"Mixologists" and vatting

[dmarkle]

"Mixologist" -- god, how I hate the pretentiousness of that term.

For the past few years, we've been seeing a lot of talk about the "rebirth" of the art of making cocktails, at least here in DC. Of course, it's not only about the drinks, it's also about "speakeasy" themed bars... Bartenders and bars are becoming locally famous for their whiskey cocktails -- a local is even adding hickory chip smoke as an ingredient. So, my point is that they're using all kinds of ingredients (the more exotic sounding, the better) in these cocktails.

But what about vatting? Seems to me that if you're a *really good* bartender at a whiskey bar, that you know your spirits well enough to come up with your own interesting blends. I never hear anybody talk about this (at least not in the press). Has anyone been to a bar where you've had a bartender who knew his whiskey that well?

Would you ever order such a thing?

[DaveOfAtl]

I'd definitely be interested in this, especially if they made unique blends. It probably wouldn't be very profitable for the bar, though.

[nd2005]

I imagine it's coming soon, especially with the recent wide dissemination of the so-called "pappy" blend (i.e. the SB.com blend).

However, I'd be very skeptical of anything like this, as I'd assume that by typical bar math...a blend of two $8 pours magically turns into a $12 or more pour...

[squire]

It's the multiplier factor that I believe is taught in bartender school.

[dmarkle]

I think it's fair to pay a premium for two or more cheaper whiskeys mixed into one. I mean, hell, look at the payup for adding some juice, ice, and a shake?

I'd bet vatting isn't popular for the following reasons:

1) There aren't that many people out there who actually care about quality or variety in whiskey, as opposed to hype and marketing (there, I said it)

2) There's a lot more money to be made adding juice and ice or bitters to a whiskey than there is to adding whiskey to whiskey

3) It's probably hard to do proportions on a drink-by-drink basis without precision measurement, unlike traditional mixed drinks

That being said, I think I'm going to go to the Jack Rose or their "elite" bar downstairs the first chance I get and throw down this challenge.

[nd2005]

3) It's probably hard to do proportions on a drink-by-drink basis without precision measurement, unlike traditional mixed drinks

.

I would assume if a bar were to attempt vatting, they would do it in batches ahead of time (much like barrel-aged cocktails)

[dmarkle]

I would assume if a bar were to attempt vatting, they would do it in batches ahead of time (much like barrel-aged cocktails)

Yeah, but then you lose the theatre of making the drink!

[DaveOfAtl]

Would need time to mingle, if you subscribe to that, which I do. I'd do batches.

[tanstaafl2]

Yeah, but then you lose the theatre of making the drink!

If theatre is critical to the pouring a blend of whiskies as a drink it might not be the right place to be asking them to blend...

But if theatre is what you need then you batch, put the batch in two empty bottles of what you are blending and then voilà, you got yourself some genuine theatre!

[dmarkle]

If theatre is critical to the pouring a blend of whiskies as a drink it might not be the right place to be asking them to blend...

But if theatre is what you need then you batch, put the batch in two empty bottles of what you are blending and then voilà, you got yourself some genuine theatre!

Picturing Tom Cruise flipping bottles of EC barrel proof and PHC...

[squire]

Better Mimi Rogers.

[Gillman]

"Mixologist" to me always had a humorous edge, as if, these guys are experts but not really because the whole thing shouldn't be taken too seriously.

I have never seen a bar offer the concept of vatting. It's not a bad idea, and I can envisage a list of set "vats" just as occasionally you see in some brewpubs a list of suggested mixes of the different beers. In truth, I think very few people, even in the licensed trades, understand what vatting is. It has no official sanction in the form of manuals for example, books equivalent to cocktails volumes which go back to about the 1860's. It's very new and still gets a lot of resistance, even here at SB it took years for people to cotton to the idea and I'm sure only a small number of people practice it. You'd need to do something fairly simple and with widely available ingredients. But one can envisage the possibilities. Maybe it will catch on, it would take a dedicated practitioner, maybe a member of this board, who is zealous about it and also is a pro bartender or bar owner.

Gary

[Harry in WashDC]

. . . That being said, I think I'm going to go to the Jack Rose or their "elite" bar downstairs the first chance I get and throw down this challenge.

[squire]

I'm sure they would though I can see how vatting might have some customer resistance to the idea. The right bar could make it a draw if properly presented.

[Gillman]

Right, you'd have to present it properly, explain it in the context of whiskey history, etc.

Gary