Bartender HQ Podcast : Bar Culture, Cocktails and Flair Bartending for Everyone.

On this week’s show:

älska cider

Available at Aldi in the UK, älska cider is a great tasting flavoured pear cider that offers real value. Check out the full podcast for our first taste of älska cider’s Nordic Fruits and Strawberry & Lime varieties. It’s the perfect easy drinking compliment to any summer BBQ or pool party!

The Art of the Service Bar

I go into a bit of detail about the differences between Service bar (or Dispense Bar) techniques vs regular guest service, how to set your bar up for success and how to manage the volumes of drinks you’ll be making while looking after up to 20 waiters’ drinks. If you have any questions or you’d like more clarification, leave me a voicemail message here.

Want your product featured?

If you have a product you’d like reviewed or featured on the podcast, or you have a press release about Spirts, Cocktails or anything else bar related, get in touch with the show here.

On this week’s BartenderHQ podcast:

HomeKit in Bars

Following up on this week’s article and the WWDC15 conference, we discuss how HomeKit can allow you to create atmosphere in your bar using home automation products and your iOS devices (iPad, iPhone etc) to control them. From VIP rooms to securing your stock, we discuss the options.

Taking care of your gear

A look at how to identify your own gear behind the bar and not loose your flair bottles, how to transport your flair bottles and shakers to and from work and avoid loosing the weights off of your tins.

On this week’s show:

First taste of Mauritius Club & Gold of Mauritius

Mauritius Club and Gold of Mauritius rums landed with me this week and they’re both delicious. Check out my first thoughts on the show and keep an eye out for more videos with new drinks featuring these soon!

The Dead Parrot wins Monkey Shoulder’s Ultimate Bartender Challenge

This week saw Monkey Shoulder‘s Ultimate Bartender Challenge 2015 final, with three bar teams competing from around the UK from Newcastle, Bristol and Horsham. The Dead Parrot from Horsham took this year’s honours (find the full report from the Ultimate Bartender Challenge here) and as their prize will have a pop-up bar for London Cocktail Week, funded by Monkey Shoulder and they get to keep the takings!

West Midlands Flair Club & Masters of Flair

West Midlands Flair Club is every Sunday night from 8-10pm at Reflex Arcadian in Birmingham UK – All are welcome whether you want to learn more about flair, give it a try or polish your skills and share moves with others.

Masters of Flair V for 2015 will be held at Reflex Arcadian on Sunday August 23rd 2015. Get in touch through the contact form if you’re interested in entering. We’ll be raising money for charity on the night as usual by auctioning off the drinks made on stage by the bartenders, raffles etc. Full details to be announced soon.

World Flair Association

The World Flair Association is a global network brought together by four giant names in the World of Flair, who felt there was a need in promoting & assisting different countries in their events by sharing their combined experiences gained by being heavily involved within the Flair and the service industry in general.

 

On the show we talk about the gradings levels for flair bartenders offered by the association as well as a little about their involvement with helping to promote competition and consistency in judging.

On this weeks’ show:

Swally Shirts

My Swally Shirts ‘Dark Side of the Malt’ arrived and I love it. Check out their other designs on SwallyShirts.com and follow them on Twitter.

Their T-shirts are great quality and feel like they will last – I can’t wait to see their other designs as they’re released. They have men’s and women’s styles too, so everyone can represent their love of Whisky!

The Brass Pig Southport

During our weekend away we ended up eating at The Brass Pig on a couple of occasions because it was SO GOOD! ½lb Steak burgers form the base of their sandwiches which are then piled high with homemade ingredients by the Brass Pig’s owners Edward and Kate Weights.

On our first visit to the Brass Pig I had the BBQ Beast, and Jo had ‘The Veg’ (which, though i’m not veggie, was pretty awesome) and we shared their amazing Cheesy fries which are also huge.

