Issue link: http://digital.copcomm.com/i/490558
{ SOMMjournal.com } 35 Is it important for a bartender to find their own style or voice if they are interested in taking on a leader- ship role in the industry? I always say that bartenders need to find their own style—need to specialize. In the beginning when a bartender is trying to make a name for him/herself, they should find a niche. However, as you develop it should be more like finding different niches to fulfill your goals. In the beginning of your career, you may be known for one thing. But you should use that as a springboard to progress—becoming well-rounded by adding more areas of specialization. That well roundedness will allow you to take on more projects and be versatile. When you make the conscious decision to switch into another realm it's healthy, as long as you have mastered the realm that you are in first. Can you speak on the benefits of using an outside consultant and hiring a full-time leader? This all depends on the venue, but doing some combination of both is always best. Typically, a venue will bring in an outside consultant because the consultant has "the name," the following and the experience and value that the venue may not be able to afford in a full-time employee. At the same time, a smart owner will hire a consultant, keep them on for three to six months while grooming an internal leader. When the consultant leaves, this leader will take over and build upon the foundation laid by the consultant. Ultimately, it's best to have both consultation and internal leadership. Can you explain what The Sporting Life is? The Sporting Life started as a way to gather like-minded L.A. bartenders together in one place for an afternoon. The first meeting was seven years ago in the back of Bar Keeper—back before it was even a liquor store and before they supplied barware to most of the bars in L.A. It was just a quirky vintage shop. The owner, Joe Keeper, graciously offered the space to Eric Alperin, Vincenzo Marianella, Damian Windsor and me. We sat around in lawn chairs—we had old sugar cubes, Angostura bit- ters, cheap sparkling wine, lemons from my neighbor's tree and made Champagne cocktails. That was the first meeting of The Sporting Life. For the next meeting, Eric offered Osteria Mozza as a place to host and Damian was working for Partida Tequila and offered the product. The next month 40 people showed up. For the next five years, we met every month without repeating a brand or venue—that's 60 locations. That shows how steadily L.A. was growing—even five years ago. It has accelerated to a sprint-pace these days. Approximately how many bartenders do you mentor? It's hard to answer with specificity because I don't ever let go of my students. I try to be good at staying in touch. I don't do social media so for me keeping in touch means by phone call, text or email. I try to respond to any student of mine—no matter how long ago I coached them—within 24 hours. Right now, counting only the programs I am currently working on, that would be about 40 people. But do I still get calls from people from Seven Grand, First & Hope, Pedalers Fork? Absolutely. Now you're talking a hun- dred [students]. I'm fine with that number because I grew up in a big family. I have more than a hundred cousins! So that's ultimately what I try to build. Wherever I go, I try to build a big family. Los Angeles and Southern California have a unique community quality. Many people from other mar- kets say they don't have that experience. By starting The Sporting Life and resurrecting the USBG chapter in SoCal, you have truly been the leader of a cohesive community. How important and effective has this closely-knit commu- nity been for Southern California and Los Angeles? With L.A., it was crucial, instrumental and necessary. L.A. is 50 by 50 miles—it's massive. To unite a community, we really needed a well-knit, sharing and loving community. In a lot of other places, New York, Manhattan or Chicago, they all live close together so they take that proximity for granted. We don't have that luxury. The USBG, The Sporting Life, everyone supporting everyone and L.A. being more of an open source than most other communities has been crucial in pulling this monstrous L.A. community together. Have you noticed any common or new requests from operators regarding styles of cocktails or programs? Spirits? Everyone is interested in a good whisk(e)y program and righ- teously so. Vodka held the number-one category in the United States since 1976—until 2014. That tells you a lot about the con- sumer and what they're drinking. Agave is on the rise too—that is, tequila and mezcal. Those are both categories [of spirits] that you can have neat, as a shot or in a cocktail. Other spirits really don't lend to such versatility, at least not in the mind of most consum- ers. Actually, all the bartenders I know only shoot (aside from the occasional amaro) whiskey or agave. Do you have a bar-related collection of any kind, such as spirits or tools? I have a huge collection of glassware and drink vessels. A large portion of it is tiki mugs. I have vessels from the 1800s, from the Art Déco era and I even have items from the 1970s—like tinted glasses that matched the shag rug. Is there anything that you covet to add to your collection? I'm looking for a Moscow Mule mug with a celebrity's name engraved on it from the Cock 'n Bull days. Can you speak to the role of L.A. in the national and international outlook? What are we good at? We are good at diversity and versatility and I'll tell you why: L.A. is growing so fast that we cannot train and staff the bars quickly enough. Additionally, with all of the opportunity for expression, we can have a great London-style bar, a farm-to-table bar, an Italian-style bar, a New York-brown-bitter-stirred-underground-with-lots-of- rules bar, or an everything-sourced-locally style. Because the people of L.A. are so diverse that there are all of these bar styles that Los Angeles loves, encompasses and accepts. We are developing the broadest range of different types of bars in the entire country. Q: Q: Q: Q: Q: Q: Q: Q: Q: