, said goodbye to Moniek and Anthony, and left with visions of drinking a Kopstootje in Amsterdam.

He arrived midday, checked into his hotel and thought a walk was in order, being mindful of the many bicycles that seemed to be everywhere on the streets of Amsterdam. After a brisk stroll taking in the sights of the city, George found himself in need of liquid fortification.

As luck would have it, he found himself in front of a bustling establishment called Elsa’s Café. He spied an open section next to a couple of gentlemen who were about to partake of a Kopstootje. George could hear the “slurping” sound as he approached the bar.

“What type of Genever are you having?” George asked.

“This is Bols Genever. Ever had it?” replied the first gentleman, in a very English accent.

“Yes, as a matter of fact it is the only Genever I have ever tried,” George answered. “American?”

“Indeed. My name is Philip and this is Iain,” he replied. “Shall we try another ‘slurp’?”

Philip got the barmaid’s attention and inquired about the different types of Genever they served.

“The first one you had was from Bols, which is of the Oude variety. We also carry one from Ketel 1 that is a Jonge style,” she replied.

“We’ll try the Ketel 1, with three Grolsch beers, please,” Philip ordered.

“Three more Kopstootjes coming up!” she said, with a smile.

“Proost!” George toasted as they leaned over the bar and “slurped” their Genever.

“Thank you so much. I really enjoyed our visit and sharing a few ‘slurps’ with new friends, but I really need to return to my hotel,” George explained, reaching for the check.

“No you don’t – these are on us,” Iain insisted.

“And if you want to learn more about Genever, I think you should join us tomorrow for our visit to Hooghoudt.

The train leaves at 8:00 a.m.!”

“Fantastic!” George said enthusiastically. “I’ll be there at 7:00!”

The following morning, he located the train that would take him to Groningen, bought a ticket and found a coffee shop near the gate. He was working on a double espresso and a couple of Stroopwafels, a Dutch waffle cookie filled with caramel, cinnamon and vanilla, when he heard Phil’s voice.

“Good morning. I need a big cup of that!” Phil declared.

George found the Ketel 1 Jonge Jenever to be much lighter in style and not to have nearly the amount of malty character that the Bols contained. The three men’s conversation went on for several hours and involved many more “slurps.” George learned that Phil and Iain worked for Beam Suntory and were in Amsterdam to visit the Hooghoudt Distillery in Groningen, which not only makes some wonderful Genevers but also produces Effen Vodka. After one final Kopstootje, the jet lag finally hit George, and he knew from past experience that he was going to need to find his bed very soon.

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After nearly three hours on the train, which they all took advantage of and grabbed a nap, they arrived and were greeted by Sander, the Export Manager for Hooghoudt, who would be their tour guide for the day.

Following a short drive, they arrived at the distillery where they were given a tour of the facility, lunch and a tasting of both the Genever and the Effen Vodka.

“Genever is the predecessor to London Dry Gin,” Sander explained, “but it is a category unto itself that contains different styles, which are based on the amount of malt wine.”

He went on to explain that Jonge Genever consists of, at most, 15% malt, the remainder being a neutral grain spirit, and tastes more like Vodka. Oude Genever is an older style that is much maltier and must contain a minimum of 15%, to a maximum of 50%, malt wine.

Then there is Corenwyn, which is the maltiest of them all and contains at least 51% malt wine.

George thanked his hosts for a wonderful and very educational visit, and boarded the train back to Amsterdam. Phil and Iain were staying the night but George was scheduled to fly out the next day, and he had made dinner reservations at Restaurant Greetje, which billed itself as a Hollandse Delicatessen (Dutch Delicacies).

After a quick shower and change of clothes, George arrived for his reservation and was immediately seated.

He ordered a Kopstootje of Ketel 1 Jenever and Hertog Jan bier, which was served and poured at the table.

Being famished from the day’s activities, he ordered the tasting menu, which included Dutch pea soup, crispy black pudding, pâté of deer, and a pork loin with sautéed mushrooms and a duck liver sauce, for the main course.

He drank several more Kopstootjes, all of which were poured at the table, not wanting to spill a drop! He ended the meal with a cup of that fantastic Dutch coffee and an order of Groninger raisin bread, topped with melted caster sugar and whipped cream.

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After such an amazing yet heavy meal, George decided he was in need of a walk. So after thanking his host for an amazing dinner, he paid his check and headed out for the hotel on foot.

When he was almost there, he spotted the Smoke Palace coffee shop and figured, why not? After all, when in Rome ... George walked in, approached the counter and ordered a single joint of White Widow. Well, it had been some time since he had partaken of any Mary Jane and he did not remember it having the same effect on him that this did. George was grateful that his hotel was right around the corner and he would soon be safely in his bed.

One more thing checked off his list!

George returned home the next day with a newfound respect for and understanding of this great Dutch spirit, as well as several bottles of Genever so he could share many Kopstootjes with his friends!

Proost!

Holland House Cocktail 2 oz Bols Genever ½ oz Noilly Prat Dry Vermouth 1 oz fresh lemon sour (2 parts fresh lemon juice, 1 part simple syrup) ¼ oz Luxardo Maraschino Liqueur Add ingredients to a mixing glass and shake vigorously with large, hard ice cubes. Strain into a chilled cocktail coupe. Garnish with a freshly cut twist of lemon.

Naturally Inspiring

Journey to East Asia Experience the uniquely tangy-sweet flavor of yuzu, a cross between grapefruit, lemon and sour mandarin with subtle floral notes. Monin Yuzu Fruit PurĂŠe adds bright flavor to refreshing cocktails, lemonades, iced teas and more.

Visit www.monin.com for more information and hundreds of recipes.

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Rhonda Carano, PROPRIETOR

An Interview with

Rhonda Carano & Sarah Quider

CO-OWNER AND VICE PRESIDENT

EXECUTIVE WINEMAKER

at Ferrari-Carano Vineyards and Winery

By Mike Raven

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Rhonda is the co-owner and Vice President of Ferrari-Carano Vineyards and Winery. Rhonda and her husband, Don Carano, visited Sonoma County, California in the late 1970s on a wine-buying trip for their hotel/casino, the Eldorado in Reno, Nevada.

They fell in love with the area because it reminded them of Italy, and the rest, as they say, is history.

The Ferrari-Carano brand is now a highly regarded, acclaimed wine available nationwide. Rhonda’s responsibilities at the winery include the management and implementation of brand marketing strategies, brand identity, packaging and collateral concepts, as well as hospitality, special events and retail operations.

Sarah Quider, EXECUTIVE WINEMAKER

Sarah is responsible for all of Ferrari-Carano’s wine programs. Heading up Ferrari-Carano’s white- and red-winemaking programs, Sarah and her team work hard to ensure flavor quality in every bottle of wine. Sarah believes in Don and Rhonda Carano’s philosophy of employing gentle winemaking techniques, keeping all lots separate, and then blending wine for style, quality and the multidimensional complexity that characterizes a truly fine wine. “My winemaking goal each year is to create wines that will express the beauty and diversity of our vineyards, with the hope that one can get a sense of the passion and dedication we have at Ferrari-Carano,” states Sarah.

Ferrari-Carano has been named a Certified California Sustainable Vineyard by the California Sustainable Winegrowing Alliance. This certification recognizes Ferrari-Carano for its numerous efforts to preserve the land for future generations while producing wines of outstanding quality.

“ Ferrari-Carano has a WELL-ROUNDED PORTFOLIO of wines that offer pairings to all culinary specialties. We are a good choice for FARM-TO-TABLE MENUS as well.

MR to Rhonda Carano: You’ve gone from a 30-acre plot of grapes and ranch house purchased in 1979, to today owning over 1,900 acres of vineyards, from mountain to valley acreage in five appellations. Did you and Don think you would be where you are today, at the beginning?

RC: Being Italian-Americans, we had grown up with wine all our life. It was always part of a meal, as well as part of owning land. But we certainly did not know then what the future would hold for us. We enjoyed the wine country lifestyle and became passionate about all the nuances of wine, from the soil and how it relates to the character of a wine, to the appreciation of the end result and how magical a wine’s development could be.

MR to RC: What is the best-selling wine you have?

RC: Am I allowed to say all of them? I do think FerrariCarano offers a well-rounded portfolio of wines for all to enjoy, from whites to red wines. But based on volume of production, I would have to say our Fumé Blanc and the Sonoma County Chardonnay.

MR to RC: I have to ask you about your world-class gardens that you designed. Has gardening always a passion with you?

RC: My back is killing me today! I planted over 25 tomato plants this weekend. Yes, I love gardening and I’ve enjoyed it as long as I can remember. Once again, being Italian-American, gardens are close to my heart. When I was a young child, I was always outside in my Nona’s or my father’s garden. It’s peaceful yet very creative.

MR to RC: What would you like our readers to know about the brand when they consider putting one of your wines on their list?

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RC: As I mentioned, Ferrari-Carano has a well-rounded portfolio of wines that offer pairings to all culinary specialties, from Asian to Spanish to American to fine dining. In addition, because all of our vineyards are Certified California Sustainable, we are a good choice for farm-to-table menus as well. We have always strived to make consistent, high-quality wines at a fair price for all to enjoy. I think when a person buys a bottle of FerrariCarano wine in a restaurant, they know it won’t disappoint; and, conversely, the owner of the restaurant knows that the Ferrari-Carano name sells through for them.

MR to RC: In my research, I found this write-up on your first Chardonnay in the Los Angeles Times. Does it bring back fond memories?

“In the fall of 1987, the release of the 1985 Alexander Valley Chardonnay launched the Ferrari-Carano Vineyards and Winery with the brilliance of a rocket in the night sky.

Rarely has a new winery produced such a sensational debut wine. The wine combined the subtle differences from multiple lots of separately vinified wines made from the harvest of more than five vineyards. Its layered complexity derived richness from partial malolactic fermentation and time on yeast lees from barrel-fermentation in French oak.

Final components were added from stainless-steel reserves to enliven the wine with fresh fruitiness.

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Fewer than 2,000 cases were made, and competition was lively among restaurateurs and wine merchants to obtain even one case of this stunning wine. The White House served it for President Ronald Reagan’s state dinner for the King and Queen of Sweden last year.”

RC: That same style of winemaking is implemented today, although not from five vineyards, but from 65 different lots of wine from ten vineyards. The first release in 1985 definitely empowered us to forge ahead knowing that the Ferrari-Carano brand would be a respected name in the wine industry. Thinking back over the last 35 years, it’s very gratifying to see that it has. We’re very thankful and appreciative of all those people who have supported us through the years. Like the description above, “with the brilliance of a rocket in the sky,” it truly has been a beautiful ride.

MR to Sarah Quider: Keeping all the lots separate sounds like a huge task, considering the amount of different wines you produce. How do you handle that?

SQ: We love to have complexity in our wines and to do so, we split up our individual vineyard blocks with different types of yeast and different barrel types. The effort to keep everything separate, as well as to track and taste them individually, is well worth all the effort.

You can access the quality of the vineyard blocks, yeast strains and barrels so that ultimately you can make good replanting, winemaking and blending decisions.

MR to SQ: Keeping in mind our readers are national account buyers from across the country, what would you suggest for a refreshing Ferrari-Carano wine by the glass this summer?

SQ: I would recommend our Russian River Pinot Grigio, our Sonoma County Fumé Blanc or our Russian River Tré Terre Chardonnay. All these wines have great acidity and brightness and go great with food, family and friends on a warm summer night.

MR to SQ: You work with 19 estate vineyards in six different appellations. This must really give you a lot of diversity in your grape selections.

SQ: Yes, it does. Along with all these different vineyards, each site is broken up into different blocks, which often means different clones of a particular varietal. Some of my best days are walking through these vineyards and listening/learning about the vines and vintage at hand.

Each year is slightly different in the growing season, which in turn, changes the winemaking for that year.

MR to SQ: You split the winemaking into two different wineries, one white and one red, with Rebecka Deike at the helm of the reds. Then there is also Lazy Creek Vineyards with Winemaker Christy Ackerman. Can you tell us a little about that?

SQ: Yes, we do have three winemaking facilities. It is such a blessing to have these facilities dedicated to different types of winemaking. At the estate winery, the winemaking team focuses on protecting all the beautiful aromatic nuances of each vineyard site. At the Prevail winery, Rebecka and her team strive to extract the rich, ripe aromas and flavors from the skins of each vineyard block. Then, Christy and her team at Lazy Creek Vineyards strive to produce rich, flavorful yet elegant wines. Each winery is specifically designed for these stylistic goals. Rebecka, Christy and I have all worked together for 16 years now – we’re all very passionate about winemaking and we’re friends as well.

MR to SQ: Your Fumé Blanc has always been one of my favorites. I read where it is crafted from seven of your estate vineyards in Dry Creek, Alexander and Russian River Valleys. Is that true?

SQ: Thank you! Yes, that is true, but we also purchase select vineyards in the same area. Each appellation gives us unique qualities that add to the complexity of the Fumé Blanc. We tend to get a lot of pineapple and citrus from Dry Creek Valley, kiwi and limes from our Alexander Valley vineyards, and floral and peach from our Russian River Valley vineyards. When we select the final blocks for the blend, it’s a combination of all these flavors.

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A frozen drink from the Game Room.

Photo by Clayton Hauck.

Chicago Athletic Association Hotel A COMMUNE HOTEL

A SPECIAL PLACE, RICH IN HISTORY AND QUINTESSENTIALLY CHICAGO

By Mike Raven

This 1890s-era Venetian Gothic landmark has reemerged as an incomparable historic downtown Chicago hotel, with 241 rooms. Designed by Henry Ives Cobb and completed in 1893, the building operated as an elite private men’s club until 2007. Past members included five-time Olympic gold medalist Johnny Weissmuller, the original Tarzan.

Above: The fireplace in the Drawing Room.

Left: The exterior of the Chicago Athletic Association Hotel.

Photos by Thomas Hart Shelby

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Left: The Grand Staircase Below: The indoor bocce court in the Game Room.

Photos by Clayton Hauck

The historic building was saved in 2012 when Commune Hotels & Resorts, AJ Capital and Agman Partners announced their intention to purchase it and transform the former men’s club into a hotel. Some of the best components of the space are the vintage elements saved from the original club, which the owners have preserved so well even while modernizing the building.

