For Bartenders, By Bartenders: Deluxe New Gin, Rum, Tequila And Vodka
The new bartender-designed spirits lineup from The 86 Co.
Nobody pours more booze than bartenders – so it is about time someone asked them their opinion.
I’ve never exactly embraced the whole craft cocktail scene, never felt the need to add homemade rose petal water to my drink, or spent hours debating esoteric ice cube shapes. And I’m pretty sure someone with low self-esteem invented the term mixologist to make up for the professional certification, college degree, or other credential they felt they were lacking in their life.
But there is no doubt that good bartenders know a lot about spirits, and many of them have excellent taste. Since they make so many cocktails, while people who critique spirits tend to try them straight, they also know a whole lot about what works well in cocktails. That’s why the simple concept behind The 86 Co. is so utterly brilliant – ask the bartenders what they want.
This novel idea was the work of Simon Ford, a former exec for spirits giant Pernod Ricard, who launched the new company, along with four partners, two of them bartenders. Drawing on his deep knowledge and global industry contacts, he paired expert bartenders with master distillers to create his new lineup. Even the bottle itself – a full liter, not 750ml – was designed with bartenders in mind. Much commercial success in the spirits business, like the bottled water business, has been based more on bottle design, labels and marketing than on quality, and while this works well with consumers, people who actually have to store and handle these odd-shaped creations often hate them.
Even the bottles were designed with professionals in mind.
“We created these four spirits with some of the best distillers and distilleries from around the world,” reads Ford’s press materials. “Conversations within the bartending community inspired the style, flavor profile and taste of the spirits, which are versatile, full-bodied and above all have been made for mixing… And because we worked with bartenders and some of us are bartenders, we produced an ergonomic bottle designed for functionality, and gave the bottles engaging labels filled with useful and honest information on how the products are made. This, we believe, is what a professional bartender would like.”
The first products went on sale in Texas, California, New York and Chicago back in September, and by the end of this month, before February 1, they should be available in Florida, Washington, Tennessee and Massachusetts. DC, Colorado, New Jersey, Arkansas and Louisiana are next, by May, and Ford expects his products to be in fully half the states by the summer.
The lineup is rum, gin, tequila and vodka and most are priced in the $30s. The tequila just rolled out this month and I generally don’t drink vodka, so I tasted the rum and the gin, and here are my thoughts.
Ford’s Gin: As a big fan of UK gins like Beefeater, Beefeater 24, Plymouth and Hendricks, most of which I have written about here before, I was happy to add another good one to my list: Ford’s Gin, made in London. (Click links to read my stories on Plymouth and on gin’s big comeback). It was only later that I found out Ford liked this style too: “Gin is the spirit I personally obsess about. I had the fortune to bring Plymouth Gin back to the USA about 14 years ago and I have consulted on various other gins since but this was a chance to make my own which was really exciting.” It has a pleasant but very noticeable citrus quality, and while I don’t normally drink gin straight, I could almost drink this straight and I think it would make a great martini. My favorite way to use gin is in what my bartender friend Gretchen calls, “A Gretchen,” which is sort of like a gin and tonic minus most of the tonic, gin on the rocks with a splash or two of tonic, or a very dry GT where the gin speaks most loudly buffered by a few bubbles. Ford’s Gin would be perfect for this, and I might even omit my customary wedge of lime, give how much fruit is going on. While many gin makers are secretive about their blend of “botanicals,” all are listed, including country of origin, on the label. There are 9 ingredients in all, plus the wheat from which the underlying alcohol is distilled and well water from Mendocino, California. These include Italian juniper (pretty much all juniper is Italian), Romanian coriander seed, Spanish lemon peel, Moroccan or Haitian bitter orange peel, Chinese jasmine, Polish angelica, Turkish grapefruit peel, Italian or Moroccan orris powder and Indonesian cassia. It is very international in origin, hence it’s label slogan, “It doesn’t take an empire to make a gin: distilled in London, Botanicals from Everywhere.” But ultimately it is the triple shot of citrus fruit peel that is most pronounced – and makes this a most special gin.
Cana Brava Rum: Cana Brava is a high quality white rum, better for mixing. I usually drink fine dark aged rums, drink them neat, and skip the rest, avoiding both umbrellas and cola. Though it is not meant to be solo, this was surprisingly good on its own, but not great – it lacks the influence and richness of the wood, and is less sweet, so while I could drink it straight, and did drink it straight, it wouldn’t be my first choice. I imagine it would be a great cocktail rum, because it is clean and neat and doesn’t bring a lot of baggage, but still has that distinctive sweet rum taste and is very smooth. As Ford explained, “You’ll find the rum very dry – It really has been designed for mixing (especially in Daiquiris). When you taste it neat it calls out for something to be added. There is a perception that rums should be sweet, but it’s very much the style we were going for.
What easier way to stock the home bar than with selections from expert bartenders?
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Here are the descriptions from The 86 Co.:
