Drinks World Asia | Hong Kong #7

THE MAGAZINE FOR MANAGERS, SOMMELIERS AND BARTENDERS 獻給管理者、侍酒師和調酒師的雜誌 HONG KONG & MACAU NO. 7

HONI HONI

Rum Fest 2014

Villanueva HONG KONG CHIVAS MASTER

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st of the fir eing par t b d to be ce re n o n ie r o was h t expe I a . re g g n o a K n g e Hon was the “It has be nest, this petition in o m h co e b cy o a eg . T .

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fun and respectful ‘’Bacardi Legacy is a t in and one of the bigges cocktail competition, t you to many differen the world. It will push ll get r. The competition wi areas as a bar tende ical typ lly ua us s that aren’t you involved in area d an ch as marketing for a bar tender, su will ktail. Join it and you promotion of the coc ’.’ have fun at the same learn something and

-John Ng-

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“Bacardi Legacy is more than a cock tail competition – it is a lifetime experie nc e, a chance to change your ca reer path in the ba r industry, a family gathering and an industry ev ent. A most recognized glo bal cocktail competi tion among World Class, Bols Around the World , etc . Big time to challenge some of the best an d talented bar tenders around the world to creat e the best rum cocktail that will stand the tes t of time.

Your cocktail will stand alongside Mo jito, Daiquiri and Mary Pickford to name a few of Bacardi’s cocktails family.”

-Reeve Yip“It was a great competition for me. I gained a lot of experience from it and learned new technical skills. It was a real eye-opener. There was so much well trained bar tenders star ting in the semifinals, but I was lucky enough to make it to the finals. Everyone did a great job.

What made the Bacardi Legacy interesting was that the competition covered different aspects such as the most promising period, in which bar tenders were given the oppor tunity to show what they’re good at in another way.

What I also liked about the Bacardi Legacy competition was the fact that they gave great Bacardi suppor t and advice to all the competitors, and created a nice atmosphere for everyone. I think this is one of the best competitions at the moment. At the end of the day, joining a competition is never a bad thing. We make a lot of new friends and share ideas to fur ther develop ourselves.

And speaking of winning the competition, with so much up-and-coming talents in Hong Kong, it’s really impor tant to still enjoy yourself and the competition!”

-Nokoy Mak-

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be selected r tenders to a b y ck lu e the in one of s one of th 2014, I wa ls. Enrolling a h in rc f a at M re cy g t a s s “La rdi Leg tender Kong Baca es all bar iv g g n o s H n e n io o it th e H g pet for show to th ational com rn to te e in m s r u o f io y how prestig oppor tunit wledge and It was the s, my kno ill k s y m exposure. y munit nders’ com ccess.

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Welcome Welcome to the latest edition of Drinks World Asia – Hong Kong. It’s yet another exciting, jampacked edition as we bring you more than a hundred pages full of events and happenings, profiles and cocktail concoctions in the drinks world.

Starting with the Rum Festival in Hong Kong. Rum enthusiasts had a blast as they celebrated the 2nd Annual Rum Festival in true tiki fashion at Honi Honi Cocktail Lounge. This is the place to be for those who are looking for an exciting tiki adventure. Check out the 12 new fun cocktail characters in their newly released Summer Edition Cocktail Lineup showcased herein.

A little competition’s good every now and then. From the national level to the global final, we take you across continents for some of the world’s prestigious mixology competitions. We’ve featured herein the Chivas Masters Hong Kong, the first ever Global Chivas Masters in New York, the Bacardi Legacy Global Competition in Moscow, the Diageo Reserve World Class Global Finals in London and the highlights of the Tales of the Cocktail 2014 Spirited Awards. If you’re interested in entering any bartending competitions, these articles are worth spending a few minutes of your time.

We’ve been fortunate enough to have gotten up close and personal with Chivas Masters Hong Kong winner Joe Villanueva and the Ladies in Liquor. Get to know more about them, as well as WW+S President Frank Lonergan, Ruffino’s Gabriele Tacconi and Joanna Kent in our ‘’Meet’’ Section.

Learn more about whiskies as we bring you profiles on Nikka and Nomad. We also have a take on Corzo Tequila and East Imperial’s Burma Tonic Pink Gin. And if you think you know all about liqueurs, then think again. John O’ Toole and Tom Wood will tell you all about the bitter truth of liqueur on pp.

75-77.

Lastly, browse through our Facebook page or check out www.drinksworld.asia to keep up to date on the many events that are going in the drinks world. Until then, flip through the pages and enjoy the next hundred pages or so of everything drinks.

DWA HK team is liking the following at the moment and recommends you check it out: Shake & Hop at the Frying Pan every Monday night The Cocktails by Neil Rivington at Aberdeen Street Social Casamigos Tequila & Mezcal Amores Cheers!

Drinks World Asia - Hong Kong is distributed to 3000+ bars, restaurants and hotels in Hong Kong.

If you would like to have your brand represented or would like to contribute or comment please contact: marc@hipmedia.com.au

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Credits CREDITS Publisher Marc Rodrigues marc@hipmedia.com.au EDITORIAL Publishing Editor Ashley Pini Editor Miracielo Broñola DESIGN Senior Designer Ryan Andrew Salcedo ADVERTISING Advertising Manager Sasha Falloon SALES Sales Director Marc Rodrigues PHOTOGRAPHY Photographer Elden Cheung, Inga Beckmann, Jana Zilcayova, Simonie Ip Writers: Eric Stephenson, Elliot Faber, Gaz Regan, Hannah Waters, Hannah Lanfear, John O’Toole, Michael D Callahan, Michael Silvers, Tom Wood

Various Competitions at this Year’s Restaurant and Bar Show This Autumn, the Restaurant and Bar Show 2014 proudly returns to Hong Kong for what is said to be its biggest show yet. From September 2-4, a plethora of top-end exhibitors will take over halls 5 E, F and G of the Convention and Exhibition Centre, putting their merchandise on display at Asia’s most anticipated food and beverage event.

At this year’s Restaurant and Bar Show, there will be three cocktail competitions to be held at the cocktail theatre: the Twinings Tea Cocktail Competition, the Perrier Sparkling Cocktail Challenge and the Mezcal Amores Cocktail Competition. Each competition will have different themes that will challenge the skill and wit of participating mixologists over the course of three days.

Drinks World Asia is pleased to be involved directly with Mezcal Amores Cocktail Competition and look forward to tasting and judging some great cocktails and seeing Hong Kong’s best bartenders compete and support.

For more details, please contact Drinks World Asia: Marc Rodrigues, marc@hipmedia.com.au

Sponsor

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Editorial Enquiries: If you, your bar, or your brand and company have news or events you would like to share with Drinks World Asia please contact: ashley@hipmedia.com.au Although Hip Media Asia endeavours to ensure the accuracy and correctness of the information and drinks trade and drinkstrade.com.au, we do not accept any liability or responsibility for any inaccuracies or missions. The views expressed by authors of publications or event presentations, published drinks trade, do not necessarily represent the views of Hip Media Asia. Decisions or actions based on the information and publications provided by Hip Media Asia are at your own risk.

drinks-world-asia @drinksworldasia drinksworldasia

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Contents

18

39 75

Meet

18 28 42 44 83 98

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Joe Villanueva

Frank Lonergan

Joanna Kent

The Honey Man - John Ng Gaz Regan

Winemaker at Large - Ruffino’s Gabriele Tacconi

80

Drink

39 47 95 114

Nikka Whisky Family

Cocktail Club - Jack Daniel’s Tennessee Honey Cocktails by Amanda Wan East Imperial Burma Tonic

83

Features

12 20 30 68 75 78 86 88 92

Chivas Masters 2014

Hannah Lanfear

Great Ramos Fizz Shakedown Bacardi Legacy Global Cocktail Competition 2014 The Bitter Truth About Liqueurs

93 100 106 108 120

Ladies in Liquor - El Jimador Rimapere

Hong Kong Bar Scene

Tales of the Cocktail - Spirited Awards World Class Global Final

World Class HK Winner Wallace Lau Gaz Regan’s Mindful Bartending Ladies in Liquor - Svedka Svedka Female Bartending Competition

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Contents

51 88 106

108

Visit

Profiles

80 102 116

36 48 72 110

A Night At the Museum

3 Years in Bourgognes

A Healthy Choice

Nikka Premium Japanese Whisky Nomad

Corzo

Glenmorangie

Regulars

82

In Pursuit of the Perfect Drink

120

Rum Fest 2014

51 54 56 60 62

Hong Kong Rum Festival 2014 HKRF 2014 Sponsor’s Cocktails Honi Honi Tiki Cocktail Lounge Honi Honi Menu

Cuba Story

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° FEATURE °

CHIVAS MASTERS 2014 A Gathering of Hong Kong’s Finest Bartenders

W

hen you get Hong Kong’s elite bartenders together in an iconic hotel like the Peninsula, what takes place is truly brilliant and amazing.

Following on from our last edition, the Chivas Masters Hong Kong 2014 lived up to the expectations of those involved in the competition. Held at Peninsula Hotel’s ‘The Bar,’ the prestigious event saw six of the city’s finest bartenders pit against each other in a cocktail challenge that took them back through time, rediscovering the classic cocktails of the past and giving them a modern twist with Chivas.

Each bartender was given 20 minutes to create their new classic cocktails, which characterized one of the four great cocktail eras, namely: the Classic Age (1880-1920), the Post War Boom (1945-1965), the Disco Years (1975-1990), and the present modern Age of Revivalism.

The six contenders, including Tom Wood, Eric Stephenson, Joe Villanueva, Samuel Kwok, Neil Rivington and Tico Li, showed their cocktail creations before judges comprised of Chivas Global Brand Ambassador Max Warner, Sam Jeveons from Old Street Group, Kaori Shirota, Marketing Director at Pernod Ricard, Pierre Stanghellini, Prestige Channel, Pernod Ricard and DWA’s very own Marc Rodrigues.

With only points between the first and fourth place, Joe Villanueva from the Island Shangri-La was declared the overall winner, taking home the

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Chivas Master Hong Kong title. Joe made four superb drinks that really complimented the spirit, in addition to making a smooth yet entertaining presentation. As the winner, Joe earned himself a trip to the US to compete in the Global final and take part in one of the biggest industry events of the year, ‘Tales of the Cocktail.’

It was apparent from the beginning that the competition both challenged and motivated the group to deliver their best, and what was presented certainly was. “The Chivas Masters was a revealing journey into the minds of Hong Kong’s top bartenders and how they viewed the history of their profession, and how they executed cocktails that best expressed their understanding. It’s the most challenging and closely fought competition of the year,” said Sam Jeveons.

The level of thought and understanding of both the whisky and the eras was outstanding. The technical bartending ability showcased was also befitting of the city’s elite. And the support shown to the competitors was great to see, with partners and friends not only supporting in attendance but also helping in the preparation. Tom Wood, in fact, had his entire family who happened to be visiting from Australia on hand.

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The Chivas Masters is an advocacy programme aimed at the world’s most creative and influential bartenders. Chivas has been the relevant choice for more than 100yrs so it challenges Bartenders at the top of their game to re-visit the drinks styles and techniques that have stood the test of time over this period.

Having travelled across several continents already, it was very exciting for me to come back to Hong Kong to assess the range of talented individuals who have been leading the way with their cocktails and bar programs. A tough challenge, however, Joe Villanueva secured the attributes both in his presentation and attitude which helped him being recognised as the Chivas Masters Winner for Hong Kong 2014.

MAX WARNER

Chivas Regal Global Brand Ambassador

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CHIVAS MASTERS 2014

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FIRST EVER

GLOBAL

CHIVAS

MASTERS

首位全球Chivas调酒大师诞生

I

conic whisky brand Chivas Regal has added yet another feather in its cap with the success of the first ever Global Chivas Masters title held at the NoMad Hotel in New York last July 15, 2014.

The coveted title went to American Bartender Masahiro Urushido, who bested 12 other finalists from around the world and wowed the international panel of judges with his ‘The New Pal’ cocktail creation.

“It’s an honour to be chosen as the first Chivas Master. As a bartender, I am well aware of the long heritage of Chivas, so immersing myself into the history of cocktails to create a drink that can stand the test of time has been very inspirational. I am excited to share this experience with my fellow bartenders and to introduce my ‘The New Pal’ cocktail to my customers in New York. I hope that it encourages other bartenders around the world to create new Chivas cocktails inspired by the great classics”, Masahiro said.

As the winner, Urushido gets the chance to work in partnership with Dave Arnold, inventor and co-founder of Booker and Dax, a food science development company. The collaboration will see Urushido and Arnold working together on an inspirational concept which will be revealed at the next Chivas Masters final in 2015.

The 13 finalists, including Hong Kong’s very own Joe Villanueva, were all winners from the national Chivas Masters heats, which took place around the world following the competition’s launch in April this year. In the national competition, bartenders had to produce a new classic cocktail that would stand the test of time – just as Chivas does – inspired by one of the four great cocktail eras, namely: the Classic Age (1880-1920) which saw the inception of Chivas Regal; the Post War Boom (1945-1965) during which time, Chivas 12 was introduced; the Disco Years (1975-1990) which saw the brand become a truly global icon, and the present modern Age of Revivalism (as detailed in our last edition).

During the two-day competition, bartenders were asked to re-create one of the cocktails that earned them a spot in the final. They were also required to take part in a series of challenges designed to test their creativity, style and skills in producing cocktails that push the boundaries. Judges at the competition were comprised of

16 °

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° FEATURE °

THE FINALISTS: (Top row left to right): Alistair Reynolds (Hawksmoor Spitalfields - London, UK); Chabiz Cadiz (Grand Hyatt Hotel - Santiago, Chile); Cross Yu (The Epic - Shanghai, China); (2nd row left to right): Diogo Quinaz (Liquid Consulting Cascais, Portugal); Gilad Livnat (Imperial Craft Cocktail Bar - Tel Aviv, Israel); Joe Villanueva (Island Shangri-La - Hong Kong); (3rd row left to right): John Samaras (Dalliance House - Kifissia, Greece); Laura Marnich (Zuma Restaurant - Dubai, UAE); Marcus Philipp (The Albertina Passage - Vienna, Austria); (4th row left to right): Marian Krause (Spirits Bar - Cologne, Germany); Mitsuhiro Nakamura (The Peninsula - Tokyo, Japan); Sam Egerton (Palmer & Co Sydney, Australia)

决赛名单: (上排左起):Alistair Reynolds (英国伦敦Hawksmoor Spitalfields)、Chabiz Cadiz (智利圣地亚哥君悦酒店) 、Cross Yu (中国上海The Epic) (第二排左起):Diogo Quinaz (葡萄牙卡斯凯什Liquid Consulting)、Gilad Livnat (以色列特拉维夫Imperial Craft Cocktail Bar)、Joe Villanueva (香港港岛香格里拉酒店) (第三排左 起):John Samaras (希腊凯菲西斯Dalliance House)、Laura Marnich (阿联酋迪拜Zuma Restaurant)、Marcus Philipp (奥地利维也纳The Albertina Passage) (第四排左起):Marian Krause (德国科隆Spirits Bar)、Mitsuhiro Nakamura (日本东京半岛酒店)、Sam Egerton (澳大利亚悉尼Palmer & Co)

leading experts in the world of food and drink, including Ago Perrone, Director of Mixology at the David Collins-designed Connaught Bar in London; Sean Muldoon and Jack McGarry from The Dead Rabbit in New York; and Max Warner, Chivas Global Brand Ambassador.

Dave Arnold praised the overall performance of the competitors during the final round, saying: “There were 13 talented bartenders for the judging panel to consider. These are professionals from some of the most iconic venues in the world so I would like to congratulate all of them for participating. The cocktails prepared by Masahiro were particularly impressive, and I look forward to working with him in the coming months.”

Max Warner, Global Brand Ambassador for Chivas Regal, commented: “From Australia to

Israel, Chile to China, there was talent from all over the world involved in the competition and we are very excited with the success of the inaugural Chivas Masters. The global cocktail scene is seeing a growing interest in classicinspired modern cocktails and, as a brand proud to be nurturing the bartending community, we look forward to continuing to inspire the on-trade to create great cocktails steeped in heritage, such as the one created by the very talented Masahiro Urushido.”

All competitors who took part in the final concluded their trip with a visit to the world’s premier cocktail festival ‘Tales of the Cocktail’ in New Orleans, where Chivas was sponsoring the Best American/International Cocktail Bar at Tales of the Cocktail.

Chivas Regal选出首位全球Chivas调酒大师，为这 个经典威士忌品牌的传奇历史再添辉煌。来自 世界各地的顶尖高手于2014年7月15日云集纽约 NoMad Hotel，争夺调酒大师的宝座，最后由来自 美国的Masahiro Urushido以“The New Pal”鸡尾酒 力压12位对手，夺得殊荣。 Masahiro表示：“很荣幸能成为第一位Chivas调 酒大师。我十分欣赏Chivas的悠久历史，所以从 鸡尾酒的历史中汲取灵感，创造出新的经典，为 纽约的客人带来‘The New Pal’鸡尾酒，并与同 事分享这次经验。希望其他调酒师也能从经典借 镜，演绎充满新意的Chivas鸡尾酒。” 这位冠军得主将会与食品科技开发公司Booker and Dax的创始人Dave Arnold合作，为2015年Chivas Masters调酒大赛决赛带来令人眼前一亮的概念。 Chivas Masters国际鸡尾酒调酒大赛于4月展开， 在全国热身赛胜出的13位调酒师能晋身决赛，包 括香港代表Joe Villanueva。在全国赛事中，参赛 者要调制一款如Chivas般经得起岁月洗礼的鸡尾 酒，灵感源自鸡尾酒历史的四大时期，分别是见 证Chivas Regal诞生的经典时期（1880 – 1920年） 、Chivas 12面世的战后时期（1945 – 1965年） 、Chivas成为国际品牌的迪斯科时期(1975 – 1990 年)，以及现代的鸡尾酒复兴时期（详情见上一 期）。 在为期两天的比赛中，调酒师要重新演绎协助 自己跻身决赛的鸡尾酒，还要迎接多项考验，展 示他们推陈出新的创意与技巧。大赛评委皆为 餐饮业的权威，包括伦敦Connaught Bar调酒总监 Ago Perrone、纽约The Dead Rabbit 的Sean Muldoon 及Sean Muldoon，以及Chivas全球品牌大使Max Warner。 Dave Arnold对参赛者的表现赞赏有嘉。“13位 选手都才华横溢，全部也是著名酒吧的专业调酒 师，却依然积极作赛，非常难得。Masahiro调制的 鸡尾酒十分出色，我很期待与他合作。” Max Warner表示：“很高兴首届Chivas Masters 调酒大赛非常成功，吸引世界各地的人才济济一 堂。Chivas一直致力推广调酒艺术，随着重新演 绎的现代经典鸡尾酒愈发流行，我们希望能启发 更多调酒师创制展现传统魅力的创意鸡尾酒，而 Masahiro Urushido的作品正是当中的典范。” 比赛完结后，各位决赛选手也获安排前往新奥 尔良，参加Tales of the Cocktail世界顶级鸡尾酒盛 事，见证Chivas赞助的Best American/International Cocktail Bar大奖得主诞生。

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Joe Villanueva

Hong Kong Chivas Master 2014

D

rinks World Asia chatted with Joe about his Chivas Masters Hong Kong experience and how has he been preparing for the Global final against the other Chivas Masters.

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° MEET °

DRINKS WORLD ASIA: Tell us about your bar background and how it lead you to become the Hong Kong Chivas Master?

Joe Villanueva: As a kid, I’ve always wanted to be able to mix drinks and flair at the same time.

It was in 2004, while working as a server at an American café, that I realized flairing wasn’t for me. So I focused my energies instead on quality and the art of cocktail making.

Winning the competition was the last thing on my mind. I just wanted to showcase what I like doing most, well...actually trying to achieve what I’ve always wanted to be part of.

DWA: What were your first thoughts on the Chivas Master challenge and creating a cocktail to reflect the four eras? And where did you look for inspiration to create your cocktail for each of the eras?

JV: For me, the Chivas Master challenge was about reviving the classics and sticking to the concepts of each era. In creating the cocktail for each of the four eras, I focused on the products’ dinstinctive taste notes and origins, as well as ingredients that can be easily replicated.

DWA: The best bartenders in Hong Kong were selected to compete in the Chivas Masters. What was it like presenting your drinks alongside the other selected Chivas Masters?

JV: It wasn’t easy standing next to those guys as most of them are known to be kick-ass at competitions. I just had to set my feelings aside, be myself and focus on the competition at hand.

I considered myself fortunate enough to be selected and able to compete at all!

DWA: Tell us about the four cocktails you created for the Chivas Master competition?

JV: CLASSIC AGE – 1880-1920 JJC (James & John Chivas) Cobbler • 3 Fresh raspberries • 1 Whole strawberry (2-inch size. Add 2pcs if it comes in smaller sizes) • 1 Lemon wheel (½ cm thick) • 10ml Honey syrup (2:1 ratio) • 22.5ml Green apple schnapps • 60ml Chivas 12 yrs This cocktail is a fusion of fresh raspberries, which are the national fruit of Scotland and strawberries, which are also commonly grown in Scotland and used for Scottish cuisine such as desserts. Honey syrup and apple schnapps are added to bring out the distinct honeyed apple

flavour of Chivas 12 yo. A touch of citrus is also added to balance out the sweetness.

was located in Aberdeen, Scotland back in 1801.

Now, a restaurant stood in its place.

THE POST-WAR BOOM – 1945-1960 MISGEACH MUNCAIDH • 4-inch Banana • 30ml Fresh lemon juice • 22.5ml Sugar syrup (2:1 ratio) • 5ml Elekamule bitters • 5ml Pernod absinthe • 60ml Chivas 12 yrs This cocktail’s name is inspired by the classic cocktail “mai tai”, which is a Polynesian word meaning literally “very good”. I thought this Gaelic name is perfect since Chivas is from Scotland.

DWA: You will be representing Hong Kong in the Global Chivas Master final against 14 other global finalists. What preparations have you done to bring home the Chivas Masters title for Hong Kong (no pressure or anything)?

JV: I can’t really keep my hopes up high of bringing the Chivas Masters title. There’s going to be 14 other talented bartenders to look up to at the competition. It’s not going to be

THE DISCO YEARS – 1975-1990 Chivas Fever • 60ml Chivas 12 yrs • 90ml Cloudy apple juice • 90ml ginger ale • 1 lemon wedge This cocktail is also known as the original party drink of the 1970s, the time where cocktails are usually easy to make and even easier to drink and sometimes very colorful.

THE AGE OF REVIVALISM – PRESENT 13 King St • 5ml Tia Maria • 15ml Drambuie • 45ml Chivas 12 yrs • Lemon zest (discard) This cocktail goes back through the Chivas Brothers’ roots in 1801, where they sold luxury products such as coffee and spices in their grocery store. This gave me the idea of blending coffee and spices into my Age Revolution cocktail. And the name 13 King St is where the Chivas brothers’ grocery store first opened and

an easy challenge and not something to be underestimated either. I can only hope for the best and grateful to compete with the Masters in the industry.

I was told that there is going to be a whisky tasting, market challenge and other surprise challenges, so lately, I’ve been trying to wash down my palate with different varieties of blended whiskies and polishing my knowledge of food pairings.

DWA: As part of the challenge each cocktail you had to use Chivas Regal. How has the competition and becoming the Hong Kong Chivas Master made you re-look at Chivas Regal and what message can you pass on to other bartenders about the Scotch Whisky?