The hotel’s food and beverage scene is as diverse as the hotel itself. One of the more historic outlets is a second floor bar (the second floor is essentially the lobby), named the Milk Room. The tiny bar hidden behind stained-glass sliding doors was once a speakeasy during Prohibition. It is said they poured milk in the glasses, and then, if desired, the bartender added Whiskey to it – a clever disguise. Rare and vintage selections are the theme here, for the cocktail aficionado to savor.

On the same floor, you can discover the Game Room. Well-priced cocktails and beer, along with an interesting mix of finger-friendly foods, create the scene here. Executive Chef Pete Coenen has created a menu of fun, playful items that give a nod to concession classics and street food favorites including smoked chicken wings,

Fish tacos from the Game Room. Photo by Clayton Hauck.

wild boar sausage sandwiches, fried pickle pops, fish tacos, hush puppies and more. They are perfect accompaniments for playing pool, tabletop shuffleboard, foosball, chess or a challenging game of full-size bocce.

Also in the back of the second floor, is the Cherry Circle Room. It is the reinvention of the iconic restaurant of the same name that serviced the Chicago Athletic Association and its members for generations. The intimate space has been fully reimagined and restored

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Left: Cindy’s restaurant Below: The Founders Suite.

Photos by Thomas Hart Shelby.

by Land and Sea Dept., melding the building’s historic original features with modern design elements.

Beverage Director Paul McGee designed a cocktail program with an emphasis on American and Scotch Whiskey. They feature both seasonal house cocktails and a menu of specialty drinks inspired by a specific iconic bartender or cocktail book – the first of which is Jacques Straub’s Drinks, written right there in Chicago in 1914. The cocktail program also features tableside drink service that offers preparations of Manhattans, martinis, and old-fashions, as well as an after-dinner amaro and cheese cart.

Then there’s Cindy’s, the rooftop restaurant that is the crown jewel of the hotel. Cindy’s boasts an amazing selection of specialty cocktails along with a well thought-out wine and beer list. With seasonal freshness reflected in both food and drink, the rooftop offers the relaxed ambience of a Great Lakes beach house with a view of Millennium Park, the Art Institute and Lake Michigan. Cindy’s Executive Chef, Christian Ragano, wanted to offer a unique menu including platters, yummy salads, seafood, pheasant and an array of other meats and accompaniments. Starting at 11:00 p.m., Cindy’s breaks out the late-night menu, featuring a mouthwatering selection of unique bites to satiate your evening cravings.

Well worth a visit for food and drinks for the locals, or for a stay by visitors in the classically appointed hotel rooms, the Chicago Athletic Association hotel is a unique and memorable destination.

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Above: The striking view from Cindy’s terrace.

Photo by Thomas Hart Shelby Below: A highball from the Game Room.

Photo by Clayton Hauck

AMERICA’S ORIGINAL CRAFT VODKA WINE ENTHUSIAST RATINGS SCORE OUT OF 100 POINTS

PTS

My American vodka beats the giant imports every day.

Try American! It’s Better.

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The Renaissance of AMERICA’S NATIVE SPIRIT

By Edward M. Korry, CHE CSS CWE, Department Chairman at Johnson & Wales University, and President of the Society of Wine Educators

By Ed Korry

We are undergoing a Bourbon renaissance, the likes of which we haven’t seen in decades. This was brought even more vividly to light when I attended the Society of Wine Educators (SWE) mini-conference that was held in Louisville this past April. With excellent seminars and instructive visits to distilleries, one could gain firsthand appreciation for what is transpiring. It wasn’t my first visit to this city, but I found a palpable sense of excitement and energy present everywhere I turned, from speaking to professionals and seeing the renovation of downtown Louisville, to spotting new distilleries. The other marked difference from my last visit eight years ago is not only the growth in craft distilleries in Kentucky but also that The Bourbon Trail has developed so quickly, to augment the growing public interest in both traditional distilleries and craft distilleries. Craft distilleries are defined as producing under 100 barrels. And I also learned that craft distillers aren’t viewed with enmity by the large distillers, but are mentored and helped with both standards and navigating the complex regulatory system.

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Overall, Bourbon production has increased 170 percent since 1999, with the rise from 455,078 barrels to 1.3 million barrels in 2014 being the highest since 1970. Super-premium Bourbons have increased by 124 percent. Export sales exceeded $1 billion last year.

Why this spectacular growth?

Products and trends are cyclical by nature. Brown spirits, including Bourbon, dominated the U.S. market until the ‘70s when their decline reflected the rise of Vodka. Younger consumers don’t remember the days when Vodka was viewed as countercultural, with the perception of it being “cool.” It was associated with détente and the new importation of Stolichnaya from the Soviet Union.

It was also a time when consuming those paradigms of industrialized and manufactured food and beverage, be it TV dinners or Tang, seemingly reflected all that was good about modern society. Drinks that included sodas and juices from the soda gun, for speed and convenience, ruled the bar practices of those days.

Vodka was the perfect base for such fruit-based sweet drinks. It wasn’t a spirit to contemplate and sip, like Bourbon. Bourbon has an authenticity and American quality that speaks to its fans.

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RYES AND SIGNATURE BOURBON

The Jim Beam Pre-Prohibition Rye was a new iteration of Rye Whiskey for me. It is a little softer and sweeter than I had expected, with a long nutty, caramel quality, but still finishes dry.

For the full Rye effect, and one that I would sip neat on a cool autumn night, is the Knob Creek Rye. It is an amazing Rye with the full rye grain, spicy aromas and taste but with a smoothness that belies its 100 proof.

JIM BEAM

Jim Beam was the first distillery we visited, though I had the fond memories of a private tour on a previous visit that included a private guided tasting with Fred Noe, the President of Jim Beam. Jim Beam produces 13 million gallons at three different distilleries and it has one of the widest arrays of blended Whiskeys and Bourbons. The American Stillhouse, which has been added since my previous visit, provides tours with an intimate and comprehensive scale of what transpires at the larger distilleries.

All tours end with a tasting. I will include some of my favorites, not limited to the tour visit because tourists are limited to two tastes.

Jim Beam Kentucky Straight Bourbon Whiskey is a great value for any bar, having a soft red-fruit component with aromas of fresh corn and sweet toasted oak spice.

For not much more cost, considering its minimum eight years of aging, Jim Beam Black Bourbon offers a beautifully soft caramel expression, which lingers with its warmth.

Another favorite of mine is Rye, which is especially good in Manhattans and old fashioneds. It has a nice bite and edgier acidity that help the spirit shine through in cocktails.

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The Jim Beam Signature Craft Quarter Cask Finished Bourbon is also part of the Jim Beam premium series, along with their Single Barrel program.

There is a more defined oaky toastiness with coconut and caramel but, given the added five years of aging in smaller barrels, it is still surprisingly soft and round with a smooth dry finish.

I have always been a fan of the many small batches such as Basil Hayden’s, Booker’s or Knob Creek, but a fair review of Jim Beam’s small batch programs requires another article.

Š2016 Beam Suntory Inc. Deerfield, IL. All trademarks are the property of their respective owners.

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FOUR ROSES

In contrast, the tour at Four Roses, with its distinctive Spanish Mission architecture and much smaller scale, was almost intimate. Its twenty rackhouses or warehouses are located 70 miles away and are very unique and non-traditional because they are singlefloored with 15 sets of barrels stacked six high and wide.

So the impact of the floor level doesn’t apply, which is the point in that there is consistent aging or maturation.

Like its larger brother, Jim Beam, it is Japanese owned (purchased in 2002 by Kirin Brewery), resulting in focused efforts for continuous improvements. Most Americans who remember Four Roses in the 1970s will not be aware that all its premium Whiskey was sold in Japan at that time. Four Roses had been the number one Bourbon in the 1940s until Seagram’s purchase in the 1960s. They re-introduced the Yellow Label in 2003, the Single Barrel program in 2004 and small batch in 2006.

Four Roses’ focus on quality has successfully allowed it to reestablish its reputation in the U.S. I learned from an excellent tour guide that they source non-GMO corn from Indiana, rye from Denmark and Germany, and barley from Montana and Wyoming.

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There was an emphasis on the role of yeasts, and we were informed that there are basically two mash bills: the sweeter, with 75 percent corn, 20 percent rye and 5 percent malted barley; and the second having 60 percent corn, 35 percent rye and 5 percent malted barley. There’s nothing like walking between large cypress wood fermenters with their cooling coils, and smelling the sour, yeasty and ester aromas wafting from the bubbling mash.

We tasted the following Bourbon Whiskeys, all of which were delicious in their own way:

The Four Roses Yellow Label, at 80 proof and aged 6 to 6½ years, was fruity with apple, pear and honey notes, and was light on the palate with a surprisingly smooth finish.

The Four Roses Small Batch Kentucky Straight Bourbon, at 90 proof and aged 7 to 7 ½ years, was spicy with more butterscotch and caramel notes. It was rounder on the palate with a smooth oak finish, and struck me as not only being a good sipping Bourbon but also great in some classic cocktails, such as the old fashioned.

The Single Barrel Kentucky Straight Bourbon, made from the second of the two mash bills, at 100 proof is aged 9 to 9 ½ years, and had deeper fruit notes such as plums and black cherries, with a slightly spicier component. It had a long, smooth maple and cinnamon finish.

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HISTORY

Bourbon has a long history in the U.S. In 1964, Bourbon was declared by Congress as a “distinctive product of the United States” in order to give the name legal international protection. It subsequently passed a resolution offered by Kentucky’s Senator Bunning in 2007, declaring September to be Bourbon Heritage Month and further citing that Bourbon was “America’s Native Spirit.”

Many historians and authors dispute the origin of Bourbon Whiskey’s name.

It may reference Bourbon Street in New Orleans, where it was sold as it travelled from Kentucky down the Ohio River to the Mississippi River, or it may well have been a way to differentiate the Whiskey sold as having come from Bourbon County, unlike other spirits such as Cognac.

Early English, Scottish and Irish settlers who pushed farther west in the late 18th century held traditions of making Whiskeys that were malt- and rye-based. Rye grew easily in New York and Pennsylvania and Whiskeys were based on those ingredients. But it was corn that grew exceedingly well in the rolling hills of Bourbon County, Kentucky, named after the French royal house. Another key factor to successful distillation in this county was the pure quality of the limestone-filtered water, with its iron-free content. Soon, Whiskeys displaced the slave trade-based Rum as the American spirit. Whiskey also provided the tax resources for our early debt-ridden nation. The excise tax placed on distilled spirits resulted in the Whiskey Rebellion, which needed federal troops to suppress. And let’s not forget that beverage alcohol was the main source of federal tax revenues until Prohibition.

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WHAT IS BOURBON?

Bourbon may be made anywhere in the U.S. but it must be made with a base of a minimum of 51 percent corn; distilled to no higher than 160 proof; stored at no higher than 125 proof in charred new oak barrels; and it must be bottled at a minimum of 40 percent alcohol.

The base corn can vary from 51 percent and may be as high as 70 percent or more. The grain recipe, known as the mash bill, may include rye, wheat or malted barley.

Sour mashing, a process distinctive to Bourbon making, is the inclusion of the previous distillate’s backset or residue of spent grains. The backset maintains a consistent pH to offset the high alkaline water, so that yeast perform in a similar manner from batch to batch while discouraging bacteria at the lower pH.

Bourbons are usually double distilled using pot or column stills, though some may be triple distilled using pot or column stills. The second distillation often takes place in a doubler or thumper, where it receives the low wines and “doubles” the concentration of alcohol while removing congeners.

Aging takes place in new American oak charred barrels, making Bourbon Whiskey unique. The complex flavor-producing process – in which color, taste and flavors emanate from the barrels – occurs in traditional rackhouses (also known as rickhouses), where the natural changes of temperature may be allowed to occur from summer to winter, or heat cycling may be employed. The rackhouse may hold over 20,000 barrels. The aging process for barrels on the 11th and 12th floors, where temperatures may reach 130 degrees Fahrenheit, may take six to seven years, while barrels on the bottom two floors may take 11 to 13 years. (Single barrels, also known as “honey barrels,” are selected from the sweet spots in the rickhouse, usually on the seventh through ninth floors.) Small batch Bourbons such as Booker’s or Basil Hayden’s, may comprise as many as 150 barrels, while the normal blend may incorporate over 500 barrels from the different floors.

The “Angels’ Share” may represent as much as 5 or 6 percent annual evaporation from the top floors, while the bottom floor may be 1 percent.

The one takeaway from this tour and miniconference is that there is always so much more to learn and so many styles that are represented by large and small producers alike. The bigger houses, such as Jim Beam and Four Roses, have the resources to experiment and test multiple products and do an exceedingly good job at bringing new Whiskeys onto the market that may well be revivals of traditional recipes. There is something for everyone – whether neat or in a cocktail, from a classic Manhattan to a julep, boulevardier or bombino.

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It started with a SparK

By Brian Yost The Marriott Global Beverage Partners meeting was celebrating the 26th anniversary of their industry-leading Gold Standard Program, and the event was filled with camaraderie and reminiscing.

The Marriott team was kind enough to invite several of the founding partners of the program,

as well as a few of us who had had a part in shepherding the beverage program over the years – including myself and Rob Gillette, who had crafted the platform into the successful program that it is today.

I was given a few moments on stage to share some musings about the Gold Standard Program and the small part I had played in it. It seemed like a great time to point out that also born out of the camaraderie and supplier friendships that developed through this unique collaborative approach, was the charity, Children of Restaurant Employees (CORE), which was founded by a handful of these supplier partners.

That evening at the reception event, Marriott continued its generous support of our mission of giving back to our own, by presenting CORE with a check for $5,000.

And then the spark happened.

Wolfgang Lindlbauer, Chief Discipline Leader Global Operations, Marriott International

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As I was about to take the microphone to thank Guy Heksch and the rest of the Marriott team, who were our generous hosts, for their continued support, Guy grabbed the microphone and challenged the rest of the audience to match the Marriott donation.

He re-emphasized his and Marriott’s support of our efforts and encouraged others to join him.

The resulting line of supplier partners coming to the microphone to pledge their support and donations was heartwarming, if not a bit overwhelming.

Donations were being offered faster than any of us could imagine, or record them!

