Latest news with #bartending
Forbes
6 days ago
- Entertainment
- Forbes
Why the Ice in Your Cocktails Matters, Whether Shaken or Stirred
I recently started a new bartending job, and during the hiring interview, the owner asked me what the first thing I look for is when I sit down at a bar. My initial thoughts centered on cleanliness and organization, the types of garnishes and syrups they offer, the equipment they use, and their glassware. But while those are all right answers and important ones, I realized that what I look at first is ice. There's ice at every bar in the world. It is, inarguably, essential. However, when it comes to decent cocktails, and I would argue even something as basic as a Scotch on the rocks, the type of ice a bar uses matters more than most people know. 'Not all ice is the same, and it's not the same for every drink or for how you mix every drink,' says Camper English, the founder of Alcademics, an in-depth blog on the world of bartending, and author of The Ice Book: Cool Cubes, Clear Spheres, and Other Chill Cocktail Crafts, in a phone interview. 'But a general sign of better ice is that it's not the same ice that you get out of the ice machine in a hotel.' Most patrons have encountered this kind of ice at their local dive bar: It's flat or chip-shaped, tends to be watery, and over-dilutes drinks. 'If I go to a place that has chip ice, I'll usually stick to a shot and a beer,' says English. 'Or, if I want just something on the rocks, I'll get the ice on the side so that I can micromanage the dilution and chilling process as much as possible.' And while what constitutes the best ice can be complicated and overwhelming for the customer, many bartenders recommend two types of machines in particular. 'Some of the best cocktail bars will have a Kold Draft and a Scotsman,' says Ivy Mix, a veteran bartender and Brooklyn bar owner, in a phone interview. 'You can tell you're in a quality place if it has the two types of ice that they make.' Kold Draft has been the staple of every restaurant I have ever worked at. The ice the machine produces is an almost perfect 1-by-1-by-1¼-inch cube that maintains carbonation, has notable clarity and doesn't dilute the taste of spirits. A Scotsman machine produces the classic nugget-shaped ice often used for fountain sodas, tiki-style cocktails, and mint juleps. 'These two types of machines are all you need, and I say this as someone who buys their ice like everyone else,' says Mix. However, like most things, ice follows trends. And Mix says that today, bars are often abandoning reliability for a frozen aesthetic that costs more than it's worth. 'People just want clear ice in their drinks that they can see through, and bars are cutting large-format blocks to get it,' says Mix. 'It's charming, but it's also costly.' Cocktails in New York can run anywhere from $15 to $23, depending on the neighborhood and quality of the bar. Bars often use multiple types and shapes, including shaved, cracked, crushed, cubed and large ice cubes and spheres, both produced in molds. At an establishment that cuts its ice, a single hand-cut piece, like the one Mix describes, can cost between $0.50 and $0.75 each, if not more, significantly driving up the overall price of a cocktail. 'That's more expensive than an ounce of alcohol,' says Mix. 'And you're paying that price for something that is admittedly very pretty, but it's a fad, it's not necessary and it's just going down the drain when you finish.' 'It's a great affectation for special bars that are not high volume, but it's not the most efficient way to make an ice cube,' says English. But for Shintaro Okuda, chef de cuisine and part-owner of Bar Moga, a 1920s-era Japanese cocktail bar in Manhattan, the hand-cut ice they use isn't just an affectation. 'We use ice called Kuramoto from Kanazawa in the Ishikawa Prefecture of Japan because it not only provides a high level of consistency and craftsmanship, but also because we both share roots in the 1920s,' says Okuda, in a phone interview. The term 'moga' refers to the modern Japanese woman of the time, who, thanks to the liberal international cultures of the Roaring Twenties, enjoyed greater freedoms and fun than her forebears, replete with dancing the Charleston and enjoying a drink at the local cocktail bars in places like Tokyo's popular Ginza district. Kuramoto ice emerged in the same era. 