JV: We all know that blended whiskies are generally cheaper. But instead of looking at prices, we should be focusing more on quality.

I’m just not talking about a great product, but one that can be easily mixed with all sorts of whisky cocktails. Whether it’s combined with other drinks or taken on the rocks, its unique tastes will be distinctive. Chivas 12 years old is a super-refined blended whisky in which you can taste the mix of honey, herbs and fruits in your palate.

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A DECADE LATER AND NO REGRETS WORDS ° Hannah Lanfear

A

s a bartender I am proud to say that London is the cradle of my career. Like many a bottle-slinger I dropped out of university and turned my hand to a trade that can satisfy even the most enquiring mind. Bartending provided a bottomless trove of study and knowledge, practical application and instant gratification that requires no diploma. Hitting the books taught me how the history of spirits is inextricable from the history of mankind itself. A decade later and I’ve no regrets, it’s a wonderful industry to be in.

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For cities it’s London I love the most: an incredibly evocative city, ceaseless innovation underpinned by boundless history. Most every day I cycle over Tower Bridge to work at Bermondsey Distillery taking in the breathtaking views of the Thames as it glisters with sun, refracted by ripples, and it always fills me up with a sense of belonging. Well, in summer at least. Opening a distillery in Bermondsey might be considered a new wave of gin distilling now, but in days gone past it would have been nothing remarkable; both Gordon’s and Tanqueray started life here. It’s mind blowing to consider the cyclical nature of the city, how fashions, tastes and industries flow, ebb and return.

Bermondsey itself was the place where the food produce landed from all over the world being where the wharfs on the Thames were, which explains the neat location of Borough Market. This was where the spices and botanicals would land so of course it made sense for the distilleries to be located, coupled with a good water source, although it wasn’t long before Clarkenwell became the preferred spot. The distillers of London were part of the parcel that brought us to

our existing love of bars. Pubs always brought the community together, they held a role in the fabric of life. When the winter set in and before the electric light, pubs were a warm and brighter place where you could meet the community, it’s in our English culture to have the swift after-work half, and the weekend skinful, and it was the era of Dickens that we come very close to possibly inventing the cocktail, as he well documented in his books. We mixed our wines and ports with sugar, invented the flip, the Bishop, the sangaree, enjoyed bowlfuls of hot and cold punches, even our gin was lengthened with Earl Grey tea. It’s a fair claim to say that the fine art of mixing drinks perhaps wasn’t such an American invention, though it may cause controversy to say so.

Much later when America suffered under prohibition we took up the mantle of cocktail making. The hotel bars of early 20th century London sparkled with the glamorous American tourists on the original booze cruises, taking cocktail holidays and enjoying the fine libations denied them at home. We had Ada Coleman mixing drinks at the Savoy, you’d go to the Ritz if you

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were feeling, well, Ritzy. Not to mention it was hey day of gin making. As Nick Strangeway has shone a light on, we had the fine Café Royal, a crucible of cocktail making in London city.

And for gin making, this was the Golden Era. Back when London Dry gin was really made in London by a number of distilleries kicking out great quality gin. A glorious time, until disaster struck: the war came and drinking was a frivolity few could afford. The war effort meant that distilling fell by the wayside, the men had been drafted. Some distilleries didn’t survive it, and closed for good. Cocktails certainly didn’t make it through, the technically eloquent bartending of the roaring twenties fell into disrepair. The gin distilleries moved to Scotland where grain alcohol was plentiful. Vodka gradually crept into favor, people wouldn’t be seen drinking the fashions of former decades. The sixties, seventies and eighties were a derelict time for cocktails. Until Dick.

Until that moment a cocktail would have been an insipid nightmare of liqueurs, sour mix and carton juice, but Dick Bradsell changed all that. He created a revolution. He held court at Dick’s bar in the Atlantic, and sired a number of the cities best cocktail bars, many of them now just wonderful memories. Even now if you had a cocktail list that use only his signature drinks it would hardly have aged a day. Cocktails such as the Wibble, the Russian Spring Punch, the Treacle, the Bramble, the (sublime) Carol Channing, The Pharmaceutical Stimulant (known to most as the Vodka Espresso), I mean, these drinks changed the face of bartending, and I credit this man, along with Simon Difford and Class magazine, for inspiring thousands of

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bartenders to make this a profession. Had it not been for two publications by the Difford’s Guide (then called Sauce), Drink and Drinking, and Cocktails, I doubt I would have decided to pursue bartending. Thanks to them I became enthralled by what could be learned about the different flavours in spirits, and the intricacies of cocktail technique.

Looking at that curve of how far cocktails came between the eighties and Milk & Honey, where I first cut my teeth as a serious cocktail bartender, well that’s a very long way, and certainly the bastion of contemporary cocktails and the inspired work of Douglas Ankrah at Lab can’t go unmentioned. But even now the development of cocktails hasn’t stopped. The innovators and imitators are always on the march, with a developed common style of technical bartending constantly evolving. After the opening of Milk & Honey the speakeasies came thick and fast, a testament to the work of Sasha Petraske, and despite the fact ten years on we yawn at the opening of yet another speakeasy it was a gift to the bartending community to have the focus put so heavily on the classics. The blueprints of balance, they teach us everything we need to know. There’s nowhere to hide with a classic cocktail, your specs must be bang on to let your cocktail sing.

Using liqueurs and purees and all these strong flavours you could get away with a little give and take in the spec but not with a classic. You become aware of how to balance a liqueur over a syrup, of how to tender citrus when using a dry brown spirit versus a dry white. The next wave of bartending prowess came from that knowledge of classic cocktail structure, when

we tinkered with what we learned to create new classics using the old as a template. In many ways this sorts the charlatans from the true craftsmen. You can’t fake classical bartender training. It’s an essential part of the job, much like a trainee chef needs to work harder for a while, chopping vegetables until gunshot fast.

This decade we’ve seen the graduate bartenders of such training schemes at Match and Lab go forth and pull the bars of the whole city up by its bootstraps. The days of cautiously having a solitary bartender make your martini are long behind, you get them match fit and all over the shop. The importance of fresh and quality ingredients is de rigueur. These bartenders have not only gone on to implement their own training programs in their future projects, they’ve now become owner operators themselves, each with progressive ideas about where bartending is going, iceless bartending anyone?

And distilling? Distilling London Dry gin in the city is back but with verve, passion and technical ability. With a nary a fanfare Sipsmith pulled at the lock gate until the waters rushed forth, claiming the first distillers license to be issued in the city for hundreds of years. And not long behind, Sacred, City Of London, Battersea, East London, and Bermondsey. Echoing the wave of craft distillers in the US, the UK has bartenders enthralled by making the jump into distilling.

We’re not quite there yet, but with small stills showing up on back bars and kitchen tables, it can’t be long before bartenders start to make waves in the distilling world.

To predict what comes next is almost impossible, but we’ve seen a rise in the caliber of cocktails across the board, and the beginnings of an owner operator model. It’s such an expensive city that for most the dream of owning a bar is far beyond the possibilities of a bartender wage, but with the rise of the pop up bar – rudimentary set ups making simple but good quality drinks, the first rung of that ladder is a much easier step, and something that can built on over time into a first establishment. With bars like Happiness Forgets and White Lyan proving that you can turn a £30k investment into a world acclaimed bar, there’s surely more to come from bartenders making their dreams a reality. There’s never been a better time for it.

Hannah is currently the global ambassador at Bermondsey Distillery & Jensen’s Gin , and a freelance journalist. It can be said her fame started whilst she was Head Bartender at Milk & Honey London from 2002 -2006.

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无悔十年 撰文：Hannah Lanfear 伦敦是我调酒事业的摇篮。跟许多人一样，我 从大学辍学，然后投身令人眼界大开的酒吧行 业。调酒是一门高深的学问，着重实践，满足感 极大。在刻苦学习的过程里，我发现酒的历史与 人类的历史密不可分。转眼至今十载，我无悔无 憾，爱煞这个行业。 伦敦是我最爱的城市，充满启发，悠久的历史 成就无尽的创新。我每天都会骑自行车经过伦敦 塔桥，到伯蒙德西酿酒厂(Bermondsey Distillery)上 班，泰晤士河在阳光下波光 ，令人迷醉，使我对 这个城市充满归属感 (起码在夏季如是)。现在在 伯蒙德西开设酿酒厂，可能被视为是要赶上新一 股金酒热，但在以前却普通不过，因为Gordon’ s 和Tanqueray也是在这里起家。这个小小的城市， 见证了时装、潮流和行业的兴衰起跌，实在了不 起。 世界各地的食材会运到泰晤士河边的伯蒙德西 码头，所以著名食品市场Borough Market也落户 这里。各地的香料和蔬果也云集在区内，加上优 质的水源，自然吸引不少酿酒厂来到，可惜不久 后地位便被Clarkenwell取代。全頼这些伦敦酿酒 厂，英国人才会如此喜欢到酒吧消遣。酒吧是居 民生活的重要一环，凝聚社区的居民。在电灯发 明前，每到冬天人们便会到温暖明亮的酒吧相 聚，建立在下班和周末到酒吧浅酌消闲的文化。 根据狄更斯的著作所述，那个年代差一点便发明 了鸡尾酒。当时的人在葡萄酒和波特酒加入糖， 调配出Flip、Bishop和Sangaree等冷热酒品，甚至 在金酒加入伯爵茶，令余韵更绵长。尽管有人异 议，但我认为说调酒的艺术并非源自美国也不为 过。 在美国实施禁酒令期间，英国人开始调配鸡尾 酒。二十世纪初，美国的游客经常乘坐邮轮前往 伦敦酒店的酒吧享受鸡尾酒假期，一尝自由的滋 味。无论是Savoy调酒师Ada Coleman的鸡尾酒，

还是丽思卡尔顿酒店的高级美酒，也同样精彩， 更遑论当时盛极一时的金酒。随着Nick Strangeway 出现，Café Royal便成为城里的鸡尾酒天堂。当 时也是金酒的黄金时期，伦敦数间酿酒厂出品 的London Dry金酒也品质上乘，可惜光辉的日子 并不长久，战争爆发后，酒变成奢侈品，而男丁 被征召入伍，也使多间酿酒厂倒闭。鸡尾酒当然 也难逃一劫，二十年代盛极一时的调酒技术逐渐 凋零。金酒厂陆续搬到盛产谷物酒的苏格兰，伏 特加也逐渐冒起，过去数十年的品酒文化没落， 六十至八十年代更是鸡尾酒的黑暗期，直至Dick Bradsell出现，情况才有转机。 当时人们认为鸡尾酒只是混合利口酒、酸酒 和果汁的饮料，毫不够劲，但Dick Bradsell却 彻底改变了大众的印象，掀起了一场鸡尾酒 革命。他的鸡尾酒在大西洋的Dick’s酒吧和 世界各地的著名鸡尾酒吧大受欢迎，可惜不 少酒吧已成往事。即使菜单只有他的经典鸡 尾酒，也毫无过时的感觉。Wibble、Russian Spring Punch、Treacle、Bramble、Carol Channing、Pharmaceutical Stimulant (普遍称为Vodka Espresso)等鸡尾酒改变了调酒师的形象，使更多 人决定投身行业，我认为Dick Bradsell、Simon Difford和《Class》杂志也应记一功。要不是 Difford’s Guide（当时名为Sauce）出版的《Drink and Drinking》和《Cocktails》，相信我也未必会成 为调酒师。它们让我明白酒里的不同味道，还有 复杂的鸡尾酒调酒技术，令我深深着迷。 从八十年至Milk & Honey 开业(我初试啼声之 地)，鸡尾酒经过了漫长的发展，当中不得不提 现代鸡尾酒和Lab 调酒师Douglas Ankrah的创意鸡 尾酒。时至今天，鸡尾酒仍在不断发展，调酒师 不断创新、模仿，调酒技术不断演变。在Milk & Honey开业后，大量会员制酒吧迅速涌现，印证了 老板Sasha Petraske的成功。十年过去，这类酒吧

已变得平常不过，但也庆幸调酒界依然重视经典 鸡尾酒。不朽的口味平衡得恰到好处，令人深受 启发。调配经典鸡尾酒绝对不能马虎，份量一定 要刚刚好。其他酒如果使用味道强烈的利口酒和 果泥，份量的差异影响不大，但经典口味却绝不 容许。因此，我们学会如何平衡利口酒和糖浆， 如何以干威士忌取代干白酒调和柑橘味。新一股 调酒热潮源于对经典鸡尾酒的认识，调酒师运用 所学的知识，尝试以旧口味调配新经典。传统调 酒师培训是工作的基础，就像见习厨师要先从收 拾或切菜做起，没有快捷方式。 十年来，不少调酒师在Match 和Lab的培训下学 有所成，把城中的酒吧水平带到更高层次。现在 酒吧广纳出色的调酒师，要品尝马天尼不用再苦 等多时。新意和质量也变得重要，调酒师不但构 思自己的培训方法，不少更经营自己的酒吧，对 调酒业的发展也满怀壮志。 另一边厢，酿造London Dry金酒的热潮再度兴 起，比以往更具活力与热忱，技术也更上一层 楼。Sipsmith一直默默耕耘，后来平地一声雷， 成为伦敦数百年来首家获得牌照的酿酒厂，后来 Sacred、City of London、Battersea、East London和 Bermondsey也加入行列。英国的调酒师也跟随美 国的酿酒热潮，钻研有关技术，尽管现在尚在发 展初期，但不少调酒师也在酒吧和厨房餐桌后设 置小蒸馏室，相信酿酒的新浪潮蓄势待发。 虽然无法预测未来，但我们看到鸡尾酒的水平 越来越高，更多由调酒师经营的酒吧冒起。以调 酒师微薄的工资，在寸金尺土的伦敦开设酒吧根 本是妙想天开，但随着临时酒吧的兴起，简单的 布置与出色的鸡尾酒，帮助调酒师踏出实现梦想 的第一步。Happiness Forgets和White Lyan等酒吧证 明了即使只有30,000镑，也能变成世界知名的酒 吧。现在正是调酒师追梦的最佳时机。

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Ketel One believes in

Doing One Thing Well T

here’s nothing more exciting to the Nolet Family than talking to someone who shares this passion and dedication for Ketel One Vodka. That’s why they consider the bartenders they speak to as part of their family. It takes a certain skill, creativity and flare to be a top bartender. The Nolet Family can produce the vodka, but the bartenders are the experts behind the bar.

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There aren’t many brands who can look back over the past 300 years, put their hand on their hearts and say, ‘our family did this’, but then we’re not like other brands, we’re Ketel One Vodka.

To us our family is everything; it makes us who we are today and as we’ve grown, luckily for us, so has our family, which now includes talented bartenders from across the world.

BOB NOLET

11th Generation of Nolet Distillers, Ketel One Vodka

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° FEATURE ° Like his father in the 1980s, Bob Nolet enjoys travelling from country to country, city to city and bar to bar meeting new bartenders and introducing them to the Ketel One Vodka liquid one-by-one. A testament to this is Bob’s recent trip to Asia, where he met some of the regions most dedicated and passionate bartenders over a Ketel One Vodka on the rocks, and was impressed by the dynamic cocktail culture.

Of course, however, the best way to experience Ketel One Vodka, is to visit the Nolet Distillery in person. While Schiedam may not be at the top of your travel bucket list, it’ll be a trip you won’t forget as a bartender. As Bob adds: “I know I’m biased, but I really believe the most exciting way to discover our family heritage and the Ketel One Vodka story is to come and visit us and see the Nolet Distillery for yourself. Our doors are always open.”

At the distillery, you will be able to discover for yourself where the Ketel One Vodka story began and see the original coal-fired “Distilleerketel #1,” or Pot Still

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Number 1, after which Ketel One vodka is named. No tour of the Distillery would be complete without the famous Ketel One Vodka Taste Test; first used (and still used today) to introduce bartenders to Ketel One’s premium taste qualities. It’s this dedication and pride that led to a member of the family individually approving each production run of Ketel One Vodka. A process which still happens today.

Ketel One Vodka hosts an event every year on King’s Day, the biggest national event in Holland. Everything and everyone turns orange and celebrates on this day.

This year’s event was such a success as guests including bartenders from Asia uncovered the magic of Amsterdam over one of the most celebrated weekends in the calendar year. The group discovered the Ketel One Vodka story through an immersive tour of the distillery in Schiedam, an exclusive tour of the best bars in Amsterdam and a King’s Day boat party. In 2015, we would like to repeat the success of this year’s event and once again, invite our bartender friends from Asia to join us in April.

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If bartenders are unable to visit the Nolet Distillery for themselves, Bob tries to bring some of the magic directly to bartenders as part of the Diageo Reserve World Class Bartender of the Year competition to showcase the family’s ongoing commitment and support to nurturing the world’s best bartenders. The competition is the industry’s largest, most credible investment in the luxury on trade, it discovers the next generation of bartending talent who set the latest mixology trends and bring these to the best bars worldwide. At the core is an outstanding, global training programme and internationally recognised platform that elevates the craft of the bartender and builds careers in the industry.

Since the competition’s launch, over 15,000 bartenders have been inspired and educated in the craft of mixology using the finest spirits in the Diageo Reserve collection. Last year’s competition was a massive success with David Rios from Spain being named as Bartender of the Year in his home country where the Finals took place. Now the Finals for the 2014 competition are just around the corner, taking place in the UK from 28 July to 1 August 2014.

At Ketel One Vodka, we know that great endeavours take time, care and dedication.

Whether you’re a bartender crafting quality cocktails at Diageo Reserve World Class, a painter perfecting the moon’s reflection shining down on a still lake, an athlete preparing yourself on the starting line; Ketel One believes in doing one thing well, because remarkable things are created when people just do what they love.

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째 MEET 째

FRANK LONERGAN D

rinks World Asia catches up with Frank Lonergan, President of WW+S, who shares with us how the company started, his plans and commitment to making WW+S the most respected importer, marketer and distributor of North American brands in Asia-Pacific.

Frank Lonergan (left) with Chris Minard

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flagship brands. Of course, most people know of Casamigos because of George Clooney’s association, but what they might not know is just how passionate the founders are about their spirit – one they never intended to market, but decided it was just too good not to share. And although Casamigos can now be enjoyed at the world’s finest bars, restaurants, nightclubs and hotels – George, Rande and Mike’s focus on quality has never wavered. Casamigos is a passion-driven brand – but also one with a sincere commitment to being the best spirit in its class.

Drinks World Asia: Tell us about Frank Lonergan?

Frank Lonergan: Although I’ve spent the past 20 years or so working primarily in technology – based in San Francisco, but entirely focused on Asia-Pacific – I was never far from the food & beverage business; an industry I’ve always admired because it’s driven by passionate, hardworking people. I am proud to say that I now represent my family’s third generation working in wine and spirits, started by my Grandfather who served as the New York distributor for Anheuser-Busch, Carling Black Label and Four Roses from the mid-1930s to the late 60s. Obviously, the industry has changed quite a bit since then, but the love of fine spirits and cocktail culture has remained the same.

DWA: What’s the history of WW+S? FL: Really, the launch of WW+S is just a formalisation of many years of involvement in the F&B realm; from various restaurant and bar investments to ad-hoc consulting on how to best go about serving the Asia-Pacific market from North America – especially on behalf of specialty spirit brands and boutique California wineries. In 2012, Chris Minard, my long-time business partner, and I decided the time was right to start a business focused exclusively on the import, marketing and distribution of premium North American brands throughout Asia-Pacific. We spent a good 12 months or so working on our business plan, raised enough capital to support long-term objectives and in August of last year, WW+S was open for business. Chris now leads our North American operation and I am based here in Hong Kong – which we consider our Asia-Pacific operational hub.

DWA: Tell us about the WW+S portfolio and what excites you about it?

FL: I am glad you asked me this. For any start-up import/distribution company, it’s easy to say yes to any and all brands that come across the desk for consideration. But that approach rarely works and more often than not, is the reason why most small to mid-size North American brands falter, at least initially, in their Asia-Pacific debuts. Chris and I decided early on that the quality of our brands would serve as the foundation of our business, and that the definition of quality would have to be equal parts product and the people who make it.

A perfect example of this would be Casamigos Tequila – one of our

DWA: What are your plans to bring the portfolio to the bar and restaurant market in Hong Kong?

FL: Although the WW+S portfolio is still under development, we already have an exciting line-up of unique North American brands that we plan on introducing over the next year. With each brand launch, we’ll rely heavily on the relationships we’ve developed on the front-lines of Hong Kong’s F&B scene. It’s a two-step process for every introduction. First, get the product into the hands of the best bartenders in Hong Kong. Let them spend some time with the spirit, see how it’s received, etc. Then, based on the feedback we receive, put a more formal and sustainable plan into action.

DWA: What does WW+S want to be known for in the Hong Kong market?

FL: WW+S has a very robust operational infrastructure which includes a wholly owned, vertically integrated logistics backbone with warehouses in San Francisco, Hong Kong and Taipei. We have also invested in an awesome, cloud-based ERP/CRM system developed by NetSuite. But to be honest, without the right people in place, even the most robust operational infrastructure is pretty useless.

We want WW+S to be known as Asia-Pacific’s most respected importer, marketer and distributor of North American brands. But of course, this reputation would be impossible without a firm commitment to only hiring the best in the business: individuals driven by passion, a fierce commitment to customer service, loyalty and above all else, honesty.

We also want WW+S to be known for having a sincere understanding of what’s happening in the local F&B scene, night-in and night-out. I would much prefer our market data to come from the bartenders, bar-backs, servers and the like, the guys and gals on the front-line, versus vague industry research.

At the end of the day, our commitment to those we do business with is pretty straightforward and that’s for each brand in our portfolio to be the top selling brand, in their category, within five years of introduction. Some say this might be a bit audacious, but we definitely have the right people in place and with partners like Casamigos, I think committing to anything less would be unacceptable.

DWA: What do you love about the Hong Kong bar and restaurant scene and how does that tie in with WW+S and your key brands?

FL: Although WW+S has plans to eventually serve all of Asia-Pacific, we are currently focusing on Hong Kong, Macau and Taiwan. Hong Kong is an ideal venue to launch a brand. The city offers global visibility, reach and a truly passionate food and beverage scene. The F&B talent in Hong Kong represents some of the best talents anywhere. If Hong Kong isn’t recognised as the world’s capital of cocktail culture within the next five years… well, then I’m buying the next round!

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° FEATURE °

HOW DO YOU MAKE YOURS? C

ocktailista pits bartender against bartender in head-to-head competition to make their version of the Ramos Gin Fizz. Independently organized – No brand influence, no corporate sway – bartenders get to make the drink any way they want. The only rule is ‘honor the spirit of the original cocktail’.

The rules for the competition were simple; bartenders were free to use any gin, flourish, garnish, glass, special ingredient or preparation method that they wished – the aim of the game or for the more appropriate word ‘cocktail competition’ was to just make the best goddamn Gin Fizz in the city.

The Great Ramos Fizz Shakedown competition was held at Blackbird, that gathered bartenders together featuring some of Hong Kong’s old cocktail pros and then a few fresh faces to the scene. For a few it was their first cocktail competition, which was great to see and we encourage them to continue entering competitions as everyone did a damn fine job.

Taking first place on the night was Charles Chiang from Mamoz with his Butterina cocktail, earning himself the champion title and taking home $3,000. Second place went to Erik Andersson, Hendrick’s Gin Brand Ambassador and third place going to Austen Lendrum from Honi Honi.