Guy was the spark, Marriott fueled the fire, and the result was one of the most successful nights of fundraising in CORE’s 12-year history. Thank you to the entire Marriott team, including Guy, Dan, Wolfgang and all others who have been such ardent supporters over the years.

Guy D. Heksch, Senior Director, Global Food & Beverage Operations, Marriott International

The group of CORE supporters at the Marriott Global Beverage Partners meeting holding a check for $5,000 from Marriott International.

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BIZ MIX

HOSPITALITY EXECUTIVE EXCHANGE WEST Yosemite National Park, home to the huge sequoia trees, beautiful waterfalls and world famous El Capitan, was the location of Hospitality Executive Exchange West (HEE). Tenaya Lodge was the host property and provided the perfect location to kick off 2016. When Jen Robinson, CEO/Owner of The Pineapple Group, which owns, manages and executes HEE, started this unique series of meetings six years ago, she had one goal in mind: relationships.

She wanted a face-to-face style of interaction with a smaller group, made up of multi-unit operators and suppliers.

When Jen was asked why the program was called an “exchange,” she answered, “This program is exactly that – food & beverage professionals coming together to

The Meeting

Top: One of the educational roundtables, discussing various pertinent topics.

Above: Andie Brokaw and Carlos Lozano of Heaven Hill Brands show their products to Mary Melton of P.F. Chang’s (left) in the one-on-one meetings.

Left: Brittany Taylor Olson of Tito’s Vodka in a one-on-one meeting.

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CutThroat Cocktail

exchange ideas, insights and information, to help all of us become better every day at what we do. For the last six years, we have created a unique family. Together we accomplish successful ways of creating and developing new business models that are fresh, relevant and profitable, through our networking, one-on-one meetings and educational roundtables. You never know when a conversation is going to lead to a solution to a problem, your next business deal or a relationship that will lead to an exciting endeavor.”

HEE West 2016 was seamless from start to finish and definitely elevated the program to a new level of success. The conference was kicked off with a touching tribute to Chairman of the HEE Advisory Council, Teddy McAleer, who passed away in December 2015.

One of the highlights of the whole event was CutThroat Cocktails for CORE. It is a creative take on dinner with a show. After dinner, four teams of industry icons competed in several rounds of imaginative beverage creations.

They presented them to the panel of three judges: Mike Raven, Editor of in the Mix magazine; Colleen McClellan, Director at Datassential; and Brian Yost, President On-Site Products, Live Nation Entertainment and CORE board member.

Top: CORE supporters Jeff Bartfield, Mark Corcoran, John Niekrash and Brian Yost.

Above: The scene at CutThroat Cocktails for CORE. Left: Tony Abou-Ganim, Jen Robinson, Brian Loukmas and Jeff Ruth share a toast.

Right: Donna Fredrick, Beam Suntory; Master of Ceremonies Michael “Bumby” Bombard of Straight Up Solutions; and Nora Lee Smith, Delicato Wines, enjoying the show!

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BIZ MIX

CutThroat Cocktail

The audience was allowed to donate to CORE and booby trap the contestants with everything from wearing blindfolds to wearing monkey gloves.

The evening culminated with raising the total contribution to $70,500 for the Children of Restaurant Employees charity, CORE Gives. The winning team was Kathy Casey of Kathy Casey Liquid Kitchen and Michael Tolley, proprietor of Beverage by Design.

HEE and The Pineapple Group have been working to create a way to give back that matched their program, and with the help of Philip Raimondo, Beam Suntory, CutThroat Cocktails was created. Jen Robinson has been an avid supporter of CORE for many years, but she wanted to do more, and this was her way of doing something fun while raising some money for the kids. There were many companies and individuals who stepped up and pledged donations. One of the biggest highlights was when Bryan O’Rourke, CEO of Cardinal, Inc. pledged $10,000 if Robinson would serve as bar back to Team Tony Abou-Ganim. In total, O’Rourke pledged $18,500 to CORE for the night.

Top: The winners of CutThroat Cocktails, (left to right) Michael Tolley, Beverage by Design, and Kathy Casey, Kathy Casey Liquid Kitchen, and product sponsor Jeff Bartfield of Proximo Spirits.

Middle: The judges of the CutThroat Cocktails were (left to right) Brian Yost, Live Nation Entertainment; Colleen McClellan, Datassential; and Mike Raven, in the Mix magazine.

Left Bottom: Tony Abou-Ganim,The Modern Mixologist, and Ed Eiswirth, Del Frisco’s, cut up (and crack up) during CutThroat Cocktails.

Right: Bryan O’Rourke, CEO/ President, Cardinal International Inc., supported the efforts of CORE Gives with $18,500 in donations for the weekend. A big “cheers” to Bryan for his continuing pledges to charities.

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Fred Noe Hosts and Dinner

One huge surprise for HEE West participants was guest speaker Kevin Turner, Microsoft’s COO for 10 years. Turner gave an unforgettable “chat” at breakfast that definitely inspired and showed what hard work, a great attitude and remaining humble can accomplish. He is responsible for Microsoft’s worldwide sales, field marketing and services organization. Turner began his career as a cashier for Walmart in Arkansas.

An Evening of Storytelling with Fred Noe, great-grandson of Jim Beam and seventh- generation distiller, capped off the program at the final dinner.

The dinner was somewhat of an event in itself. Each person was blindfolded and led into a sensory dinner and tasting. It was extraordinarily executed, and with each course, the room was built through sight, sound, scent, touch and taste. By the time the blindfolds came off, not only were everyone’s senses heightened but also the room had become a showplace. After a phenomenal meal, Fred Noe came out to speak to the group and answer questions. His country-style, and often cursing, dialogue provided just the right touch for the evening. His stories were amusing and thought provoking, providing a look into the history and future of the Bourbon culture.

HEE West truly captured the essence of the topics relevant in today’s marketplace. The educational sessions included the opening general session led by Colleen McClellan of Datassential, who provided some up-to-date information on non-alcoholic and alcoholic trends facing us in 2016/2017.

Top: Each person was blindfolded and led into the room for a sight, sound, scent, touch and taste dinner and tasting.

Middle: Philip Raimondo of Beam Suntory, Fred Noe, and Jen Robinson, founder of HEE. Bottom: Fred Noe, great-grandson of Jim Beam and seventhgeneration distiller, capped off the program at the final dinner.

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Another focus was the technology session that included ATLvr and AccuBar, and was moderated

by Michael Tolley. Key networking opportunities included a Beer and Beyond lunch held at Yosemite Sugar Pine Railroad, hosted by Boston Beer, New Belgium Brewing and Evolution Brewing. The lunch was followed by an open-air train ride on one of the historic steam trains, through the captivating forest surrounding the Tenaya Lodge, and it included a Yosemite Wine Experience at the halfway point.

HEE hosts two programs each year: one on the West Coast and one on the East Coast. With each conference, participants are drawn to a new way of doing business without the pull and pressure of being here and there, and without the crowds and masses. Every part of the program shows the passion and love of Robinson, the HEE Advisory Council and the participants who attend and become part of the family.

HEE East is already in the planning stages and will be held in fabulous Key West.

The program has become one of the most talked-about in the industry, as well as one of the most exclusive. If you are interested in participating, contact Jen Robinson at jen@thepineapplegroup.net. Both supplier and operator seats are allocated, which is yet another reason why the program has resonated with the industry.

Top: Kevin Turner, Microsoft’s COO for 10 years, giving an unforgettable “chat” at breakfast.

Middle: Smoke Wallin, CEO, Beach Whiskey talking with Kevin Turner.

Right: Having fun at the halfway point wine tasting is Martin Lanigan, John Niekrash, Mike Raven, Jamie Conahan, Mark Corcoran,Trudy Thomas and Linda Lofstrom.

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Kevin Turner, Microsoft

JOIN THE CONVERSATION! Hospitality Executive Exchange East October 23-26, 2016 Casa Marina Resort & Spa – Key West, Fla. www.hospitalityexecutiveexchange.com

Railroad and Beer Tasting

Left: The conference guests were treated to a ride on the Yosemite Mountain Sugar Pine Railroad, through the forest surrounding the Tenaya Lodge.

Below: The Beer and Beyond lunch at Yosemite Mountain Sugar Pine Railroad, hosted

by Boston Beer, New Belgium Brewing and Evolution Brewing.

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Pre-Batching for Success Cocktails on Tap and Bottled Cocktails

By Kathy Casey

Cocktails on tap and bottled cocktails continue to be one of the biggest industry trends, and there is no better time than NOW to start taking full advantage of these different platforms. Whether you are a large hotel chain or a casual dining concept, the demand for more complex cocktail creations is on the rise and the increased labor challenges that come with them are too. We know everyone wants a well-crafted cocktail but no one wants to wait 20 minutes for one anymore – those days are over! So how do we get the same quality standards at almost the speed of light?

When social interaction, customer service and guest

Let’s start with cocktails on tap (COT) – Perfect for high volume restaurants or bars, and can be modified to fit just about any venue, from movie theaters and hotels, to pool bars and mobile pop-ups. Sure, you can tap a boulevardier or old fashioned and they will be amazing, but when a drink is as simple to make as these, are you really saving any time? In my experience, I prefer to tap cocktails that have multiple ingredients and are more on the bright and refreshing side of the drink spectrum. Think Singapore

engagement are neglected because of a lagging cocktail, your bottom line is inevitably compromised, but there is also a misconception that speed cannot go hand-in-hand

Sling with a twist or Whiskey Punch with eight ingredients.

The question operators always ask is, “Is it still handcrafted and fresh?” The answer is, “Yes and yes!”

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with high quality. I say you can have both, with these systems! With pre-batching options, you can address many industry issues, especially consistency and speed.

in the Mix Magazine

Blood Orange Ginger’Rita on Tap. Photo courtesy of Liquid Kitchen.

Blood Orange Ginger’Rita on Tap

The best cocktails on tap are made with quality spirits, fresh ingredients and unique flavors, and I always like to finish them with a fresh cue. For example, how about a Napa Rita: a luxury draft margarita topped with a float of Cabernet, and garnished with a fresh rosemary sprig – special, right?

Or try expressing orange peel oil over a Cranberry Mule and garnishing with fresh cranberries and candied ginger. That added “wow” factor is what takes a cocktailon-tap to the next level and shows the guest this is truly a quality beverage.

COTs require the same care and consideration you take for any handcrafted cocktail. But as with all new programs, it’s important that the right equipment be specked, a full training program be developed, and the cocktails should be tested thoroughly for each new ideation. It’s not something you can just throw in a

tank, tap and go. Successful programs need to have the experience and time put into the roll out – if you do that, success will definitely be on your side.

A great example of this is Showcase Cinemas.

Within the last two years, the Liquid Kitchen COT and Pre-Batching bar program tested and rolled out in five theaters with two more in the works, with all having been extremely successful for the Showcase Cinema brand. Pat Micalizzi, Showcase Cinemas Vice President of F&B says it best: “With the addition of the Liquid Kitchen COT program, we were able to add more complex cocktails to our menu and those cocktails are easily our number one cocktails in the sales mix. They are easy to batch, delicious and guests love them. Bar sales are measurably stronger than before the program. Speed of service and cost of goods have improved substantially.” The Showcase Cinemas COT success is just one example of how a welldeveloped program can increase guest satisfaction with consistency and speed of service.

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Grapefruit Negroni

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Grapefruit Negroni

Grapefruit Negroni

Bottled cocktails are another great opportunity to add to your signature cocktail menu and are operationally appealing for busy bars, banquets, V.I.P. hotel amenities, mini bars, room service and more.

Spirit forward, small-bottled cocktails, like a Signature Negroni, make a luxurious tray service presentation when bottled in stunning apothecary bottles. Juicier, refreshing-style drinks are more suited to 187 ml capped bottles, like my Blackberry Lemon Crush, Spiked Prickly Pear Lemonade or Pomegranate Palomas.

Larger format bottles or flasks for that “speakeasy� aesthetic are starting to pop up more on menus these days, too, and are excellent for groups and table service. Liters of a citrus-forward California Margarita, served with blood orange wedges and fresh rosemary sprigs, creates an interactive cocktail experience that is fun for the DIY-loving guests and lightens the load on servers and bar staff, too.

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Blackberry Lemon Crush Bottled Cocktail.

Photo courtesy of Liquid Kitchen.

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Blackberry Lemon Crush Bottled Cocktail

These are just a few examples of how bottled cocktails are a great way to get creative.

Bottles and flasks can also be branded with custom labels, tags and caps – especially fun for promotions and messaging – and don’t forget the #InstagramableFactor!

So now is the time to start pre-batching your way to success with cocktails on tap and bottled cocktail programs.

Blackberry Lemon Crush Bottled Cocktail Makes about 92 ounces – enough for about 16 (187ml) bottles 4 cups

Vodka

1 cup fresh or frozen blackberries 1 cup

Limoncello

1 cup

pomegranate juice

1 1/2 cups fresh lemon juice

Kathy Casey

1 1/2 cups simple syrup* 2 cups

water

Place the Vodka and blackberries in a blender and blend to infuse the blackberries. Fine strain, using a chinois, into a large container. Add remaining ingredients and stir to combine.

Fill bottles one inch from top using a funnel or beer siphon wand. Cap and refrigerate for up to two weeks. Shake before serving.

Kathy Casey is celebrated as the original bar chef. She owns Kathy Casey Liquid Kitchen, a full-service beverage agency. For more information on Liquid Kitchen custom Cocktailson-Tap Equipment, program development and training, contact info@kathycasey.com.

WWW.LIQUIDKITCHEN.COM

*To make simple syrup, combine one cup sugar with one cup boiling water. Stir until sugar is dissolved. Store refrigerated for up to two weeks.

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John (left) and Jeff at the HEE conference in Yosemite, Calif.

April 25, 2016: Recorded live in Yosemite, California, at the Hospitality Executive Exchange West Conference

If you don’t know these two characters, understand one thing: They are classic opposites. John is from Connecticut with a New England way of talking, and is an outdoorsman and lobster fisherman. Jeff grew up in New York City and has the ultimate street smarts. When you talk to him, you feel like you’re in a Godfather movie. His accent is thick and original. Both are savvy and wise in their trades and very successful. The reason we picked a double cover interview is that we feel the need to recognize both of them as pioneers of the on-premise national accounts world.