'We share a century-old tradition of excellence and a historical parallel that makes using Kuramoto Ice meaningful to me,' says Okuda. Okuda says that the ice, which is imported directly from Japan via ship, has exceptional purity, clarity and structural integrity thanks to a 48- to 72-hour freezing process that removes 99.97% of impurities and air bubbles, resulting in an ultra-dense product that melts slowly without over-diluting drinks. 'Kuramoto provides a level of consistency and craftsmanship that aligns with our dedication to quality,' says Okuda. 'And even though it costs about $1 per cube, we don't integrate that into our cocktail prices because serving great quality ice is our responsibility to the customers.' However, regardless of the ice, any good bartender should still manage to produce a halfway-decent cocktail. 'Anyone can go buy any kind of ice,' says Mix. 'But you can tell when a bartender physically knows what they're doing by taking a moment and looking at their technique.' I always try to ensure that a bartender uses a good amount of ice in a shaking tin or mixing glass, making sure not to over-shake or over-stir, and that their shake has a consistent rhythm. Then, they usually pour the drink over fresh ice. But good bartenders can also be hard to come by. So, I still recommend checking the ice. And one of the easiest ways to decide if you can trust the person behind your bar is to close your eyes and listen. 'Some bartenders just don't understand that when they don't use the right ice, or enough ice, and they shake too much, what they're doing is just diluting and chilling,' says English. 'So, no matter what ice they may be using, when you hear sloshing instead of clinking, steer clear because that results in watered-down, bad cocktails.'
South China Morning Post
22-05-2025
- Entertainment
- South China Morning Post
Tokyo bartender Hideyuki Saito on graffiti-themed cocktails that bring ‘world to life'
Globetrotting bartender Hideyuki Saito has created a graffiti-themed cocktail menu melding art, travel and taste. Saito, the senior director of bars at the Tokyo Edition hotels in the Japanese capital's Ginza and Toranomon neighbourhoods, has drawn on a decade of visits to various countries for the menu. He began his bartending career in Tokyo but left in 2010 to work in London, New York, Southeast Asia and the Middle East. In 2017, he was one of eight bartenders to reach the final of the Bacardi Legacy global cocktail competition in Berlin, Germany. After 10 years abroad, Saito returned to Japan to join Tokyo Edition in 2020. Hideyuki Saito left Tokyo in 2010 and worked in London, New York, Southeast Asia and the Middle East before returning to join Tokyo Edition in 2020. Photo: The Tokyo Edition Toranomon
South China Morning Post
20-05-2025
- Entertainment
- South China Morning Post
Bartender's travel show about ‘amazing stories and the people behind them' begins in Japan
In the first episode of television series Mr Lyan's Taste Trips, the eponymous British bartender goes behind the scenes at the first malt whisky distillery to open in Japan a century ago. Advertisement The host, whose actual name is Ryan Chetiyawardana, meets Shinji Fukuyo, master blender at Yamazaki Distillery in Osaka. He also chats to Hidetsugu Ueno, one of Japan's best known bartenders, who makes him a White Lady cocktail at his Bar High Five in Tokyo, and visits a convenience store to recommend his pick of RTDs (ready-to-drink cocktails). Chetiyawardana, who has won dozens of bartending awards, owns multiple bars. His Dandelyan establishment, now closed, topped the World's 50 Best Bars list in 2018. Ryan Chetiyawardana, host of Mr Lyan's Taste Trips, samples a dram of whisky with Yamazaki Distillery's master blender Shinji Fukuyo. Photo: Mr Lyan's Taste Trips Each 30-plus-minute episode of his travel show is available on the Mr Lyan's Taste Trips YouTube and Instagram channels and is screened in the United States on ReachTV, the airport TV network that claims a viewership of 50 million.
