: Are you a kind Person?
Tony : In what way do you mean?
Dick: How many times do you get asked by a bartender to taste a new creation?
Tony : A lot.
Dick : How many of them are any good?
Tony : Now you're putting me on the spot. Kind of like when I'm given a new creation, with the expectant bartender lingering over the bar, waiting for the verdict.
Dick : Yes, and all you want is what you want to drink. Some people have a knack for doing it. I am not sure its something you can teach, they are just rather good at inventing drinks or not. Then, of course, there are those who are not rather good at it. Ultimately though, the good new drinks do have a certain theme.
Tony : The ones that survive seem to be simple in nature. By that I mean they have both simple recipes and are simple to make, although the end result may be complex. This is fast becoming a conversation about a kind of darwinism of drinks...
Dick : Yes, the best ones stick. Good drinks seem to spread rapidly and they have to be simple to do if they are to be successful in a bar environment. I'm thinking of the Raspberry Mule, Hedgerow Sling, Quiet Storm. I can remember the first time many drinks were served and who drank them. Do you remember Asa's Apple Chambord, Havana 3 Year Old drink?
Tony : The Tre? Yes, that was a corker. It's when people come into a bar and, before they even look at the menu, will order a drink like the Tre or the Mitch Martini that shows it has been successfully received. It means the customer recognises it as a a drink that has a certain quality that they want and that gives them pleasure. What is fundamentally important is that you do not produced a bastardised version of the original. Sourcing the recipes accurately, by asking the person who invented the drink, is key. They are usually more than willing to give you the recipe, and it ensures that your customer is never disappointed.
Dick : It may be that by being able to purchase recognised "good drinks" invented by experts, the customer can get around the creative abilities of the perfectly acceptable cocktail bartender, and get a good drink.. We don't all have to be creative. Some of us are fast, polite or just good all round professionals. After all, it is not difficult for anybody to tell a good drink from a bad one.
Tony : The good drinks, I suppose, will create a history of our period of bartending, and they will be a legacy to be passed on.
DickWell, if I can't have Ian Morgan making me his drinks, I will happily have someone else make them from the correct recipe.