They were among the first to recognize the opportunity to specialize in the sales to multi-unit businesses that has become one of the most sought-after sectors of the alcohol beverage business today.

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I met with John and Jeff at the Hospitality Executive Exchange (HEE) in Yosemite, California in April. I have known both of these gentlemen for many years. We have attended many functions together but I never realized how passionate they are towards their charities. Both are board members of CORE Gives, with John being one of the founders of the organization. CORE has assisted hundreds of families in the restaurant business in their time of need. John, or “Krash” as he is known to some, also founded Work Vessels for Vets out of his passion for supporting our nation’s veterans.

Mike: John, when did you start in the business and why?

John: My first job in the business was when I was 16 years old, in 1971, working in the bottling factory of Smirnoff Vodka and Black Velvet Whiskey.

I was able to get a job there and I worked summers all the way through college. So after college, it was the natural thing to knock on their door and see if I could get a job in sales, which I did.

I started working in sales around1978.

Mike: What were your first responsibilities?

John: It was as a rep in Connecticut, selling Jose Cuervo and Smirnoff. I was selling to distributors and working key accounts, and so on.

Mike: Did you always work in Connecticut?

“Captain” John Niekrash

John: No, I worked in Omaha for a year to run three states out there. My oldest daughter was born there, actually.

Then I left Heublein (parent company to Smirnoff) and went to work for the Sauza Tequila owners in Dallas for five years.

Mike: What year was that?

John: It was around the mid-1980s. Sauza was a nothing brand in those days so they put together a group of five guys or so to oversee the National Distillers Company, which had the contract to the brand but they weren’t selling anything. We had to get the brand up and running. Cuervo dominated Sauza at the time; you couldn’t find a bottle of Sauza. We were able to get the brand in play. After that, I worked for Paddington for a number of years and moved back to Connecticut.

Mike: Then where?

John: Skyy Spirits. At the beginning of Skyy Spirits, I was one of the first employees there. I worked there for 10 years, covering the whole country. Skyy had the contract for 1800 Tequila for the last five years

Jeff Bartfield, circa 2000.

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I was there. From there, once the contract for 1800 was up with Skyy, Juan Domingo Beckman, son of 12th generation Don Juan Beckman, started Proximo.

They set it up to handle the 1800 Tequila business as the eminent marque brand.

From there they started adding brands such as Three Olives, then Hanger 1.

I was the third employee hired here, so I was back working in the Tequila business again but with 1800 and later Cuervo.

Mike: How long have you been there?

John: It will be nine years this summer.

Mike: Jeff, you have an interesting story to your career start. Why don’t we start talking about that convoluted story?

Jeff: You know, when I was young, I was a wonder kid with baseball so I really didn’t go to school much. I mean I was in school – I had a full ride with Arizona State – but I screwed up my arm and couldn’t play anymore, so I left Arizona State and came back to New York.

My father, who worked for 40 years for General Wine and Spirits, a division of Seagram’s, put me in a program at Seagram’s called ASH, a program for future manager candidates.

Jeff Bartfield (left) and his future wife-to-be, Angelique Carayannis, circa 1985. She was the Managing Director of Metaxa at that time. She was also a high fashion model, held the title of Miss Greece, and was a runner-up in the Miss Universe pageant.

Mike: So that was kind of a natural progression?

Jeff: Yes, I came in as second generation. He started me the right way – he put me into trade research.

I think I was the last class to graduate trade research.

You didn’t have to be 21 because I wasn’t doing anything with spirits directly. It was surveying, learning the shelves and competitive pricing, that kind of thing.

Jeff Bartfield (left), circa 1986.

Mike: The brass tacks part of the business. Right?

Jeff: That’s right, but I knew a lot about it anyway because I worked at Charmer as a young kid. I used to work during the holidays. I go back to when Charlie Merinoff was working; we were both kids in the warehouse. His father, Herman, was there working on the console loading trucks, and I worked on hilos and such. I did everything in the warehouse.

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“ I worked at Charmer as a young kid.

I go back to when Charlie Merinoff was working; we were both kids in the warehouse.”

— JEFF BARTFIELD

John: What was the first year you made a paycheck in this business?

Jeff: It was ‘74. I was a kid, nothing steady, but I showed up when I could and they put me to work.

John: Mine was ‘72, 44 years ago – that’s 88 years between the two of us.

Jeff: I was a good worker, at least ‘till I fell off the bull line one night. I went to pull the pallets forward and got my foot caught in the grid and fell right over, head first. My shin hit the oddball racks and broke my fall, or otherwise I would have been dead. What I did was mess up my back, slipped my disc. The doctor said it would get worse over the years, and it did. I don’t think there was a brand that was post-Prohibition that I didn’t touch with my hands.

Jeff Bartfield (right), circa 1983.

“ A delivery truck I was working in got hijacked ... Three and a half hours later, I felt us going down a hill, rolling over the leaves. I heard them cracking under the tires.”

— JEFF BARTFIELD

Mike: There’re a lot of facets to this business.

Jeff: Yeah, but it’s clean and easy. But after a delivery truck I was working in got hijacked, my father said that’s enough.

Mike: What?? You got hijacked?

Jeff: Yeah. You want to hear about it?

Mike: Definitely!

Jeff: We got hit during Easter week time. We went out with a full load, a little under 400 cases. It was our first stop coming out of Queens, Bedford-Stuyvesant Brooklyn.

We were just about to make a turn at a stoplight when this guy jumps on the running board of the truck on the driver’s side. He put a gun right in the driver’s belly and said, “Move over.” Then I look out my side and there was another guy on the sidewalk with a newspaper folded over with a gun in it. Now, I know were not running or fighting or anything. They both jumped in the truck – now they are on both sides of us and we’re in the middle.

Remember, this is a two-seat truck!

The first guy says to us, “I want you to get out and get in that van over there.” So we listened and did as he said. As soon as we get in the van, the door closes. They handcuffed me and put tape around my eyes. I’m cursing the guy to loosen up the handcuffs. It was so tight I thought my hand was going to fall off. So we take off and I’m rolling around in the back of this cargo van with no floor, just those metal ridges – we were getting beat up.

I didn’t know where we were going but I knew we went over the Williamsburg Bridge; I smelled the smells of the Lower East Side. It was a beautiful day that day, with remnants of snow on the ground. I’m still screaming to have the handcuffs loosened; my hand was going to fall off! Finally they pulled over, and the guy got in the back and loosened up the cuffs, and I thanked him.

Three and a half hours later, I felt us going down a

hill, rolling over the leaves. I heard them cracking under the tires. I’m thinking, oh boy, what can happen now – I had bad thoughts. Finally, they pulled over somewhere and they opened the door and said, “Get out.” So we got

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out and they took both our wallets. They walked us for a ways and told us to get on our knees and lay face down.

Then they took off one cuff and said “Count to 90. If you move before that, we’re gonna shoot you.”

So as soon as the truck drove off, I ripped the tape from my eyes and I saw where we were. We were in Hastings, New York, on the Hudson River, north Westchester County. We were by an abandoned mansion overlooking the Hudson River. Beautiful spot, right?

So we walked into the street looking for anyone, and someone told us where police headquarters were. We told the police what happened, and the FBI came and picked us up and brought us back to Brooklyn Police Headquarters. We looked through mug shots; they had an artist there to draw their faces from our composites – it was crazy, lots of people around.

Mike: Did they ever find the truck?

Jeff: Yeah, they did – empty. Four trucks got hit that day, all of them from Charmer. They found all the booze in a garage in Howard Beach. It was full, four trucks with full loads – it was basically a container of booze.

My truck they found in the back of a Howard Johnson on Queens Boulevard the next day. They dusted it and everything but they never caught the guys. My father came down to the station with a billy club in his hand.

“Where are those son-of-a-bitches? I’m gonna kill ‘em,” he said. “I told you not to go on the truck!” After that, he put me into trade research.

That was it. I missed the money (from working in the warehouse). I was making Teamster wages and every week I’d have 500 bucks in my pocket. You know what else?

They mailed back my wallet with everything in it. Right to the house, after I went for a new license and all. They were there for the goods; they weren’t going to hurt us unless we did something stupid. They knew it was going to be a full load, being Easter week and all. The cheapest thing we had on the truck was Bolla wine. It was all high-end stuff, Johnnie Walker and the likes. So that’s my hijack story.

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“ My father got me a job in trade research.

I remember my first check: I got $106.00 net.”

— JEFF BARTFIELD

Mike: Wow, quite a story. Then what?

Jeff: So, my father got me a job in trade research.

I remember my first check: I got $106.00 net. What am I going to do with $106.00 net? But I’m working for Seagram’s. That was a night out in the bar for me. I was a kid, 16 years old, but I used to go to the bars ‘cause I looked older. Of course, beers were 15 cents. I got pizza for 15 cents a slice.

Mike: What year are you talking about? I never got a beer for 15 cents.

Jeff: 1974. I used to go to a Jewish deli and get two hot dogs, French fries and a root beer soda for 90 cents and I’d leave them a dime tip.

John: Yeah, we used to drink for a quarter a beer, I remember. Gas was 29 cents a gallon when I first started driving.

Jeff: I always worked, since I was 13 years old. My uncle who owned a gas station gave me job. Yeah, I worked in a few gas stations, landscaping, catering, lots of things.

Mike: Okay, what’s next? I’m almost afraid to ask.

Jeff: I was depressed because I was making $106 a week and I was going through the money before Saturday night ended. So, in steps one of my father’s good friends – everyone loved my father; he was a good-looking guy, big personality around New York. When he was a fighter, he would sell out Madison Square Garden.

Mike: What was your father’s name?

Jeff: Danny Bartfield. He had 47 fights.

The only fights he lost were when he broke both hands and couldn’t continue. He was never knocked down. He was the lightweight champion of the Army, and he was the lightweight champion of the Diamond Belts before it was the Golden Gloves. Then he turned pro. He would fight every two weeks.

He would break his hand, and they would junk it up and he would go in the ring with a broken hand.

Anyway, back to the question. There was an event in New York called the Cork and Bottle. My father was there, tuxedo and everything, and he asks his good friend who was the CEO of Standard Brands Beverage Group, “You got a job for my kid? He’s working for Seagram’s and they’re laying people off.” Sure enough, he set me up with an interview with a guy named Joe Tye, a big 6-foot8-inch, red-haired Irishman. He was four hours late to our meeting; he was stuck in traffic. When he came into Peerless Importers, where the meeting was, he was hot and frustrated from his bad day and asked me, “Are you Jeff Bartfield?” I said, “Yes.” He said, “You’re hired.”

Just like that! After all, the Chairman sent me to him; what was he going to say?

So I got a job with Fleishmann, it was a part of the Standard Brands group. I stayed at Fleishmann’s Distillers for about eight years, from 1978 to 1986. It was my first sales job. After a few months, they started giving me manager’s jobs. I ended up being at a desk most of the time but I couldn’t stand that – I had to be moving.

Soon I came up with an idea (because my father always told me that everything was going to be a chain, multi-unit, multistate and multi-country). I pitched Fleishmann on selling to chains. I told them I would bring them business, and

Mike: What was next?

Jeff: After that, I wound up at Guinness (Wellington Imports) for about a year and a half. I then went to work for Vintners International. Everyone wanted this job because it was the highest paying in the business (in 1987). I was only there four years. They were rumored to be going out of business and eventually sold the company to Canandaigua Wine.

Mike: Okay, what’s next? I knew this was going to happen (laughter).

Jeff: After that, I worked for Gallo for a short while but that didn’t work out too well and I wanted a move. Then a headhunter called me and suggested I go work for Canandaigua Wine Company. “You’re going to love it there, “ he said. I ended up going there for seven+ years.

(This brings Jeff’s history up to the year 2000).

sure enough, I did. Back in ‘78, there was Red Lobster, Steak & Ale and Bennigan’s. They were just starting out.

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“ Proximo is the greatest job I’ve ever had in my 38 years in the business. ...

[It] has a great history of innovation in brand introduction from the man who sits at the top of the company, Mark Teasdale.”

Mike: One hundred?! Didn’t you start with about five people?

John: Yes, I was the third one in. It was Mark Teasdale, Ed Manning and myself.

Mike: So, you two were always amicable competitors?

Mike: So then where did you go? We’re running out of ink!

Jeff: John and I were the only guys doing national account spirits back in the day. Us and Ben May. A lot of people remember Ben May. He was untouchable in the wine business. We pioneered the arena. We paved the way for companies to recognize this was an area of opportunity (national accounts).

Jeff: William Grant & Sons offered me the position of

Mike: What’s it like, working for Proximo Spirits?

— JEFF BARTFIELD

Vice President of Global Accounts. I took the job and I built up a team. I was there almost 12 years. All the people that started Proximo came from there, except John – they pulled him out of Skyy Spirits. He did a great job for Skyy; he built that Vodka into THE on-premise Vodka brand.

Mike: John, were you at Proximo Spirits already when Jeff came over?

John: Yes, I was there about five years already. I had known the Beckman family for years. I also knew Mark Teasdale; we worked together at Paddington. It was a great opportunity to get with a start-up company with great talent and be on the ground floor.

Mike: When you (John) brought Jeff on board, how many people were at Proximo?

John: At the time, we were up to about 100.

Jeff: Proximo is the greatest job I’ve ever had in my 38 years in the business. They had confidence that I was going to do the job they hired me to do, and they leave me alone to do it. We have great products, great brands, we’re on top of our game. The family that owns us has been around forever – 13 generations, what can I say. Now we’re getting into the Whiskey business big time along with Tequila, Gin and Vodkas. We’re going with the trends and doing what we have to do to grow these brands. Proximo has a great history of innovation in brand introduction from the man who sits at the top of the company, Mark Teasdale.

John: Mark (Teasdale) has developed a lot of brands including Hendrick’s Gin, Sailor Jerry, Goldschlager and more. A great example is Kraken Rum: only four years old and it has sales of over 500,000 cases. He’s still a young man so there will certainly be many more breakthrough brands to come. He is one of the most innovative guys I’ve ever been around.

Mike: How did CORE get started?

“ John and I were the only guys doing national account spirits back in the day. Us and Ben May. We paved the way for companies to recognize this was an area of opportunity (national accounts).”