Forbes
13-05-2025
- Business
- Forbes
Why Some Of The Most Popular Tequilas May Not Be Worth The Money
SAN FRANCISCO, CALIFORNIA - FEBRUARY 09: Bottles of tequila are displayed on a shelf at Maison ... More Corbeaux on February 09, 2022 in San Francisco, California. (Photo by) Tequila is one of the most popular alcoholic spirits in the United States. Sales at U.S. bars and restaurants surpassed first whiskey in 2023 and then vodka in 2024. As a bartender and service professional, I personally consider tequila to be one of the most requested and versatile spirits that I work with to this day. However, in my experience, despite the obvious swell in popularity and there being roughly 3,000-plus tequila brands on the market today, a lot of guests still just tend to order what is advertised the most. In fact, I can honestly say that more people ask me for the more popular tequila brands on the market, than any of the other less-known quality brands I've ever had behind my bar. But when it comes to some of the tequilas that are most often found advertised on TV and billboards, industry experts and service professionals warn that, despite their popularity, a lot of consumers could be paying good money for what may not be a truly quality product—just good branding. 'You have transnational corporations who invest millions of dollars into marketing, into fancy bottles and celebrity sponsors, and there are a majority of people who are buying that marketing instead of the spirit,' said David Suro Piñera, a Philadelphia-based restaurateur, spirit importer and founder of the Tequila Interchange Project, a non-profit organization that advocates for sustainable, traditional and quality tequila-making practices. 'But what most people don't know is that these companies' products are filled with question marks.' One of those question marks concerns additives, which are used to make tequila seem smoother, older or more flavorful with things like sweetening syrups, caramel color or stevia, as well as glycerin, oak and vanilla extracts. The Tequila Regulatory Council, Mexico's official tequila certification body, stipulates that in order for a spirit to be called tequila it must be made from 100% blue Weber agave, and says that a producer can include up to 1% of these additives in their tequila without having to state it on the label. But Max Reis, an advocate for the production of sustainable tequila and beverage director of Miraté, Los Angeles, argues that while some brands insist additives are perfectly fine, this lack of transparency has led to the mass-production and acceptance of tequilas with unnatural flavor-profiles. 'After a generation of creating premium products using completely synthesized flavors, the luxury tequila market is almost entirely contingent upon the use of these additives to create this false flavor profile that people associate with quality,' said Reis. According to Tequila Matchmaker, an online rating system for tequila brands, around 70% of all tequila includes undisclosed additives, and as many as 80% of the tequilas they test fail their certification to be '100% additive free.' Tequila Matchmaker tested for additives in tequila by visiting distilleries, reviewing production records and performing chemical analyses. It also established the Additive Free Alliance, an independent non-profit dedicated to increasing transparency in agave spirits. The AFA lab-tested all tequila products Tequila Matchmaker reviewed. Reis, who insists on selling only sustainable, conscientiously produced tequila brands at his own bar, says that the use of these additives is often due, in part, to some major tequila brands' investment in a diffuser-based method of production. 'You're basically using this giant industrialized machine to very efficiently process the agave sugars and then run it through a column still to strip it of all of its flavor,' said Reis, who adds that diffusers also use sulfuric, phosphoric or even hydrochloric acid in their process to adjust pH levels and soften the agave, further neutralizing the complexity of flavor. 'It's effectively like cooking a steak in the microwave." Diffusers also don't require agave to be fully ripe, and can use just a four-year-old plant to produce their tequila vs. the natural maturity process that usually takes up to seven years. The over 50% reduction in production time earns massive savings for the large conglomerate companies that use them, but sacrifices tequila's natural complexities for the sake of productivity and then makes up the difference with false flavors. And all the while, the product is marketed and priced as high-end. "The brands with the most industrialized product, and a lack of traceability, are always going to have these massive marketing campaigns saying that they are the best and that they're doing everything the best,' said Suro Piñera. 'And consumers should always challenge that.' In a 2017 blind taste test organized by Tequila Matchmaker founders Grover and Scarlet Sanschagrin, which compared six different high-priced brand tequilas created through the three main methods of production (diffusers, stone/brick ovens and autoclaves), a 32-person panel agreed that the two produced with diffusers were identified by the presence of 'medicinal,' 'chemical,' 'fake fruit,' or 'candy-like' aromas and flavors, attributed to their additives; had the lowest overall scores in flavor, followed by aroma; and were the least likely to be recommended to others. The general consensus was that the price of a tequila in no way determines its quality. 