30 °

A special ‘thank you’ needs to go out to the four judges on the night, including Sam Tam (Uber Bar Tools), Michael D. Callahan (Proof & Co), Ali Ahmadi (Worldwide Lounges, Cathay) and Marc Rodrigues (Drinks World Asia).

We’ll all look forward to the next Cocktailista competition that will be held in November this year. We hope to see all same faces and new, emerging talents to enter as it’s not a competition to be missed.

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Winner

CHARLES CHIANG Mamoz 28/F, Cubus, 1 Hoi Ping Road, Causeway Bay 9186 9766 charleschiang822@gmail.com COCKTAIL: BUTTERINA Recipe: • 44.4ml Hendrick’s Gin • 8.9ml Fresh Lemon Juice • 8.9ml Fresh Lime Juice • 29.6ml Egg White • 29.6ml Avocado Puree • 14.8ml Guava Nectar • 22.2ml Homemade Cardamom Syrup • 1 dash Homemade Hibiscus Bitters • 14.8ml Heavy Cream • 14.8ml Creme Fraiche • 29.6ml Fever Tree Soda Water

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° FEATURE °

The Finalists AUSTEN LENDRUM

ERIK ANDERSSON

CRISANTO KU YAT

ANTONIO RAMIREZ

Honi Honi Tiki Cocktail Lounge 3/F, Somptueux Central, 52 Wellington Street, Central, Hong Kong 6494 8711 austen.lendrum@gmail.com

Hendrick’s Brand Ambassador William Grant & Sons Liquor Trading (Shanghai) Limited +852 9617 7931

Mamoz 852 5408 1891

Mayta Peruvian Kitchen and Pisco Bar 3rd Floor, Grand Progress Building, 15-16 Lan Kwai Fong, Central 6200 6050 manuelsaveramirez@gmail.com

COCKTAIL: TROPICANA-RAMA FIZZ Recipe: • 60ml Plantation Grande Reserve • 10ml Cherry Heering • 20ml Fresh Lime Juice • 30ml Coconut Milk • 12.5ml Egg White • 10ml Sugarcane Syrup • 8 pcs Blueberry • 4 pcs Strawberry

32 °

COCKTAIL: ROWDY ROOSEVELT ROSE FIZZ Recipe: • 60ml Hendrick’s Gin • 1 dash Rose Water • 30ml Half&Half • 15ml Sugar Syrup • 10ml Rose Syrup • 15ml Lime Juice • 15ml Lemon Juice • Soda Water

COCKTAIL: RINGO-GO Recipe: • 45ml Martin Miller’s Gin • 15ml G.E. Massenez Liqueur d’ Abricot • 10ml Fresh Lemon Juice • 10ml Fresh Lime Juice • 15ml Homemade Cinnamon Syrup • 15ml Egg White • 15ml Whipping Cream • 2 dash BAR KEEP Baked Apple Bitters • 75ml Fever Tree Soda Water Garnish: • Crispy Caramel • Burnt Green Apple Slice • Cinnamon Stick

COCKTAIL: SEÑOR RAMOS Recipe: • 60ml Orange Slow Cooked in Gin • 90ml White Quinoa Milk • 30ml Egg White • 15ml Lemon Juice • 15ml Lime Juice • 25ml Sugar Syrup • 2 Dashes Thyme Reduction • Soda to Top

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RON FOK

CYRUS KWAN

JENNY WANG

JACK BYRNE

Quinary Ground Floor, 56-58 Hollywood Road, Central, Hong Kong 6154 4152

The Blck Brd zyruskwan@gmail.com 6409 5916

Tiffany’s New York Bar 6793 6291 jenny.wang@glion.ch

The Black Star 6681 7754 jack.byrne821@gmail.com

COCKTAIL: BLACK & SLOE FIZZ Recipe: • 4 Blackberries • 29.6ml Simple Syrup • 29.6ml Heavy Cream • 14.8ml Lime Juice • 14.8ml Lemon Juice • 14.8ml Creme de Mure • 22.2ml Egg White • 44.4ml Monkey 47 Sloe Berry Gin • 14.8ml Monkey 47 Gin • Absinthe Spray

COCKTAIL: SMURFS FIZZ Recipe: • 40ml Hendrick’s Gin • 15ml Bitter Truth Violet Liqueur • 10ml Fresh Lemon Juice • 10ml Simple Syrup • 15ml Cream • One Egg White • Soda Water • Violet Foam • Orange Zest

COCKTAIL: 1907 WAKE ME UP Recipe: • 44.4ml Berry Bro’s No.3 Gin • 1oz St Germain Elderflower Liquer • 29.6ml Half/ Half - Milk/ Heavy Cream • 22.2ml Lime Juice • 22.2ml Egg White • 1 Passion Fruit • Top Soda Water

COCKTAIL: SHISO GIN FIZZ Recipe: • 45ml Gin • 30ml Fresh Lime Juice • 15ml Simple Syrup • 20ml Calpis • 40ml Cream • 15ml Egg White • 3 Dashes Lime Essence • Soda Water • Dry Ice with Shiso Gin

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째 FEATURE 째

34 째

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° PROFILE °

NIKKA

Premium Japanese Whisky

W

hen it comes to alcoholic beverage, sake is the drink often associated with Japan. However, Japanese whisky, while not around as long as sake, is steeped in history that started with the passion of one man – Masataka Taketsuru – that led to the birth of Nikka.

WORDS ° Elliot Faber & Miracielo Broñola Father of Japanese Whisky Masataka Taketsuru

Whisky was first introduced to Japan as early as 1853 with the arrival of an American commodore in Tokyo bay. Attempts were made to produce this drink in the late 19th century, but the first trials made from rice/corn were unsuccessful. It wasn’t until 1918, when Masataka Taketsuru, a sake brewer’s son, was recruited by the Settsu Shuzo Company to create the first authentic Japanese whisky that whisky production in Japan took off.

Taketsuru journeyed to Scotland to learn the art of whisky making first hand, where he apprenticed at distilleries and would eventually become known as a master blender. He later joined Kotobukiya (now Suntory) and helped establish the first Japanese distillery in 1924. It was during this time that he succeeded in creating Japan’s first whisky.

His vision of whisky was influenced much by his travels to Scotland, and he knew that the right environment was important. In order to produce whisky as he felt it ought to be, he would have to be on his own.

In 1934, Taketsuru established Yoichi distillery, which lies in the surfside town of Yoichi in Hokkaido.

The distillery had the ideal terroir for making Scottish whisky, and generally produces generously peated Highland style whiskies. Yoichi’s distinct and robust aroma and richness is a result of direct heating distillation, in which the pot stills are heated with finely powdered natural coal – a traditional method that is rarely ever used today, even in Scotland. In the same year, Taketsuru founded the Dai Nippon Kaju Kabushiki Kaisha, meaning the “Great Japanese Juice Company”. He later renamed it to Nikka Whisky, a combination of NI-ppon and KA-ju. The first bottle of Nikka Whisky hit the Japanese market in 1949, and even with the war going on, it soon became a favorite with both locals and officers stationed in Japan.

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The Yoichi Distillery in Hokkaido

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° PROFILE °

Miyagikyo Distillery, established in 1969

Thirty-five years later in 1969, Taketsuru began production in his Miyagikyo distillery located in Sakunami, a small village rich with surrounding rivers and forests producing water and a climate perfect for floral and fruit driven Lowland style whiskies that the distillery portrays. While Yoichi is more traditional, Miyagikyo makes full use of modern innovations.

The entire process is controlled by computers with extreme precision to ensure only the purest spirit possible is produced, while preserving its delicate character. The pot stills are heated by steam at low temperatures to guarantee a soft and gentle distillation. Miyagikyo distillery also boasts Coffey stills on its site. Although these whiskies do not enter into the Miyagikyo Single Malts, they are an important ingredient in all of Nikka’s blended whiskies.

Today, Nikka offers three brands of Whisky: Yoichi, Miyagikyo and Taketsuru. The Yoichi Single Malt is made in Nikka’s first distillery. Its distillation method of direct heating using natural coal is what gives it a smoky and spicy flavor, with hints of caramel. The Taketsuru series, on the other hand, is a beautifully complex yet elegant vatted malt comprised of single malts from both distilleries. It’s milder and sweeter, and has a smooth taste, which makes Taketsuru a great introduction to Japanese whisky. And the ever so drinkable Nikka Black Clear is also available, as is the award-winning cask-strength bottle designed Nikka “From The Barrel”.

Masataka Taketsuru remains the founding father of Japanese whisky, and to this day, his legacy and unrelenting passion for quality continues to live on through the Nikka blender team, whose quest for excellence in Nikka whiskies reflects his dedication and work.

Elliot Faber is Hong Kong’s resident Nikka expert and passionate admirer. He currently works at YardBird & Ronin, two of Hong Kong’s best Japanese establishments.

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° DRINK °

Nikka Whisky Family SINGLE MALT YOICHI Produced at the Yoichi distillery in Hokkaido, this brand of single malt whisky is truly authentic, with its peated aroma and richness that are a result of direct coal-fire heating. Voted the World’s Best Single Malt Whisky in 2007 & 2008 and a consistent ISC Gold Medal winner, from 2009 to 2014.

Single Malt Yoichi 10 Years

Single Malt Yoichi 12 Years

Single Malt Yoichi 15 Years

Single Malt Yoichi 20 Years

This single malt whisky from the Yoichi distillery is characterized by a clean, fresh fragrance with notes of peat, light smoke, spice and fruits.

Its long, complex finish reveals an excellent balance between the woody, fruity and floral notes. A rich texture and underlying power make this the most masculine of Japanese single malts.

Marked by partial ageing in sherry casks, this 12 year old bottling is rich, peated and slightly sweet. Its taste begins with liquorice, followed by notes of charred wood and toffee, highlighting the softness and elegance of this whisky. The finish is of good length with a little spicy sweetness and smoke.

Vatted from several barrels, this single malt whisky is characterized by its mature and ample aroma of subtle fruit notes on a thick peat base. It’s smooth, silky and sweet to the palate with notes of subued peat, winter spice and a nutty note. Long and beautifully bittersweet finish makes this truly distinctive.

A magnificent version of the traditional Japanese Yoichi single malt, this whisky is 52% alcohol and is much favoured by the experts. It features a rich and intense aroma of peat notes delicately supported by fresh fruit fragrances, a mellow wellrounded palate and a bold, powerful taste.

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° DRINK °

SINGLE MALT MIYAGIKYO Produced using a combination of expertise and modern innovations at the Miyagikyo distillery in Honshu, this brand is the most subtle, least peated and luxuriantly fragrant single malt whisky from Nikka. ISC Gold Medal winner in 2010, 2013 & 2014.

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Single Malt Miyagikyo 10 Years

Single Malt Miyagikyo 12 Years

Single Malt Miyagikyo 15 Years

This 10 year old bottling from the Miyagikyo distillery is suave and precise, conveying notes of malted barley with slight touches of vanilla and caramel. It’s marked by a luscious and sensual taste, with flavoursome notes of oak, coconut and milk chocolate.

Previously named Sendai, this single malt whisky is notable by the harmony of the aroma of aged casks with sweet hints of vanilla and peat. Its soft and rich taste is elegantly deepened by a sweet and tangy fruitiness. With a long and warm finish, this whisky is not only robust but also shows real finesse.

This unique and charming 15 year version is a fine example of a whisky aged in sherry casks. It features an aroma of nutty notes and spices, and unveils fine notes of honey and field flowers. Intense and generous, with a richer and rounder texture.

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PURE MALT TAKETSURU A beautifully complex yet elegant blend of the two Nikka single malts, this brand is both traditional and innovative. Voted the World’s Best Blended Malt Whisky in 2007, 2009, 2011 & 2012 and an ISC Gold/Silver Medal winner for eight consecutive years, from 2007 to 2014.

Pure Malt Taketsuru 12 Years

Pure Malt Taketsuru 17 Years

Pure Malt Taketsuru 21 Years

The result of a vatting of the Yoichi and Miyagikyo single malts, the 12 year old Taketsuru bottling is a perfect introduction to Japanese whisky. It is fresh and balanced, with gentle peat and pleasing malty aroma. Silky and smooth on the palate. Its round, sweet taste with apple and pear notes is reminiscent of an apple crumble and salted butter caramel.

Voted the World’s Best Blended Malt Whisky in 2012 and 2014, Taketsuru 17 year old whisky is a vatting of the Yoichi and Miyagikyo single malts, of which a larger percentage of malts is aged in sherry cask, giving it a unique richness. Distinguished by its stunning complexity and sophisticated, mature aromas of dried fruits, leather and tobacco spice.

Round and rich, this blend of single malts will delight both beginners and experts as well as whisky lovers. It’s perfectly balanced and mellow, with a lingering finish that delivers a complex range of aromas, from tropical fruits to nuts, or mocha.

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° MEET °

JOANNA KENT on Jack Daniel’s No.27 Gold B

orn in Glasgow, Joanna Kent went places before settling in Hong Kong. In our interview with her, she tells us about her Scottish roots, how she got into bartending / bar managing and what she thinks of Jack Daniel’s No.27 Gold.

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Drinks World Asia: Tell us about you and your Scottish background? What do you miss about Scotland? What made you decide to move to Hong Kong? How did you get into bartending / bar managing?

Joanna Kent: I was born in Glasgow and lived there until I graduated from University. After that, I moved to Edinburgh where I was based for almost three years before leaving to go

DWA: What were your initial thoughts on Jack Daniel’s releasing No.27 Gold Tennessee Whiskey?

JK: I think it’s wonderful seeing a new premium product from Jack Daniel’s. The No.27 Gold Tennessee is a real testament to the brand’s strength, and this new style shows innovation and foresight to new emerging whisk(e)y markets.

travelling. The thing I miss most about Scotland (apart from my friends and family obviously) is the price of whisky!

From London, I moved to Hong Kong, where I took a brief break from the F&B scene. My boyfriend moved to Hong Kong six months before me for work. I was a little lonely in London and I missed working in hospitality, so I thought Hong Kong would be exciting and a new challenge. Furthermore, my grandmother was born in Vietnam and raised by a Cantonese

DWA: After you were introduced to the product, what are your thoughts on Jack Daniel’s No.27 Gold?

JK: I was very impressed with the product. As I have mentioned previously, the style is quite different from their other premium whiskies such as Gentleman Jack and Jack Daniel’s Single Barrel. It is mellow and soft, with subtle maple hues and unusual banana notes, something you don’t see much of in American Whiskey.

amah. She spent a lot of time in Hong Kong as a child as my great grandfather was manager for HSBC Saigon, so they travelled round much of Asia. As a result, we were always surrounded by Asian culture as children, and it feels very much like home to me.

I started bartending when I was 18; it was my first job after leaving high school. I worked for five years in Glasgow, one year full time, and then four years part time during

DWA: The product is designed specifically for the Asian market. Why do you think Jack Daniel’s No.27 Gold Tennessee Whiskey will be successful?

JK: I think this product will definitely be successful, for several reasons. For one, Jack Daniel’s is a long established and respected name within the trade and consumer markets.

From what I have learned and from my time in

Hong Kong so far, people have a lot of respect for these well-known brands and continue to seek them out for their own personal enjoyment, or to use these brands when making cocktails.

Secondly, whisk(e)y has always been seen as a premium and elite spirit in Asia. Therefore, the introduction of a new premium whisk(e)y from a reputable brand, will definitely stir great interest once the product is launched.

Finally, there has been a great influx of new whisk(e)y products throughout Asia. There have been several new whisky distilleries opening in Japan, and more new releases from Kavalan in Taiwan. There are definitely new flavours and styles being developed across Asia, and the Jack Daniel’s No.27 flavour profile, is working alongside these new markets. I feel it will offer a great alternative for those who wish to drink American Whiskey.

DWA: Tell us where Jack Daniel’s 27 Gold should sit on the back bar and drinks list?

JK: On the back bar, Jack Daniel’s 27 should be placed right alongside all the premium bourbons and whiskies such as Basil Hayden, Bakers, Bookers, Michters or Eagle Rare. In a drinks list, it would work extremely well with any classic whisk(e)y cocktail. It’s also great taken straight up or on the rocks.

University. However, it was only when I moved to Edinburgh and started working full time at Bramble that I really began my education as a serious bartender. I became assistant manager there and then also became assistant manager at our sister venue, where I then became general manager, and things went on from there.

DWA: Tell us what you like about premium Whisk(e)y?

JK: I love premium whisk(e)y. I think many

Seekers of gold never compromise. They devote themselves to the relentless pursuit of what they treasure. Some pursue wealth, others fame. But we seek excellence and wisdom that it brings. This is Jack Daniel’s Gold.

Jack Daniel’s Gold is a double barrelled, double mellowed Tennessee Whiskey. It’s extra matured in handcrafted golden-hued maple barrels and twice charcoal mellowed for luxurious hints of maple and an exceedingly smooth finish.

people can be put off when they only try very basic spirits, as they do not necessarily

TASTING NOTES:

reflect the time and craft that can go into the

Color: burnished gold

making of these amazing products. The flavour developments, the smoothness in the ABV and on the mouth feel, are just a few of the reasons premium whiskies are so fantastic.

DWA: Other than your own venue, what premium bars in Hong Kong are you liking at the moment?

Aroma: subtle hints of rich, warm maple, toasted oak and honey open up, followed by a complex medley of fruit Taste: creamy vanilla, with a trace of chocolate and maple notes, and hints of spice linger in the background

JK: I love Bibo, Aberdeen Street Social, The Envoy, Little Lab and Ping Pong, to name a few

Finish: smooth, slight sweetness with a hint of malt

great new bars that have recently opened. I still love Butler for a classic cocktail, and nothing

beats The Globe or The Roundhouse for a great beer.

Distributor: Telford International Company Limited Contact: 2722 5066 Email: corporate@telford.com.hk

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THE

HONEY

MAN J

ohn Ng talks about Jack Daniel’s Tennessee Honey Whiskey, creates some great cocktails and shares with us how he came up with the name ‘Honey Man.’

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° MEET °

Drinks World Asia: It is well known in this publication and others, you are referred to as the ‘Honey Man’. For others, share with us how you came about this name for yourself?

John Ng: As I’ve said previously, normal sweeteners do not give much flavour to the drinks, that’s why I like to use honey. In fact, there are many varieties of honey and it all depends on where the honey is sourced from and what farms. They can be floral, fruity or intense. Local honey for example, is less intense and more fruity. Additionally, drinks with honey are more organic than those with sugar. Customers will have a different experience with honey, and that’s how the ‘Honey Man’ came to me.

DWA: What does the Honey Man and Jack Daniel’s Tennessee Honey Whiskey have in common?

JN: We’re both strong and with a hint of sweetness. Jack Daniel’s is generally a man’s brand yet gentle like me. In the hospitality industry and as a bartender, I like to be a gentleman and sweet to all my customers, which is reflected in the Jack Daniel’s Tennessee Honey Whiskey. When these two things come together, what you have is a great combination and balance of being a man and sweetness – attributes that are necessary in the industry.

DWA: What were your first thoughts on the Jack Daniel’s Tennessee Honey Whiskey?

JN: It’s a stand out product in its range, since it is whiskey based.

However, it also shows a feminine side to the brand. It’s special in the market and in a way, it is a challenge for bartenders to balance it out – but we all like a good challenge!

DWA: You have created three cocktails using the Jack Daniel’s Tennessee Honey Whiskey. Tell us about each cocktail and your inspiration behind each?

JN: For Tennessee Iced Tea, I use a classic combination of tea and honey, and added whiskey to give it a kick. And Jack’s Word is designed to be a real man’s drink in a dark corner in a bar. It’s a classic twist of a Manhattan mixed with a Cynar to enhance its flavour. Wake up with Honey is the perfect pick-me-up for those who had a few drinks the night before. This gives them a good kick to get right back in.

DWA: As one of the top bartenders in Hong Kong and having previously created a cocktail list, tell us how important it is to work with new products and flavours as a bartender and bar manager?

JN: Creating a cocktail list is never an easy job, but it is something that I really enjoy. When coming out with a list, it’s important to think like a manager and develop cocktails that your clientele will love. And as a bartender, it’s essential to work on new flavours and have new cocktails and selections for your customers. It’s also vital to work on new flavours that can challenge us as bartenders, and this is how you can create unique cocktails.

Moreover, it’s important to receive feedback from co-workers and customers on our cocktails. Getting their points of views will be helpful to us in creating a cocktail that is tailored to their requests and will enable us to redefine the cocktail list in the future based on majority of the feedback.

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° PROFILE °

A LITTLE BIT OF

HONEY. A WHOLE LOT OF

JACK. J

ack Daniel’s Tennessee Honey is a blend of Jack Daniel’s Tennessee Whiskey and a unique honey liqueur of our own making, for a taste that’s one-of-a-kind and unmistakably Jack.

With hints of honey and a finish that’s naturally smooth. Jack Daniel’s Tennessee Honey is something special.

TASTE: The new Tennessee Honey is undeniably smooth, with a honeysuckle nose and tasting notes of praline, caramel, butter and of course, wild honey.

JACK FACT: A smooth blend of Jack Daniel’s Tennessee Whiskey and honey liqueur to deliver a taste that is authentically ‘Jack.’

Jack Daniel’s Honey Tennessee Whiskey is only available in Hong Kong throughout Asia.

Distributor: Telford International Company Limited Contact: 2722 5066 Email: corporate@telford.com.hk

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° DRINK °

Cocktail Club Tennessee Iced Tea Ingredients 45ml Jack Daniel’s Tennessee Honey Whiskey 20ml Gentleman Jack 30ml Lemon juice 20ml Tea and honey mix Top up lemonade

Jack’s Word Ingredients 45ml Jack Daniel’s Tennessee Honey Whiskey 20ml Cynar 20ml Sweet vermouth 2 dashes of Angostura bitters Bar spoon Maraschino

Garnish Two lemon wedges, orange twist and pineapple leaves Glassware Collins glass

Wake Up with Honey Garnish Orange twist Glassware Coupe glass

Ingredients 30ml Jack Daniel’s Tennessee Honey Whiskey 30ml Gentleman Jack 20ml Lemon juice 20ml Fresh pineapple juice

Garnish Orange zest, pineapple wedge and pineapple leaves Glassware Teacup with saucer

Egg white Top with soda

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° PROFILE °

Afrom Break the

TRADITION

N

omad breaks the tradition by bringing an aged whisky from the Highlands of Scotland to Jerez, where it is left to mature in Pedro Ximénez barrels in González Byass cellars.

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Antonio Flores, Master Blender, González Byass

Reinventing Whisky A product from the team-up of González Byass Master Blender Antonio Flores and award-winning Whisky guru Richard Paterson, Nomad Outland Whisky is a brand new concept that turns Whisky production on its head, reversing the traditional process of ageing Whisky by bringing it to Jerez to mature in Pedro Ximénez barrels in the unique atmosphere of González Byass cathedral-like cellars. Nomad Outland Whisky reinvents and challenges the perceptions about Whisky, redefining what Whisky can be and how it tastes.

From the Highlands of Scotland to Jerez Born in Scotland and aged in Jerez, Nomad Outland Whisky is imbued with the characteristics of the wild, open space of the Scottish Highlands.

A new concept that takes the Whisky itself on a journey from its birthplace to the warm and humid plains of Jerez where it is left to soak up the wonderful natural aspects of this special micro-climate, giving Nomad its quintessential Scottish character and a soul that is truly Jerezano.