— JEFF BARTFIELD

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John: It was an evening in Chicago after the National Restaurant Show, 12 years ago.

Larry McGinn, Paul Laconte and Stan Novack and I were having a final-final drink at the bar. We were standing in the corner of the bar and I remember

saying we should come up with a way to give back to the kids of people we call on.

Everyone agreed, so we tried to come up with a name for this. We wanted to involve the children of restaurant employees. Larry wrote it down on a napkin – “Children of Restaurant Employees” – along with all the notes from the conversation. The next day, we had breakfast and expanded on the idea of this thing and that’s how it all started.

Larry still has that napkin.

Mike: How did you get involved with CORE, Jeff?

Jeff: There was an open seat on the board and they asked me to come on. I was recruiting nice money from the industry every year and getting people to contribute – you know, I’m good at that. I was taken aback by the offer. I said I’d be honored to come on the board.

Brian Yost was President at the time.

John: Brian, at the time, was running Marriott’s Gold Standard Program.

We wanted to get some restaurant people involved and Brian was the first person to step up. He felt strongly about it and still does to this day.

Mike: Yes, definitely. You could tell by the way he spoke about it to the group at the breakfast meeting today (at HEE West).

Today, Joe Smith of Monin is the acting CORE President.

John: Really, that was the impetus of CORE. A lot of us were competitors when CORE was started. Paul (Laconte) was with Diageo. We were all friends and respected each other, and the beauty of CORE is that these competitors all joined forces to help the families.

Everyone drops their competitive side to change the way of life for the families we touch.

“Captain” John Niekrash

“ A lot of us were competitors when CORE was started. We were all friends and respected each other, and the beauty of CORE is that these competitors all joined forces to help the families. Everyone drops their competitive side to change the way of life for the families we touch.”

— JOHN NIEKRASH

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Mike: When was the first time you changed a family’s life?

John: In the early years, we probably did two or three families a year because no one knew anything about us. As the years have gone by, with one person telling another person, we now do quite a few. We did 60 last year.

Jeff: At the last Marriott meeting, we took in $120,000 in 10 minutes. The word is out and we have an advisory board with people that are known in the business and are out there pushing. We have operators now that help us. It’s all about getting the word out. We have a full-time Executive Director, Lauren LaViola, and her assistant Emily Kilduff – two women with MBAs in fundraising.

Mike: It seems you need to expand the group of contributors. The national account beverage sales group is the bulk of the donations now, but they can only do so much. Who are you looking to bring into the fold?

John: We are looking at other suppliers of restaurants, beyond the beverage business.

Chairs, tables, bread, food – there’s a lot of them. They may not even know about CORE. That’s why we are trying to get the word out.

Mike: Let’s talk a bit about your charity for the veterans, Work Vessels for Vets.

John: Well, I’ve been a commercial lobster fisherman on the side for 30 years. About eight years ago, I was having a new boat built. In the meantime, I attended a memorial golf event for a friend of mine’s dad.

They had invited a marine that had been severely wounded in Iraq.

He talked about duty and honor, and did not want sorrow or pity.

He did it for his country and fellow marines. There was not a dry eye in the group.

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Top: John Niekrash (right) at his very first Work Vessels for Vets presentation, the donation of his lobster boat, Krasher III, to veteran Richard Giguere (left) and his wife. Also in attendance was Senator Joseph Lieberman.

Bottom: Richard Giguere and his wife christening their new boat, with Senator Joe Lieberman looking on.

John (“Krash”) Niekrash at a Work Vessels for Vets presentation.

“ I attended a memorial golf event for a friend of mine’s dad. They had invited a marine that had been severely wounded in Iraq. He talked about duty and honor, and did not want sorrow or pity. He did it for his country and fellow marines. There was not a dry eye in the group.”

— JOHN NIEKRASH

So I’m driving home, and I say to myself I’ve got to get involved with this somehow. Then I thought of my old boat – why sell it? I’ll give it to a vet who wants to fish for a living. So the next day, I put an ad in the local commercial magazine a lot of lobstermen read and it said, “The first vet that comes home from the service and wants to fish for a living and shows me a plan to be a commercial lobsterman, you get a free boat.” It was a valuable boat, probably worth around $25,000. Within weeks, a marine returning from Iraq to Massachusetts got ahold of me. So I interviewed him and he fit the criteria. I presented the boat to him in a ceremony at the boatyard where I keep the vessel.

Unbeknownst to me, Connecticut Senator Joe Lieberman heard about it and wanted to be there. So he shows up, and him being a national figure, every TV channel and newsperson around shows up to cover the event. So the story went out nationally – AP picked it up; there was just incredible unasked-for press!

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Shortly after, people that were moved by the story started calling me up to see if I could find a vet for their donations of tractors, cars, laptops – all kinds of quality items. The original intent was to donate one boat per year. It turned into all kinds of items, whatever can help a returning vet.

Now, eight years later, we’ve helped over 1,500 vets with over $2,000,000 worth of vessels with either money we raise or items that are donated.

Mike: Tell us a success story about a vet that was helped through the program.

John: We have a bunch of them. We always recommend businesses hire vets to work for them if they have employees, which they all want to do. There’s one guy who set up a commercial cleaning business in St. Louis called Patriot Commercial Cleaning. He now employs 55 people, ALL vets! And we have a lot of stories like this; we impacted tens of thousands of vets. Last month alone we bought eight tractors to help vets. Tractors can do a lot for these vets.

“ Last month alone we bought eight tractors to help vets. Tractors can do a lot for these vets.”

— JOHN NIEKRASH

John: We have met as a board to discuss this. We want to get some younger people on the board and involved, certainly on the advisory board. We are all about the same age and won’t work forever. We want to have a sustainment plan in place to carry forward. Members that retire or become inactive will always be emeriti. We’re cognizant that we need some younger folks to be involved.

Jeff: We have a group of younger women and men getting involved in an advisory capacity. It’s coming along. They’re passionate. They get judged for what they do and what they bring to the party. It’s not just being on the advisory board – if they don’t do anything, they won’t be there long. We’re serious and passionate about this – I’m in this for the long haul.

Mike: So, this just started with a thought to do one vet good with your boat and it turned into a major charity.

John: Personally, I’ll be involved until the final-final.

John: That’s right. You never know what can happen.

It makes me happy to support these men and women.

These are not handouts, these are hands up. They have to have a business plan and if they don’t know how to do that, we get people to help them make a plan. Americans want to help, most just don’t know how to do it. This is one avenue to help.

Jeff and John both wanted to make sure to thank all the people they work with and everyone that supports their charities – especially Larry McGinn for his work and his endless support for CORE, and Jen Robinson for her unsurpassed and relentless support and fundraising. She helped raise over $70,500 for CORE Gives at this HEE West event alone in Yosemite, where this interview took place.

Mike: We, and I am referring to you two guys also, are not getting any younger (laughs). What do you have in mind for the next generation of leaders to take your work into the future?

“ There’s one guy who set up a ... business in St. Louis called Patriot Commercial Cleaning.

He now employs 55 people, ALL vets!”

— JOHN NIEKRASH

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Left to right: Jeff Bartfield, Proximo Spirits; Don Billings, Publisher of in the Mix; Tylor Field lll, Divisional VP of Wine and Spirits, Landry’s Inc and John Niekrash, Proximo Spirits. Shot at Morton’s The Steakhouse in downtown Atlanta.

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Josh Phelps (left) and Carlo Trinchero (right)

Millennials in a Bottle: Next Generation Wine Entrepreneurs Josh Phelps and Carlo Trinchero Put Their Stamp on the Industry With Taken Wine Co.

Every generation has to carve its own path, build its own identity. For childhood friends Josh Phelps and Carlo Trinchero, that means making wine their own way, for their own generation. And Millennials – not to mention wine critics and buyers alike – have taken notice.

Pedigree isn’t necessarily a Millennial virtue, but these two have it in spades.

Phelps is the son of wine legend Chris Phelps, who cut his teeth in the vineyards of Bordeaux and Napa Valley more than 30 years ago. Trinchero is the grandson of Napa Valley pioneer Mario Trinchero and his father is Roger Trinchero, Chairman and CEO of the venerable Trinchero Family Estates, founded in 1948.

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Such roots gave both friends an early education in all things wine. They each felt that proverbial itch to carve their own niche and create something entrepreneurial. Or, as Phelps puts it, to strike out on their own. Driven by a powerful impulse to make the kind of wine that speaks to their own generation, Phelps and Trinchero launched Taken Wine Co. in 2009.

“From the start, we wanted to make great wine to share with our friends,” says Trinchero. “Seven years later, that philosophy still drives everything we do.”

Clever and sophisticated, the Taken Wine Co. lineup offers up its own language – a kind of generational code – giving a nod to the relationship status updates popular among social media-centric Millennials. Enter a trio of clever, aptly named brands: Taken, Complicated and Available.

But make no mistake – these are serious wines.

They’re fun and culturally relevant, but they also are expertly crafted with grapes from high-profile wine growing regions. Taken Red Wine is sourced from Napa Valley, where Phelps and Trinchero grew up.

They wisely rely on longstanding family relationships with top growers throughout Napa Valley to access some of the best vineyards in the region for this wine. The elevated quality of the fruit translates to a Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot blend that delivers a dense, structured palate balanced by the round mouthfeel typical of a soft Merlot.

Three offerings in the Complicated tier – a Chardonnay, a Pinot Noir and a Grenache-based red blend – show a depth of flavor worthy of this brand’s striking label art. The Complicated Chardonnay is crafted exclusively from prime Sonoma Coast fruit, giving it cool-climate hallmarks like Meyer lemon, tropical fruit and stone fruit. Also from the Sonoma Coast AVA, Complicated Pinot Noir delivers classic Pinot flavors like raspberry, red cherry and plum.

Complicated Red Wine takes the journey to the Central Coast, where Rhone varieties thrive. Think black fruit, cocoa and espresso, wrapped in velvety tannins.

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Carlo Trinchero (left) and Josh Phelps (right)

The latest iteration of their entrepreneurial venture, Available, took Phelps and Trinchero around the world in search of global blends they knew their friends back home would love. Available marked its inaugural release in late 2015 with a Pinot Grigio and a Sangiovese-based red blend from Puglia, Italy. There’s no telling where these guys will turn up next, and that’s part of the fun of this accessibly priced, on-trend brand.

“We know Millennials want to discover new brands and new wine regions,” says Phelps. “With Available, we’re bringing them interesting wines from unique places, without the prohibitive price tag.”

The Available Pinot Grigio entices with ripe white peach and papaya notes, while the Available Red Blend brings Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot together with the classic Italian variety, Sangiovese, in an approachable, food-friendly style.

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“ From the start, we wanted to make great wine to share with our friends ...

Seven years later, that philosophy still drives everything we do.”

Perhaps equally intriguing to their diverse bottlings is the way Phelps and Trinchero got their official start in the wine business. Phelps earned a business degree from Chico State and Trinchero studied communications and marketing at Sacramento State. Each got handson experience working harvest – Phelps with fifthgeneration winemaker Joel Gott and Trinchero at his family’s Trinchero Napa Valley winery in St. Helena.

They also learned the sales and distribution side of the business at Kimberly Jones Selections and Young’s Market Company, respectively.

“We’ve known each other a long time, and we both grew up in the wine business. But, interestingly, neither one of us studied winemaking in the formal sense,” says Phelps. “Ours was an education by living, doing, absorbing.”

The two stayed in touch and began hatching their partnership during Trinchero’s senior year of college. To hear them tell it, the business formed organically, from a core of entrepreneurial spirit and a long-held passion for wine. Before they knew it, casual conversations turned into a business plan and a proper LLC. Initially, every naming idea they had was taken, and so, Taken Wine Co. was born.

Their shared business acumen has helped Phelps and Trinchero tap into the oft-elusive Millennial market in large part because they are, in fact, their own consumer.

Their intuition about how this generation thinks about wine has proven to be phenomenally successful, and the Taken portfolio has grown significantly since its first 100 cases in 2009. And the quality is backed by several scores north of 90 from some of the industry’s most influential critics.

All of this adds up to great wine with a great story behind it – a story best told through social media channels, where Millennials are eagerly anticipating the next releases from Taken, Complicated and Available.

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A Juicy Story: Sage Restaurant Group’s Zero-Proof Offerings

BY JACK ROBERTIELLO

When it comes to appealing to contemporary consumers’ taste for more creative, refreshing and interesting non-alcohol beverages, Denver-based Sage Restaurant Group developed a few savvy solutions.

“To develop beverages that meet those demands, operators need to be more tuned into what it is that appeals to today’s customers,” says Sage Restaurant Group’s Vice President of Culinary Operations Michael Carr-Turnbough. “The landscape of the non-alcohol beverage category is really changing. It’s getting fun but also challenging, with some great opportunities,” he says. “Our guests are much more informed than they ever have been, and, as smart consumers, are also health conscious.

It’s driving guests to demand new, healthier and fresh alternatives to the standard nonalcohol beverages like soda and tea. This trend to fresher is really growing outside the restaurant business, and those healthier items have forced the industry to put new items on the menu.”

Kim Haasarud, whose Phoenix-based company Liquid Architecture consults with operators and suppliers on beverage development, says consumer demand is higher than ever for fresh juices, including when it comes to cocktails. “You can’t create as good a cocktail program without fresh juices, period. It’s just allowing for a better cocktail program all around.”

Fresh juices are a good start, but a little creativity goes a long way. For example, “aguas frescas,” the Mexican and Central American refreshers made with fresh fruit, water, sweetener and served traditionally from glass jars, have started making an impact beyond mom-and-pop restaurants.

Excerpt courtesy of

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“They are a great way to incorporate a fresh factor into non-alcoholic drinks. They’re refreshing and hydrating and perfect for lunch as well,” says Haasarud. Two of the Sage Restaurant Group units, Kachina Southwestern Grill

in Westminster, Colo., and Hello Betty Fish House in Oceanside, Calif., feature aguas frescas.

“They’re just delicious, fit very well with the two concepts, and are not readily available to a lot of our guests,” says Carr-Turnbough. “They’re easy to make and fairly inexpensive, depending on the fruit you use, so they provide an opportunity for diversity, flavor and profit.”

