- You're a sommelier also, what should the average bartender know about wine?
I think the wine knowledge for a bartender should be the basics. Learn what you think the regular Joe would know and then add a little to give them an experience. Learn the general flavour profiles for all the mainstream wines and then a few. Try and know a few basic wine regions from the old world for example your Bordeaux's in France and your Riojas from Spain. The best way to learn is to go to as many wine tastings as possible, you can read all you like but you have to drink half as much to learn twice as much as you would if you read.
- Where do you start when creating a new drink?
I start with memories, what I have tasted in the past and I try and then replicate it. I look at cook books more than cocktail books and I always talk to my chef about something in the kitchen I can use instead of something that is already used in the bar.
- Which of your original drinks are you most proud of?
I have a few that I class as my signature, cocktails that follow me around everywhere I go. Cool Hand Luke is a blend of Bacardi Limon, Litchi Liqueur muddled with cucumber and shaken with fresh apple juice. Everyone says that Bacardi flavours are kitchi but I think they are probably better than vodka flavours, better quality with a more substantial flavour profile. Another one is the Ginger Lynn, a blend of fresh apple, lime, dark rum, calvados, chartreuse and ginger marmalade. I like simple, classical DNA of cocktail but with a twist. I have a whole book of original cocktails that I have been building for the last 5 years, its pretty thick with a tonne of recipes.
- Explain the benefits of the Viva! Stick you designed.
When it came time to designing the VIVA! Stick I looked at everything that was negative about muddlers and tried to make it as perfect as possible. I had the option to use wood, stainless steel or plastic and although I love wood I don't believe it is practical in this day and age with food safety and hygiene being such a big and public issue. Plastic seemed like the most logical choice as I think steel and glass should never meet. I wanted it to be at least 12 inches long so that you had good grip and leverage even in a tall pint glass or in a Boston glass. I also wanted it to have a waffled bottom, I know a lot of people say waffled bottoms tear the mint up but when you have good leverage and length you need to use less force to muddle. I am working the redesign right now which will make it heavier, a better grip at the top and a more universal color. I love the purple and white but am finding that the feeling isn't shared by everyone, regardless of how good it is, so the next one is going to be a sexy black and grey.
Visit Shawn Soole's website for more bartending advice: TheLiquidRevolution.com