Nomad has had its ageing process enhanced by bringing an aged Whisky from the Highlands of Scotland, principally from Speyside, to Jerez to complete maturation. Scotch Whiskies, specially selected by master blender Richard Paterson, have been shipped to this historic Andalucian city, where under the watchful eye of González Byass master blender Antonio Flores, they are left to age in Pedro Ximénez barrels in the unique micro-climate of Jerez.

The aromas and flavours of Nomad are enhanced by this innovative process, where the Whisky is allowed to imbibe the native yeasts, humidity and sea breezes that fill the famous González Byass cellars in Jerez. The result is a smooth, rounded and mellow Whisky that stands out from the rest, and which challenges and excites consumers who are looking for something different, people who are inspired by the discovery of knowledge from around the world.

Nomad Outland Whisky Brief Though there are many whiskies that are aged in sherry casks in Scotland, Nomad is the only Whisky in the world that is allowed to age in the González Byass cellars in Jerez, coming into contact with the wild yeasts and flors that imbue the bodegas and their contents, with the unique characteristics that make this whisky so special. This original blend is made up from Whiskies of between 5 and 8 years old, which are left to mature in sherry butts in Scotland for three years altogether, before being transferred to Jerez to be aged in the San Fernando cellars of González Byass for a minimum of 12 months. It’s a unique formulation with over 30 different single malt and grain Whiskies, blended in the Highlands of Scotland, using whiskies principally sourced from Speyside.

This has been a most interesting project to be involved in. Seeing the way in which the whiskies chosen by Richard interacted with the different Sherry barrels was fascinating until we lighted on the Pedro Ximénez ageing Whisky which most certainly was the best result. Rich and rounded, the sweetness of the wood and the wonderful Pedro Ximénez character which infuses the spirit make this a most exceptional spirit.

ANTONIO FLORES Master Blender, González Byass

It takes years to create a blend of this magnitude but only a matter of seconds to recognise its outstanding quality. Therefore give it all the reverence it richly deserves. By holding the spirit long in the mouth – you will immediately savour its rare attributes. Glazed oranges, marzipan, tarte-tatin and Black forest fruits immediately engulf your palate before the next barrage of flavours reward your senses; moist banana cake, peaches in syrup, mulled wine and whispers of liquorice and crushed almonds brings this masterpiece to memorable close.

RICHARD PATERSON Master Blender

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appletonestate.com

RICH IN CHARACTER. Joy Spence, Master Blender, Appleton Estate

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Exceptional people enjoy with care.

RICH IN LIFE.

Exceptionally Crafted Since 1749

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HONG KONG O

RUM FESTIVAL

2014

n May 24 - 25, rum aficionados, rum lovers and those seeking a stylishly tiki adventure trooped to HONI HONI for one of the most exciting events in town, the Hong Kong Rum Festival 2014. Proudly hosted by HONI HONI Tiki Cocktail Lounge, the 2nd Annual Rum Festival was attended by over 1,200 guests and visitors throughout the weekend (triple the amount of the first year) that embarked on a journey of rum discovery and appreciation to 16 suppliers that represented 40 brands. These suppliers showcased a tempting display of over 70 different rums to tickle one’s taste buds, some of which had never been tasted on Hong Kong shores.

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HO NG KO NG “Last year’s Rum Festival was great, but this year really raised the bar. It was definitely a weekend to remember, full of an outstanding amount of Rum drunk and surrounded by great friends.”

Max Traverse, Founder of HONI HONI

Riding on the success of last year’s Rum Festival, HONI HONI raised their cups in true tiki style to celebrate the diversity of rum. The two-day extravaganza was packed with a variety of activities, including rum master classes from the likes of Ian Burrell (International Rum Ambassador), Andre Carey (Caripelago Trading ltd Director), Phillippe Buchle (French Rum Ambassador), John O’Toole (Universal Exports President), Alfonso Castilo (Asia-Pacific Area Manager of Diplomatico), Alexandre Gabriel (Master Distiller for Plantation Rums) and Liam Costello (owner and Master Distiller of Fiji Rum). There was also a cocktail competition

on Sunday evening, a variety of Caribbean snacks including rum cakes, a live ukulele show, an array of fabulous samples of rum-inspired beauty products by Malin + Goetz and talented food carvers. The evening was topped off with the Tropical Soul Party presented by Africa Soul Party that everyone rocked out to after a presentation of Maisha’s new autumn/winter apparel collection and Banda Orbita, revealing their talent in style.

Five of the favourite old school bartenders took to the bar on Sunday evening for a much anticipated speed competition. Standout cocktails were thrown together with a need for

speed and accurate precision, with Tom Wood becoming the Rumfest Speed Competition 2014 winner. The People’s Choice Award went to Old Salt Rum brought to the Rumfest by Red Willow ltd.

Suppliers that took part in the fest included Caripelago Trading ltd, Fine Vintage [Far East] ltd, Universal Exports ltd, Jebsen Beverage Co ltd, Branded Spirits ltd, Moet Hennessy Diageo Hong Kong, Pernod Ricard Hong Kong ltd, Proof and Company, Red Willow ltd, Macro Wines & Spirits HK, Rhum de France and last but not least, Jax Coco.

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Sponsor’s

COCKTAILS

ZACAPA 23 COCKTAIL

TOKYO DAIQUIRI

DOCTOR JAX

Recipe: 60ml Zacapa 23 Years Old 10ml Sugar Syrup 2 dashes of Chocolate Bitters 2 dashes of Orange Bitters

Recipe: 45ml Havana Club 7 Years Old 15ml Lime Juice 10ml Sugar Syrup 1/4 Tea spoon of Green Tea Powder

Recipe: 100ml Jax Coco 50ml Guava Juice 15ml Passion Fruit 20ml Pineapple Juice

by Ron Zacapa

Garnish: Lemon Twist Glass: Old Fashioned with ice cubes

by Havana Club

Garnish: none Glass: Martini Glass

by Jax Coco

Glass: Tiki Glass Created by: Honi Honi Team

Garnish: Watermelon Slice

FERRYMEN COCKTAIL

LA FILLE DU FERMIER

PANDANADOL PAINKILLER

Recipe: 50ml Plantation Dark 10ml Drambuie 7ml Maraschino 1 Dash Orange Bitters

Recipe: ¼ of Green Apple 60ml Rhum Damoiseau 20ml Lemon Juice 10ml Raspberry Liqueur 10ml Egg White

Recipe: 45ml Diplomatico Exclusiva 45ml Fresh Pineapple Juice or Cera’s Brand 30ml Pandan Coconut cream 20ml Fresh Orange Juice Flamed Cinnamon on top

by Plantation Rum

Garnish: Flamed Orange peel Glass: Cocktail Coupe

by Rhum Damoiseau

Garnish: 5-6 Grapes (roll inside caster sugar) Glass: Julep Glass Created by: Austen Lendrum

by Rum Diplomático

Garnish: Orchid/Umbrella Glass: 12oz Snifter

ESSENCE OF HERITAGE

by Bacardi

Recipe: 60ml Bacardi Superior 30ml Agave Syrup infused with Cinnamon Sticks 20ml Fresh Lime Juice 6 Dashes of Angostura Bitters 6 Mint Leaves

Created by: Joao Paulo Balzani, Finalist, Bacardi Legacy Hong Kong 2013

Garnish: Orange peel and Mint Glass: Martini Glass

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DARK AND STORMY

by The Kraken Recipe: 50ml Kraken Spiced Rum 10ml Lime Juice Top Up Fever Tree Ginger Beer

Garnish: Lime Wedge Glass: Highball Glass

DAIQUIRI ELEMENT 8

by Elements Eight Rum Recipe: 50ml Element 8 White Rum 15ml Lime Juice 2 Spoons Caster Sugar

Garnish: none Glass: Martini Glass

MOTU MOTU COCKTAIL

by Motu Rum

Recipe: 50ml Motu Silver Rum 15ml Galliano Liqueur 20ml Strawberry Purée 20ml Passion Fruit Purée 25ml Fresh Apple Juice

Garnish: Apple fan Glass: Martini Glass Created by: Max Traverse

RUM & TING

by Angostura

Recipe: 45ml Angostura 7 Year Old Rum 90ml Pink Grapefruit 15ml Sugar Syrup 20ml Soda Water

Garnish: Grapefruit Peel

MAKAHIKI HOU

by Ron Flor de Caña Recipe: 30ml Flor de Caña 4Yo Silver Rum 30ml Godiva Caramel Liqueur 10ml Gingerbread Syrup 10ml Coconut Milk

Garnish: none Glass: Old Fashioned Glass Created by: Fabien Marcault

WE BE JAMMIN’

HONEY FIJI

Recipe: 45ml Blackwell Rum 15ml Pineapple Juice 1 Egg White 2 Dash Chocolate Bitters 10ml Sugarcane Syrup 10ml Fresh Lime

Recipe: 50ml Fiji 2Yo White Rum 20ml Fiji Honey Rum 25ml Lemon Juice 30ml Dark Mint Tea

by Blackwell

Garnish: none Glass: Martini Glass

by Fiji Rum Co Garnish: Mint Leaves and Lemon Slice Glass: Highball Glass

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Selection Prestige

Elegant and refined luxury spirits

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° RUM FEST 2014 °

N

HONI HONI The Place to be for an Exciting Tiki Experience

amed after a Polynesian greeting meaning ‘’Kiss Kiss’’, HONI HONI Tiki Cocktail Lounge is the place to be for those seeking an exciting Tiki adventure. A two-time winner of the ‘’Favourite Girls’ Night Out’’ Sassy Award, it is a charming haven of elegance and design, serving up fresh cocktails concocted by seasoned drink connoisseur and partner Max Traverse.

Providing the freshest premium rum cocktails to the hottest beats from international DJs in town, HONI HONI sure knows what the Hong Kong crowd wants and introduces fun-themed nights and parties such as Strictly Jazz Tuesdays and Cliché Party.

Boasting a selection of the rarest 190+ references of rums from around the world, HONI HONI uses only the freshest ingredients available such as fresh fruits and juices. Founder of HONI HONI Max Traverse, a seasoned drink connoisseur and General Manager Fabien Marcault, award-winning passionate mixologist, together ensure their bar staff provide the warmest and most inviting service.

For two consecutive years, Max and Fabien have been the instigators behind the Hong Kong Rumfest since 2013, hosted at HONI HONI.

This year’s Rumfest attracted a crowd of more than 1,200, with the new addition of Rum Masterclasses (Rum Diaries) being conducted at Backstage Live Restaurant.

What’s shaking at HONI HONI

HONI HONI continues to innovate the art of Rum appreciation with new upcoming concepts. Among them, the Rum Club on every 1st Monday of the Month, featuring an expert on Rum talking about Rum style and flavour, and the Rum Menu launching on National Rum Day on August 16th.

HO NG KO NG’S BIGGEST RUM ME NU Famed for its artfully selected Rum

s from ever y Rum Festival, HONI HONI continues to innovate the art of Rum appreciation in Hong Kong with the unveiling of its biggest Rum Men u yet.

This masterfully designed Rum Men u is reminiscent of a Ship’s Log Book drifting in the hot hazy days of the Carib bean, and comes packed with adventur ous, aged and infused rums.

With around 190 varieties of Rum stocked at HONI HONI, a connoiss eur or drink enthusiast can sip its way around the world in 180 days. Interesting facts abou t rum and its precursors that date back to the development of fermented drinks produced from sugarcane that is believed to first occur in ancient India or China are featured in the Menu. Leaf through our Rum Menu to discover Rum Facts, Rum Riddles, and join HON I HONI at the Rum Menu’s debu t this August. globe and the host of the recent

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KUNG FU MASTER

Kraken Spiced Rum, raspberry purée, Plum Bitters, watermelon and mango juice, watermelon syrup, egg white and topped up with Prosecco

SUMMER JULEP

English Harbour Rum, Grand Marnier, Pimm’s, peach and strawberry purée, lime and mint leaves

I

t’s Summer Loving at HONI HONI Tiki Cocktail Lounge with our Newly Released Summer Edition Cocktail Lineup. Beat the heat with our 12 new lively cocktail characters and experience moments of thirst-quenching bliss. Concocted by seasoned drink connoisseur and founder Max Traverse, these new fun and adventurous cups have been sourced from Polynesian pockets around the world and artfully presented in characterful style for everlasting fun!

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SINGAPORE SLING

Bombay Sapphire Gin, Peter Cherry Heering Liqueur, Grand Marnier, Bénédictine, grenadine syrup, pineapple juice, lemon juice and dash of Angostura Bitters

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MOLOKAI

VOODOO HEAD

Agricole Rhum, Mango liqueur, guava juice, blueberry and pear purée, cardamom syrup, lime juice, Old Fashioned Bitters and topped up with Prosecco

Michter’s Bourbon, Cassis liqueur, homemade Falernum, grapefruit cordial, lime juice, orange juice, topped up with soda water

BIKINI GIRL

RUMRITA SLUSH COCKTAIL

Flor De Caña 4yo Gold Rum, lychee purée, cucumber, rose water, cranberry juice, apple juice and lychee syrup

ORIGINAL MOJITO (OR) PLANTATION RUM MOJITO

With Bacardi Superior Rum, lime juice, sugar, mint, soda water and Angostura Bitters OR PLANTATION RUM OF YOUR CHOICE (BARBADOS - TRINIDAD - JAMAICA - GUYANA GRENADA - PANAMA - NICARAGUA - GRANDE RESERVE 5YO)

THE GRAND HULU

Grand Marnier, J.M. White Rhum, Cherry Heering liqueur, apple juice, pineapple juice and Orgeat syrup

BOUNTY HUNTER

Weekly changed summery frozen cocktail from our slush machine

Made with Michter’s Bourbon, Baileys, coconut milk, Aztec Chocolate Bitters and coconut syrup

MOLOKINI

THE THREE WISE MONKEYS

Flor De Caña 4yo Gold Rum, Grand Marnier, watermelon juice, passion fruit, lemon juice, mint leaves and sugar cane syrup

Sailor Jerry Spiced Rum, apple juice, lime juice, ginger, sugar cane syrup and Tiki Bitters

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° RUM FEST 2014 °

From the Past,

GOOD TIMES

TO COME

G

WORDS & PHOTOS ° Eric Stephenson

rowing up in the United States during the Cold War, my first impressions of Cuba were shaped by public response to the countless human rights violations, political executions, and overall lack of personal freedoms experienced by the Cuban people in the decades following Fidel Castro’s Revolution of 1959. Before the Revolution, Cuba had thrived as cultural hub in the Western Hemisphere, contributing an extraordinary amount of art, music, and cocktail heritage. In the decades since, the nation has remained in a figurative time capsule, seemingly shut off from the outside world as their single party Communist government dictates nearly all aspects of their daily life. As an American citizen, a Cuban excursion is a near impossibility, stemming from a long-standing tourism ban enacted by the United States. However, as a Hong Kong resident, I was able to travel there as a competitor, to take part in the 10th Havana Club Grand Prix.

I set out for Havana with my girlfriend, a native Spanish speaker, confident that I’d return to Hong Kong victorious. The journey took 30 hours, from Hong Kong to Paris to Havana, and we arrived with the last of the competitors on a hazy Sunday evening. Our hotel, the Meliá Cohiba, was situated in the Vedado District in the northern part of Havana, near the sea. The hotel had seen several curious travellers in her 20 year history, but perhaps none so diverse as the 150 international barmen, ambassadors, and media in town for the competition. Scarcely leaving the hotel those first four days, we sat assembled in conference halls as presentations covering Cuban life, music, and, of course, cocktail culture were hosted by leaders of our industry, both Cuban and international alike.

Evenings entailed banquet dinners, where we sat in smaller groups, muttering trade talk

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in between bites of beans, rice and roasted meats. Nightly, we were exposed to various cultural offerings, each steeped in Golden Age romance, all fuelled by a steady flow of cocktails – decadent Presidentes, sweetly-tart Mary Pickfords, and Cuba Libres, to name a few of the classics on showcase.

Outings were organized to two of Havana’s most famous bars, where we delightedly downed daiquiris and earnestly imbibed mojitos, revelling in the history around us. The storied bars, located alike in Old Havana, worked diligently to maintain their classic charm, but it was after an evening spent drinking on their stools, when I began to notice a recurring theme in our outings: not a single Cuban to share a drink with. Sadly, I learned, the romantic ideals of the Golden Age of Cuban Cocktails are no longer an accurate portrayal of Cuban drinking

culture. Gone are the days of locals mingling with traveling writers, artists, and barmen over cocktails. In a nation with few luxuries, these establishments operate solely for tourists, like a Disneyland for foreign booze-hounds armed with tourist currency. We sat there, surrounded by bartenders and writers, chefs and media from all over, drinking in some of Havana’s most legendary bars, yet we couldn’t faintly feel the pulse the city or her people.

It wasn’t until our fifth day in Havana when my girlfriend and I, free from agenda and commitment, were finally able to emerge ourselves in the Cuban vibe. Seeking a more authentic experience, we set out quietly in the morning, telling no one. Our destination was Santa Maria, a town with reportedly fantastic beaches and cheap seafood, 30 km outside of Havana. Enlisting the services of a driver

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who introduced himself as Manuel, we negotiated a price and jumped into the back of his 1953 Chevrolet Bel Air Convertible. The antique car pulled away from the Meliá Cohiba, leaving plumes of black smoke behind as we headed east down the Malecon, a stretch of highway that mirrors the Bay of Havana. The wind cooled our sunbaked bodies and filled our nostrils with the smell of gasoline as we cruised along, surrounded by a parade of classic American automobiles; a moving motorcade museum in the morning sun.

It’s as though we’d be transported to 1950’s Cuba and Manuel was our tour guide, pointing out places of interest as he sped along, radio blaring Cuban rhumba. We passed Spanish colonial forts, local markets, collapsed buildings, and abandoned shipping docks before entering a dark, winding tunnel. Upon emerging we kept east, cruising away from Havana, passing incomplete sports arenas, crowded bus stops, and miles of dense jungle along the way to Santa Maria.

A half hour later, our faces red and sweating, Manuel exited the highway and drove down a series of quiet, palm tree lined streets before finally parking the car near a narrow wooden bridge, next to a sign that pointed to the beach. He waited with the car as a second man showed us across the bridge and along the edge of the sea, to some empty seats with an umbrella. An employee of a ramshackle beach bar and grill, the man took our drink order and returned with two small mojitos in plastic cups. The cocktails were what you’d expect from a bar on the beach; sugary and weak, but nothing a few splashes of our own rum couldn’t save. What was surprising was the poor quality of the mint leaves, which, by this point, had become the norm in Cuba. Known locally as Yerba Buena, or good herb, the small, sparsely leafed weeds are all that Cuba has to produce one of their most storied cocktails. Somehow, they manage to do it well. We drank our mojitos and smoked cigars, occasionally swimming in the turquoise sea to cool off. A man in tattered clothing sat next to us, observing our faces with tired eyes and sketching what he saw. His finished drawing was exchanged for my shirt, which he requested, in lieu of coin. Now short a shirt, but feeling soundly humanistic with a satisfactory rum buzz, we gathered our remaining belongings and found Manuel to begin the drive back to Havana.

Our next stop was Ferias de San José, a market specializing in Cuban art, handcrafted goods, and shirts. We strolled casually and slowly, perusing the market, stopping to talk with the merchants and play with the children hanging around their parents’ shops.

Occasionally we paused to buy freshly cracked coconuts, which we filled with rum. This, we learned, was a an old slave concoction, who when working the sugar cane fields would combine aguardiente, in this case distilled sugar cane juice, with fresh coconut water to relieve the pains of the day. Two hours quickly passed, and we were running out of cash, so we left, our bags now considerably more robust. We hadn’t made it across the street before

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being approached by a Cuban man with a large belly and larger eyes. He called himself Santiago, and we exchanged pleasantries for a few minutes before starting into the heart of the city, the three of us, to the gritty streets of Central Havana.

Here, a more authentic Cuban lifestyle was on display: barefoot children played games in the streets, chased by wild dogs, and women, adorned in bright garments, smoked fat cigars and smiled through missing teeth. Men collaborated to repair broken wagon wheels and haul sacks of produce into the numerous nearby markets. Some buildings were without power and others hadn’t undergone maintenance in decades, their walls reduced to pile of stones on the ground. Several streets were completely destroyed, remnants of abandoned construction projects. We continued to walk and talk with Santiago, eventually arriving at a building, which he described as his. He invited us up for cigars and we obliged. The old flat was musty and grey and the walls were deeply stained from humidity and smoke. The ceiling was full of holes, with buckets placed underneath to collect water from the rainstorm that had eased into town that afternoon. There was a large common room with two doors that opened onto a terrace, which was lined with dying plants. From the terrace we could see the capital building on the horizon, and down below the streets stretched out, bustling at every intersection.

Santiago left us alone for a few minutes and returned with two glasses and a box. The glasses contained rum and local honey with a splash of water, another old Cuban preparation. The box harbored unimaginably fresh, deeply fragrant cigars, which we identified as Cohiba, except of superior quality to those at the shops in our hotel. Once supplied solely to high-level officials of the Communist Party in Cuba, Cohiba Cigars had been made available to the public for just over 30 years. Santiago’s cigars were a sort of allowance, given by the Cuban Government as a way to provide, with material goods, what couldn’t be provided financially. He offered them to us at $10 CUC for 5 cigars, a virtual steal compared to the international market price. We agreed and made the exchange, lighting one as we said goodbye and made plans to meet again the next day.

Back in the Vedado District, our mood changed. We had lost ourselves in the day, enthralled by a transitory glimpse into Cuban culture. We felt strange as we entered the hotel, instantly encompassed by the international coalition of barmen, reporters, and foreign drinkers. We joined the group for dinner and a quick drink before wishing congratulations, shaking hands, and heading off to bed.

Waking early the next morning, we checked out of the hotel and hired a taxi straight back to Central Havana. It was raining, but the vibrations were festive in spite of the weather. Damp cigar smoke filled the streets and Cubatón music could be heard above the buzz from passing automobiles and wagon wheels. Walking for hours, alive in the moment, all of our senses were stimulated by a virtual kaleidoscope of new culture. Hungry, we stopped for food at Don Lorenzo, a neighbourhood restaurant and rooftop bar we’d been referred to. Though we later heard viscous stories, accusing the restaurant of gouging tourists with hyper-inflated dining checks, we experienced no such shady proceedings during our visit. The food was excellent, without question the best we’d had all week, and

Eric and Alba enjoying Rum Fest prior to heading to Cuba.

the staff was warm and friendly. The open air of restaurant was inviting, so we sat for hours, sharing cigars with the staff and watching life unfold on the streets below. It was the barman’s birthday, so we left him with the last of our aged rum on our way out. His reaction to the gesture was timeless; a genuine display of appreciation at being gifted what amounted to liquid-luxury for most Cubans.

Back on the streets we found Santiago waiting, just as we’d planned, this time accompanied by his younger brother, Juan. We went to a nearby bar, where the four of us sat discussing Cuban affairs over daiquiris and mojitos. The brothers spoke of a collective optimism, which had gathered momentum in recent years, about the future of Post-Castro Cuba. They conveyed sentiments of hope, centering on renewed relations with the United States, and gushed at what that possibility meant for Cubans. The truth is that Cuba and The United States share a deep bond - a bond that flourished during the first part of the 20th century and exists still today, in spite of the political tension of the past five decades. We would’ve spent hours in that bar, sharing Cuban classics with our new Cuban friends, but it was getting late and we had a flight to catch. We finished our drinks and said goodbye, leaving the brothers with promises to return one day soon.

