Q&A: Trends in the Spirit World
Jeff Donahue, manager and beverage director at Province in Chicago, talks about what kind of drinks his customers want, why there's so much fuss about mixology these days and how much you can really charge for cocktails.
Allison Perlik, Senior Editor -- Restaurants & Institutions, November 23, 2009
What do your guests want from cocktails—classics? Updated classics? New inventions?
People respond to a little bit of everything. Generally, they’re looking for either some sort of updated classic or a new invention, but it always helps if there is some sort of antecedent that’s tied to, something classic. Then there’s a story behind the drink so you can talk about it and say, "This is how this drink has evolved and this is what I’m doing with it now."
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| The bar at Province in Chicago. |
These days we have access to products that weren’t available then, like locally produced spirits. That's one thing I definitely try to work with, locally or regionally produced spirits, as much possible. For example, I use vodka and gin [from a Madison, Wis.-based distiller] whenever I can. It’s all organic, so it goes along really well with the focus and direction of the restaurant.
What spirits do you customers order most?
Vodka is definitely most popular. It’s not the most-popular spirit I use in cocktail creations, but it is for guests who don’t order off the specialty list. Although I think in restaurants like ours and across the city you’re seeing more whiskey and things like that as well.
What else are they ordering more often?
I think gin for sure. People are producing gin in ways that haven’t been done in decades, like coming out with genevers, a [Dutch-style] gin that is much more malty in character than juniper and lime. A wine producer in Oregon is making an Old Tom gin [slightly sweeter than typical London dry gin]. Some are even aged a little bit. They’re doing things that were very much the style of spirits that were being used in pre-prohibition-era cocktails that after prohibition never found a resurgence in the American market. Gin is one of the most versatile and fun spirits to work with.
What’s the top price you can ask for a cocktail in this economy?
It depends on where your restaurant is. For example, if you’re in the heart of downtown, you can get away with asking for a little more. I don’t go over $11 with a cocktail, and I try to keep things at $9 or $10. I want the cocktails to be very approachable, so they can be something that if you just arrive early for your reservation, you can enjoy one first before dinner.
Elderflower liqueur was the hot ingredient in drinks in the last couple of years. What is it now?
I personally like to work with bitters. It’s fun in Chicago to try to source those because they’re not distributed widely beyond [the well-known brands]. And also bitter spirits. We’re trying to incorporate those a bit in cocktails—especially if it’s a cocktail that guests are already sort of familiar with, those can add a layer of depth. Right now I’m doing a sloe gin fizz using grapes from a farm in Michigan, sloe gin and [a French, Cognac-based herbal liqueur] for more complexity.
We hear so much more about bartenders and mixologists these days than a couple years ago. What is driving this increasing focusing on beverages and the bar?
It’s kind of natural that with the attention chefs have gotten recently and celebrity chefs and shows like Top Chef, where people see chefs as these really innovative and creative people, once you start doing that behind the bar, people start to latch onto the same thing.
Maybe 10 years ago when you went into a bar or restaurant, you could probably find a lot of the same drinks. Now the expectation is to come up with unique, individual drinks you can only get here. It’s similar to the dinner menu--it’s not like you can get this chef’s lamb dish somewhere else. It’s an added element to the dining experience.
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