You who are one of the best-known journalists in the professional bar industry, and an expert on cocktails and mixing, and who by profession has traveled all over the world, visited the best venues in every country and interviewed all the greatest bartenders internationally.... How do you see it? I mean, how do you think Italy is doing? What kind of image do Italian bartenders have in the world today?
On November 14, I moderated at the Summit Ho.Re.Ca. Enterprises Outside the Home a debate on the topic of Italian Cocktails. With me were Giuseppe Gallo and Luca Cordiglieri from China Tang at the Dorchester Hotel in London (Best Bar Manager 2011) two Italian bartenders who are as famous as rock stars abroad. We analyzed, through a roundup of video testimonies, the process of italianization of the cocktail. In the world, not only are we famous, but we have set the standard. Confirmation also comes from opinion leaders. All agree, from the wise Gary Regan to the champion Erik Lorincz, from "The Maestro" Calabrese to "The King" Dale DeGroff, on the boom of our movement. The gurus emphasize the great growth that has taken place in Italy, both in terms of preparation and reception. A real boom, especially in the last ten years. I'm thinking about the face of those who say it used to be, and drink, better.
I know you have a particular knowledge of the world of cocktail bars and nightclubs also from an architectural and image point of view. What is the new trend? What should anyone who wants to open a venue today not overlook from an image standpoint?
If you really have a story to tell your venue will work. Otherwise, even if an archistar signed it for you, it will be a fragile place like a clay giant. The experiential dimension is the only one that matters. You can set up a bowling alley, a luxury lounge, a speakeasy, or an artists' tavern. The category doesn't matter. What matters is that theme is in your wheelhouse. Only then will you be able to carry it out in a consistent and disciplined manner.
Andfollowing this question I also ask you, in your opinion is it still possible to survive only on one's talent as a bartender, is word of mouth about professional quality still successful, or is it still necessary to compromise even with what is in fashion, with the look and with being up to date? In short, does the reserved refined bartender, still have a place in the world of "everything goes show?"
The answer from earlier applies. Pick a style, study it, cultivate it until it emerges. Don't look to your neighbor. Or at least take what you need and then discard the superfluous. As for the image jacket, vest or Sex Pistols T-shirt, who cares. The important thing is that the look is coordinated with the workplace. Let it be unique with the venue you represent. Would you dress as a samba dancer in an Irish pub? Maybe after the fifth pint.
In recent years we are seeing a devastating opening of bars and clubs run by people with no experience or trade whatsoever, which certainly doesn't do the industry any good. In your opinion, should we keep them that way or could some action be taken to ensure a minimum level of professionalism?
License. It would take a license to serve. And it is not a matter of giving the bribe, as some people claim, to this or that training school, but of ensuring a minimum of rigor and rules. Alcohol must be handled with extreme care and served by people with heads on their shoulders. About ten years ago I used to go to a bar all the time, he was good at mixing, otherwise a stray dog. One time he tried to convince me that a purple-haired guy, lying on the floor three feet from my coffee table, had gotten drunk in another bar. He said it wasn't his problem and kicked him. I would have liked to have done the same to him, I mean the bartender, but in the end I went directly to law enforcement.
Without naming people or venues if you don't want to, but what do you think are the examples to follow, are there schools, groups, individual bartenders that everyone should learn from?
Bar University for management, marketing, and sales techniques; the gurus at bartender.it for innovation; the Jerry Thomas Project in Rome for research; the Classic Cocktail Club for historical recovery; and Aibes for its professional training activities. If I were a bartender, I would be greedy for all these opportunities.
According to your point of view, which are the Italian and international cities that better than others have understood the importance of keeping a city alive also through the life of evening and night clubs?