We had arrived in Cuba six days earlier as competitors, full of hope to win the 10th Havana Club Grand Prix. Though I hadn’t won the competition for Hong Kong, I had seen a side of Cuban life that most will not - a Cuba of neighbourly compassion and flourishing optimism. That is the Cuba I plan to return to, not as a representative of Hong Kong, but as a representative of the United States.

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BACARDÍ LEGACY ®

GLOBAL COCKTAIL COMPETITION 2014

T

here’s nothing more sweet than having your name and signature drink written in the enduring history of the iconic BACARDÍ brand.

Held at the Petrovsky Palace in Moscow last May 8, the BACARDÍ Legacy Global Cocktail Competition 2014 saw 27 finalists from all over the world compete for the once-in-a-lifetime chance of going down in BACARDÍ ‘s history. The prestigious award went to UK bartender Tom Walker, who dazzled the judges with his ‘Made in Cuba’ drink in a closely contended final. Tom, who works at the American Bar at The Savoy in London, created a cocktail inspired by the American ‘maid’ style of drink and bested over 26 other original creations from some of the world’s finest mixologists.

As the winner, Tom will see Made in Cuba – BACARDÍ Superior rum, fresh mint and cucumber with sweet and sour mix topped with soda and absinthe spritz – hailed as a new classic, worthy of joining the ranks of iconic cocktails inspired by BACARDÍ rum. BACARDÍ will work closely with Tom over the next year to attain worldwide recognition for his drink, providing a platform from which he will serve Maid in Cuba at some of the finest bars in the world.

“The Maid in Cuba embodies what we look for in a legacy cocktail,” said David Cordoba, BACARDÍ Global Ambassador. “It achieves the perfect mix of the perfect ingredients, offering a balance and flavor and simplicity that I believe will endure and make it a classic of the future. The competition this year has been the highest standard ever, and we have been blown away by the talent of the bartenders and the quality of their cocktails. It was incredibly close, but Tom is a worthy winner.”

‘It’s actually quite overwhelming to win this competition, because I have been working towards it for such a long time,” said Tom. “This week with BACARDÍ has been phenomenal, it has been a privilege to compete with such talent. Winning BACARDÍ Legacy gives me an unbelievable opportunity to place my original cocktail on a global stage and develop my bartending career.’

The group took part in a week-long schedule of events, rubbing shoulders with some of the true legends of the bartending world.

BACARDÍ hosted the finalists at a range of educational workshops tailored to hone their skills, before they presented their own original interpretation of a modern BACARDÍ Legacy cocktail in the competition. This year, for the first time ever, the judges were so impressed by the standard of cocktails and presentations that they announced two runners up – Australia’s Fred Siggins’ Empire of Dreams and China’s Carson Xie’s Original Connection.

Judges at the competition included some of the most influential names in the international bartending and spirits community, namely: Maestro de Ron BACARDÍ José Sanchez Gavito; bartender Joerg Meyer who owns the world-famous bar Le Lion in Hamburg; renowned rum ambassador Ian Burrell and 2013 winner of the BACARDÍ Legacy Global Cocktail Competition, Elizaveta Evdokimova.

Commenting on the winning cocktail, Ian Burrell said, “The quality of drinks presented has been second to none, but we are very happy to name the Maid in Cuba as the winner. This is a cocktail that exemplifies the term ‘classic’ – it has a very light and refreshing appeal that fits

perfectly into the BACARDÍ Legacy cocktail stable. Tom has created a drink that uses a simple method, allowing you to taste the original ingredients, and that could be made anywhere in the world. For me, that is a classic cocktail.”

One of the most respected and famed cocktail competitions in the world, The BACARDÍ Legacy Cocktail Competition was launched in 2008 to challenge the best contemporary bartenders in the world to create their own cocktail legacy. Only a drink offering perfectly balanced ingredients and a timeless taste - the unique qualities associated with BACARDÍ classics such as the Authentic BACARDÍ Mojito, the Original BACARDÍ Daiquirí and the Original BACARDÍ Cuba Libre - can be declared a true ‘Legacy’ cocktail.

Winning the competition brings with it the honor of having been named the best out of a huge number of entries, and an exceptional opportunity to work with BACARDÍ over the next year promoting their cocktail around the world.

Following were the 27 finalists that took part in the competition, eight of whom were chosen by a judging panel to continue on to the grand final: COUNTRY Argentina Australia Austria China Cyprus Denmark Estonia France Germany Greece Hong Kong India Italy Latvia Lithuania Mexico New Zealand Norway Poland Russia South Africa Spain Stockholm Switzerland UAE UK USA

FINALIST Gonzalo Cabado Fred Siggins Bert Jachmann Carson Xie Dinos Costantinides Andreas Nilsson Angelika Larkina Christophe Davoine Frank Thelan Under Stelios Papadopoulis Ryan Chan Manmohan Singh Walter Gosso Robert Kalvans Algirdas Mulevicius José Luis Gutierrez Guy Jacobson Alex Ruas Rafal Nawrot Alexey Botkunov Assaf Yechiel Antonio Naranjo Matthias Skoog Michael Kampmann Graziella Nieto Tom Walker Naomi Levy

COCKTAIL Buena Vida Empire of Dreams Soirée Cup Original Connection Noble Daiquiri Columbo Under the Clouds A Part of Me My Skin BACARDÍ Elements Cuban Bishop 19th Kitai Amalia Spring Revival Ron de Olla The Leaf Nose Guantanamera The Globetrotter Sempiternal Dream Catcher Mr Masso Rumpletini No. 2 Santiago Moment Catalizador Maid in Cuba Guayaba Arabic

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° FEATURE °

BACARDÍ LEGACY ®

Tom Walker MAID IN CUBA (Bacardi Legacy 2013/14 Winning Cocktail) Ingredients 60ml Bacardi Superior 6 Leaves of mint 3 Slices of cucumber 45ml Sweet & sour mix (15 sugar 2:1, 30 fresh lime, infused for half a day) Absinthe spritz 50ml Soda Method Muddle cucumber, along with mint and the rest of the ingredients except absinthe and soda into a boston shaker. Add a block of ice to shaker, shake hard and double strain into an absinthe spritzed coupette, top with soda.

Garnish Cucumber and mint sprig Inspiration With the origins and popularity of the Daiquiri and the Mojito firmly rooted in the 19th and 20th century, and taking inspiration from an American style of drink making which spawned the “Maid” category, it’s time the 21st century contributed its own version.

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CHINA

AUSTRALIA

UNITED KINGDOM

TOP 8 COCKTAIL DRINKS

Fred Siggins EMPIRE OF DREAMS

Carson Xie ORIGINAL CONNECTION

Ingredients 50ml Bacardi Superior 30ml Fresh pineapple juice 10ml Apricot brandy 10ml Fresh lime juice 5ml orgeat syrup 15 espresso beans

Ingredients 45ml Bacardi Superior 10ml Baron Otard Cognac VSOP 15ml Asian spice syrup (40pcs cloves, 5pcs star anise, 500ml sugar syrup 1:1) 1 dash Dandelion & Burdock bitters 1 dash Aromatic bitters

Method Shake

Method Stir

Garnish Rustic lime twist

Garnish Maraschino cherry

Inspiration ‘Empire of Dreams’ is inspired by the art of storytelling, and is a refreshing blend of fresh ingredients and Bacardi rum, shaken over fair trade coffee beans. For me, putting a liquid story in front of someone is a privilege.

Inspiration Back in time, when communication was very difficult, people used to be closer to each other.

I have chosen cloves and star anise, spices from Asia; the French Cognac to represent Europe, the earthliest bitter and Bacardi Superior from Central America. I present to you the ‘Bacardi Original Connection’, a drink to take people back in time and bring them together.

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NEW ZEALAND

INDIA

CYPRUS

Guy Jacobson THE LEAF NOSE

Ingredients 60ml Bacardi Superior 15ml Commandaria 15ml Dried apricot infused Demerara syrup 0.5g Citric acid

Ingredients 45ml Bacardi Superior 10ml Martini Bianco 20ml White Crème de Cacao 1 Absinthe sugar cube 20ml Fresh lemon juice

Method Shake

Method Shake and strain

Ingredients 40ml Bacardi Superior 20ml Lemon juice 10ml Crème de Cacao 5ml Green Chartreuse 5ml Yellow Chartreuse Egg white

Garnish Black raisins

Garnish Orange and lemon peel

DUBAI, UAE

Manmohan Singh 19TH

ESTONIA

Dinos Constantinides NOBLE DAIQUIRI

Angelika Larkina UNDER THE CLOUDS

Graziella Nieto CATALIZADOR

Ingredients 40ml Bacardi Superior 10ml Martini Rosato 20ml Arctic Cloudberry liqueur 10ml Fresh lime juice 2 barspoons Caster sugar Orange peel

Ingredients 45ml Bacardi Superior 10ml Martini Bianco 35ml Chamomile tea syrup 10ml Lemon juice 15ml Egg white 2 dashes Angostura bitters

Method Shake

Method Dry shake, shake and double strain

Garnish Grapefruit, bear grass, sweet potato, wine radish

Garnish None

Method Add all ingredients to a shaker, whisk to emulsify egg and shake hard with good ice.

Strain into chilled glass.

Garnish Black raisins

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° PROFILE °

CORZO

An Ultra Premium Tequila P

roduced using the ‘Heart of Hearts’ process and twice the blue Weber agaves of most other tequilas, CORZO delivers the ultimate expression of modern tequila – ultra premium, authentic and designed for luxury in every regard.

100% Blue Agave from the Highlands of Mexico As a highly regulated distilled spirit in the world, Tequila must be produced with blue agave that adheres to certain quality standards and grown in a special area of Mexico called the Appellation Zone. Located in Los Altos, the highlands of Jalisco, which is recognised as the world’s premier blue agave growing region, CORZO captures the spirit of the Highlands by only using hand-selected 100% Blue Weber Agaves from the Highlands of Mexico, giving CORZO its tropical notes.

Perfect Balance of Smoothness and Flavor Seven to 12 years in the making, CORZO is one of the most expensive tequilas to produce.

It features all the flavor with the smoothness of a luxury finish. It’s made from 100% blue agave that is twice as the competition for luxurious quality and taste, and which comes from the Highlands for richer flavor notes. Its unique second ageing process enhances oak and vanilla. And its triple distillation process results in the smoothest finish for an authentic experience.

Designed for Luxury in Every Regard CORZO showcases contemporary imagery and legitimate substance. Bottles are designed by world-famous and award-winning designer Fabien Baron, touted by many as one of the leading creative directors of our time, and the founder and owner of Baron & Baron, a multicapable advertising and design company based in New York City.

He said, “Unlike the typical approach to tequila packaging, we wanted to reflect the modern side of Mexican design. A more innovative and unexpected bottle was also a good compliment

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to the traditional craftsmanship of the CORZO tequila.”

CORZO’s waterfall mouth bottle design is a tribute to the iconic fountain, Fuente De Los Amantes, designed by Luis Barragán Morfín – one of the most impactful architects of the 20th Century.

Produced to Perfection CORZO is not only made using twice the agave, but also undergoes a series of processes, including cogollo removal, slower cooking and longer double fermentation. It is then mellowed in small, white oak barrels, triple distilled and double aged.

Following are the key stages: FERMENTATION The fermentation process is nearly twice as long as most other Tequila producers – more than four days for exceptional smoothness. Agua Miel is fermented in two stages; stage 1 takes usually 1 to 3 days, while stage 2 is 4 days.

TRIPLE DISTILLATION CORZO requires 60 small pot stills to produce

sufficient volume. It then undergoes a slower, longer triple distillation process that takes more than 56 hours, with the first distillation lasting for 8 hours, second distillation up to 24 hours and third distillation up to 24 hours also, far longer than most other producers to further purify the blend. Only the “Heart of Hearts” are utilized, and heads/tails are never recycled. This process increases the smoothness of the finish.

DOUBLE AGEING CORZO Tequilas are aged in small (200L) new American white oak barrels. Greater contact with the oak maximizes the effects of ageing on the spirit. Only tequilas are allowed to age a second time after the third distillation. Second ageing enhances oak and vanilla characters from the earlier cycle. The second ageing of CORZO Reposado and CORZO Añejo in French oak barrels delivers a rich, smoother, and more wellrounded taste profile.

BLENDING Handcrafted by Maestro Tequilero Jesus Reza Haro, who assures the quality and consistency of every drop of CORZO. Hundreds of casks

are sampled before selecting those to form the blend. His expertise means that year-on-year CORZO continues to capture the spirit of the Highlands.

CORZO Selection CORZO SILVER Clean, with a dry light to medium bodied palate.

Flavors of tropical fruit and peppery spice are harmoniously blended to create a delicate finish.

Incredibly smooth. Impeccably clean.

CORZO REPOSADO Aged in small white oak barrels for additional smoothness and flavor. Warm hints of a white oak leads to a custard finish comprised of lemon, coconut, baked banana and brown spice.

Complements the most luxurious cocktails.

CORZO AÑEJO Aged for more than one year in small white oak barrels for an authentic, smooth flavor. A rounded opening of warm caramel and golden raisin on the palate. Floral tones lead to a rich, honey-toasted oak finish with baked fruits, spice and toffee. Ideal for full bodied sipping.

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° FEATURE °

Liqueurs

The Bitter Truth about

WORDS ° John O’Toole & Tom Wood

T

he first sip of Fernet Branca is always a shock. An immediate hit of raw, bitter medicine is a stark experience, and one nobody is quite prepared for. But it’s what comes after: the subtle sweetness and chocolate, the grassy, chewy mouth-feel, and that light but oh-so-distinct minty aftertaste. The flavors shouldn’t all be there, and that’s what makes it so delightful. To watch a friend having their first sip (or shot) of the potent Italian bitter liqueur is to feel a unique joy – both to watch his facial expression (priceless) and to again experience, if only second-hand, that first, exhilarating rush.

Of course, even the barmen who consume gallons of the stuff will tell you that it’s an acquired taste. At 39% ABV, it’s certainly not a liqueur for beginners. Fernet is but one in extreme in a category of alcohols so diverse that it can be hard to qualify, an overlooked corner of the modern barman’s arsenal that, nonetheless, takes up a healthy portion of all back-bars: liqueurs. It’s not a straight road, but a winding, serpentine maze that gets us to Fernet and many other wonderful liqueurs, but to start, we should look to Central Europe, where alchemists first tried to make the potent drinks we know today, to cure, oddly, hangovers. But as with most of what’s on the modern back-bar, the history of bitters, Amari, and liqueurs is a long and storied one that starts with a pretty terrible product in, you guessed it, ancient Egypt.

As has been discussed, in the early history of just about any alcoholic beverage, one universal truth is how bad it must have tasted. Before modern technology, fermentation, distillation, and ageing were,

at best, rudimentary. Often the best way to get liquor to be palatable was to add things to it. Dates, honey, and heather were all popular flavorings in beer and wine in ancient Egypt and Greece, and that tradition never really stopped.

In the North, historic Norsemen had Mead and Snaps (also Schnapps, which is similar but… not). Tracking the history of this wide range of drinks is a difficult, and possibly, pointless endeavor, but suffice it to say the tradition to flavor one’s hooch has been around as long as there has been hooch to flavor. Yet, aside from a few oddities, what we now think of as liqueurs happened in the usual way: because of Romans.

After taking democracy and their better pantheon of Gods, the Roman Empire become deft at expanding on early Greek flavored alcohols, such as Ouzo. As conquerors and inventors, the Romans expanded on Greek ideas and created many different flavored

wines that spread throughout their vast empire.

These early attempts would grow into several categories of beverages within and without the Italian peninsula such as Vermouth (see next issue) and liqueurs, specifically, the Italian Amari, the French Gentian, and the German Kräuterlikör bitter, medicinal beverages steeped in history, myth, and grain alcohol. For our journey into the weird and truly wonderful, let us begin in that noblest of bitter traditions: Italy.

THE FIRST WAVE With an alchemical culture (and lucrative market) established, the Italians got to work perfecting liqueurs, primarily as a medicine. Monks got to studying Hippocrates and trying to recreate his “nectars.” In the late 1200s, Arnold de Vila Nova wrote a book on the subject of flavored alcohol called,

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The Book of Wine, which included a handy how-to guide for the most modern methods of distillation, maceration, and flavoring. As they would for another 500 years, these elixirs were claimed to cure any number of ailments. Since these early mixologists were all monks, it’s no surprise that many of the earliest recipes for liqueurs we know of come from monastaries, many even predate large spirit categories! While monks got things going, it took Italy’s first Brand Ambassador to spread the word to France and later the rest of Europe and the world. Her name? Catherine Di Medici.

A FRENCH HOLIDAY In France, liqueurs found their Spiritual home.

If Italy was where they grew up, France is where they went to Uni, and discovered allnight parties, hangovers, and the general Joie de Vivre. As in Italy, monks did the first heavy lifting. In the Benedictine Monastery, Dom Vincelli created a unique recipe in 1510, which lives on to this day, gracing the back-bars of establishments the world over. It’s potent mix of sweet herbs and flavors was found to mix well with Brandy early on, making the “B&B” one of the oldest cocktails in the world. Yet, as much as we love Benedictine, the zenith of French Monastic distilling is, of course, Chartreuse.

Apocryphally, the original recipe for “Elixir de longue vie (elixir of long life)” was given to the Carthusian Monastery in 1605 from François d’ Estrées Hannibal. It’s secret recipe has for hundreds of years been shrouded in more secret than most, as the only people who know the fineries are two members of the Carthusian Order. Like Sith-lords, there are only two at one time: a master and Apprentice. This is complicated further by the fact that both monks must take a vow of silence when they learn the recipe! Silent, perhaps, but not simple. The ever-industrious monks formulated a new flavor in yellow some years back to widen the holy tonic’s appeal. A success on all fronts.

While Benedictine and Chartreuse may be the most famous examples, French Monasteries also gave the world unique elixirs from Senancole, Carmeline, and Trappistine. As in Italy, this craze couldn’t stay confined to the church, and throughout France people began making their own flavorings. The French and Dutch created fruit liqueurs some time in the 1500’s with Lucas Bols famously opening his distillery in 1575. His early orange liqueurs and kummel would form the base of a multimillion dollar industry in the future. Whilst in

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the Alps, farmers and tinkerers created the Gentian liqueurs, not too far removed from Amari, Gentians were on the bitter side, with heavy herbal flavors. A famous example of this style being Amer Picon, though there are many lesser-known.

When liqueurs first left the monasteries, they were generally called Ratafia or, “ratifiers” due to their omnipresence at treaty meetings or as a way of sealing a business contract. These liqueurs were made primarily in the Loire Valley in France and parts of Northern Italy where fruits were easy to access. Early examples of alchemists were the Cointreau family – who got started making Cherry brandy, the switch to Orange liqueur didn’t happen until 1800 or so – Chambord, Grand and Cherry Marnier, which must use Brandy as a base, and many many others.

THE NORTHERN DARKS Meanwhile, farther north, the industrious Dutch and Germans began tinkering with Lucas Bols’ early experiments. After Bols, a distiller, Der Lacks, began producing a liqueur in Danzig with caraway and aniseed. When alchemists discovered that Gold was beneficial to certain ailments, it was added to the mix. This was the template for Goldschlager, a liqueur not well known outside its homeland and the

United States, but worth seeking out for its rather unique flavors. As the Northern climbs are less forgiving, the Germans and Dutch making kummel went for ever more bitter flavor, creating strong, dark tonics that aided in digestion. Chief among them were Zwack, though their modern day descendants are drinks such as the Czech Becherovka and, of course, Jagermeister.

A RETURN TO THE MEDITERRANEAN While the Italians got the party started and tinkered with these liqueurs and flavorings over time, they got to the Branding idea much later. While just about everyone was making some special recipe or another, by the time Benedictine was nearly 300 years old, DiSaronno was finally patented and named in 1807. Returning to the spiritual home in the 1800s, many brands we know and love today began to pop up. With Fernet Branca in 1845, Campari in 1860, and the related category of Vermouth creating Punt e Mes and Carpano styles in the same time period. Maraschino liqueur was created in this period as well, though at the time it was in Croatia, not Italy.

As may be expected from a category that’s Five-thousand years old and spans most of the inhabited world, liqueurs are a hugely

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diverse entity, one that most barmen relegate to flavoring or seasoning the “main” flavor of a drink. This is sort of strange, since, with their multiple flavors, complex recipes and methods of production, and bearded creators, many liqueurs are, essentially bottle cocktails, predating the modern trend in doing so by several hundred years. Luckily, with more and more unique recipes available, and certain taboos fading away, we are seeing some brave barmen build cocktails around the base flavors of such liqueurs as Chartreuse, Campari, and Drambuie, to name just a few.

LIQUEURS TODAY Of course, the world’s tinkerers aren’t done yet. Many modern producers are getting in on the act. St. Germain is a notable example, though there’s also Bittermens Spirits in New Orleans recreating Alsatian Gentian styles, The Bitter Truth and their Elixier (or EXR, depending on your home market). In Australia and Dijon, craftsmen are remaking herbal and fruit liqueurs thought long-forgotten. Josef Cartron and others have re-released original flavors of Ratafia as well, which are worth seeking out. But wherever we go from here, it’s good to think back to where we came from, and to the remarkable history of this category. So raise a glass, be it bitter, sweet, or something in between, and toast the good life. First shot of Fernet is on us!

LIQUEURS There are as many great stories about liqueurs as there are liqueurs themselves. Below is a list of some of our favorites.

DiSaronno This is the most popular brand nut liqueur, which, ironically, is made from Apricot pits, not nuts. The bits are slightly bitter, thus the category called, Amaretti or Amaretto. The story for this brand, however, is even more legendary than the liqueur itself. It so goes that the year 1525 was a terrible one for Lombardy.

War and famine had hit in close succession, and everyone living there was dirt poor. Into Lombardy came Bernardino Luini, a young disciple of none other than Leonardo Da Vinci.

His master had sent him to Lombardy to paint a fresco for the church of Santa Maria della Grazie in Saronno, near Milan. Bernardino needed a model for the Madonna to use, and chose a beautiful local girl, the daughter of the innkeeper. As gratitude, she wanted to give the young man something but had no money. Thus,

she created a recipe for liqueur including apricot pits of the nearby orchard and other herbs and presented the Amaretto to him. While history has lost the young woman’s name, her image still graces the fresco at the church in Saronno, should you feel inclined to visit.

Drambuie A liqueur truly made for a prince, the story goes that after the battle of Culloden 1746, Prince Charles Edward Stuart fled to the Isle of Skye and was given sanctuary by the clan MacKinnon.

In return for taking him in, the Prince offered up his secret recipe for the elixir that he imbibed a few drops of each day. The exact recipe remains a closely guarded secret, but it’s said to be a mix of Scottish heather honey, and various herbs and spices such as Saffron & Clove. This is all mixed together with a blend of Speyside & Highland Whiskies, some aged up to 15 years.

The recipe eventually ended up in the hands of hotelier John Ross in 1873 who then fine tuned the recipe and served it to guests of the hotel, then in 1893 patented the recipe and named it “Drambuie”, shortened from the Gaelic “an dram buidheach” which means “the drink that satisfies”.

