Tales of the Cocktail 2012 - The 10th Anniversary

Culinary and spirits festival Tales of the Cocktail (a.k.a. Tales) celebrates its' 10th Anniversary this July. Tales kicks off at the Hotel Monteleone on Wednesday, July 25th.  The world's best craft bartenders, taste makers, brand ambassadors, cocktail bloggers, liquor sponsors, and cocktail aficionados plus a legion of media and public relations people descend on the Crescent City for a week of booze filled seminars, "Spirited Dinners", tough talking competitions, liquor tastings, and brand sponsored parties.

The following is a list of events, parties, and seminars that Fredo plans to attend as a media correspondent for Umamimart and Loungerati. He is flying in on Thursday morning and will hit the ground running! OK, he will probably grab a big ole' lunch first but then it is on! Salute!

Follow Fredo at Tales on Twitter:#taleslounger and #umamitales

Fredo's Itinerary for Tales 2012:

SEMINARS 

True/Untrue: Exploring Bar World Myths

Cocktail writers Wayne Curtis and David Wondrich put to the test several common myths that underlie cocktail making. The audience will be dragooned into a blind taste test to help sort of fact from fiction. This seminar is sponsored by Don Julio Tequila & George Dinkel Bourbon.

Cognac: The Barkeep's Forgotten Friend

Dave Broom and Tristan Stephenson will discuss the flavours of Cognac, where they come from and what they mean. Attendees will sample a classic cocktail of that era and then look at ways in which to make it more accessible and exciting for the modern palate.

The Process to Perfection

A sold out seminar featuring newly weds Audrey Saunders and Robert "Drinkboy" Hess discussing successful cocktail programs! Enough said!! This seminar is sponsored by the Pernard Ricard USA portfolio.

Talking Tequila - A Sensory Science

Tequila Interchange Project members Phil Ward (Mayahuel, NY), Bobby Hugel (Anvil, TX), David Suro (Tequilas, PA), and Don Lee (Cocktail Kingdom, NY) present new sensory analysis and discuss the language of tequila. Sponsored by Herradura Tequila.

EVENTS, PARTIES, & COMPETITIONS

Spirit of Italy Media Luncheon
The lunch will feature Italian delicacies paired with cocktails made with Italian artisanal liquors, digestives and grappas produced by Luxardo, Amaro Lucano, Distillerie Moccia, Distillerie Nardini, Pallini, Toschi and Varnelli. The event will be hosted by master mixologist Francesco Lafranconi. 

Diageo Happy Hour "A World Class Affair"

Diageo hosts a happy hour of happy hours with their skilled mixologists providing a lush worthy sample of the company's brands. Leave the streets of New Orleans and enter a Brazilian-inspired oasis to celebrate the largest global cocktail program and have the opportunity to try an array of classics with a twist incorporating gin, tequila, whisk(e)y, vodka and rum alongside local delicacies. This seminar is sponsored by the Diageo brands portfolio.

Spirited Dinner: The Life and Times of Tom Bullock

The dinner will be a tribute to Tom Bullock, the first African American to write a cocktail book in 1917, his cocktails were so good they scandalized a President. It will take place aboard the luxury paddle wheeler Creole Queen on the Mississippi River.  A full creole buffet, hot jazz band and Bar and Books Cigars will be available for the duration of the cruise. Cocktail heavy weights Jim Meehan of PDT and David Wondrich will be involved in the libation portion of the cruise.

Employees Only - NOLA

New York's Employees Only (EO), the 2011 winner for best Cocktail bar in the World, are not ones to rest on their laurels. They bring their award winning operations down to the Big Easy at a pop-up bar in a burlesque bar called One Eyed Jacks that I am sure will be one of the hottest parties of the festival.

Distillerie Branca Breakfast
A unique opportunity to break bread with Count Niccolo Branca, the head of the Fratelli Branca family owned company. Sponsored by Fernet Branca.

Bacardi 150th Anniversary USBG Hand-Shaken Daiquiri Competition

Twelve competitors from USBG chapters across the country will take to their bar tools to shake up new takes on this classic cocktail with one thing remaining the same – Bacardi – the rum this legendary cocktail was created with. The prize: title as champion of the Hand-Shaken Daiquirí.

Bar Room Brawl

Teams from the following stellar cocktail bars from across the country compete for the coveted title of Bar Room Brawl Champions of the World!

North West:   Rob Roy—Seattle

West Coast:  Beretta—San Francisco

Mid West:  Manifesto-Kansas City

East Coast: Employees Only-New York City

South West:  Anvil Bar & Refuge-Houston

South East:  The Passenger/Columbia Room-Washington D.C.

Pig & Punch Party

A band of bartenders out of San Francisco called The Bon Vivants get to NOLA early and devote their energy to helping reconstruct schools in neighborhoods that were devastated by Hurricane Katrina. Pig & Punch is a free party to local residents offering spit roasted pigs and serving lots of boudin, Creole tomato salad, Cajun cole slaw, plus delicious complimentary punches out of 32 gallon trash containers and cold beer is available!

The Spirited Awards 2012

Guests are encouraged to wear your best cocktail attire to cheer on your friends and colleagues and find out who is deemed best of the best in the cocktail world for 2012 with entertainment, good pub food, and drinks supplied by your sponsors Pernod Ricard USA.

Juniperlooza Tales (aka the Bartenders' Breakfast)

If a bartender has breakfast its usually after a shift at the crack of dawn. To pay homage to the bartending way of life Simon Ford and Audrey Saunders' Bartenders Breakfast was born 6 years ago at Tales and its back again as the official unofficial wrap party for the festivities. Sponsored by Plymouth and Beefeater Gins.

Tales of the Cocktail 2012 Update: Spirited Awards Nominations

The long awaited nominations are finally out for the 6^th Annual Spirited Awards which will be handed out at during July’s cocktail lovers festival, Tales of the Cocktail, in New Orleans. Below is a press release from the Tales team. We also added the Loungerati predictions and our crew will be in attendance for the presentation of awards. 

 

 “Following a rigorous evaluation of hundreds of nominees, ten finalists for each award category have been chosen for the 6th Annual Spirited Awards®, recognizing the year’s best bars, bartenders, writers, experts and more. American and international judging committees comprised of the most respected minds in the cocktail industry selected the finalists for the 17 award categories. Winners will be announced Saturday July 28 at the Spirited Awards® ceremony being held at the Hyatt Regency Hotel, as part of the Tales of the Cocktail® 10th anniversary celebration.

“The Spirited Awards® ceremony is the night when the cocktail industry can step out from behind the bar to receive the recognition it deserves,” said Ann Tuennerman, Founder of Tales of the Cocktail®.

Through its annual Spirited Awards®, Tales of the Cocktail® recognizes the bartenders, bars, writers and cocktail experts that continue to push the cocktail industry into new, exciting directions. To embody the ideals with which Tales of the Cocktail® was originally founded, these awards were developed to recognize both national and international honorees across 17 categories. From these top ten, the top four finalists from each category will be invited to attend the award ceremony on July 28, 2012. These top four finalists will be announced June 22, 2012. Each award recipient will receive an exclusive Riedel Crystal trophy.”

American Bartender of the Year

• Eric Alperin
• Jamie Boudreau
• Derek Brown
• Marcovaldo Dionysos
• Charles Joly
• Vincenzo Marianella
• Ivy Mix
• Jeffrey Morganthaler
• Joaquin Simo
• Naren Young

Loungerati prediction: Ivy Mix for her talented drink making and 'above and beyond' work on Speed Rack, a competition by female bartenders against breast cancer.

Best American Brand Ambassador

• Erick Castro
• Elayne Duke
• Jamie Gordon
• Guillaume Lamy
• Gaston Martinez
• Jackie Patterson
• Todd Richman
• Jim Ryan
• Nick Van Tiel
• Neyah White 

Loungerati prediction: Real tough one here between Todd Richman and Jim Ryan. We need to see the sales figures but our bet is on the ubiquitous Todd Richman whose territory for Sidney Frank seems to be EVERYWHERE!

Best American Cocktail Bar

• Anvil Bar & Refuge – Houston, Texas
• Bourbon & Branch – San Francisco, California
• The Drawing Room – Chicago, Illinois
• Dutch Kills – Queens, New York
• Clover Club – Brooklyn, New York
• Columbia Room – Washington, District of Columbia
• Harvard & Stone – Los Angeles, California
• La Descarga – Los Angeles, California
• Mayahuel – Manhattan, New York
• The Varnish – Los Angeles, California

Loungerati prediction: Anvil Bar & Refuge. This year maybe the year when the honors go to a non-coastal city bar. If it does, Anvil is the logical choice.

Best Bar Mentor

• Bridget Albert
• Sven Almenning
• Julio Bermejo
• Wayne Collins
• Francesco Lafranconi
• Chris McMillan
• Steve Olson
• Julie Reiner
• Thad Vogler
• Dushan Zaric

Loungerati prediction: So many inspiring bar mentors on the list but only one can win. We believe Julie Reiner (Clover Club, Flatiron Lounge, Lani Kai, Pegu Club) will take the honors - she is certainly due.

Best High Volume Cocktail Bar

• Beretta – San Francisco, California
• Clover Club – New York, New York
• Craft & Commerce – San Diego, California
• Eastern Standard – Boston, Massachusetts
• Flatiron Lounge – New York, New York
• La Descarga – Los Angeles, California
• Macao Trading Co. – New York, New York
• Sable Kitchen & Bar – Chicago, Illinois
• Seven Grand – Los Angeles, California
• The Tippler – New York, New York

Loungerati prediction: Jackson Cannon’s Boston crew from Eastern Standard will take this one.

 Best Cocktail Writing – Author

• Jenny Adams
• Jarden Brown & Anastatia Miller
• Paul Clarke
• Wayne Curtis
• Dan Dunn
• Gary Regan
• Robert Simonson
• Jason Wilson
• Dave Wondrich
• Naren Young

Loungerati prediction: Will this be another year when a blogger wins best cocktail writing? Well sort of, Robert Simonson who writes for the NY Times and "Make it Simple but Significant" blog will sneak by the favorites like “I’ll Have Another” at PIMLICO.

Best Cocktail Writing – Non Book

• Barchick.com
• Barlife UK
• Find. Eat. Drink.
• Food Republic
• Liquor.com
• Mutineer Magazine
• Saveur
• Shakestir.com
• Tasting Panel
• Time Out NY

Loungerati prediction: Shameless NYC support - If there was a standard bearer for the return of craft cocktails in the print media it would be Jordana Rothman bar/lounge editor of Time Out NY.

 Best International Brand Ambassador

• Colin Asare Appiah
• Jacob Briars
• Ian Burrell
• Tal Nadari
• Matt Pomeroy
• Jamie Terrell
• Manuel Terron
• Claire Smith
• Angus Winchester
• Brian Van Flandern

Loungerati prediction: If anyone is due it is Angus Winchester of Tanqueray. The Tonight We Tanqueray campaign has thrown some of the best parties of the year and kept the brand on everyone’s radar.

Best New Cocktail/Bartending Book

• The American Cocktail by the Editors of Imbibe
• Beta Cocktails
• Bitters: A Spirited History of a Classic Cure-All
• Gaz Regan’s Annual Manual for Bartenders 2011
• Home Bar Basics
• Living Loaded: Tales of S*x, Salvation and the Pursuit of the Never Ending Happy Hour
• The Mixellany Guide to Vermouth & Other Apertifs
• PDT Cocktail Book

Loungerati prediction: We would love nothing better than to have Gaz Regan’s Annual Manual for Bartenders 2011 win since one of Fredo’s cocktails is included in the 101 Best; however, the tide is with Jim Meehan's must have PDT Cocktail Book.

Best New Product

• Bombay Sapphire East
• Chairman’s Reserve Spiced Rum
• Cocktail Kingdom’s Blue Blazer Mugs
• Cognac Pierre Ferrand 1840 Formula
• Fee Brother’s Gin Barrel Aged Orange Bitters
• Lillet Rose
• Perlini System
• Redemption Rye
• Steve Schneider’s Standard Issue Ice Mallet
• Tomr’s Tonic Syrup

Loungerati prediction: What a year for great new bar products. From the iconic Standard Issue Ice Mallet for Steve Schneider to Lillet Rose and Tomr’s Tonic Syrup. Our bet is on Lady Lillet Amanda Boccato and her delightful rose.

Best Restaurant Bar

• Bar Agricole – San Francisco, California
• The Beagle – New York, New York
• Beaker & Flask – Portland, Oregon
• Heaven’s Dog – San Francisco, California
• Lani Kai – New York, New York
• No. 9 Park – Boston, Massachusetts
• Rivera – Los Angeles, California
• Sable – Chicago, Illinois
• Saxon + Parole – New York, New York
• Slanted Door – San Francisco, California

Loungerati prediction: The Beagle puts the cocktail in the forefront; it will be regaled on award night.