InMilan, my city, I have always found excellent proposals. Among insiders I think I remained the last supporter of the so-called Milanese aperitivo, the one with a buffet. Today everyone criticizes it, including the entrepreneur Vinicio Valdo who invented it, but no one will take it out of my head that it has been the best business driver in recent years and has contributed to the spread of the cocktail fashion in Italian bars. Before, young people preferred the pub, partly because going to cocktail bars cost too much and was the stuff of matuses. Then with the arrival of the aperitif with buffet, it was the mid-1990s, there was a real boom of cocktail bar openings and relaunches. Abroad? In order, my flagship bars are in London, San Francisco, New York, New Orleans, Berlin, Paris, Barcelona, Melbourne, Singapore.
What is your take on the concept of conscious drinking? How can we positively intervene in this sensitive issue without becoming stupidly self-righteous and sanctimonious?
Let's go beyond the responsible drinking commercial. Let's focus more on the idea of responsible service. That would be a Copernican revolution. Do you realize that no major group has invested in an awareness campaign aimed at service? Always just actions on end consumers. Appeals are made to drinkers, not bartenders. Both should be taken care of.
Based on your in-depth experience, the good bartender/bartenders is the one who...?
He is the one who can entertain, but doesn't bore with too much talk. He is a gentleman, kisses the hand of the ladies sitting at the counter, knows the value of the gesture. He avoids, for example, tasting the drink with a straw before serving it. I find this a very bad habit of foreign import. It is not a matter of image, but of style. I reiterate: it doesn't matter if one wears a gala jacket or has stolen Lady Gaga's wardrobe. What matters is that he does it with class. A master like Peter Dorelli painted one of the best portraits of the ideal bartender. He described him as a professional who has sensitivity, intuition and is able to interpret body language. The good bartender must always understand whether he is faced with someone who just wants to drink or also wants to chat. And above all, he must not get his head up.
In Italy in terms of schools and associations are we aligned with the best in Europe and the world ? What do you think of the thousands of bartending courses held in Italy. What are the requirements to understand if it is an accredited and useful training school?
What baffles me is the impressive number of flair courses and schools. They are popping up like mushrooms. Excessive demand for jobs when you consider the paucity of supply. In Rome they tell me of about 30 schools for freestyle bartenders. Guys, all that work is not there. Be careful not to be bamboozled by the first person who comes along. Invest accurately in the future.
What do you think should be done to better develop the f&b sector that is not being done?
I answer with the words of Angus Winchester. During an interview he told me, "The bar world has changed dramatically from my beginnings. At the time, a couple of gins were used in the clubs, now you find two hundred in the bottle." If I were a bartender, I would not complain. There is an unprecedented choice of products on the market. There are excellences, premium spirits, that once simply did not exist. Companies in the industry are understanding the key role of brand ambassadors. Bartenders, often famous ones, who talk to other bartenders about a product and explain to them how to exploit its potential and then sell it. Plus, bar shows are proliferating where training is being done.
Is there any marketing idea you can apply to a school or venue that you have found in other parts of the world that you haven't yet seen in Italy that you think would give positive momentum to the category?
Manyand none. The real skill is in taking the best things from abroad and adapting them to our reality. Not everything is replicable. On Bargiornale we often cover foreign venues. We try to select the best concepts to be inspired by. But the photocopy, the clone, cannot work. The local soul still prevails.
Is there a cocktail bar or venue where you have had the best drinks ever or that has impressed you for other reasons more than any other venue?
Are you asking me to tell you which of my brothers I love the most?
Is there anything in particular that you want to communicate to those reading this who may be thinking about opening a venue?
Be original and don't be afraid to fly high, but first do a serious business plan.
With all the experience you have, all the knowledge you possess in this environment, all the friendships.... Do you ever feel like having your own club?
I prefer to do my own thing. To each his own. I love writing about bars and its actors and actresses. It is a passion that Franco Zingales, a great journalist and teacher of life, passed on to me. He is the one who, among all possible journalism, transferred to me the passion for "bargiornalism."
If anyone would like to explore some topic with you, besides through this blog, are you reachable through social networks, Bargiornale editorial staff or other?
I am on Facebook under Stefano Nincevich or at stefano.nincevich@ilsole24ore.com
Interview by Monica Palla