Chartreuse Is what happens when a group of monks (the Carthusians, who have been around for over nine hundred years) are given a recipe from a Marshal in King Henri IV‘s artillery. The monks were handed the recipe for the Elixir of long life in 1605, and over one hundred years later in 1737 they managed to draw up a practical formula to make the elixir. This is still available today (Elixir Vegetal de la Grande-Chartreuse) but hard to find. The more common varieties (Green & Yellow) were created several years later when the monks realized that people were tending to consume Chartreuse more for its taste rather than its medical benefits.

They created these varieties to be sweeter and easier to the palate than the Elixir. Even today, the recipe for Chartreuse is only known by two of the Carthusian monks, the only people that know the names of the 130 herbs and spices in the recipe. The herbs are macerated in Alcohol, distilled again before a final maceration for colour then aged in oak barrels.

Frangelico Although Frangelico was only released in the 1980s, it is said that a hermit monk who resided in the hills of Piedmont in the 18th century

inspired the recipe. The monks name was Fra Angelico (hence the name) and according to legend, he lived in the hills creating unique recipes for liqueurs. Hazelnuts harvested in Piedmont are harvested, peeled, toasted then crushed up to be infused with alcohol. This is then distilled to create a hazelnut distillate, which is blended with extracts and distillates of cocoa and vanilla, before being mixed with sugar and rested in vats for 6 – 8 weeks.

Maraschino Another bar staple that has a long history, Maraschino liqueur originated in the former Venetian controlled Zadar (now part of Croatia).

In 1759, Francesco Drioli, a Venetian merchant, began distilling Marasca cherries in Zadar and by the 1800s Maraschino Liqueur had gained widespread fame. In 1921, Girolamo Luxardo began distilling his own Maraschino liqueur in Zadar that has become the most popular brand.

Though during the Second World War Luxardo was forced to leave Zadar and relocated the family business back to Italy near Venice. The Marasca cherries (pits and all) are included in the distillation resulting in the dry bitter flavor; the distillate is rested for two years in Vats before sugar and water are added. The iconic straw packaging was used to prevent breakage during transportation.

Curaçao Although often regarded as a cheap generic product, Curaçao also enjoys a long and exciting history, although most of the Curaçao we try is just a poor copy of the original. Named after the Dutch Caribbean island country Curaçao (yes it’s a country) that was first settled by the Spaniards. The Spaniards bought their prized Valencia oranges to Curaçao in 1499, but due to the hot sunny conditions, the orange vines failed to produce the beautiful juicy fruit it did back home. Instead, the fruit was bitter and inedible (even by the goats that roam the island) so it was forgotten about for decades until it was found that the sun dried orange peels were extremely pleasant to smell. The fruit was called “Lahara” in local tongue, derived from its scientific name that translates to “the golden orange of Curaçao”. Since the 1800s, Curaçao has been produced at the distillery on the island Landhuis Chobolobo. The process involves the dried peels being hung in bags inside the still for four days, then a second distillation with other secret ingredients.

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Wallace

takes the Title W

allace Lau of Wyndham the 4th was crowned best bartender at the national final of Diageo Reserve World Class Hong Kong Bartender of the Year on World Cocktail Day. Bob Nolet, the 11th generation of Nolet Distillers and Executive Vice President of Ketel OneÂŽ Vodka, came to Hong Kong especially for the occasion. He was joined by a panel of industry leaders in Hong Kong including Sam Jeveons from Old Street Group, a spirit and cocktail consultancy; Marc Rodrigues from Drinks World Asia; Andrea Lo from HK Magazine and Riva Hiranand from Baccarat.

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Wallace rose above the rest of the competition with his impeccable technique, beautifully balanced drinks and his wealth of knowledge of spirits and cocktails.

Lau recently went to represent Hong Kong at the Global Finals held from July 28 to August 1 across several destinations in the UK including Edinburgh and London, competing head-to-head against the world’s best bartenders from over 50 countries.

During the Hong Kong final, Lau and his fellow competitors were tested on their bartending knowledge, skill and showmanship behind the bar. Wallace, set to leave an indelible mark on the world of fine drinking, truly impressed judges with his sophisticated cocktails, “PPK” (or “Personal Preference Ketel One®”) in the Ketel One® Vodka Martini Category and “Skye-line” in the Signature Cocktail category.

“I’ve been participating in World Class Hong Kong since its first year in 2012, so to be able to finally win the title is a dream come true. There is nothing more

gratifying than to be recognized by the world’s most prestigious mixology competition. It does not mean that I am the best bartender in Hong Kong but it reflects my passion for the industry and is the perfect showcase of collaborative industry effort – together we bring fine drinking culture in Hong Kong to a new level!” said Wallace.

Born and raised in Hong Kong, Wallace Lau is a passionate and experienced bartender. Since joining the industry in 2010, he has worked under some of the best in the field, including Diageo Reserve Hong Kong 2013 Bartender of the Year Ricky Liau. Within a short time span, Wallace has worked his way up to become an expert himself in the art of bartending. In 2013, he joined his first Diageo Reserve World Class Competition, coming in 3rd place at the national final.

This year, his steadfast determination led him to realize his dream - winning the title of Diageo Reserve Hong Kong 2014 Bartender of the Year.

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° VISIT °

I

t was truly an evening of learning and fun as Hong Kong bartenders took time off and gathered at the Science Museum for an in depth and hands on presentation on Quinine. The training session started with a short talk on the history and development of Quinine in which attendees were actively participating and asking questions. Completing the presentation, Hendrick’s Brand Ambassador Erik Andersson unveiled the new Quinetum, Quinine Cordial by Hendrick’s.

From the museum, bartenders walked to Origin where they had the opportunity to work with the Quinine Cordial behind the bar at the said venue. Each of them made a cocktail honouring the Quinine Cordial.

Although it was only the first time that bartenders had worked with the Cordial, there were some top-class cocktails being created. Attendees at the Quinetum launch were lucky enough to walk away with a bottle of Hendrick’s Quinine Cordial for their bar.

Quinetum is designed for bartenders to make exceptional drinks for their customers. As a cocktail

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ingredient, it is a perfect match with Hendrick’s. It is also ideal for making a Hendrick’s Gin & Tonic.

Getting a bottle of Quinetum can be difficult as it is not available for retail and will only be given to select bartenders to create the most extraordinary Hendrick’s cocktails.

After some clamour from bartenders around the world to get their hands on a bottle, Hendrick’s Gin Master Distiller Lesley Gracie has released a new batch of Quinetum – the Quinine Cordial. This unique, complexly flavored cordial combines cinchona

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Below is the first cocktail with the Quinetum Cordial created by Hendrick’s UK Ambassador Duncan McRae.

succirubra bark (from which quinine is derived) with lavender and orange distillates with extracts of orange blossom, wormwood and holy thistle for a more rounded and workable liquid. The recipe was inspired by the work of Thomas Whiffen, a mathematician and chemist who devised the name ‘Quinetum’ for the ‘Pure Alkaloids of East India Red Bark’ at his factory, which was known as ‘Quinine Works Battersea’.

Quinine Cordial is packaged in a small, custom-mold glass bottle based on a 1940s poison bottle discovered in an antique shop in London. It was made to reflect the Hendrick’s Gin aesthetic, with distinctively clean, carefully designed packaging and a Stelvin screwcap. Quaker City Mercantile led Quinetum’s concept and design.

QUINETUM COLLINS Ingredients 50ml Hendrick’s Gin 15ml Freshly Squeezed Lemon Juice 15ml Quinetum Cordial 5ml Gancia Bianco Vermouth 2 Dots Peach Bitters Topped with Soda Water Method Build all in highball glass over cubed ice Garnish Three thin cucumber rounds Glass Highball

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° REGULAR °

In pursuit

t c e f r e P k n i r D of the

WORDS ° Michael Silvers

E

very skilled barman or cocktail connoisseur will tell you there’s a certain beauty, craft and economy of movement to pulling off that perfect drink. Yes, there really is an art to it – and that belief lies at the heart of hospitality and what we at Über Bar Tools do.

Consider this… while trends in bar culture come and go, the one constant that remains has always been innovation. Look, we get that sometimes a nod to the past lends a certain authenticity or atmosphere to a bar – after all, some of the best drinks are built on the oldest recipes. But acknowledging ye olde charms, turn o’ the century décor and speakeasy-style branding hasn’t stopped the art of mixology progressing forward into inspired new frontiers of cocktail-making. Nor should it stop us embracing the future of drinking culture. Doing things smarter is always the preferred practice for any business.

So, how does one define the holy grail that is the perfect drink?

Firstly, it’s about creating an experience for the drinker, and one they won’t forget.

Through a combination of taste, balance, presentation and service, the barperson serves the sort of drink the drinker will talk about and want to come back for.

Secondly, a perfect drink deserves perfect tools. Think about it – a trained chef demands the sharpest knives, an artist the very best types of brushes, so why should a mixologist not have equally elite tools at their disposal? Owners should enable any barperson to craft a truly great cocktail, one that speaks for all the creativity of their trade.

Thirdly, the perfect drink is never sloppy in its execution. Any device that minimises waste and increases profit should be adopted immediately – and happily our Über Bar Tools’ SurePour Solution™ does exactly that. After all, whichever way you play it, a great bar is a thriving bar. And let’s not forget that basic tenet of any smart bar owner: when you break down the margins, a bar doesn’t really make money until a customer orders a second drink, it’s why the overall experience of the first drink is as important to the bar as it is the drinker.

Michael Silvers (left)

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° MEET °

Interview on a

Napkin with Gaz Regan

W

hat do you do when you bump into Gaz Regan in a bar? Grab a napkin, ask questions and start scribbling. That’s what.

Drinks World Asia: What was the name of the first bar you worked in when you arrived in New York as a young bartender?

Gaz Regan: Drakes Drum, as in Sir Francis Drake. The owners were an American and an Englishman. The name is taken from the poem by Sir Henry Newbolt (called Drakes Drum), so the Englishman had the idea that the name of the poem would attract a strong English clientele.

There was a lovely verse behind the bar, which is narrated by the ghost of Sir Francis Drake: “Take my drum to Plymouth and hang it by the shore. Beat it when your powder’s running low. And if the Dons sight Devon, I will whip the port of heaven and drum them up the channel as I drummed them long ago”.

DWA: When did you work there?

GR: From 1972 to 1977. Then a friend of mine opened a bar, an Englishman named David Ridens; he was my biggest mentor.

DWA: How long did it take you from when you first had the idea, to prepare and publish the book; ‘The Joy of Mixology’?

GR: I had a concept for the book that I ‘hawked’ around to publishers for around two years. A number of them did say they liked the idea but that it was too broad and could it be reduced in length. I kept saying no, until a friend of mine that’s an editor, Roy Finnamore at Clarks & Potter, had a look, loved the idea and actually wanted to make it even longer! Then it was about two years before I started writing, which then took another two years.

DWA: Was it something you continually worked on over that period?

GR: I worked on it until I had to return to the UK because my Mother had passed away and it was then that I took a few months off. The main concept for me was that there wasn’t a book that told bartenders what to do. We needed a book so bartenders and people wanting to bartend know what the job entails. For me that was the heart of the book. The gurus of our time – Ted Haigh, Angus and Dale, do have a service niche, but some of them still get misinterpreted by their readers as drink production being the core to their success.

DWA: What qualities do you look for to identify a good bartender?

GR: How much attention they give to me when I walk into a bar, it’s that simple.

I walked into a bar in England last year and went straight to the bar where the bartender was pulling a pint of beer. I stood in front of him, yet he didn’t even look up. All he needed to give me was some form of acknowledgement, which he failed to do.

I would drink rubbish drinks from a good bartender who cares about me every time.

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° MEET ° DWA: How are you still passionate about bartending after so many years?

GR: It helps not to have a real job (laughs)! It keeps me going – I work 365 days a year, including Christmas Day! DWA: Apart from the Negroni, which cocktail do you wish you had invented?

GR: The Manhattan. These are my two favourite cocktails.

DWA: What is the difference between building a drink up in a glass and stirring on ice, and straining before mixing in the glass?

GR: Just like any other cocktail, if you stir it over ice you pre-dilute it.

Whereas if you pre-chill the cocktail and then strain it into a glass full of ice it won’t melt as quickly.

DWA: At ‘that’ event by Negroni did you actually finger stir the Negroni all night?

GR: Yes…there is something about a finger stirred Negroni!

I worked another event called Star Chefs in New York which was a Fuji event and not a cocktail event. I refuse to do the finger stirred Negroni because I hadn’t been doing it for a couple of years but the event organizers requested me to do it. So I did it, but it was kind of a mistake.

I did a presentation during the day and got a decent turn out. But in the evening I did the finger stirred Negroni but no-one knew who I was. I was just an old guy wearing eye makeup, stirring these Negronis with my finger and serving them (laughs).

If people know who I am it’s obvious they all laugh and appreciate me.

If people don’t know who I am they react in the same way. Everybody laughed and not one person questioned why I put my finger in the drink.

As I was viewing that I thought if I was putting a smile on their face that was my job as a Bartender.

The job of a Bartender is to put smiles on faces.

DWA: I know that 50% of people know you… I wonder if someone without your repute and without your reputation could get away with a finger stirred Negroni?

GR: It would all depend on the intention of the Bartender doing it. If the intention was the same there would be a good reaction.

DWA: Had someone introduced you to mindfulness at a younger age, how do you think your career or life would have been different?

GR: It wouldn’t be different at all because at an earlier part of my life my reaction to mindfulness would be “F*** You – Just make me a drink”? I came to mindfulness when I was ready for mindfulness.

DWA: What is more important to you the drink or the service of the drink?

GR: The service hands down every single time. I would drink crappy drinks from a good Bartender who cares about me every time.

DWA: You may have been given the title “The Enfant Terri” of the Guru world and in the Guru world there are different levels. There are the “white head crew” and the “dark head crew”. Do you have anything you consider fundamentally different about you in your approach and outlook?

GR: Yes I do and each of those people also have their way of doing it.

Salvatore is a great case point, he’s the Maestro. I was behind the bar

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with him at his 50th a few years ago. Everyone was watching us make drinks behind the bar and he remarks, “Two legends behind the bar…” I cringe at that but when you delve into Salvatore you find he’s a show off.

When you understand Salvatore it’s all about people and service, that’s his real passion, his theatre.

Of the things I’ve come to realise is that we’ve been brought up and taught to learn from your elders. What I’ve come to realise, is that you can learn just as much from those that are younger.

I can teach younger people about mindfulness and service, they can teach me about dry shaking, things that my generation never did. So no matter how old you get, never dismiss ideas coming from younger people.

Listen to them, some of it may still be bullshit, but you’ll get some nuggets as well.

DWA: How would you define the stages of your career from being a younger bartender entering New York at 23 to being a worldrenowned industry guru at the age of 62. Do you define it in terms of stages?

GR: Absolutely. I’ve been through as many ups and downs as anybody else. I’ve worked good cocktail bars and I’ve worked neighbourhood joints.

There are definite stages you have to go through and you have to know that whatever you’re being thrown is being thrown at you for a reason and if it’s bad it will surely pass. People say I’m a legend, I reply I’m a f*****g Bartender! (laughs).

DWA: Who would you choose to be your desert Island Bartender and what drink would you ask for?

GR: The bartender is David Ridings, my mentor who passed away in 2002 and the drink I would probably choose on a desert Island would be a Negroni.

DWA: I know you love music. If you could narrow down the journey so far to one single track, what would that be?

GR: Sid Vicious – My Way. DWA: Do you consider yourself a bit of a Sid Vicious of the bar world?

GR: Actually…. more like the Keith Richards of the bar world. Why the f*** not?

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° FEATURE °

Gaz Regan’s

Mindful Bartending A Series Over 4 Editions

T

here are thousands of mindful bartenders in the world, and you might be one of them, whether you know it, or not. Mindfulness, a Buddhist concept, though you don’t have to be a Buddhist to practice it, is, in the very simplest of terms, all about living in the present moment, and being completely aware of everything that’s going on around you.

Very few people ever achieve a state of complete mindfulness, so the most we can hope for is to understand the concept, and to bring ourselves back into a state of mindfulness whenever we realize that we’ve strayed from that path.

And mindfulness is an ideal practice for bartenders since there’s nothing quite as important to the man or woman behind the bar, than knowing exactly what’s going on around them at any given moment.

There’s a Taoist saying that instructs that there’s no need to leave your house in order to know what’s going

on in the world, and when we look at this concept from the point of view of the bartender it easily translates into something like: There’s no need to turn your head to know that the idiot at the end of the bar is annoying everyone around them. Much of mindfulness is based on intuition.

Mindfulness also entails connecting with everyone around you, and this is another concept that’s so very important to bartenders. If we don’t connect fully with our guests, after all, how can we expect to be able to make them happy? And that’s the main reason we set foot behind the

bar in the first place, right? The most important aspect of the bartender’s craft is to be of service to others, and make people happy.

As this series continues I’ll be telling you about specific ways in which you can apply mindfulness to your craft, and to your life in general, and I promise that, if you practice what I suggest, you’ll find that your job will become easier, you’ll get along better with your guests, and with your co-workers, and you’ll probably end up being a happier human being in general. What more could you ask for?

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的故事 T

he ‘Ladies in Liquor’ initiative was developed in Hong Kong to bring the female bartenders and industry professionals together to discuss how we can continue to make the industry grow. Over the past year, the female talent has grown in Hong Kong and we want to encourage the growth, knowledge and community support of the Ladies in Liquor in Hong Kong.

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° FEATURE ° Drinks World Asia arranged an open invitation for the ‘Ladies in Liquor’ to come together and asked a few questions about the industry and what we all can do to continue to see great female bartenders rise in Hong Kong.

As a group, see below what they had to say.

Drinks World Asia: What’s your view on competitions in Hong Kong?

Ladies in Liquor: Overall, the competitions in Hong Kong are good and some of the prizes are great. What we would like to see are competitions that offer more educational elements to them as well. For example, with the DIAGEO World Class they have the written and senses test. This is great as it encourages us to learn more and more about the history of liquor, which is really important for a bartender.

But on the other side, it’s always good too when competitions don’t have all the fuss with tests and prizes, and we can just go shake, stir and pour, have a good time and catch up with our fellow bartender friends.

DWA: Would you like to see an all girl competition?

LIL: Not necessarily. We are quite a tight community in Hong Kong and one of the main reasons for entering competitions is that we get to see all our friends. It’s great to compete against the guys as well, as it gets us to show our talents. It helps us to push ourselves as bartenders and that we can just be as good as the guys or even better (smiles and laughs all around).

DWA: What are the opportunities like for females in the bar industry in Hong Kong?

LIL: It’s relatively equal. It would be great to see more opportunities come up for Brand Ambassador roles in the industry, sales distribution roles or other industry related roles.

We do take the industry quite seriously and always looks for opportunities to grow and further develop our career as bartenders or anything industry related.

DWA: What does the group think is the ultimate female cocktail in Hong Kong?

LIL: That’s a tough one to answer as everyone has different tastes and preferences. But if we had to nail it down to a liquor and taste, it would definitely be a clear spirit and something fruity.

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° FEATURE ° DWA: This is the first time we have formally got together. What other events would you like to see the industry provide for this group?

LIL: We would love to see more group trainings on products, brands and customer service as these are important too. Bartenders can sometimes feel it’s just all about the drinks they make. However, customer service is just as important, which Hong Kong can really fail with at times.

We think it’s essential to always learn about products, bar set-up and relationship building.

The natural progression from being a bartender is to become a bar manager or a brand ambassador, so learning and developing is something we should always continue to do.

It would be good to see more brand involvement with trainings and even a program on steps to become a brand ambassador, and what options there are for careers after

90 °

bartending.

In terms of events, it would be great to run an event at a bar or pop-up bar, where all the girls work the bar and the floor, and raise money for a charity. Very similar to ‘Just One Shift’ that Mark Thomas organised in Singapore recently.

It’s such a great initiative and it’s always great to give back to the community and to charity.

Ideas that come to mind would be for breast cancer awareness and we could all wear pink, create pink cocktails, etc. Alternatively, an event to raise funds for the stray animals in Hong Kong. This is something I think we all feel pretty passionate about, and we really like to create charity event which the ‘Ladies in Liquor’ can organise.

DWA. What does the Hong Kong industry need more or less of?

LIL: Again, more product knowledge and better level of service.

A great product event that comes to mind is the Quinetum training ran by Erik at the science museum. The training went into great detail and the history of the product. And the ability to then taste and make cocktails with the Quinetum after the training was a lot of fun.

In addition, a distillery trip would be great too so we get more in-depth knowledge about a product and see behind the scenes.

The bar swap initiative that you (Drinks World Asia) arrange is good as well. This gives us the opportunity to work behind bars in another country, wherein we can gain experience from how other bars operate, what products they use and also see their customer service techniques.

DWA. If your next step were to work in another country, where would it be?

LIL: Definitely London, New York, Sydney or Melbourne.

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在香港始创的“Ladies in Liquor”计划希望让女调 酒师和业界专家聚首一堂，探讨行业未来发展的 路向。过去一年，香港孕育了更多女调酒师，希 望这批巾帼不让须眉的女子能继续壮大，获得社 会的支持，更进一步。 《Drinks World Asia》邀请香港的女调酒师接受访 问，探讨如何能提升她们的地位。 听听她们怎么说。 DWA：你们对香港的调酒比赛有何看法？ LIL：香港的比赛很不错，奖品也很丰富，希望未 来能更着重寓教于赛，例如DIAGEO World Class世 界顶尖调酒师大赛便设有笔试和感官测试，让选 手认识酒的历史，学习调酒师不可或缺的知识。 不过，简单的比赛也不失为一件好事，我们能 专心调酒，再和同业朋友叙叙旧，聊聊天。 DWA：你们期待只限女性参加的比赛吗？ LIL：不会。香港的行业不大，我们参加比赛主要 是为了和朋友见面，而且和男性比赛能让我们展 示才能，力求进步，证明我们比男调酒师有过之 而无不及（众人皆笑）。 DWA：女性在香港酒吧业的发展机会如何?

LIL：女性的机会相对平等，但也希望有更多机会 出任品牌形象大使，或担任营销分销或其他相关 岗位。我们对行业很认真，在调酒师或其他有关 工作上力求进步。 DWA：香港哪一款酒最适合女生？ LIL：每个人的品味和爱好各异，所以很难一概 而论。如果一定要选，那一定是色泽通透、果味 香甜的酒。

DWA：这次大家首次共聚一堂，以后还希望行业 举办什么活动？ LIL：希望有更多产品、品牌和客户服务的集团培 训，因为调酒师有时会以为只要调好酒就可以， 但其实客户服务也很重要，香港调酒师在这方面 仍有待改善。 我们要增进产品知识，学习布置吧台和建立关 系。调酒师的下一步一般是酒吧经理或品牌大 使，所以要不断学习，提升自己。 如果有更多品牌参与培训，甚至教人如何成为 品牌形象大使，或是调酒师的职业发展路向，也 很不错。 可以考虑在酒吧或临时酒吧举行慈善活动，让 女调酒师和女服务员筹款，就像近期Mark Thomas 在新加坡举办的“Just One Shift”活动，让我们 能回馈社会。例如我们能作粉红色的打扮，调制 粉红色的鸡尾酒，呼吁大家关注乳腺癌。也可以 为香港的流浪动物募捐，我们对这些活动都很有 兴趣，很想和“Ladies in Liquor”一起举办慈善 活动。 DWA：香港的行业需要什么？ LIL：需要加强产品知识和提升服务水平。 Erik在科学馆举办的Quinetum培训是很好的产品 活动，深入介绍产品的特点及历史，还让参加者 品酒，和用Quinetum调配鸡尾酒。我们也可以举 办酿酒厂之旅，让参加者了解产品背后的故事。 《Drinks World Asia》安排的交换酒吧活动也很 好，让我们能有机会在其他国家的酒吧工作，学 习其他酒吧的经营方式，观摩他们选用的产品和 服务技巧。 DWA：如果要到另一个国家工作，会选择哪里?

