Living Proof: Conversations for Bartenders

Michael Bergstrom is co-founder of Purfict. A career bartender from Sweden, he and three bartending friends came together to create the consultancy in 2007. Since 2010, they've done a sensational job of running the Nordic Bartenders' Choice Awards, which has come to be renowned as the most prestigious awards gala in Scandinavia.

We ask Michael about his background in bars, how the Nordic scene compares to other markets, the story behind Purfict and more. You can't question his passion, ingenuity and ability to craft out a successful niche in the industry we all know and love.

Salvatore Calabrese is The Maestro. One of the most recognisable bartenders in the world, he’s been working in hospitality he was 11 years old on the Amalfi Coast. He's now in his mid-60s, so his passion for cocktails long precedes the craft cocktail movement of this century

By age 21, Salvatore was the youngest maitre d' on the Amalfi Coast, and then it wasn't long later that he was making a name for himself in London at Duke’s Hotel. Among his most well-known legacies are the invention of the Breakfast Martini and drinks program Liquid History, which culminated in him making the oldest cocktail of all time from ingredients with a combined age of over 700 years.

Salvatore is an exquisite story-teller (and he's just finished his morning coffee!), so sit back and enjoy the tales behind those and so many other brilliant ideas that are synonymous with 'The Maestro'.

Gossett Brown is the reigning Taste of Jamaica Bartender of the Year. He heads up the bar program at the Rockhouse Hotel in Negril, a stunning and unique resort that sits as far West on the island as you can get.

Gossett’s also a council member of the Jamaica Union of Bartender and Mixologists and has built a reputation as one of the biggest contributors to the industry in the country.

He takes us through how he got into the bar game, some of his wonderful (and wonderfully interesting) cocktails and then we hit him with some Free Pour questions!

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Richard Seale is owner and master distiller at Foursquare Rum Distillery. He’s "arguably the greatest rum maker in the world."

Richard well and truly has rum in his blood - the Seale family can trace five generations of rum-making expertise back to the early 1800s, and he credits his 'inheritance' of knowledge as the reason Foursquare is where it is today. He’s also the man leading the charge against the claim that ‘rum has no rules,’ and has been consistently outspoken about consumers being deceived by producers that ‘doctor’ their rum with sugar or other additives.

This podcast provided the perfect opportunity for us to get under the skin of these divisive topics, which were alluded to a fortnight ago during our chat with Matt Pietrek. Today, Richard puts all his views on the table in his usual no-holds-barred style.

Whatever your position, you can have nothing but respect and admiration for the brand Richard has helped build, the exceptional rum it produces and the way he’s got the rum industry talking about issues he’s deeply passionate about.

Justin Cross is co-founder and CEO at Earn Your Booze. He and Elliott Clark, who runs Instagram account @apartment_bartender, joined forces in 2017 to create the company that aims to bridge the gap between the fitness and drinks industries. Last year, they ran over 40 events in conjunction with big liquor brands to promote a healthier lifestyle among bartenders and other industry workers. All 150+ participants complete a workout before an after party at which the drinks have all been 'earned' through hard work.

Then, we chat renowned Toronto bar manager Ana Wolkowski, who can be found behind the stick at Bar Raval. Ana grew up in her Dad's bar and is a an expert on Sherry.

Matt Pietrek is Cocktail Wonk. He's made the switch from writing about Microsoft Windows (of all things) to spirits and cocktails, and was last year a finalist for the Best Cocktails and Spirits Writer award at Tales of the Cocktail. You can read his insightful, impeccably researched and detailed articles on https://cocktailwonk.com.

And for our Free Pour segment, we chat to an industry icon in Connecticut who you may know from TV or social media as the Cocktail Chemist, Dimitrios Zahariadis.

Bill Lark is the founder of Lark Distillery, and is rightfully known as the Godfather of Australian Whisky. When Bill first pondered producing single malts in 1992, distilling whisky was still illegal in Tasmania due to archaic laws passed in the mid-1800s. Now, thanks largely to Bill, Tasmania’s ideal conditions for malt whisky are home to many producers that have followed in his footsteps, and the industry in Australia more generally commands respect.

And in our Free Pour segment this week, we chat to former bartender from Perth Georgia McDonnell-Adams, who is now based in Stockholm as Absolut’s Global Experience Manager.

Olivier Ward is co-founder and editor of online juggernaut Gin Foundry, an independent website that covers all things gin. Gin Foundry conducts hundreds of gin reviews, none of which are paid for, and is also behind Junipalooza, the international ‘meet the maker’ gin festival that exploded onto the scene in 2013.

Olivier and brother Emile started Gin Foundry in 2010, and coverage on the site is now so highly sought after that they’ve had to hide their address due to the sheer amount of unsolicited samples they’re sent on weekly basis. If anyone knows the gin market inside out, it’s Olivier, so we were sure to get his opinion on the industry that’s overflowing with new brands. Is this peak gin? Is that a bad thing? Where’s it going to be in five years? Which brands are doing a good job of connecting with their consumers?

If you love gin, you don’t want to miss this.

Following Olivier, we dial the Bon Vivant in Edinburgh, Scotland, to chat to bar manager Daniel Smith. The Bon Vivant has previously been crowned Best International Restaurant Bar at Tales of the Cocktail, and Cocktail Bar of the Year at the Scottish Bar and Pub Awards.

Robert Simonson writes about cocktails. A lot. He’s cemented himself as a senior cocktail scribe for publications like the New York Times, Imbibe, Punch and Muck Rack since first stumbling across Tales of the Cocktail in 2006, just as the cocktail renaissance was gathering steam. He’s also got three books about drinks to his name: The Old Fashioned, A Proper Drink and 3-Ingredient Cocktails, some of which chronicle the history of the drinks in question and some of which focus more on the recipes themselves. In September, he’ll be releasing his fourth book on the topic: The Martini.

And in our Free Pour segment, we head to Kansas City to speak to one of the most decorated bartenders and hospitality professionals you can find. Ryan Maybee owns cocktail haunt Manifesto, The Rieger Hotel Grill & Exchange and now a distillery, J. Rieger & Co.

Kurtis Bosley owns and runs CBK Hospitality Solutions, a stunning Instagram page @cocktailsbykurtis and now a bar / eatery at Dee Why Beach. Prior to all that, he helped open five venues and led the drinks program at Public House Management Group as their Group Bars Manager, so he’s had more than his fair share of valuable experiences in the industry.

Kurtis takes us through the learnings that have come with opening his first venue, what that venue is going to look like and his top social media advice for anyone looking to create a presence on Instagram.

And the insights don’t stop there – our Free Pour segment that follows is an in-studio interview with Proof & Company’s Charlie Ainsbury. Charlie holds the perfectly-named position of ‘Spirits Evangelist’ at Proof & Co and is an extremely well-regarded bartender both in Australia and internationally.