Bruno Vanzan, among the world's top bartenders
Bruno Vanzan certainly needs no introduction. For those few who still don't know him, since his first competition in 2006 the rise of the bartender, Roman by birth but Milanese by adoption, has continued unstoppable: Bacardi and Martini world champion in 2008; among the top 10 bartenders in the world in 2010; IBA world champion with the best cocktail in 2016 are just a few stages in a career that has seen him win more than 100 trophies nationally and internationally to date. However, the two-time world flair champion is much more: owner of Catering Vanzan and creator of the IOVEM liqueur; cover face of Mixer and Bargiornale magazines; first bartender on Italian TV thanks to his participation in the culinary program "I menù di Benedetta," then judge of "TOP DJ," and finally host of the show "Cocktail House." A social media star with hundreds of thousands of followers, Bruno Vanzan has managed to make cocktails his life, engaging an even wider audience thanks to the books "All My Cocktails," "Cocktail House" and the freshly printed "The 40th in the Vanzan House," on which RG Life interviewed him. Of great value-it is complete with history, recipes and trivia about the world's most famous cocktails-Bruuno Vanzan's new book is for a good cause: in fact, the proceeds will go to the Policlinico di San Donato Milanese and the Papa Giovanni XXIII Hospital against the Coronavirus emergency. We advise you to buy it on RG Mania as soon as possible because it is in high demand but limited edition: you can find it here.
Discover on RGmania the first line of bar tools by Bruno Vanzan!
Bruno Vanzan, exclusive interview on the book "La 40ena in casa Vanzan"
RG Life: Hi Bruno. The purpose of your book is laudable, which is to raise funds specifically for the San Donato Milanese Polyclinic and the Pope John XXIII Hospital against the Coronavirus emergency. Our curiosity is, how did you manage to write and publish it in such a limited time?
Bruno Vanzan: I have always thought that when you believe in something and want it badly you can find the way and the means to do it. That's why I pulled out all of my phone book to put together a team of professionals who could help me with the layout, graphics, printing, and implementation of the sales platform. For the content, on the other hand, it was hard work, day and night studying, writing and proofreading! I am very happy that I was able to publish the book, but most of all that I was able to meet the timeframe that I had, with a bit of healthy craziness, set at the beginning!
RG: There is also the hand of your mother-in-law, Anna Assanti Gironda, a true Neapolitan cook, in the book. You seem to belong to different parts of Italy in terms of origins and ties (Rome, Milan, Naples and beyond). What, however, is the city to which you feel closest professionally, and why?
B.V.: From a professional point of view definitely Milan, a city that welcomed me and to which I owe so much. In private life I say Naples for the food and the warmth, Rome for the beauty! It makes me smile that the only 'real' Milanese in the family is my son Brando.
RG: The international trophies, the publication of no less than three books, the making of a liquor and the consecration through TV and social but also and above all a family: the list of your victories is really long. You seem unstoppable, what are your plans for the near future?
B.V.: I am working to realize yet another dream, or rather wish... the Vanzan Academy! A nontraditional training hub that I have been working on for months and hope to inaugurate by early 2021.
RG: As for the bar world, with what has happened globally, how do you think it will change the way bartending is done?
B.V.: I think that when this period ends so many things will return to normal; the fact is, however, that some habits ingrained in our culture will change. It has been a very long period of restriction, the fear has been true, there will be things that may not come back as they were before. We will have to have the foresight to see new horizons and get used to the new ways, customs and habits.
RG: In your opinion, have social media feeds and increasingly accessible bar tools during the quarantine brought more interest to the world of bartending or have they held it back?
B.V.: In my opinion when there is interest around a topic it can only be a good thing. I believe that so many professionals and enthusiasts have shown the love they have for this profession, making direct and giving those who were following them both lighter and educational moments. This in my opinion has led in people to a greater understanding and awareness toward our craft, which is not yet cleared through customs to the level of cooking and therefore always needs gasoline to be fueled. I have seen so many people making 'home edition' drinks, the same people who will return to populate the bars, hopefully then with a greater focus on the quality of the product.
BONUS TRACK: The story of IOVEM's birth.
Bruno Vanzan also exclusively told RG Life the story of the birth of IOVEM, the liqueur of his creation that is enjoying great success: "It all started about three years ago, when one evening I invited Adriano, my brother-in-law, to dinner, thanks to whom in a bartending competition in Naples in which we were on the jury together I had met what would become my wife. It was a time when I had achieved all the goals I had set for myself professionally, but it seemed to me that I was missing a piece to achieve 'eternal life,' something that could connect me with other people even at a distance. It was then that Adriano and I decided to make a product, but on the condition that it was 'innovative, with a story to tell and that you could drink as a protagonist.' The idea was to create the ambrosia of modern times, which came after about eight months and 85 trials! But there was one thing we just didn't like-its color! Having asked to use cold-infused ginger and natural elements, the result was an off-yellow color; we discovered that enzymes found in grape skins are able to give a purple pigment to the product: yes, IOVEM's purple is absolutely natural. At that point, the name and the bottle were missing. As for the name, we start thinking about 'The Nectar of the Gods,' from there we thought of Jupiter, which, however, as a name did not convince us ... so here was IOVEM, its Latin accusative form, which on the contrary reads 'me and you' and in English sounds 'love them.' The bottle was missing: since it is a purple, natural product, we didn't want to run the risk that in low-light venues it would be confused with a coffee liqueur or in bar bottles with yet another black bottle. I could now recount a thousand adventures and just as many misadventures; in three years of work many good things and just as many bad things have happened, many times we have fallen and just as many times we have gotten back up, sometimes with difficulty. One thing, however, never crossed our minds, and that was to abandon the IOVEM project. We decided to go out on March 1, 2019, presenting the product in a big way, because if there is one thing I have learned in life, it is that no one gives you a second chance. We organized the party, web launch, international press conference and much more with the guests all strictly in purple. I will always remember the look on Adriano's and my face that night: we were distraught but happy, that we had accomplished with all our might the 'purple nectar'. What for many is just an alcoholic product, for Adriano and me is called a DREAM."
RG Life would like to thank Bruno Vanzan for his courtesy and helpfulness during this exclusive interview.