LIL：一定是伦敦、纽约、悉尼或墨尔本。

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° FEATURE °

Competition

Winner, Hua-Ling Li (Stream, Taipei)

SVEDKA Female Bartender

W

omen are surely making their mark on the bartending community in Taiwan with the success of the SVEDKA Female Bartender Competition held at the LMNT in Taipei last May 5, 2014. The first ever ‘only for women’ bartender competition was joined by a group of 45 talented female bartenders from all over Taiwan. Only eight advanced to the final, in which they were tasked with creating a drink based on the theme “The Subject Matters”, featuring 300+ combinations of different female ages, personalities and occupations.

Hua-Ling from Stream emerged as the big winner with her “35 Years, Emotional Reporter, Reviver” creation. She won herself a trip to Hong Kong, where she will be a guest bartender at a top bar in Hong Kong and gets the chance to promote her winning drink. It was evident in the competition that the main components used were ingredients that women would like such as herbal plants, fresh fruits and floral tea.

Among the judges were SVEDKA Representatives Joe Milner and Kat Lee, DWA’s Marc Rodrigues and Wine & Spirits Digest Publisher Leo Wu. Six showgirls dressed as a nurse, racing queen, flight attendant, cheerleader, Japanese student and Tomb Raider character Lara Croft served also as judges and added fun to the event.

The top eight included: Yi-Rou Lai (Sappo, Taipei), Xin-Yi Xu (A Star, Taipei), Han-Qing Yang (Diamond Fall, Tainan), Yi-Tian Liu (MINI, Tainan), Yu-Rou Wu (Trio Café, Taipei), Qing-Cen Wan (Trio Café, Taipei), Jia-Qian Liang (Liu Xiao Man, Taiyuan) and Hua-Ling Li (Stream, Taipei).

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° FEATURE °

First

LADIES IN LIQUOR Gathering at The Envoy P

roudly sponsored by El Jimador, the first Ladies in Liquor held at The Envoy last June 30 was a gathering of ladies in Hong Kong with a passion for liquor. The ladies enjoyed El Jimador cocktails made by the talented Amanda Wan from The Envoy while discussing all the great things the industry has to offer, what can be done to see it continues to grow and how the women can contribute to its growth.

The name El Jimador is a tribute to the men who mastered the art of selecting and harvesting the best Weber blue agaves from which tequila is made. The hard work, dedication, and great pride and care that the master harvesters had shown are reflected in the authenticity, vitality and quality that go into every distinguished bottle of El Jimador tequila.

Handcrafted at the legendary Casa Herradura in Jalisco, every drop of El Jimador is made from 100% Weber blue agave with no fillers or colors – making it the No. 1 tequila in Mexico. It is also the choice of people around the world who have zest and passion for life.

The taberna or old factory at Casa Herradura, built by Félix and Carmen López Rosales in 1870, was the original distillery where El Jimador was produced. Though the steps in the production of Tequila Herradura were no different from the way it’s made today, the machinery and methods are from a different period.

The name Herradura – which means horseshoe – came from Aurelio Lopez Rosales, a worker at Hacienda San Jose del Refugio (Casa Herradura). The story goes that in early 1900s, Aurelio was out inspecting the agave fields of the hacienda when he saw the glint of gold on the dusty ground. Treasure and gold are part of Amatitan, so when he picked up the gleaming object, he found that it was merely a horseshoe that had caught the light. It may not have been gold, but the horseshoe is a symbol of luck and Aurelio was inspired to give this name to to his excellent tequila, Herradura.

l Jimadtohre ladies.

E p u g in s for an mix AmandaHWerradura cocktail and 94 °

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° DRINK °

Herradura Paloma

Herradura Garden 40ml Herradura Reposado 15ml Buddha Fruit Syrup 10ml Lime Juice

40ml Herradura Plata 40ml Grapefruit Juice 10ml Agave Nectar

15pcs Mint Leaves Smoked Buddha Fruit Shell Mint Sprig

El Jimador Rose

Herradura Tommy’s 60ml Herradura Añejo 20ml Lime Juice

5ml Lime Juice Top up Grapefruit Soda Half Lime

45ml El Jimador Blanco 10ml Monin Rose Syrup 10ml Lemon Juice

3 rounds Ground Black Pepper Top up Champagne Cucumber Rose

15ml Agave Nectar Lime Wedge

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Winemaker at

Large

RUFFINO’S GABRIELE TACCONI WORDS ° Anastasia Jones

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e were lucky enough to catch up with Gabriele Tacconi, Chief Winemaker, Ruffino recently at Riedel Room in JW Marriott Hotel, Hong Kong.

Gabriele, only the fourth Chief Winemaker in over 130 years, recently visited Hong Kong to meet some local distributors. During his three days’ stay, he took time out of his schedule to give us the lowdown on how Ruffino wines are produced, and what makes them the second most popular Italian wine brand in US restaurants, according to the current Wine & Spirits magazine restaurant poll.

Founded in 1877, Ruffino is one of Italy’s oldest and most respected family-oriented wineries. The company has premium vineyards in Italy’s most important DOCG production regions; including Montalcino, Chianti and Chianti Classico, for a total of more than 1,000 hectares of land and 350 hectares of vineyards.

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° MEET °

Anastasia Jones: We started by asking Gabriele how he ended up in the alcoholic beverage business…

Gabriele Tacconi: I have always wanted to be a winemaker. I started out in another industry in a small town in Italy called Modena and fell in love with everything to do wine and viticulture so I quit my job and moved to Milan. After graduating, I spent some time in Sicily before joining Ruffino in 1998.

AJ: Gabriele, tell us about your wine style.

GT: The main task for any oenologist is to respect the style developed over the years, especially for one with deep roots like Ruffino. The true “style” adopted here is the Ruffino style, one steeped in tradition, elegance and drinkability, and developed over time. It’s a style that I and my team - I’d like to emphasize its importance here - treat with great respect.

AJ: This is the fifth year in a row that Ruffino has ranked among the top most popular Italian Restaurant brand in the US. Do you make your wine specifically for on-premise consumption?

GT: It is because we stay true to the Italian style – the Tuscan traditions and Sangiovese’s uniqueness, the Ruffino style from 1877. Our blends have changed slightly in keeping with the times – less acid and more

drinkability today rather than having to cellar for 20 years; but ultimately our wines have always been made to be enjoyed with food and friends – this is the Italian lifestyle and how we enjoy good wine!

AJ: Which types of food are Ruffino wines best suited?

GT: In my opinion, Ruffino wines pair well with a lot of food – European food, American food, and Asian food. I have had some wonderful Ruffino wines with Asian food on this trip. I can’t remember the names but many of the noodle dishes have been amazing, so has the BBQ pork (Char Siu) and Siu Mei that I have tried with Ruffino Riserva Ducale Oro. The Ruffino Chianti Classico Riserva went very well with the spicy dishes we had in Thailand – the fired fish – it was a cod and spring rolls too!

AJ: You have met with many sommeliers, restaurateurs and industry players these past few days. What is the one message you would like them to walk away from the tastings you have conducted?

GT: The first thing I hope they have walked away with is to not just consider our wines as stand alone - in terms of the structure, the body, etc. In Italy, we always think about the glass of wine and the food it can pair with – this is the Italian way, Dolce Vita! The way we talk about wine in Tuscany, for example, Sangiovese is… Sangiovese with some food!

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° FEATURE °

Baron Edmond de Rothschild WINE ESTATES

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he wine tradition in the French branch of the Rothschild family was born in 1868 with the purchase of Château Lafite by James de Rothschild. After more than a century of family history linked to the world of wine, Baron Edmond de Rothschild (great-grandson of James) extended this family tradition in 1973 by acquiring two Listrac and Moulis Crus Bourgeois in Médoc: Château Clarke and Château Malmaison. He then created the Compagnie Vinicole Baron Edmond de Rothschild.

Under a watchful eye, the estates were restored, the vines were replanted and the company was modernised and expanded while retaining a familial aspect. Over time, Compagnie Vinicole Baron Edmond de Rothschild has opened up to the world through an association with the Rupert family in South Africa. Their shared passion gave rise to the “Rupert & Rothschild Vignerons” wine cellar at the foot of the magnificent Simonsberg Mountain.

In 1999, Compagnie Vinicole Baron Edmond de Rothschild bought 250 ha in Argentina at the base of the Andes to produce “Flechas de los Andes” wines with Mr Laurent Dassault.

In the Bordeaux region, Baron Benjamin de Rothschild acquired the superb property at Château des Laurets in 2003 seeking to develop the full potential of this vineyard straddling two AOCs: Puisseguin Saint-Émilion and Montagne Saint-Émilion. After significant renovation work, the estate now boasts modern, highperformance facilities.

More recently, in New Zealand, the acquisition of 26 ha of grapevines at the heart of the Marlborough valley has yielded Rimapere, an outstanding Sauvignon Blanc.

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Baron Benjamin de Rothschild and his wife Ariane continue to produce high-quality wines with exacting standards, when it comes to both the choice of new terroirs and each stage of vinification.

RIMAPERE In Maori, Rimapere means “five arrows”, the emblem of the Rothschild family which represents the five brothers who forged this dynasty of entrepreneurs.

Rimapere is a partnership between Baron Benjamin de Rothschild (Bodega Flechas de los Andes, Rupert & Rothschild) and Mr Terry Peabody (Craggy Range winery). The Rimapere vineyard occupies 26 hectares of grapevines acquired in 2012 by Baron Benjamin de Rothschild.

The vineyard is ideally located on the prestigious site of Rapaura in the heart of Marlborough. The fresh climate of this region is conductive to producing Sauvignon Blanc of excellent quality, giving these grapes a certain freshness tied to good acidity and the typical lemon and tropical fruits flavors while enhancing its finesse and elegance.

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° VISIT °

3

years in

Bourgognes

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he years 2011 to 2013 were trying times for Bourgognes. Unusual weather conditions posed a great challenge to the winegrowers. Patience was required, and their pains and efforts paid off. 2011 resulted in a vintage characterized by some delicious aromas and flavors. And 2012 saw the fulfillment of the promise of the first tastings. Wines were revealing their personalities. And their wide range reflected the aromatic diversity that characterizes the wines of Bourgognes, small quantities but good quality. 2013 proved that experience can make the difference. Vintage revealed a real aromatic purity and unexpectedly color, and the balance in the wines was particularly satisfactory.

The 2011 Vintage:

Pleasure is the watchword Thanks to some unusual weather conditions - which could be becoming the norm, given what happened in 2012 - the 2011 vintage is characterized by some delicious aromas and flavors. These are wines to be enjoyed relatively young.

The weather for the 2011 vintage began spectacularly with a particularly warm and early spring, before giving way to a cool and rainy summer with periodic heavy storms. As is often the case, a sunny end to August “a fait le moût” or “made the juice”, as they say. For the third time in a decade, the harvests began in the last 10 days of August, with some very tricky logistics. Each plot had to be harvested as it reached perfect maturity, and the sunshine in early September and low rainfall meant patience was required. The grapes had to be painstakingly sorted but the high discard resulted in fruity, silky reds and whites that were bursting with energy.

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White wines Chablis and Auxerrois Summer 2011 was changeable. June and August were particularly wet, and July and September saw little sunshine. Given these tricky conditions, winemakers had to be determined and extremely rigorous in order to produce such high-quality, seductive wines.

They are very aromatic wines with good minerality and offer balanced acidity on the tongue, a quality essential to Chablis. This acidity has a classic lemon twist without being tart. A touch of citrus and fresh, fruity notes of pear and apricot make these wines expressive and forthright.

They will be ripe for drinking fairly quickly.

Some of the wines from these regions, which have a wonderful complexity and perfect structure, can wait a few years.

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and good keeping potential. This is most certainly an excellent vintage!

The best terroirs offer an intense golden color, notes of flint, vanilla and ripe grape and peach, topped off by an attractively exotic hint of ripe mango and pineapple. The palate treads a line between elegance and sophistication with a forthright, sometimes austere finish. These wines will age very well, but they can also be enjoyed now as an aperitif or with food.

Red wines Auxerrois The reds, mainly from Irancy, offer lovely notes of morello cherry and redcurrant. Fresh and delicious, they should be enjoyed in their youth.

Côte de Beaune Hard work paid off in 2011 on the Côte de Beaune. Despite rather tricky weather at the beginning of summer, the grape harvest took place in optimum conditions. The grapes were perfectly mature and healthy in the main, ensuring some quality wines.

The reds from the Côte de Beaune are very aromatic, dominated by elegant fruity notes, and are dense, full-bodied in the mouth with smooth, velvety tannins.

They are flavorful and delicate, and are among the best of the region.

Côte de Beaune Small yields resulting from the capricious spring weather meant the harvesting could wait until the grapes were perfectly ripe. With a more clement month of September and some strict sorting, the winemakers were graced with top quality grapes.

Overall, the wines are very aromatic, dominated by notes of both ripe and dried fruits. In the mouth, they are lively with perfect structure and offer breadth with consistency.

After a few months in the bottle, they will quickly soften up to reach a perfect balance. They offer very good keeping potential.

Côte Chalonnaise For the Côte Chalonnaise, 2011 will remain a gloomy year. The vines in the Montagny and Rully appellations were hit hard by hail. A few vines were, however, spared and went on to produce wines that are aromatic, smooth and fat, with perfect mouthfeel. The same goes for other appellations like Mercurey, Bouzeron and Givry, which were less hard hit and produced their usual yields.

These whites offer a fine balance between sugars and acidity which indicates good balance and liveliness on the nose. The aromas are expressive, with hints of almond, pear and toasted bread. The acidity is present but never unpleasant.

Mâconnais The Mâconnais enjoyed a mild winter and a hot, dry spring. Many storms during the summer and a heat wave during the second half of August meant the grapes matured very early. The winemakers, who used their skills to manage yields and preserve the balance of sugar and acidity, saw their efforts rewarded.

The wines have the smoothness of early vintages with that extra minerality of cool summers, a combination that guarantees excellence

Côte Chalonnaise With such tricky weather, careful yield management was key to ensuring the maturity of the grapes. In the end, the red grapes offered thick skins which translated into forthright tannins and raspberry red colors with hints of violet.

Despite being hit by hail, Rully profited from the fine weather during the tail end of the season and the reds caught up with the rest, offering some desirable concentration.

The wines are aromatic with good structure. With a framework of smooth and silky tannins, they are perfect for enjoying in their youth.

Côte de Nuits The Côte de Nuits grapes were harvested in tip-top condition. Despite the dismal weather earlier in the summer, the grapes were ripe by the beginning of September.

Although there was a lot of discard from the harvest, the resulting wines were elegant and silky, with wonderful concentration.

They have a moderate degree of alcohol which makes them mouthwateringly appealing without heaviness. Rich ruby in color, these wines explore all the nuances of a classic, fruity year, between raspberry, blueberry and warm spices. They are remarkably fresh in the mouth and are perfectly balanced. They offer good structure, underpinned by tannins that are both closed yet silky.

Complex and full-bodied, the 2011 wines of the Côte de Nuits offer good keeping potential, but as with the 2007 vintage, they are also accessible in their youth, and are already generous and appealing.

Crémant de Bourgogne The 2011 Crémant de Bourgogne wines are smooth and expressive with a rounded mouthfeel.

The Chardonnay offer pure aromas of white peach and grapefruit. The Aligoté release light and discreet acidulated notes.

Despite low yields, the Pinot Noir have good structure and strong color.

The Gamay are bursting with intense aromas of red berries.

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The 2012 Vintage:

Precious Bourgogne wines One year after the harvests, the 2012 vintage is fulfilling the promise of the first tastings. The year was notable for its rollercoaster weather, with a mild winter, spring-like temperatures in March, followed by a sharp drop and some frosts, a sunny May, cold and rainy June, and an unstable summer with periods of heat wave, hail and storms…

Although the cold and damp during flowering led to shatter and millerandage, with an inevitable impact on volumes, the sunny and warm late summer allowed the grapes to attain good levels of ripeness and the harvest was relatively disease-free.

Today, the wines of the 2012 vintage are revealing more of their personalities. Their wide range reflects the aromatic diversity that characterizes the wines of Bourgogne. They also reflect the climatic conditions to which the vines were subjected, and the efforts of the winemakers and négociants to bring out the best in the fruit.

These wines all have two characteristics in common: small quantities, but good quality.

White wines Chablis and Auxerrois As in most regions of the Bourgogne, the changeable weather conditions had an impact on yields. In the earlier-ripening sectors, shatter and millerandage led to a drop in volumes, although the quality was unimpeachable. The wines are particularly expressive, developing intense aromas of ripe fruit, underscored with some wonderful floral notes. In the mouth, they are rounded and dense, with good structure. Those wines from more late-ripening plots are characterized by more subtle citrus scents and tangy fruits, well-defined and mineral in the mouth, where the acidity gives them a pleasant crispness.

Côte de Beaune The Côte de Beaune was hit by hail, resulting in a significant fall in volumes harvested, especially in the central and southern sectors. The wines are showing remarkable quality overall, with nice concentration and undeniable aromatic complexity. Spared the hail, the hill of Corton and the surrounding region produced some marvels. The wines, with notes of ripe and dried fruits, are powerful and vivacious in the mouth, revealing clear ageing potential. The very promising results lived up to expectations.

Côte Chalonnaise Not having suffered from hailstorms and having been less affected by bad weather, the Côte Chalonnaise provided an excellent 2012 vintage.

Made from very healthy fruit, which reached full maturity, the wines are rich and full-bodied. They exhibit excellent aromatic qualities, with odors of white fruits and apricot mingling with delicate floral notes (lime blossom, acacia, etc.). The mouth is full and fleshy, and superbly structured.

Mâconnais The Mâcon region bounced back well after the poor spring weather.

Although shatter and millerandage led to reduced volumes and in places, slowed ripening, the quality of the wines obtained is exemplary.

They are very expressive on the nose, with intense aromas of ripe fruits (pear, apple, apricot), accompanied by subtle hints of flowers. The mouth is both rounded and dense, fleshy and perfectly balanced.

The 2012 vintage here produced many spectacular successes.

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Red wines Auxerrois Patient winemakers got their reward. Maturity was a long time coming, but was finally attained, thanks to the small volumes produced. Fruity and with a pleasant crispness, the wines are full in the mouth, with pronounced tannins.

Côte de Beaune The violent hailstorms that swept the Côte de Beaune left an indelible trace on the year’s output. Some plots in the communes of Pommard and its surroundings lost up to 80% of the harvest.

These difficult climatic conditions were responsible for the low volumes produced. The resulting wines benefited from the effect of concentration, which has become a qualitative advantage. They are fruity and spicy, with good breadth, and a crisp, pleasing acidity. Their body and tannin structure mean they have very good ageing potential.

Côte Chalonnaise Thanks to rather more clement weather conditions than in some neighboring regions, the Côte Chalonnaise produced a vintage that will go down in the annals. Outstanding maturity and peak condition grapes allowed for wines with exceptional aromatic and gustatory characteristics.

Côte de Nuits With 2012, the Côte de Nuits produced an excellent vintage. Having escaped the hail, but not the effect of shatter and millerandage, the grapes reached maturity in tip-top conditions.

The wines, with a deep color and aromas of small fruits and very ripe berries, are remarkably balanced. Both smooth and crisp, their roundedness is underscored by especially soft tannins. With a succulent finish and impressive length, they can without any doubt be considered wines for long ageing.

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The 2013 Vintage:

Prodigious Bourgogne wines After the challenges thrown at them in 2012, Bourgogne winemakers were hoping for a peaceful 2013. But capricious Mother Nature had other ideas. Defying all weather forecasts, she never let up. After a long winter, a gloomy spring and a fine, providential summer, for the most part, the pickers had to wait until the start of October to take up their secateurs.

The consequences of the weather’s whims – such as shatter and millerandage, hail damage, concentration and disease – all had an impact on the quantities harvested. Across the region, no winegrowing area was spared. Some had very low yields with volumes equal to or even less than those recorded in 2012 (1.26 million hectoliters ).

Fortunately, the first tastings suggest that 2013 is a very successful vintage. Once again, experience has made all the difference. It has been a challenging year but the winegrowers of Bourgogne have been rewarded for their pains.

The weather during flowering and fruit set was no better and by now, the growth cycle was set back by three weeks.

A hot, dry and sunny summer provided a welcome change and helped the quality of the grapes, enabling them to mature correctly. July was marked by a violent hailstorm on the Côte de Beaune with 1,350 hectares affected on 23 July.

September didn’t help the vines, with the ambient warmth and regular rain encouraging the development of the Botrytis fungus which rots the grapes. It was more limited on those bunches where the grapes were smaller and thus better aerated. The choice of harvest date was a tough one. Winegrowers had to be very reactive and work fast.

This demanding vintage required a lot of effort that, today, has been rewarded with success. The wines are revealing a real aromatic purity and unexpectedly color. The balance in the wines is particularly satisfactory.

White wines Fruity and balanced, the white wines are characterized by a nose marked with citrus.

This aromatic crispness is also felt in the mouth. The wines are well structured, fresh and lively, without the aggression some feared given the acidity measurements taken just before the harvest. Forthright and without flourishes, the whites of 2013 stand up convincingly to previous vintages.

Red wines With an intense, sparkling ruby color, these fruity wines are like a mouthful of freshly picked cherries, raspberries and redcurrants. The Pinot Noirs that were harvested later have more jammy aromas.

On tasting, the first acidulated notes give way to a good structure supported by sophisticated, pronounced tannins. Good length on the tongue prolongs the pleasure.

We feared the worst, but we were spared!

Crémant de Bourgogne

The winter lingered in Bourgogne. From January to July, the temperatures were cool. The sun was notably absent during the first half of the year, and the rain all too frequent. This gloomy weather affected the vines, setting back the growth cycle by around two weeks.

In early May, when the first buds had just appeared, torrential rainstorms hit the region. In some plots, the vines spent several days with their roots in water.

Good acidity and sugar levels meant that at the end of September, the grapes harvested were perfect for making Crémant de Bourgogne.

The lively and fruity white base wines reveal aromas of white peach and grapefruit. The Pinot Noirs are characterized by fine structure, while the Gamays offered very high quality with intense aromas of red fruit.

2013 offers producers the possibility to make vintage cuvées with good keeping potential.

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° FEATURE °

The Latest Buzz in the

HONG KONG BAR SCENE WORDS ° Michael Callahan

M

ore frequently these days, the nights in the city are host to gatherings of great diversity.

Gatherings with competitions of the most colorful names providing unexpected rewards, and full-on bragging rites (nod to Tom for his dominating skills at Rum Fest). If you have not attended one of these events, you damn well should. These are the golden days of a scene, and the cocktail events are getting alarmingly fun!

Ok, here you have a city bristling with confidence, awash with residents embracing the toils of the hustle, actually feeding off its energy. The geography itself mirrors the struggle to get to the next, more prestigious level. In short, it’s a mad town! Still, it is in this town that you might hear a ruckus emanating from a building you can’t find a way into. Down a dim street, and up an undisclosed lift lobby, reverberating with the echoes of a community of raucous laughter and famously bad puns.