'It's the equivalent of McDonald's, but if you didn't know you were eating McDonald's and it was being promoted as premium,' said Reis. Ivy Mix, a veteran bartender, bar owner and author of Spirits of Latin America, says that there is a lot that consumers can do today to make sure they get the best quality tequila for their money. 'There are lots of brands that say exactly what they do on the back of their label,' said Mix. 'And if you really want to make sure you know what you're buying, you have a computer in your pocket and you can just google the NOM.' The Norma Oficial Mexicana is a four digit number on the back of every bottle of tequila. It tells you which tequila producer the tequila is from and provides proof of authenticity by telling you it is produced within the Denomination of Origin. This denomination, established in 1978, includes protected production areas within the states of Jalisco, Guanajuato, Michoacán, Nayarit and Tamaulipas. By looking up this information, and then entering it into a database like Mix says that consumers can find the best product, often for less money. 'You can see what's made at that distillery and you can get a better idea of what methods they're using to create the tequila,' said Mix. 'And you have to think outside the box, because that's how you find a tequila that you have never heard of, that costs $50, and that tastes better than the one you see on billboards and costs $85.' However, as President Trump's trade war continues, with his administration recently instituting and then suspending a 25% tariff on Mexico, tequila in the United States in general could suffer, and good, ethically made tequila could end up harder to find. 'When you produce a very poor quality tequila in a very fancy bottle, your margins usually are very big compared with a tequila that is produced traditionally and ethically,' said Suro Piñera. 'So, big industrial brands have more room to maneuver these challenges of tariffs than small brands.' 'These giant conglomerates that know that they can lose money for a couple years will take the majority of the market share from the people that do have to raise their prices,' said Reis. 'And, when the dust settles, we're just going to be left with a lot of bad tequila everywhere.'
CNA
12-05-2025
- Entertainment
- CNA
CNA938 Rewind - Bar hopping abroad with mixologists from Manhattan & Origin Bar
CNA938 Rewind In 'Destination Anywhere', Melanie Oliveiro discovers the F&B travel adventures of two mixologists/bartenders in Singapore. Cherry Lee, bartender from Origin Bar, Shangri-La will recall her bar travels to Hong Kong and Korea which she finds busy and dynamic. Zana Möhlmann – Manhattan's head bartender - will talk about the party scene and bar snacks culture of The Netherlands where she's from. Being half-Surinamese, she will talk about Suriname cuisine and how it blends five different cultures together. Both are involved in the Diageo World Class competition - the largest and most respected bartending competition for bartenders by Diageo Bar Academy. CNA938 Rewind - Bar hopping abroad with mixologists from Manhattan & Origin Bar In 'Destination Anywhere', Melanie Oliveiro discovers the F&B travel adventures of two mixologists/bartenders in Singapore. Cherry Lee, bartender from Origin Bar, Shangri-La will recall her bar travels to Hong Kong and Korea which she finds busy and dynamic. Zana Möhlmann – Manhattan's head bartender - will talk about the party scene and bar snacks culture of The Netherlands where she's from. Being half-Surinamese, she will talk about Suriname cuisine and how it blends five different cultures together. Both are involved in the Diageo World Class competition - the largest and most respected bartending competition for bartenders by Diageo Bar Academy. 19 mins CNA938 Rewind - Explore mental wellness and eye-catching art at Paragon Shopping Mall In 'Made in SG', Melanie Oliveiro speaks with the key people involved in shopping mall Paragon's 'Spring Soiree' campaign. The campaign transforms the mall into a sanctuary of art, nature, and wellness – in support of mental health causes. Koh Pei Li, a renowned Singaporean artist fronting her brand PeiPer, talks about 'Blooming Windmill', a 4.5-metre-tall windmill flower installation symbolising various mental health messages. Mosscape's creative director, Shannon Eng, will describe 'A Botanical Escape' an 18-metre landscape featuring greenery and intricate floral arrangements. Paragon's centre manager, Chan Shuk Ling, will highlight other installations and workshops available to visitors, beyond those led by PeiPer and Mosscape. 33 mins CNA938 Rewind - Bouncing to a healthier and better you The age of mundane fitness plans are out, and jumping on trampolines are now in. What kinds of health benefits come with this jumping activity and why shouldn't adults shy away from it? Hui Wong jumps on the details with Pang Zan, a long-time casual coach with BOUNCE Singapore Pte Ltd - located at Cineleisure. 16 mins
