Mesdames, Messieurs,
we´re in Paris to attend Cocktails & Spirits and it promises to be a lot of fun. We arrived yesterday and first visited the site where Cocktails & Spirits will be happening today and tomorrow in the afternoon, to say "Hello" to the organizer Thierry Daniel and his crew. The Maison Rouge is a nice location. It promises to be a lovely Boutique Bar Show today and tomorrow. After dropping off some Mixology mags, Bastian and I went on tour with a list of bars Thierry had provided us with.
We started off with Harry´s Bar and, although we didn´t expect it, it was actually worth the visit. Sure, there was a lot of tourists in there, Americans predominantly ;-). We had a chat with the bartender, Laurent, and found out, that I used to work with his best friend, Alain Decesse, in London. Small cocktail world. Laurent explained the concept to us. All bartenders in Harry´s work 6 days in a row, having 3 days off work after. They do day shifts and night shifts, so they´re able to "lead a life", which is probably the reason, why most bartenders stay there until they retire.
Our next stop was a typical Parisian Grand Hotel just around the corner. After all Paris is the place where they were invented. We shared a lovely half bottle of Champagne there. Then we headed off to the most sought after location: the Experimental Cocktail Club. This is the place everybody is talking about right now.
At this point Bols-Impressario Phil Duff and Dietmar Poetscher from Vienna´s Loos Bar joined us. We had two rounds of cocktails. The cocktail list features mainly twisted classics. We had an Old Cuban, Chicago Fizz, an Old Fashioned, a Tommy´s Margarita and a twisted Gin & Tonic. All drinks were perfectly balanced. The two ladies running the place were very attentive hosts. Nice place. We´ll be back.
Next stop was La Perla, a Mexican bar and restaurant concept invented by Tom Estes, the British Tequila Ambassador. Tom was there in person and gave us a try of his Ocho tequilas. Some other British residents flocked in at this point: Charles Vexenat, Sue Leckie and Dre Masso of the Worldwide Cocktail Club. After having dinner there, Phil and I decided to see another famous Parisian spot: the Hemingway Bar in the Ritz. When we arrived, we told the young bartender there, that we were out for something dry and juniperous. He tried to sell us a Martini with some vodka infusion. We politely waved him off. No vodka please! We had two lovely classic Martinis instead. I took the bill: 60 Euros. Yes, two drinks. The ambience of the bar, that is being closed soon, was worth it though. It was like sitting in a movie set.
Last location was Le Fumoir, a nice bar room just next to the Louvre. This is Dietmar Poetschers favourite spot. He actually blames it to be responsible for his bartending career. Well done, Le Fumoir. My Gin & Tonic there was the last drink of that night. I don´t expect Dietmar and Phil to show up early at the show today. ;-) I left them at a bar called Le Forum. Got to see this place with a clearer mind another time.
So much for now. Now we´re off tho attend Cockails & Spirits. À votre santé!
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Helmut Adam
Helmut Adam ist Herausgeber von Mixology, Magazin für Barkultur, trinkt gerne Negronis, Tequila und den einen oder anderen Gin & Tonic. Bevor er sich zum Bar Manager an der Mixology Bar aufschwang, arbeitete er als Bartender in Zürich, Wien, Berlin und London.