What you will find is a chorus of dreamers fortified by the maturation of what was recently a cottage industry. You can almost feel the crash of the creative shore-break that has been changing the market itself, the sounds of local legends chiseling out legacies, and global champions coming of age. Meanwhile, the sages are increasingly working together for the continued growth of the industry. Right now is a truly magical time to be a craft bartender in Hong Kong.

If those last two paragraphs didn’t inspire you I may have to resort to cute kitten photos because I give up. Otherwise, we will wait, grab a whiskey and read on.

The development of a craft cocktail community commonly follows a three-phase system. For fun, let’s just call the first wave, “Icebreakers”.

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With the “Juniors and Expats” eventually dominating the second phase.

If you’re lucky you eventually find yourself in the joys of the “The Golden Years”. We are still in the beginning days of that era now, meaning its only going to get better. Yup, welcome to happy town.

The Icebreaker guys; those cats became the grandfathers of the scene.

The passion-driven creative types that were the first to attempt elevating programs through the use of bespoke syrups, boutique spirits, and generally realizing “there has got to be a better way to do this”. Books, travels, Internet, Bacardi Ambassadors (damn those guys are good), many things may have inspired this group to strive for change. Often working alone to educate people on drinking better, these early birds had heart.

Even with all that passion, its exhaustive work. During those early days, only a small set of committed regulars keep you going, you know them all fairly well, and notice when they are not coming around. Commonly these barmen were given no compensation for the time, money, or sleep-time, spent scouring marketplaces for the best mint supplier, fruit supplier, ice supplier, etc. Eventually setting the groundwork for what will become a thriving community.

We begin to grow into the second phase with regional and international

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talent coming over, as well as the emergence of scrappy juniors looking to get a piece of the action. This is a time of rapid market expansion.

The swell of interest causes rivalry for new reasons. Unfortunately, this phase is characteristically plagued by supply side frustrations. As word has gotten out and the market is demanding better drinks, it needs more bartenders, who will be looking to source better ingredients, more specific tools, and more esoteric spirits. The competition is greater and the bartenders are often less likely to share sources in order to maintain an edge in the market. Staff poaching – which rears its ugly head about this time – is also a touchy subject.

To take a moment in defense of the suppliers; these guys are often hesitant to commit heavily to any new fad, anticipating the changing of trends. Increasingly however, the evolution of drinking is far from waning, on the contrary it’s hard to keep up with at times. We are finding that the transformation to more educated imbibing has happened the world over and is well entrenched in cities as diverse as Munich and Mumbai.

Basically, craft cocktails, as a market segment is here to stay. Not only that, if the supply and demand side’s reach happy places you get the next paragraph.

(Warning: this next phase always gets me a little verklempt.)

Third phase, BOOM! If you have attended any of those friendly competitions mentioned at the beginning of this article, you will have witnessed a grass roots community of craft bartenders suited-and-booted with 2” braces and 3” of facial hair sharing everything from secrets to success, to a cheeky Fernet, and often both. Nearby is a tattered and tattooed home wrecker that tends a bar down the way. What you eventually notice is a unity in the people at these bars, you can hear it in the jokes and conversation, in the cross bar banter and the fact that you

have never seen that many shots consumed in a bar without a girl wearing a tiara or a guy holding a checklist of ridiculous things he must do before the night is out.

That unity extends to the guest. As the bridge is gapped, the line is blurred and you begin to see conversations on the adhesive properties of fruit pectin and sourcing leads for copper cups between people, you certainly don’t even bartend. And they too are at the events yelling (semi)supportive banter at the barman, who is also a dear friend, and who just got off a 10-hour shift from a 3-star restaurant bar. He is currently trying to make 6 (servable) drinks in 2 minutes to a panel of “judges” only concerned with throwing garnish picks in his shaker tins, while on stage!

This is happening all the time. It’s hilarious, inspiring, beautiful, raw, and unique to each city. From nightclubs to hotel rooftop bars, craft bartending is permeating the world of drinking. What a glorious thing to behold.

UPDATE: Various events are being held throughout Hong Kong’s now numerous cocktail bars. You can watch some of the biggest personalities in the scene inspiring further generations multiple nights a week. Sharing techniques and supporting each other’s venues via pop-ups, competitions, and guest bartending shifts where the barback will accost you with laybacks of Becharovka.

This sweet spot comes and goes even in healthy scenes; get out there while you got it! After all, we would not be here without everyone’s continued support. A merry village of fools, out long past the sunset and well into the dawn.

Cheers.

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° FEATURE °

Tales of the Cocktail 2014

Spirited Awards

®

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onning on their best black and white attire, cocktail professionals and enthusiasts alike convened at the Sheraton New Orleans last July 19 to celebrate one of the industry’s biggest events this year, Tales of the Cocktail’s Spirited Awards. Considered the “Oscars” of the spirits and cocktail world, the 8th Annual Spirited Awards honored 25 of the world’s top bartenders, brand ambassadors, bars, spirits, authors and the newly inducted Helen David Lifetime Awards Recipient, Julio Bermejo. The winners were chosen following a thorough selection and judging process by the most respected minds in the industry.

The black and white-themed ceremony was proudly presented by Tales of the Cocktail®, 86 Company, American Harvest, Bacardi USA, BarSmarts, Beverage Media Group, Chivas, Crystal Head Vodka, Ferrand Cognac, House of Angostura, Imbibe Magazine, Martini Gran Lusso, Nicolas Feuillatte Champagne, Olmeca Altos Tequila, Tequila Cabeza, and William Grant & Son. To embody the ideals in which Tales of the Cocktail was originally founded, these recognitions were given to both national and international awardees across 24 categories. Each recipient received an exclusive Riedel Crystal trophy.

Tales of the Cocktail, the world’s premier cocktail festival, draws bartenders and spirits professionals in a chance to mix and mingle with the brightest minds in mixology during a 5-day event of seminars, dinners, competitions, tasting rooms and new product launches.

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Ann Tuennerman

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28 HK Street take out Best International Cocktail Bar

Max Warner from Chivas Regal

The Winners: AMERICAN CATEGORIES: American Bartender of the Year Sean Kenyon (Denver) Best American Bar Team Trick Dog (San Francisco) Best American Brand Ambassador Neyah White (Suntory Japanese Whiskies) Best American Cocktail Bar The Dead Rabbit (New York)

Best International High Volume Cocktail Bar Schumann’s Bar (Munich) Best International Hotel Bar Artesian at the Langham (London) Best International Restaurant Bar The Bon Vivant (Edinburgh) Best New International Cocktail Bar White Lyan (London)

WRITING: Best American High Volume Cocktail Bar Polite Provisions (San Diego)

Best Cocktail & Spirits Publication Imbibe Magazine (United States)

Best American Hotel Bar Clyde Common (Portland)

Best Cocktail & Spirits Writer Paul Clarke (United States)

Best American Restaurant Bar The NoMad (New York)

Best New Cocktail/Bartending Book Beachbum Berry’s Potions of the Caribbean by Jeff Berry

Best New American Cocktail Bar Three Dots and A Dash (Chicago)

OVERALL CATEGORIES:

INTERNATIONAL CATEGORIES:

Best Bar Mentor Dushan Zaric

International Bartender of the Year Simone Caporale (London) Best International Bar Team Artesian at the Langham (London) Best International Brand Ambassador Giuseppe Gallo (Martini) Best International Cocktail Bar 28 Hong Kong Street (Singapore)

Best New Product Del Maguey Ibérico mezcal World’s Best Cocktail Menu The Aviary (Chicago) World’s Best Drinks Selection The Dead Rabbit (New York) Helen David Lifetime Achievement Award Julio Bermejo (San Francisco)

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° PROFILE °

From

the Traditional to the Trendy: Today’s Whisky Drinking Experiences Offer Something for Everyone

T

oday’s most inventive drinking whisky experiences engage all the senses, allowing the drinker to savour a whisky’s colour, aroma, texture and taste. From traditional whisky serves to new techniques with ice, a reinvention of classic cocktails or the addition of infused waters and aromatic bitters, there are many ways to enjoy your favourite Scotch malt whisky.

TRIED AND TRUE

NEW TRENDS

Neat, with a splash of water, or on the rocks; these are the traditional ways of enjoying a finely crafted single malt whisky. Today, these serves are enjoying even greater popularity as discerning drinkers are becoming increasingly sophisticated in their appreciation for the taste and complexity of whisky.

Around the globe, increasing numbers of consumers are discovering single whiskies like Glenmorangie. And with increasing numbers of people enjoying a dram, some are also discovering new ways to enjoy this classic spirit. Says Annabel Meikle, Sensory Whisky Creator at the Glenmorangie Company: “It is exciting to see the inventiveness with which bartenders are approaching whisky drinking experiences – the new trends, particularly the addition of flavours and bittters, is helping drinkers understand the complexity and depth of our whisky expressions”.

Savouring single malt...

Neat... Sipping single malt as nature intended suits the purist, but for the novice it might be overpowering with flavours and the kick of higher alcohol.

Try it with rich, mature and rounded malts like the velvet-textured Glenmorangie Quinta Ruban or the silky-smooth Glenmorangie 18 years old.

With water... Adding just a few drops of H2O to a single malt opens up new flavours and extra dimensions. In Glenmorangie Original, it brings out this elegant spirit’s exquisite finesse, and in Glenmorangie Sonnalta PX, it releases a kaleidoscope of warming, luscious aromas.

Over ice... Don’t overdo it – more than a cube or two can mask the flavour, and even then only the smoothest and most opulent single malts thrive on being served on the rocks. Try it with Glenmorangie Signet and marvel as those spicy, bitter mocha flavours soften into creamy chocolate and butterscotch.

From Japan: Theatrical carving One of the biggest recent trends to emerge in whisky drinking is ice-carving and the introduction of large chunks of ice, rather than ordinary ice cubes. This trend started in Japan, where bartenders began experiementing with freezing specially filtered water into large blocks of ice and then carving off individual pieces for guests; not only creating ritual and ceremony around the drinking experience, but also adding to the drinking enjoyment. The larger piece of ice thaws slowly; keeping the whisky chilled and altering the dynamics of the malt, thereby releasing new layers of taste and depth.

Pyrotechnics The visually stunning “Blazer” is stirring the senses of whisky drinkers around the world. The idea of igniting a spirit is hardly new. In fact,

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° PROFILE °

it dates back to the “Blue Blazer” invented by legendary bartender Jerry Thomas of The Metropolitan Hotel in New York in the 1800s. However, this technique is enjoying a renaissance with a twist: the addition of exotic ingredients, fruits, and preserves combined with classic ingredients such as aromatic bitters and vermouths is helping to bring out new flavours in the whisky.

Here is a new cocktail recipe from the Glenmorangie Mixologist

The Orangie

Clean and fresh, this is refreshing and zesty, perfectly showcasing the bergamot and mandarin notes of Glenmorangie Original INGREDIENTS 50ml Glenmorangie Original 50ml Crème de Peche 10ml Grand Marnier METHOD Place cube after cube of cold, clean ice into a glass of Glenmorangie Original then slowly stir to progressively dilute and chill the drink. Add the Crème de Peche and Grand Marnier, while continuing to stir. Garnish with grapefruit zest.

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Ice & Spice Glenmorangie Signet’s “Ice and Spice” serve involves an innovative interpretation of both the ice and blazer trends. This serve is designed to highlight the taste sensation of exotic spices and bitter mocha that characterise this ultra-rich Glenmorangie expression. Glenmorangie Signet is poured over a large piece of ice which has the design of the Cadboll stone (Glenmorangie’s icon) carved on it. Then, a spray of aromatic essences is released and lit above the glass, creating a velvet explosion of aroma. Guests are either presented with a chocolate ganache for the single serve, or a tray of chocolate lollies and a spice selection (with chocolate mocha, candied orange peel and a sizzling spice mix to enhance the aromas) to dip their lollies into for the bottle serve.

According to Dr Bill Lumsden, Head of Distilling and Whisky Creation, The Glenmorangie Company, “The rich flavours found in this unique whisky are enhanced by these drinking experiences. The ‘Ice & Spice’ serve combines the tradition and modernity that are inherent to Glenmorangie Signet”.

A dash of flavour Bartenders around the world are also experimenting with adding flavoured and subtly infused waters to whisky. Waters flavoured with hints of rose, fresh ginger or mint, honey, lemon or vanilla for those keen to experiment would be an excellent complement to Glenmorangie Original.

Rediscovering the classics Another popular trend in whisky drinking has been a hearkening back to classic whisky cocktails but instilling a modern twist. Top bartenders are taking these classic recipes for drinks such as the Manhattan, Rob Roy, Bobby Burns and Whisky Sour and personalising them by adding aromatic bitters, more complex vermouths, home-made syrups and liqueurs.

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EAST IMPERIAL

BURMA TONIC Bringing Back the Pink Gin Tradition

P

remium beverage maker East Imperial is once again shaking up the way we drink cocktails with the release of a new traditional mixer to their growing collection: all-natural Burma Tonic.

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° DRINK °

The founders have set out to bring back the lost tradition of Long Pink Gins. Originally born through the travels of the British Royal Navy and referenced across writings about the Burma Pegu Club – Pink Gins, or the common name across the territories Gin Pahit (Bitter Gins), traveled from Burma up to India and down to Singapore. Long Pink Gins were a stalwart at the Raffles Long Bar up until 1983.

By recreating a century-old family recipe, East Imperial has created Burma Tonic – bold, assertive and agreeably bitter. They have taken great care in blending higher East Indies Javanese quinine content with a variety of botanicals, allowing for a tonic that reintroduces a glorious tradition of yesteryear.

TASTING NOTES Burma Tonic has the highest allowable quinine level on the market; but once again with a lower sugar level than other brand tonic waters. As is the case with other East Imperial mixers, they’ve gone for a very natural expression of tonic water, pushing for the most natural flavour with a forward citrus note and high lemon grass notes to match the bitters dash.

With this release, there are now two tonic waters in East Imperial’s range. East Imperial Superior Tonic Water (launched in 2013) is the original tonic water; with the emphasis on water, it is not a soft drink. It brings back the heritage and honest representation of tonic water while letting the drinker’s gin shine through. With Burma Tonic, East Imperial leans to a more contemporary style of tonic with sugars and high citrus notes, but done in such a way that is still steeped in authenticity and heritage with the reintroduction of Long Pink Gins. Burma Tonic and the full range of East Imperial superior beverages are available through Proof and Company.

SERVING SUGGESTIONS: Long Pink Gin 50ml Premium gin 150ml East Imperial Burma Tonic 3 to 4 dashes Angostura bitters Lime or Lemon and for an Asian twist some Kafir Lime zest Serve tall and refreshing over cube ice.

Pink Tonic East Imperial Burma Tonic 3 to 4 dashes Angostura bitters Lime or Lemon or Kafir Lime zest Serve tall and refreshing over cube ice.

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° VISIT °

Perrier Sparkling Mineral Water

A HEALTHY

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ustomers are very particular about the drinks to go with their meals. That’s why hotels and restaurants prefer to serve a quality drink like Perrier Sparkling Mineral Water. It’s not only perfect for any occasion, but it’s also a great addition to any type of meal that one is having as it’s basically just water.

Natural Perrier is natural, its main ingredient is water coming from a mineral water source. The source of its minerals is also natural and not artificially added. Natural carbon dioxide is found in the water, which makes it perfect for any meal, snack or even just hydration. Natural mineral water actually helps digestions, eases constipation and increases good cholesterol level.

help to calm and soothe some of the sensations that the body is used to when it eats and craves.

The Ultimate Refreshment Perrier is the ultimate refreshment and a nice alternative to still water. It has low level salt content, is light, with unique taste and strong bubbles that provide a refreshing sensation so it complements well with both light and heavy dishes.

Zero Calories Perrier Regular has zero calories while Perrier Lemon/Lime has 1.6kJ calories per 100mL, which is almost close to zero.

In fact, one cup per serving contains zero calories, which makes Perrier a good substitute for high calories drinks and beverages such as sodas and beers. The carbonation will

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Perfect for Any Meal and Occasion As it is just essentially water, Perrier is perfect for just about any meal and occasion. It blends well with any dishes or drinks, that’s why hotels and restaurants prefer to serve it to their customers.

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SAGRANTINO 5/F, The Loop, 33 Wellington Street, Central Tel: 2521 5188

When asked why they prefer to serve a quality water like Perrier, Japanese restaurant owners Mr Takahiro Uehara of Uehara and Mr Takashi Yasuda of Sagrantino said it’s because Perrier is light and bubbly, and has low level salt content, so it blends perfectly with both dishes and drinks.

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° VISIT °

Mr Takashi Yasuda

of Sagrantino

Drinks World Asia: Tell us a little about your background?

Takashi Yasuda: I studied restaurant business in the US for four years. During this time, I worked at an Italian restaurant in Hilton Las Vegas. After my stint there, I went to Italy to further study authentic Italian cuisine.

Two years later, I came to Hong Kong to research about Italian restaurants. It was then that I found out there’s no Japanese Italian fusion restaurant in the place – and one of the biggest reasons to open a restaurant in the area.

DWA: What is the concept behind your restaurant?

TY: Basically, we use some Japanese seasonal vegetables and seafood in our Japanese fusion cuisine.

DWA: Tell us about your customers, what do they enjoy about your food?

TY: Our customers enjoy cold pasta pretty much. Mostly, their favorite is Zuke, a cold pasta with soy sauce-marinated tuna.

DWA: What do you recommend your customers drink to accompany your dishes?

TY: We work with a lot of seafood, so our customers really enjoy our food with white wine.

DWA: Why do you believe in serving a quality water like Perrier with your food?

TY: 70% of our customers are ladies. Mostly, our female customers don’t drink alcohol so they choose to drink Perrier which is light and bubbly and perfect with our food.

Mr Takahiro Uehara of Uehara (植原)

DWA: Please tell us briefly about yourself, your background and history?

Takahiro Uehara: I was born in Tokyo and I am now 33 years old. I have been living in Hong Kong for 10 years now and opened this restaurant just 6 months ago.

DWA: What is the concept of your restaurant and how does that affect your food?

TU: Our sushi restaurant serves traditional yet original sushi, as well as dishes to go along with our customers’ drinks.

DWA: Tell us about your customers, what do they enjoy about your food?

TU: The best way to enjoy the place is to

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taste the Japanese sake while enjoying the delicious food made of the best ingredients of the day.

DWA: What do you recommend your customers drink to accompany your dishes?

TU: Definitely Japanese sake. It complements the food really well.

DWA: Why do you believe in serving a quality water like Perrier with your food?

TU: Light Sparkling Blue Perrier has a low level of salt unlike Italian water, so it blends perfectly with both dishes and drinks, as proven by our customers.

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植原Uehara Shop A, G/F, Sun Ho Court, 29-31 Tung Lo Wan Road, Causeway Bay Tel: 2359 4700

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° FEATURE °

DIAGEO RESERVE WORLD CLASS ™

Bartender of the Year 2014 T

here can only be one winner. After a week of intense competition, incredible craftsmanship, unrivalled creativity and exceptional cocktails, Charles Joly from The Aviary in Chicago, USA was crowned the DIAGEO RESERVE WORLD CLASS™ Bartender of the Year 2014, beating 47 of the best mixologists from around the globe. Charles became the sixth bartender to be awarded the revered WORLD CLASS™ title, following in the footsteps of acclaimed mixologists who have gone on to influence cocktail culture worldwide, including David Rios, Tim Philips, Manabu Ohtake, Erik Lorincz and Aristotelis Papadopoulos.

Charles Joly, USA Diageo Global World Class Winner 2014 with past winners (L-R): Aristotelis Papadopoulos (2009), Erik Lorincz (2010), Manabu Ohtake (2011), Tim Philips (2012), and David Rios (2013)

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Charles impressed the judges from the very first cocktail he made, but it was his exceptional signature drink that helped him cement his name in cocktail history. His signature cocktail ‘Above the Clouds’, created for the final Punch and Glass challenge, blew the judges away.

Over the week-long finals, Charles consistently proved his winning credentials to the esteemed panel of judges that included legends and luminaries of the cocktail scene such as Dale DeGroff, Salvatore Calabrese, Julie Reiner, Steve Olsen and Gaz Regan.

“Wow, I just feel totally overawed by this. I know it sounds like a cliché but to be announced as the DIAGEO RESERVE WORLD CLASS™ Bartender of the Year 2014 is like a dream – I half expect to wake up at any moment. The other finalists really are the best bartenders in the world today so for the judges to pick me as the winner is incredible”, said Joly.

“This journey didn’t start today at the ceremony, this week at the finals, or even last year when I entered the heats – it started many years ago when I first started working in a local bar. The flavours, the smells, the sounds, the techniques, the history, the theatre – I realized I did not want to create just another drink. I make drinks with my heart and it makes me happy to see customers happy. The possibilities open to a bartender are limitless, not just in terms of your career but your creations – the only limit is your imagination.”

Matteo Fantacchiotti, Global Vice President Commercial, DIAGEO RESERVE, said: “Right from the beginning Charles’ passion, creativity and unrivalled mixology skills blew the judges away. His desire to create unique serves that

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combined sophisticated tastes with innovative modern twists never faltered at any stage of the competition. It’s a real honor to have Charles as our 2014 DIAGEO RESERVE WORLD CLASS™ ambassador, and I look forward to working with him in the future. Together we hope to inspire a new generation of mixology talent across the world, helping raise the profile of bartenders to where chefs are today.”

As the winner, Charles Joly will now become a global ambassador for DIAGEO RESERVE WORLD CLASS™, a role which will see him travel the world, educating and inspiring new talent whilst developing his own skills and knowledge through the different tastes and techniques he experiences along the way.

The 2014 WORLD CLASS™ Finals consisted of a series of innovative challenges staged around Great Britain, kicking off in Scotland, before travelling via the iconic Orient Express

to London. Discovery was at the heart of the competition, a theme brought to life by the various challenges that immersed the 48 finalists in Great British culture and inspired them to create premium serves, using the world’s finest spirits, that told stories of places, people and the local history of this year’s host nation – the birthplace of WORLD CLASS™ over six year ago.

Among the top six were: Grant Sceney (Fairmont Pacific Rim Vancouver, Canada), Charlie Ainsbury (Ananas Bar & Restaurant, Sydney, Australia), Ahmed Yahi “Mido” (Café Moderne, Paris, France), Claudio Perinelli (The Kiosk of Peschiera del Garda, Italy) and Peter Chua (28 Hong Kong St, Singapore), who made history by becoming the first Singaporean to make it to the top six.

This year, for the first time ever, consumers were also invited to participate in the event

and discover a world of fine drinking culture at the WORLD CLASS™ House. Set over five floors of a beautiful townhouse, this exclusive pop-up experience was created to coincide with Finals week, providing hands-on mixology masterclasses run by world-renowned bartenders, unique cocktails and food tasting sessions that made the WORLD CLASS™ House the spiritual home of fine drinking experiences this summer.

In 2015, the World Class Global Final will travel to Africa and take place in Cape Town, 2014’s World Design Capital. Voted the World’s Top Travel Destination by The New York Times, this iconic city boasts an abundance of natural beauty and cultural diversity. With a vibrant and cosmopolitan mixology culture, as well as thriving creative sectors, Cape Town is set to provide all the inspiration the contenders will need to thrive in 2015’s Global Final.

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