Archive for April, 2011

Flair Bartending; It was acceptable in the 80’s

Thursday, April 28th, 2011

After a very successful Toronto Flair League season premiere, the promoters decided that for TFL 8 it would be fitting to couple the event with an eighties party.TFL 2

The idea was that all of the bartenders would create a routine choreographed to any song from the 1980ā€™s.Ā  Also, the backgroundĀ music throughout the evening would be all 80ā€™s, and all competitors, staff and guests were to dress in the fashion of the era.

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Falernummmmmmm…

Monday, April 25th, 2011
What is Falernum?

What is Falernum?

Falernum – really the name seems to just roll off the tongue right? Emphasis on the num part here or should we say the ā€˜yumā€™ part because here at BartenderOne there is nothing better than a bit of quality homemade Falernum in your Caribbean style cocktails.

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The Power of a Good Team

Friday, April 22nd, 2011
Jeremy presenting his cocktail for the IBC

Jeremy presenting his cocktail for the IBC

Long before bartending even entered my mind the biggest thing in my life was organized sports, more specifically ice hockey. Being part of a competitive sports team taught me many life lessons that have helped shape my life and I often reference them in my day to day travels. Through the years my grandfather was always my biggest fan and one of the things he used encourage was offseason training to stay sharp and ahead of the curve. He used to always say ā€œif you play with better players they will make you better without you even knowing itā€ Every summer I would train and actively play in summer teams, but it wasnā€™t until I started playing with players of a higher calibre that I truly evolved as a player. They indirectly pushed me to be better by holding me accountable for my mistakes and making me strive to be at their high level. How this pertains to bartending you ask?

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BartenderOne in New York

Thursday, April 21st, 2011
Gin and Pears and Rosemary, Oh My!

Gin and Pears and Rosemary, Oh My!

Imagine walking into a phone booth, dialling a number, and being redirected back to a world of sipping cocktails next to Charlie Chaplin, Louis Armstrong, and Ella Fitzgeraldā€¦ā€¦

On March 11th of this year, IĀ traveledĀ to New York to experience some of North Americaā€™s finest Speakeasies and Mixology bars. With only having one amazing speakeasy in Toronto, we were eager to head to the Big Apple and meet the bartenders that compete in Tales of the Cocktail in New Orleans.

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Bar Chef Finals – Winter 2011

Wednesday, April 20th, 2011

Have you wished you could jump behind a bar with hundreds of ingredients, tastes, and ideas and be able to create the cocktail of your dreams?

On April 4th, 2011 the BartenderOne Bar Chef Finals took place at Empire Lounge in Toronto in Yorkville. As students, the mixologists had completed tasting over five hundred different spirits, bitters, liqueurs, sweeteners, types of citrus, infused foams and spirits, along with homemade syrups.

As mixologists, the students were asked to create an original cocktail from each of the 5 spirit categories. The cocktails could have been made with anything that the mixologists could think of; but were required to hold dear the traditional balanced cocktail theory. While they did have guidelines for balance, there were none for flavour profiles or presentation. Mixologists could incorporate elements that were taught in class such as: infusion, fatwashing, bruleeing, molecular mixology, spherification, custom foams, misting and much more.

As the student mixologists watched tentatively, their cocktails were tasted by three of Toronto’s top mixologists; Rob Montgomery, Gavin MacMillan and Scott McMaster. The students were were delighted to see that their hard work and development had paid off. The judges were impressed by all of the thought and effort that was incorporated into the final cocktails. The mixologists showed that they weren’t scared to test some boundaries in coming up with their very own recipes, and here are the top cocktails entered:

VODKA COCKTAILS

Strawbarb Bullets by Krissy Calkins

Strawbarb Bullets by Krissy Calkins

STRAWBARB BULLETS – By Mixologist Krissy Calkins

2/3 oz Strawberry reduction (no sugar added)
1/3 oz Rhubarb reduction (no sugar added)
1 oz Vodka
Shaken on Ice
Strain into Chocolate Cups
Float – Vanilla bean infused simple syrup on top
Served on a bed of Gram Crackers

Rainbow 1943 By Elizabeth Saad

Rainbow 1943 By Elizabeth Saad

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Flair Bartender Profile – Justin Keane

Wednesday, April 20th, 2011
Justin Keane

Fancy some flair?

Justin Keane

Age: 29

Nationality: U.S.A

Employer: Carnaval Court at Harrahā€™s Las Vegas

Years Flairing: 6

I asked Justin A few questions and found out some interesting facts.

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Raring to Flair?

Tuesday, April 19th, 2011
Burn baby burn

Burn baby burn

Where do I start?

One of the challenges that people face when learning how to become a flair bartender, is figuring out where to start. People are very eager to start juggling 4 bottles off the start, but that is bit of a stretch. Begin with easy, high impact – low risk moves that you will be able to execute with confidence with a little practice.

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Flair Bartender Profile – Tom Dyer

Monday, April 18th, 2011
Tom Dyer

Tom Dyer

BARTENDER PROFILE: TOM DYER
Age: 26 Years Old
Nationality: England:
Lives: LONDON (England)
Bartending: 8 Years
Flairing: 7 Years

Tom Dyer is one of the worldā€™s best and most innovative flair bartenders.

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Something to tickle those tastebuds….

Friday, April 15th, 2011
Thirsty?

Thirsty?

SOMETHING BLUE

A study was done in the bar industry with the purpose to find out what colour is the most effective to drive sales. Without question, the overwhelming result proved that blue was the way to go. As a bartender, if I make a blue cocktail such as a Banana Popsicle martini, or a Blue cosmo, without fail someone will see it and come up to my bar and ask for ā€œthat blue drinkā€.

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A Lesson in Bar Etiquette

Thursday, April 14th, 2011
Tips please!

Tips please!

Tip literally stands for To Insure Promptness.

Most people who work in the service industry rely on tips as a major part of their income. Because this is a known fact, most servers and bartenders are paid minimum wage if not less.

That being said, we all have to keep in mind that a tip is a gratuity and is not mandatory.

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