Our Sunday Brass Pig Adventure meant that I could sample the Sunday Beast, a whole Sunday Lunch pearched on top of the Brass Pig steak burger patty! Jo opted for the BBQ beast that I’d had the previous day, and we added both the cheesy fries again and also their Jalapeño nachos. We had no chance of finishing it all but we gave it our best!

If you’re ever in Southport you have to check out the Brass Pig, and if you’re not… Plan a trip!

Find the Brass Pig on Facebook

BartenderHQ on Facebook

Worldwide Bartender Community

BartenderHQ on Twitter

On this week’s BartenderHQ.com Podcast we’re delving into the murky world of Molecular Mixology, specifically a Molecular Mojito.

What is a Molecular Mojito?

Molecular Mixology is a way of taking high end cooking techniques from Molecular Gastronomy and applying them to cocktails. We’re taking the core ingredients of a Mojito and playing around with some science lab techniques to essentially repackage the drink. In this case, we’re wrapping a shot of Mojito and a mint leaf in its own skin, so that no glass is required.

Its a very odd experience, but you put the Mojito ball into your mouth and bite it, bursting the skin and suddenly your mouth is filled with Molecular Mojito!

How do you make a Molecular Mojito?

The technique used is called reverse frozen spherification and essentially you make a Mojito, add one of the special ingredients and freeze it in an ice cube tray. Then, once frozen, the cubes are dropped into a bath of water with a second molecular ingredient added, which reacts with the first to create a gel skin over the cube, so as the ice melts you have a soft Molecular Mojito capsule!

These techniques can be used for many other recipes too, keep your eyes peeled for more soon!

Links in the show:

Molecular Mixology Kit Unboxing

Worldwide Bartender Community

BartenderHQ on Twitter

Okay, I know. I talk about Monkey Shoulder a lot on here. Its because I think Monkey Shoulder is great. I got a bottle for Christmas from my partner and a lovely engraved whisky glass to drink it out of from my then 6 month old son (which I think Jo may have had a hand in too, if she’s completely honest!). I was drinking it at Jo’s sister’s wedding (she also incidentally has a blog over at DogBehaviourHQ.Wordpress.com, you can probably see I helped name it, but check it out if you have a dog, she’s awesome!) with my Dad. I really like Monkey Shoulder.

I was invited to help with judging their Ultimate Bartender Challenge but sadly we couldn’t make the dates work (next time Monkey Shoulder, next time…) so I was delighted when they invited me down to their Monkey Shoulder Social Club Aerodynamic party this week in London.

The Monkey Shoulder Social Club

The Aerodynamic party was born from their Am-Badass-ador Grant Neave going skydiving and then building a whole party based on that concept. Guests were issued with flight suits at the door, and then passed through a cloud tunnel, walking through clouds so dense you could barely see the person in front of you, to simulate the experience of ferruling through clouds but without getting into a plane. That would obviously get in the way of the drinking and up the budget of the event considerably.

Competition Winners

We ran a competition over on Twitter to win tickets for the event too, and I was lucky enough to meet our winners on the night – they had a great time and if you want the chance to win in our future competitions, or even just want to chat, follow @BartenderHQ on Twitter.

Thanks

I’d just like to thank the guys at Monkey Shoulder for their hospitality – Grant, you’re a legend, Tiffany, (my contact with  the brand) Thanks for the invite – you guys put on a great event and I can’t wait for the next one!

Links

MonkeyShoulder.com

BartenderHQ on Facebook

Worldwide Bartender Community

BartenderHQ on Twitter

On this week’s show:

Monkey Shoulder Social

Get the full details on where the party is, when its happening and where to get tickets here

Worldwide Bartender Community on Facebook

Join the conversation on our open group. You can promote your bar, share recipes or ask for advice from the other bartenders. Be sure to add your co-workers so we can get this group to as many people as possible!

Ask Me Anything

With our new system, you can use the mic in your Smartphone or computer to ask us anything, just like leaving a voicemail. The best questions will get featured on a future podcast!