They also help add personality to the businesses, he says, as the jars are prominently displayed and marketed to stimulate interest. Of equal importance, they provide a way to increase check averages while offering something unusual and perceived as more wholesome.

Kachina lists three to six flavors of aguas frescas, mainly in the warmer months, and the restaurant features a blueberry mint agua fresca made with blueberries, fresh lime juice, sugar and mint. Hello Betty offers aguas frescas with sorbet added: pineapple agua fresca with mango sorbet, or watermelon with lemon sorbet, for example. “Guests can get something with great flavor, and we’re adding a new twist and an American touch,” says Carr-Turnbough. The float also allows the drinks to double as desserts.

A number of the Sage Group’s restaurants have revived their non-alcohol beverage list beyond fountain soda and lemonade, using not only fresh juices but also dry sodas, fresh fruit and more savory ingredients. At Chicago’s Mercat a la Planxa, non-alcohol cocktails include the Menta Cidro Virgen, with mint, fresh citrus juice and soda; and La Mora Virgen, with blackberries, mint/citrus syrup, cranberry juice and soda. Denver’s Second Home Kitchen + Bar features “Mocktails” – the Palomina, made with blood orange soda, lime, agave nectar and salt; and the Ginger Mule, made with ginger beer, simple syrup, lime, candied ginger and fresh mint.

The offerings at the Urban Farmer in Philadelphia are even more creative. There, guests can select the Darjeeling Old-Fashioned (strong Darjeeling tea, Demerara syrup, old-fashioned bitters and lemon oil), and the Son of Saz (Sazerac syrup, soda, lemon oil and an anise mist.)

Given current issues of health, safety and choice, offering well-made, non-alcohol beverages is a smart decision. It’s also potentially lucrative, as most customers willingly will pay more for something special and handmade, with alcohol or without.

Several non-alcohol drinks are offered by Kachina and include A New Found Passion, made with passion fruit, fresh lemon juice, simple syrup and ginger ale; and Mango Tropical, made with mango, strawberry, fresh lime, honey and club soda.

Fruit-flavored lemonades have also become more common.

Kachina serves one flavored with prickly pear that started off as seasonal only. Now, when prickly pears aren’t available or the flavor needs adjustment, purées are used to guarantee consistency in flavor.

“We try to stay as seasonal as possible, but the purée gives us a way to be consistent,” he says.

Aqua fresca floats from Sage Restaurant Group’s Hello Betty Fish House.

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TECHNOLOGY

Time to Invest in the Guest A personalized guest experience starts and ends with better guest data.

By Adam Billings

Nobody has ever said the restaurant business is easy, but SevenRooms is helping restaurateurs win big by turning the tables on the technology status quo.

What started as a way for restaurants to fill premium reservations with high-­value diners evolved into a next generation, front-of-house platform that makes better guest service easier for enterprising F&B operators like Jumeirah Group, The Cosmopolitan of Las Vegas, Live Nation and sbe.

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At its core, SevenRooms is a customer relationship management (CRM) platform built to organize and track guest profiles, with reservation booking and seating management capabilities. CRM isn’t new to the restaurant business, but it’s certainly underutilized and mostly unsophisticated. Most front-of-house solutions available to restaurateurs make collecting and maintaining any significant guest profile information challenging, if not impossible. The burden of maintaining guest profiles is put primarily in the hands and heads of staff members. While a single unit property could reasonably rely on a great memory to build guest relationships, the challenge comes when restaurateurs expand into new locations or markets, or experience staff turnover. Old regulars, expecting warm service, are met by new faces who are largely unequipped with the proper guest data to provide the type of experience that regulars grow to expect.

To solve this problem, SevenRooms launched its reservation management system, CRM and suite of marketing tools, with guest profiles as a primary focal point. The platform has all the capabilities a seasoned restaurateur would expect, plus all the killer features missing from more traditional technology provider solutions. SevenRooms developed its platform working hand-in-hand with restaurant operators, to build technology that truly makes better service easier. The platform provides intelligent reservation and seating management, unified guest profiles for a single view of the guest across properties, real-time POS integration to track spend and order history, revenue forecasting, multi­channel reservation management, and an open API to integrate with third parties.

SevenRooms tracks over 50 data points on guest profiles, both quantitative (e.g., total spend, average spend per cover) and qualitative (e.g., prefers corner booth, Cabernet Sauvignon enthusiast). Rich guest profiles are automatically built over time with each guest visit, and are surfaced at key points of service in a way that’s easy for busy staff members to digest. To pull in quantitative data, SevenRooms connects to various POS systems to automatically capture order history and spend information, giving the operator a clear understanding of each guest’s preferences, loyalty, value and aggregate spend across multiple properties. Guests no longer have to start from

The benefits of collecting and maintaining guest data don’t end with stellar service. A robust guest database allows operators to engage guests in a meaningful way even after they’ve left the property. Profiles can be filtered for direct and targeted marketing across various segments like spend levels, number of visits or even beverage preferences. Special event lists become easier to create, and personalized messages and invitations to celebrate anniversary dinners become second nature.

No one said hospitality was easy, but SevenRooms is a great place to start and an easy way to elevate your guest service. To learn more, visit www.sevenrooms.com

A robust guest database allows operators to engage guests in a meaningful way even after they’ve left the property.

scratch to build a relationship with the operator at a new location or with a new staff member.

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MAKING THE ROUNDS With Helen Benefield Billings

Morton’s The Steakhouse, Downtown Atlanta, Ga., May 2016 – The steaks are still magnificent.

The service is impeccable and friendly. The wine list is extraordinary, as always. But perusing the specialty drinks menu is always my first inclination at any fine dining establishment.

Thank you, Tylor Field, III, Divisional Vice President of Wine and Spirits, Landry’s, Inc., for recommending this fetching beauty, the Aviation.

A sublime combination of Gin, maraschino, lime and Bitter Truth Violet Liqueur, it makes for a memorable pre-dinner summer sipper.

Early May is the perfect time to start thinking about warm weather cocktails, and I found myself in the mood for something a little different during a recent gathering at Morton’s in Atlanta.

After enjoying this light and refreshing cocktail, you’ll still have plenty of room for a robust Cabernet that will pair perfectly with the Cajun Ribeye and shared sides.

Celeste Dinos,Vice President and Partner, IMI; Tylor Field, III, Division Vice President, Morton’s The Steakhouse, Landry’s Inc. and Helen Benefield Billings, Hospitality and Travel writer, in the Mix.

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AVIATION 2 oz

Tanqueray Old Tom Gin (or Tanqueray Ten)

¾ oz

Luxardo Maraschino

1 oz

Fresh-squeezed lime juice

2 barspoons Bitter Truth Violette Liqueur METHOD: Shake ingredients (except Bitter Truth Violette Liqueur) with ice; then strain into a chilled cocktail martini glass. Add a float of Bitter Truth Violette Liqueur.

GARNISH: Grapefruit peel twisted to release citrus oils onto the drink, then discarded, and Luxardo cocktail cherry on a pick.

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ITM: Absolut was first launched in 1979. What message would you like to convey about Absolut to Millennials and new comingof-age drinkers?

with Kevin Denton N AT I ON AL MIX OLOGIST, PERNOD R IC A R D

By Mike Raven

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Kevin Denton: Before there was Absolut, the “lifestyle” brand of spirits didn’t exist. Absolut barnstormed the Studio 54 set in the early ‘80s; it inspired artists, fashionistas, musicians, writers and moguls. It launched an advertising campaign that is studied in marketing programs around the world. Absolut bucked tradition and took up causes that it felt mattered, long before it was trendy to do so. Absolut has always been extremely environmentally conscious – it has a negligible carbon footprint and is one of the most energy efficient distilleries in the world. Many brands want to convince you that just because they are small, they are somehow superior. Absolut is a great product that has had inclusiveness, quality, creativity and environmental responsibility at its core since it landed 35 years ago.

ITM: There has been a resurgence of the classic cocktail, the Cosmopolitan, recently. Besides the time-tested original recipe with Absolut Citron, can you suggest a riff on the famous cocktail for summer menus?

KD: This modern classic does well with simple twists.

Consider adding mint for a Cosmo-jito. Swapping grapefruit for cranberry gives you a bracing citrusforward drink. If you’re looking to extend this drink, consider it over ice topped with soda for a long refresher.

ITM: Absolut Mandarin has been a favorite since 1999. With the popularity of the Mule as of late, is Mandarin adaptable to this trendy drink?

ITM: One of the hottest flavors this time of year is always the tropical fruit mango. How do you showcase Absolut Mango in a Caribbean-style cocktail?

KD: Mango is far more versatile than it is credited for.

A simple long drink with lime, agave, mint and soda is refreshing. If you want to explore tiki flavors, the addition of cinnamon, coconut, allspice and sugar cane are essential. With any flavored spirit, always consider the base flavor first and think about what other flavors will amplify the best aspects of that base.

KD: Mandarin is a versatile vodka that lends itself to lots of different applications. Mules with Absolut Mandarin work great with a squeeze of fresh lime, or you can bump up the orange flavor with a splash of triple sec.

Absolut barnstormed the STUDIO 54 set in the ‘80s; it INSPIRED artists, fashionistas, musicians, writers and moguls.

ITM: Do you have a favorite summer flavor to incorporate into cocktails once the weather gets warm?

KD: As soon as the ground begins to thaw and tiny shoots begin popping out of the ground, it’s time to incorporate fresh herbs into cocktails. It’s the easiest way to add freshness and aromatic zip. I prowl the farmers market as soon as I start seeing fruits and vegetables reappearing. Early summer is great for berries, midsummer for stone fruits like peaches and plums. Baby veggies have concentrated, sweet flavors that are great for juicing.

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SHANGHAI SURPRISES

The Evolution of the World’s Most Exciting Cocktail Scene

Eastern refinement and innovation meets solid Western marketing and showmanship in China’s design and culinary capital.

The Pudong-Shanghai skyline mirrors the adventurous, future-forward spirit of the cocktail scene. Photo courtesy of Elyse Glickman

By Elyse Glickman

Like a well-crafted cocktail menu, Shanghai’s appeal as a destination lies in its balancing international sophistication with its colorful history. The first thing you see when you enter the city limits is the Pudong section’s skyline, which evokes Disney’s Tomorrowland – and is even grander than Walt himself could have dreamed it.

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As you drink in the rest of Shanghai, you start to taste the other components: the refined European influences of The Bund and the former French Concession neighborhoods, the influx of varied expat populations, and the spice and smoke of neighborhoods rooted in the customs and traditions of mainland Chinese groups.

Is it any surprise, then, that the cocktail scene is both heavily influenced by the West but also unmistakably Asian in its execution?

In recent times (particularly over the past five years), Shanghai’s beverage programs have shifted from a “me too” business model, imitating trends from elsewhere, to taking spirits and recipes from everywhere and merging them with local elements to make them as distinctively “Shanghai” as their now-iconic skyline (which itself has only taken shape in the last decade!).

Furthermore, as the bartenders and managers perfect individual recipes and overall menus, there’s also a forward vision that incorporates social media, apps and iPads.

“Because China is such a huge country, there will be many different and unusual things you can use to create cocktails,” observes Yao Lu, a Texas native who owns and operates awardwinning Union Trading Company.

“There’s always been an interesting, established eating/drinking culture in China that, combined with a new openness for new things from the West, has inspired a variety of ideas. Chinese people have been traveling more, seeing more, and bartenders are absorbing what they learn when they travel. When they come home, they combine it with things they like that they’ve grown up with.”

Tianzifang, inside The French Concession, draws a young, fashionable crowd who are “in the know” about cocktail trends. Photo courtesy of Elyse Glickman

Pascal Ballot, Director of Marketing at Three on The Bund (a former early 20th century insurance company building repurposed into a multi-story restaurant and bar wonderland), observes that the client base of Shanghai’s fine dining scene is also compelling.

He points out that increased numbers of Chineseborn, educated professionals as well as the large

“Second Generation” (20- and 30-something Chinese heirs with money to spend and people to impress) have driven bar programs from expat-focused to locallyfocused. While classic cocktail recipes abound, they get new twists. The bartenders are also big into developing original creations as dramatic as Pudong’s skyscrapers.

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An A-BUND-ance of Inspiration

“The scene is so exciting because everything is fresh in Shanghai, and not just the ingredients,” Pascal continues, as we sip drinks on the rooftop patio of POP American Brasserie, the venue’s American pop-culture inspired bar. Just six stories below us, literally millions of people fill up every spare inch of The Bund’s promenade to celebrate Golden Week, China’s equivalent to America’s July 4th holidays.

“Everything is 10 or 15 years old, and that brings a new energy to the way people approach their work,” Ballot continues. “This means we will have chefs and mixologists who have traveled the world but have their roots here. They look at what the foreigners are doing and learn from them. However, once they master a technique or recipe, they will take it in a whole new direction.”

Ballot points out that international influences continue to pour in from Americans, Europeans, Japanese and others opening businesses to tap into the young Chinese generation’s thirst for new flavors. However, it does not diffuse local chefs’ and bartenders’ enthusiasm for local ingredients. This culinary culture, in fact, is propelled by change and increased diversity.

Internationally renowned chefs – like New York’s Jean Georges, whose restaurants anchor Three on the Bund, and Paul Pairet, whose Ultraviolet and Mr. & Mrs. Bund restaurants are on many global top restaurant lists – have created something new by incorporating French techniques with locally sourced ingredients.

The bar programs follow suit, with remarkable flair and consistency, on every floor of Three on the Bund (with the exception of the property’s serene art gallery floor), no matter what genre of cuisine takes shape in the kitchen.

Chi-Q’s Korean menu, dominated by a light palate, dovetails into subtle but complex drinks incorporating soju and Korean whiskey. Mercado’s Italian foods and Top: The splashy interior of POP American Brasserie.

Far Left: POP’s coconutty and decadent signature cocktail.

Left: Soju-based Passion Sour cocktail at Chi-Q. Photos courtesy of Elyse Glickman

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Above: A Negroni at Mercado’s Italian.

Right: The interior of Unico.

cocktails are bold and flavorful, and yet they balance out the bitter flavors of Italian liqueurs with bright, citrusy fruits and floral hints.