Bacardi Legacy Winner Announced

So the Bacardi Legacy is over for another year, and we discuss whether the current format of the competition encourages real world drinks or is too friendly to overly bespoke creations.

Be Social

Find BartenderHQ on social media at:

* http://www.facebook.com/BartenderHQ

* http://twitter.com/BartenderHQ

* https://instagram.com/bartenderhqpics

On this week’s show…

Molecular Mixology Cocktail R-Evolution kit

This week we received the Cocktail R-Evolution kit via amazon. Want to take a look at our unboxing video? Check it out below:

http://bartenderhq.com/molecular-mixology-kit-cocktail-r-evolution-unboxing/

Monkey Shoulder Social Club

Do you want to party in London with Monkey Shoulder (and hopefully the BartenderHQ team!)? Jump down to the link below to get your tickets to the Monkey Shoulder Social and for the chance to win a pair of tickets!

http://bartenderhq.com/the-monkey-shoulder-social-club-aerodynamic-party/

How to start a Tasting Club

Twitter follower @InebriatiOrder asked us a question for the show:

@BartenderHQ what’s the best way to start a tasting club with a bar?

— Inebriati (@InebriatiOrder) May 3, 2015

Listen to our tips on this week’s podcast, and follow @InebriatiOrder on Twitter (and @BartenderHQ if you don’t already!)

On this week’s show:

Swally Shirts

Swally Shirts is a Glasgow-based t-shirt design company specialising in whisky and other drink-related t-shirts. The designs are fun and simple, giving fans of good quality drinks a way of showing their love of their favourite tipple.

We currently have whisky and beer designs but there are many more in the pipeline covering all kinds of drinks. Our latest design, Dark Side of the Malt, is a Pink Floyd-themed play on their classic album cover and is available to preorder now.

SwallyShirts.com

Tastemade

Tastemade is an all digital network of food and drink content from around the world with short form restaurant reviews, content on craft cocktails and tips you can use at home.

Their Local Flight show follows a mixology bartender, Shawn Thomas as he visits cities around the US and challenges local bartenders to create cocktails using locally made ingredients.

You can see Tastemade content on Apple TV, or via their Tastemade & Tastemade City Guide apps, and at Tastemade.com

Avengers Age of Ultron Cocktails

While there are literally hundreds of cocktails online themed after comic book characters, we’re taking a different approach to celebrate the release of Avengers Age of Ultron. Instead of colour matching drinks, we’re looking at the character of each Avenger and choosing, modifying and creating cocktails that they would enjoy. Based on their tastes and values, this is far closer to the way a real bartender approaches creating cocktails for real guests, and I hope you enjoy them!

Avengers Age of Ultron Drinks

Worldwide Bartender Community on Facebook

Join our new community on Facebook and connect with other bartenders all over the world!

https://www.facebook.com/groups/WorldwideBartenderCommunity/

We’re Back!

We finally have our hands on the new Bacardi bottles, and they’re great! We put them through their paces with a little flair, take a look at the changes and how they might affect you behind the bar, and how to order the new Bacardi bottles from your supplier if you want them behind your bar.

Bacardi Carta Blanca – New Bacardi Bottles

The new shape Bacardi bottles are a little taller, about 10mm or a half inch taller than the previous generation of bottles. The sides are almost completely flat, getting rid of the old tapered base, and adding a concave bottom to the bottle like that of a wine bottle.

The Bacardi Superior name is gone outside of the US, replaced by Bacardi Carta Blanca with the rest of the line following suit with Bacardi Carta Negra, Bacardi Carta Oro and Bacardi Carta Fuego. These names better show the heritage of Bacardi and its Cuban background.

Need to get your hands on the new Bacardi bottle? Bacardi Carta Negra is available right now on Amazon.

Drinking Overseas

Having just spent a week over in Benidorm, I discuss some of the differences between British & US drinking culture compared to Spain, as well as sharing some of the best places to drink in Benidorm if you’re after a good cocktail.