The most ambitious destination for cocktails at Three on the Bund, however, is Unico. While its interpretations of Latin American food by two-Michelin Star Chef Mauro Colagreco are clean and vibrant, the cocktail program takes center stage … or two, to be exact. There’s a cocktail lab open until 10:30 p.m. with what Executive Chef Franck Salati describes as

“high concept culinary cocktails.” However, he bristles when I innocently drop the term “molecular.” “It’s experimental, and culinary in its focus,” he corrects, with a broad smile. “I worked for the most avant-garde chef in the world and was his right arm for seven years, and I can tell you from experience that ‘molecular’ does not exist. We need to stress this for the simple reason that when you’re cooking, and you’re mixing different things, it’s ‘molecular’ by its very nature, with chemical, textural and other things changing shape, form and flavor. Chemical reactions are just a part of cooking and not a marketing gimmick.”

Unico’s main bar, meanwhile, operates for the entirety of the restaurant’s hours and heats up when its late night live music gets cranking. That crew, under the current leadership of Chilean Guilherme ValdiviesoJimenez, puts together drinks designed for high volume crowds that still manage to have that “craft cocktail” sensibility. They even have mini-coffee table books that add artistic mystique to the process of picking a cocktail.

The general restaurant menus are housed in vintage record covers and feature “records” with food and drink specials, which can readily be switched out.

Left: Unico Mixologist Guilherme Valdivieso-Jimenez serving a Negroni cocktail.

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Five Senses ... and Then Some

The bar programs throughout the Mandarin Oriental Hotel Group adhere faithfully to their Hong Kong roots, and the bartenders at the original Mandarin Oriental flagship and neighboring Landmark Mandarin Oriental are internationally recognized in many competitions and trade events. However, the Mandarin Oriental Pudong-Shanghai’s Qi Bar has its own brand of flair and innovation, with American Martin Kovar anchoring the program there. Tony Chen, Assistant Lounge Manager, delights in infusing his own life experience and reverence for teas and herbs into his recipes and presentation, to end up with something that will genuinely surprise and delight locals as well as expats and business travelers.

Above: A view of Shanghai from a table at Mr. & Mrs. Bund.

Left: Mr. & Mrs. Bund’s Pimm’s Cup. Photos courtesy of Mr. & Mrs. Bund

Over at Mr. & Mrs. Bund, the drink list is as much a culinary-driven experience as the food menu, with options that let the customer in on the mixology fun. Drinks are not only split up by spirits category (Vodka, Gin, Rum, Tequila, Whiskey), but also by different brands and levels of quality of each spirit at different price points. In some cases, you can even interchange one spirit for another.

Top: The interior of the Qi Bar inside the Mandarin Oriental Pudong.

Bottom: Qi Bar Terrace Photos courtesy of the Mandarin Oriental

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“The flavor is not classical even if the idea came from the West,” Tony says, as he describes his latest cocktail, Life, which is modeled after a Cosmopolitan. The wash of bitter, sweet, salty and smoky flavors indeed lets you know he’s traveling into undiscovered territory and this is not the Cosmo you remember from college.

His subtle Tea Mojito, meanwhile, is beautifully presented in a traditional Chinese tea service format, and perfectly reconciles the Latin sensibility of the drink’s origins with Chinese ingredients.

“First, I learned how to balance cocktails in Amsterdam at Ketel One, and then I found ways to integrate Eastern palates with Western styles,” he continues. “My experience in Amsterdam was not so much to learn the recipes, but to learn how to balance cocktails between the spirits and the other ingredients. It was also critical to learn the importance of intuiting what the guests will want based on their food and wine preferences. It is important to ask guests about their preferences in food and drink; it’s important to pay attention to what they order. The ingredients in different dishes will inform the kinds of cocktails I will recommend for the guests. Sometimes, if customers express an interest in one cocktail they drink all the time but I see them ordering a different mix of things at dinner, this presents me with the opportunity to convince them to try something new that will make the overall experience even more balanced.”

Above: Life cocktail by Tony Chen of Qi Bar. Photo courtesy of Elyse Glickman

The Peninsula Shanghai’s cocktail program, even with the hotel’s international “Grand Hotel” spirit and staff, is keenly attuned to the tastes of the local Shanghai-ese, which favors those with a sweet tooth. Keeping locals coming into Sir Elly’s and the rooftop bar is important, especially with this property being a favorite among high-worth executives, according to Jonas Zehnder, who has come from Lucerne, Switzerland to assume the Beverage Director position.

“While the modern cocktail is Western in origin, we follow those techniques and we add a local aspect to it, including locally grown fruits, spice and herbs,” says Zehnder.

Vantage Point of The Peninsula Shanghai – The rooftop bar at the Peninsula Shanghai, Sir Elly’s.

Photo courtesy of The Peninsula

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The American Way

The French Concession neighborhood is also the professional home to American entrepreneurs Kelley Lee and Yao Lu, who have found inspired ways to introduce Chinese customers to the U.S.’s diverse culinary flavors, while keeping expats and visitors buzzing with their original cocktail creations and selections of craft beers.

Los Angeles native Lee now owns Liquid Laundry, Cantina Agave and Boxing Cat Brewery, all successful, decidedly American restaurant concepts. While they draw a good number of expat regulars, homesick for their stateside favorites, she takes pride in the fact that she’s expanding the flavor vocabularies of the locals.

The lobby of the Peninsula Shanghai.

Photo courtesy of The Peninsula

“Shanghai is in a particularly advantageous location for this, so we’re working with a lot of locally and house-made products, from fresh juices, syrups made in-house, nectars, purees and infusions using herbs, to spices like star anise. In terms of following trends, we do that, but we do it using all the local influences as well.

Zehnder, who draws professional inspiration from local bars, acknowledges that he has changed as much as the local customers he hopes to bring in. “I myself was not a cocktail drinker – more interested in beer and wine than spirits,” the Lucerne native admits. “By seeing how independent bars in Shanghai have improved their cocktail programs, I have come to be more adventurous. These days, I can walk into a cocktail bar not yet sure if I will have a cocktail or a glass of wine, whereas a few years ago I assumed most cocktails would be badly done, so why bother? People are getting away from this ‘go with what you know’ mindset.”

“I came to Shanghai to open a restaurant because I felt that everything had been done in America already,” she says. “When I graduated from culinary school, based on the competition in the States, I figured it would take me less time to save up the money to open up a restaurant there.”

That was 11 years ago, and as Lee’s reputation grew, starting with Alchemist Cocktail Kitchen, so did Shanghai’s cocktail universe. She recalls that as recently as 2009, most of the mixology action was confined to the hotel bars. Most bars were, up until then, focused on Whiskey and Japanese cocktails. Getting the craft cocktail scene percolating at Alchemist and elsewhere was an international group effort. However, once the effort sparked, the Shanghai scene caught fire.

A Blasting Fuse cocktail from Liquid Laundry.

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“We brought in a well-known bartender from Australia, and he did a fantastic job creating imaginative cocktails that opened up people’s minds as to what could be done.” She went on to say, “In the years since, we’ve seen an explosion of creativity, with (bartenders and chefs) creating their own infusions, bitters, fogs and all that stuff. A lot of this (success) has to do with the mindset of the people here. The pulse of the city and its modern outlook have attracted people from all over the world to open bars. People who live here, meanwhile, want to see new ingredients, new things being done, new flavors and textures and putting things together.”

While Lee observes Gin is the spirit of the moment in Shanghai, many categories are represented. However, she does lament that certain spirits, like Tequila and Mescal, have a ways to go before catching on, especially

An attractive cocktail being prepped by Yao Lu at The Union Trading Company. Photo courtesy of Elyse Glickman

join her team of mixologists. He has since propelled his success into The Union Trading Company, which looks like your unprepossessing New England pub but features an expansive cocktail menu that is the stuff of international cocktail conference buzz.

since the distribution channels are more limited than in the States. However, Lu embraces this as another excuse

“At the time I arrived, the craft cocktail thing was really coming to life, as it did in the States 10 years earlier,” Lu notes. “It was a period of time during the energy crisis in the U.S., which led to people to caring about what they were eating and where the ingredients came from. The next natural step is caring about what you drink, which launched the cocktail revival in the U.S. Five or six years ago, the Chinese began to ask the same questions American asked in the years before. While all this is going on, the mainstream media had been picking up on bartenders as individuals, so I felt it was a good opportunity to come to the motherland and be a part of the exciting things going on.”

to innovate and push the Shanghai scene forward. He got his start at Houston’s renowned bar, Anvil. He then got to Shanghai through Marriott Group to spearhead their beverage program. After a stint as a brand ambassador for a major spirit company, he was tapped by Lee to

Just as Lee gave him a platform to show off his skills, Lu is now paying it forward with his Union Trading Company staff, getting them involved in adding new things to the menu every season. “It helps them

A wildly original and seasonal cocktail from The Union Trading Company. Photo courtesy of Elyse Glickman

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develop their confidence and connect with customers in meaningful way. In the past, and also in Chinese clubs, you have head bartenders and everybody else below him. I never liked that system, so what’s important to me is empowering my staff and giving them a sense of ownership within what they do in the crafting of the menu. It pushes them to create and come up with drinks, which makes them feel like a part of the business and, in turn, creates conversation with the customers.”

The Right Connections

While the Chinese government restricts access to popular sites like Google, Facebook and Twitter, the smartphone app WeChat has not only connected trendconscious young people, but also holds the potential to help bars and restaurants market their menus and scene to users more effectively. “WeChat brings together elements of Twitter, Facebook and Instagram,” explains Ballot. “Users can scan the QR code to pull up our menus, access the photos and see what we are doing in our restaurants. People can not only decide what they will possibly want to order ahead of time, but can also instantaneously share what they enjoyed with their friends, who may be considering coming to our restaurants. We are always trying to be ahead of the curve in terms of technology and connecting with our customers, and WeChat (has) become the biggest and most effective way for us to communicate with our customers.”

WeChat evolved over a two-year period from a relatively simple chat app to a multilevel platform that holds a lot of promise for marketers on a global scale. By releasing its APIs to third party developers, including Shanghai’s bars and lounges, WeChat also spawned an entire universe of integrated apps ranging from those providing information on menu items or products on the bar, to booking tables and creating word of mouth for new promotions and loyalty programs. WeChat also helps the Three on the Bund’s restaurants

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and other establishments collect information, opinions and comments from customers, to stay up on the trends.

With distribution of different wines and spirits from overseas being a constant concern, Mr. & Mrs. Bund used an iPad-based digital menu solution to keep their inventory up to date for the staff and the customers. While the iPad menu adds an interactive component for the consumers, it also provides the staff a way to regularly keep tabs on what’s available. Additionally, it can be changed at a moment’s notice. This is important when you’re dealing with 32 wines by-the-glass and selections from around the globe that pair with Paul Pairet’s abundance of a la carte items and degustation menus. On a more practical level, it saves a lot of paper, ink and time.

“It’s hard to define what makes a cocktail or a bar uniquely ‘Shanghai,’ but I would say it is definitely an interesting cocktail culture, especially as people literally go out seven nights a week,” sums up Kelley Lee. “This is in sharp contrast to many U.S. cities. I notice when I go back to Los Angeles, the scene is comparatively sedate and many don’t go out on ‘school nights.’”

A screen shot of WeChat mobile app.

Indeed, from the looks of things, Shanghai’s nightlife is a constant flow of education − for bartenders, owners and customers alike.

Photos courtesy of Elyse Glickman

The iPad wine list at Mr. & Mrs. Bund.

CI T RU SY H I GH LAND T EQU I LA

Roca-Thyme (The bright citrus notes in the highland Patrón Tequila really play well with the mandarin flavors in Aperol.)

Tequila, or as some people in the spirits industry refer to it, the “agave spirit,” has always dominated the cocktail pyramid for what seems like years, with a little daisy of a cocktail, the margarita. Every year, the margarita is printed more times over on cocktail lists than any other cocktail in the nation. The margarita is a great classic, but sometimes it can overshadow the versatility of the spirit.

For instance, there is the way a grassy, citrusy highland Tequila can highlight a summery drink; or how the earthy, robust red bell pepper, lowland Tequila can stand up on its own in a heavy spirited cocktail. Here are two cocktails that I think do just that:

1 ½ oz ¾ oz ½ oz ½ oz 2 sprigs

Patrón Roca Aperol Lemon juice Simple syrup (1:1) Fresh thyme

METHOD: Shake all ingredients with ice, strain over fresh ice.

GARNISH:

Sprig of thyme and 3 dashes of orange bitters.

ROBU S T EART H Y LOWLAND T EQU I LA

Sophisticatedly Self-Righteous (A fancy old fashioned – trust me, it works.)

2 oz Casa Noble Añejo (I like this one because of the intense vegetal notes.) ¼ oz

Rich Demerara or turbinado syrup (2:1)

3 dashes Fee Brothers Black Walnut Bitters 3 dashes Dale DeGroff’s Pimento Bitters METHOD: Stir

Gary Gruver Director of Mixology & Spirits Education Southern Wine & Spirits

all ingredients in a mixing glass over large ice cubes, strain up in a cocktail glass.

GARNISH:

Zest of lemon peel

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Training for

INTERVENTION PROCEDURES It was like any other happy hour, until...

Ashley, Fat Cat‛s bartender, heard shouting from the other side of the bar.

When she walked over, the sight of Rudy swaying in his chair and demanding to be served a Vodka and tonic stopped her cold.

At irst, Ashley didn‛t know what to do. Then something clicked, and she remembered. She went over to Rudy and calmly said, “Rudy, you‛re one of my favorite customers, but if I serve you that drink I could lose my job. How about some of those wings that you like and a soda?”

Without saying anything, Rudy slowly stumbled out of his chair, fumbled for his car keys in his pocket, and headed for the restroom. Ashley could tell that Rudy was in trouble. She quickly asked Jeff, Rudy‛s co-worker and friend, to assist with helping Rudy. Jeff convinced Rudy to go with him, and they ended up here (the emergency room).

He‛s going to be okay,” the doctor said. Jeff had never heard anything better. In the morning, he would thank Ashley for having the connidence to step in. That had just saved Rudy‛s life.

Ashley had recently completed a TIPS (Training for Intervention ProcedureS) class, a unique training program that gives alcohol servers the skills and, more importantly, the confidence they need to prevent alcohol-related issues.

In just one training session, your employees will learn to: • Recognize signs of intoxication.

• Handle refusal situations.

• Spot underage drinkers and prevent sales to minors.

• Effectively intervene to prevent problem situations.

Learn more about how TIPS can improve customer service while reducing exposure to alcohol liability lawsuits.

Contact us: 800-438-8477 sales@gettips.com www.gettips.com

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MALFY GIN THE FIRST LUXURY ITALIAN GIN TO BE IMPORTED INTO THE UNITED STATES

By Mike Raven

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I was speaking with Jeff Bartfield of Proximo Spirits (see cover story) about different new products on the market and the topic of Gin came up. He asked if I had ever heard of Malfy Gin from Italy. “No, I haven’t,” I replied. Well, that was all it took for him to tell me the story of a lemon-flavored Gin from Italy’s Amalfi Coast and the man responsible for finding and importing this gem, Elwyn Gladstone. It went something like this.

Elwyn Gladstone worked at William Grant & Sons for eight years or so. He was in charge of new brands and new brand development for the company, outside

of the U.S. There he had the pleasure to work with dynamic brands such as Hendrick’s Gin, Sailor Jerry Rum, Kraken Rum, Stranahan’s Colorado Whiskey and many others. While at William Grant & Sons, Gladstone also worked with Mark Teasdale, who is now head of Proximo Spirits.

After eight great years with WG&S, he decided to take up residence at Proximo Spirits, which was then a very small company with about five employees. It has grown over years to become a very big company with a lot of success stories, including regaining the distribution rights for Cuervo Tequila and setting it on a growth cycle in the US. But Elwyn had always wanted to strike out on his own, so after many years with Proximo Spirits, he finally felt the time had come. He left and, with a leap of faith, proceeded to set up a small company, naming it Biggar & Leith.

The name was based on an 18th century wine and spirits company owned by his greatgreat-great-great grandfather, Thomas Gladston. (Another ancestor of Elwyn’s is William Gladstone, a fourterm Prime Minister of Great Britain).

culture and craftsmanship. The infusion of the local botanicals and Italian lemons, which themselves have a rich history in Italian culture, gives Malfy a distinctive twist,” says Elwyn Gladstone, founder of Biggar & Leith.

Although the spirit is infused with Italian juniper and five other botanicals, it is the infusion of the famous Italian coastal lemons, including some from the Amalfi Coast, that give Malfy Gin its unusually fresh and zesty aroma, and palate that distinguishes it from other traditional, juniper-heavy Gins. The Gin is distilled in the Vergnano family’s traditional vacuum still and is bottled at 41% alcohol by volume. Malfy Gin lends itself to many delicious cocktails and mixed drinks. It is perfect for a classic Gin & Tonic (with a slice of lemon, of course) or a Malfy Martini. Try using it to make a Negroni for a real treat!

“Gin was invented in Italy, long before the British or Dutch had a part in it.”

Cheers!

Elwyn’s idea is to find smaller, family-owned distilleries in Europe that have amazing and real craft credentials, completely different from anything on the market, and develop them. His first brand is Malfy Gin. Malfy Gin is distilled in a family-run distillery in Moncalieri, Italy by the Vergnano family.

“We were researching the history of Gin – and there it was, staring us in the face: Gin was invented in Italy, long before the British or Dutch had a part in it. However, it wasn’t until we tasted the Vergnano family’s Malfy GQDI that we knew we had found a Gin that represents the literal distillation of Italian quality,

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Ultimate Beverage Challenge (UBC) was founded in 2010 by award-winning author/critic/journalist/ educator F. Paul Pacult, publishing executive and editor Sue Woodley, and consultant David Talbot. In 2013, editor/journalist Sean Ludford became a partner. For the past five years, UBC has operated Ultimate Wine Challenge (UWC) and Ultimate Spirits Challenge (USC), which are acknowledged as being two of the world’s foremost annual international wine evaluation and competition events.

AÑEJO TEQUILA 100% Agave Tequila

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This issue, we are featuring UBC’s 2016 top 10 picks in the Añejo Tequila category.

Score: 97 El Tesoro Añejo

Score: 96 Pueblo Viejo Añejo

Mexico, 40% abv Extraordinary, Ultimate Recommendation

Mexico, 40% abv Extraordinary, Ultimate Recommendation

A pretty, pale straw color in the glass, it delivers creamy butterscotch aromas that give way to semisweet notes of chai tea, fresh herbs and a hint of licorice.

The finish is wet stone and pepper.

An enticing fruity funk on the nose is accented by a Milk Dud sweetness.

On the palate, the agave character is pronounced, laced with mocha, pepper and baking spices, leaving you with a cooling peppery finish.

Score: 95 KAH Añejo

Score: 93 Agave 99 Añejo

Mexico, 40% abv Extraordinary, Ultimate Recommendation

Mexico, 49.5% abv Excellent, Highly Recommended

An almost brandy-like nose of crystallized plum fruit and milk chocolate. Prepare for a hedonistic mouthful of sweet, hazelnut candy and a slight lift of wild agave pepper.

A Tequila to be sipped and contemplated.

This bold overproof Tequila wears barrel spice on its sleeve, with oatmeal cookie, candied citrus and saffron taking center stage. There is a present but not overwhelming sense of alcohol, which supports the teaberry and lavender accents toward the end.

Score: 94 Chinaco Añejo Mexico, 40% abv Excellent, Highly Recommended Toastiness and damp earth announce this elegant, mild añejo, which snaps to life with a sip, thanks to thick honeycomb, charred vanilla bean and candied citrus notes.

The finish leaves a long-lasting impression of this wellstructured spirit. A modern classic.

Score: 92 Siete Leguas Añejo Mexico, 40% abv Excellent, Highly Recommended Even at an añejo age, there is no denying the deeply savory agave earth flavors present on the nose. In the mouth, there is a touch more vanilla bean, but this is certainly an añejo for Tequila lovers who value freshness.

Score: 94 Tequila Roca Patrón Añejo

Score: 91 Corazon Añejo

Mexico, 44% abv Excellent, Highly Recommended

Mexico, 40% abv Excellent, Highly Recommended

Generously fragrant with sweet charred pineapple, dark honey and roasted earth. Soft yet textured on the palate, honey roasted sweetness plays with earthy green vegetation creating a complex profile. The bright acidity lends a lemony clean finish.

Decadent and pretty, bursting with aromas of rose, vanilla and Turkish tobacco, the sweet floral aromatics persist through the first sip, adding layers of cinnamon, nutmeg and prickly pear cactus. The wood influence is subtle and nicely integrated.

Score: 94 Santera Añejo

Score: 90 Cabo Wabo Añejo

United States, 40% abv Excellent, Highly Recommended

Mexico, 40% abv Excellent, Highly Recommended

Caramel taffy and freshly baked ginger cookie marry with more classic flavors of pepper and flowers in this hedonistic Tequila. If there ever was an after dinner Tequila that shows how oak and agave can rival Whisky, this is it.

The oak influence has drawn intense flavors of cedar and cherry sap from the intensely earthy base Tequila. The juicy, fruit-driven character continues to a rich, decadent palate accented with baked toffee and wild, spicy clover.

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A CHRISTMAS IN MAY

When the apartment building where Erick Montesinos and his family lived burned down last spring, he, his wife Dheysi, and their children Erick, Jr. and Kelly, lost everything.

Montesinos is a member of the kitchen team at the InterContinental Buckhead in Atlanta, and the hotel arranged to set up a Go Fund Me account to help the family replace their losses. But Director of Human Resources Christopher Fullagar and former Food & Beverage Director Jason Deville knew of another resource: They contacted CORE.

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Children of Restaurant Employees (CORE) is a nonprofit organization that supports the children and families of food and beverage employees who are navigating a life-altering circumstance or condition. Founded in 2004 by a handful of operators and suppliers looking for a way to give back to their own, the organization has supported over 120 children across the country since inception.

One of the CORE founders is IMI Agency, the beverage-marketing agency that manages the World Class Beverage Program. IMI took the fledgling charity under its wing, providing staffing and offices for CORE’s first few years until the organization became established.

A generous donation from CORE helped the Montesinos family get back on their feet. “We met Erick and his family at a shopping mall near the hotel and spent almost three hours getting the items they needed – clothes, formula, diapers, books, school supplies, toys, a TV and some furniture,” says Fullagar. “Erick’s son, who is six, got a bike. We filled up seven shopping baskets and one flatbed cart. It was like Christmas in May.” “We learn about need situations through grassroots communications from restaurants and hotels,” says Lauren LaViola, Executive Director of CORE. “Our Board evaluates the requests on a case-by-case basis. Support can range from assisting a family with a child who has a chronic condition like Down Syndrome, or a life-threatening illness such as cancer, to providing support for the young children of a restaurant employee who dies or is disabled, or helping out in emergency or life-altering situations,

Fundraising for CORE is primarily through a membership program for corporations in the hospitality industry, together with a host of other charity events throughout each year and individual donations.

“Our communications effort is largely through word-of-mouth and social media,” says LaViola.

“We urge General Managers, F&B Directors and Restaurant Managers to become ambassadors of our mission and help spread the word among their colleagues in the supplier, hotel, restaurant and bar communities, so that we can continue to give back to our own.”

as with the Montesinos. We’ve been able to help

To learn more about CORE, become a supporting member, or refer a child or family, visit

hundreds of children and families since we started.”

www.COREgives.org.

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Wine Quiz The Society of Wine Educators’ free app, SWE Wine and Spirits Quiz, is available on all platforms. Just look for it in your app store or go to winewitandwisdomswe.com.

It offers a series of fun, educational quizzes covering the five major categories: red, yellow (white wines), spirits, sparkling and dessert wines. Here are this issue’s sample questions.

The answers can be found on our website, ITMmag.com.

1. W hat percent of Germany’s vineyard area is planted with red grapes?

a) 23%

b) 52%

c) 36% d) 15% 2. Which region produces a wine from the Mencia grape?

a) Condado de Huelva

b) Hessische Bergstrasse

c) Württemberg

d) Ribeira Sacra 3. What region overlaps with some of the Chianti Rufina vineyards?

a) Pomino

b) Carmignano

c) Rosso Conero

d) Bolgheri 4. Aligoté is used in which of the following wine regions?

a) Leithaberg

b) Frascati

c) Bouzeron

d) Bonnezeaux 5.

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What is Ginjinha? a) Raspberry Brandy b) Cherry liqueur c) Apricot liqueur d) Apple Brandy

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6.

What is the main flavoring in Nocino? a) Herbs b) Hazelnuts c) Almonds d) Green Walnuts

7.

What grape is also known as Bouchet? a) Cabernet Franc b) Malbec c) Pinot Noir d) Petit Verdot

8.

What type of wine is produced in the Boberg region? a) Sparkling b) Fortified c) Dry whites d) Dry reds

9.

What type of wine is made in Graves-de-Vayres? a) Chenin Blanc b) Viognier c) Bordeaux blends d) Chardonnay

10. What is Newfoundland Screech?

a) Canadian Whisky

b) Flavored Vodka

c) Icewine

d) Rum

Session Sampling

The lineup of sessions and events for this landmark conference WOWS attendees!

With 55 sessions over three days, this is the most comprehensive educational opportunity of the year!

Essentially every hot topic in the world of wine and spirits will be examined, from Ningxia, China to climate change and minerality.

Diverse and exciting pre-conference events include: • Virginia winery tours – see what everybody is buzzing about!

Minerality: Examining, Challenging & Tasting Its Meaning, Roger Bohmrich, MW Amazing Sake and Cheese Pairing, Toshio Ueno 21st Century Rioja, Robin Kelly O’Connor, CWE A Side of Bourgogne Yet to be Discovered, Jay Youmans, CWE, MW International Bordeaux Blend Blind Tasting, Eric Hemer, CWE, MS, MW

• CWE and CSE previews – learn to master these difficult exams.

• Spirits Master Classes – expand your horizons!

The mission of the SWE is to set the standard for quality and responsible wine and spirits education and professional certification.

Register at: societyofwineeducators.org

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Trinchero Family Estates Presents:

by Barry Wiss, CWE, CSS

Tequila, Genever and White Wines

ACROSS 1

Tequila aged for minimum one year in oak barrels

4

Another name for the agave “head”

6 Modern style (“young”) of Genever, 15% or less of malted spirit 8 French cocktail with white wine and crème de cassis DOWN

12 The agave plant is classified as a _____

2 Not being a true Gin, the EU classifies Genever as a _____ flavored spirit

13 Wormy Tequila-style beverage

3

1970s Eagles’ hit song

18 Process used for cooking the pina

5

25th wedding anniversary or style of Tequila

19 German name for Pinot Grigio

7

The original style of Genever, minimum 15% malted spirit

20 Was the most planted grape in the world (most in Spain)

9

Another name for Melon de Bourgogne; best with oysters!

21 Genever often referred to as Dutch Gin or _____ Gin

10 Unlike Gin, Genever is produced in part with _____ grains 11 Tequila rested in stainless steel for less than 60 days

22 I n the U.S. Tequila must be bottled at no less than _____ proof

14 Bullfighter or cocktail containing Tequila, pineapple and lime

26 Tequila aged for minimum three years in oak barrels

16 Unlike “100% Agave Tequila,” “Tequila” can be made with _____ % non-agave sugars

27 Genever bottles meant to resemble _____

17 A white wine grape considered indigenous to Burgundy, France 23 Primary white grape indigenous to the Veneto region, for sparkling wine

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15 Popular Mexican restaurant blended or rocks cocktail

28 Tradition in Amsterdam when drinking Genever, the first sip is without using your _____ 29 Mexican state that grows the most agave plants

24 Tequila that has “rested” (minimum two months)

30 White wine grape that produces the “oily” (and sweet) wines of Bordeaux

25 Traditional ovens used to cook pinas

31 In 2008, Genever was awarded _____ status by the EU

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Family-owned in Napa Valley since 1948 Trinchero Family Estates began in 1948 as a small, family-run Napa Valley winery with one storied brand: Sutter Home. Now in its third generation, the company has grown into one of the most respected family-owned wine and spirits companies in the industry, with over 45 award winning global brands. Today, Trinchero Family Estates remains an independent, family-owned business committed to quality and value.

www.TFEwines.com Š2016 Trinchero Family Estates, St. Helena, CA

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