International Bartender of the Year

• Massimo Greco
• Misty Kalkofen
• Zdenek Kastanek
• Alex Kratena
• Max Larocca
• Sam Ross
• Michael Madrusan
• Shawn Soole
• Phil Ward
• Dushan Zaric

Loungerati prediction: Chances are Dushan Zaric (Employees Only, Macao Trading Co) will pick up where his bar left off last year and take the prize. But Michael Madrusan from Everleigh could be the surprise of the night.

World’s Best Cocktail Bar

• 69 Colebrooke Row – London, United Kingdom
• Black Pearl –Melbourne, Australia
• Callooh Callay – London, United Kingdom
• Clover Club – New York, New York
• The Connaught Bar – London, United Kingdom
• Drink – Boston, Massachusetts
• Eau de Vie – Sydney, Australia
• Mayahuel – Manhattan, New York
• Nightjar – London, United Kingdom
• The Varnish – Los Angeles, California 

Loungerati prediction: Last year Sydney, Australia stepped up with Eau de Vie, this year the honor will pass to London’s 69 Colebrooke Row.

World’s Best Cocktail Menu

• Aviary – Chicago, Illinois
• Bar le Forvm –Paris, France
• Black Pearl – Melbourne, Australia
• Callooh Callay – London, United Kingdom
• Clover Club – New York, New York
• Mayahuel – Manhattan, New York
• Raines Law Room – Manhattan, New York
• The Roosevelt – Sydney, Australia
• Sable – Chicago, Illinois
• Whistling Shop – London, United Kingdom

Loungerati prediction:  Clover Club, which continues to take nominations across all categories for good reason.

World’s Best Drinks Selection

• Artesian at The Langham – London, United Kingdom
• Canon – Seattle, Washington
• Capri Lounge – Cologne, Germany
• Daddy-O – New York, New York
• Death & Co. – Manhattan, New York
• Eau de Vie – Sydney, Australia
• Sable – Chicago, Illinois
• Salvatore’s at The Playboy – London, United Kingdom
• Sanctuaria – St. Louis, Missouri
• Widder Bar – Zurich, Switzerland

Loungerati prediction: I just think it would be fantastic if Daddy-O won this award. Phil has turned Steve Crane’s industry favorite into a true egalitarian bar that can satisfy NYU students to cocktail connoisseurs.

World’s Best Hotel Bar

• Artesian at The Langham – London, United Kingdom
• Clive’s Classic Lounge – Victoria, British Columbia
• Clyde Common – Portland, Oregon
• The Connaught – London, United Kingdom
• Lantern’s Keep at The Iroquois Hotel – New York, New York
• Roomer’s Bar – Frankfurt, Germany
• Sable Kitchen and Bar at Hotel Palomar – Chicago, Illinois
• The Spare Room at The Roosevelt – Los Angeles, California
• Vesper Bar at The Cosmopolitan – Las Vegas, Nevada
• The Zetter Townhouse – London, United Kingdom

Loungerati prediction: We love what Meghan Dorman and Theo Lieberman have done with Lantern’s Keep at the Iroquois Hotel.

World’s Best New Cocktail Bar

• Aviary – Chicago, Illinois
• Candelaria – Paris, France
• Canon – Seattle, Washington
• The Everleigh – Melbourne, Australia
• Happiness Forgets – London, United Kingdom
• Harvard & Stone – Los Angeles, California
• Maison Premiere – Brooklyn, New York
• Mother’s Ruin – New York, New York
• Whistling Shop – London, United Kingdom
• The Zetter Townhouse – London, United Kingdom

Loungerati prediction: Maison Premiere is not only our choice but yours as well. I mean oysters and absinthe, it is almost unfair to the others.

Tickets to the Spirited Awards® ceremony can now be purchased online at TalesoftheCocktail.com for $65.00 for individuals or $650.00 per table of 10 seats. The Spirited Awards® are just one part of the historic 10th Anniversary Tales of the Cocktail® being held in New Orleans July 25-29, 2012. Visit the Tales of the Cocktail® website to learn more about the week’s spirited schedule of events.

Tales of the Cocktail 2010 Begins Today

New Orleans - The 8th Annual Tales of the Cocktail, a culinary and spirits festival developed by Ann and Paul Tuennerman, kicked off today with a toast at the Hotel Monteleone. The world's best mixologists, bartenders, brand ambassadors, cocktail bloggers, liquor sponsors, and cocktail aficionados descend on the Big Easy for five days of seminars, "Spirited Dinners", competitions, tastings, and brand sponsored parties.

Tales is a bona fide Star Trek convention for spirits enthusiasts. For the second year in a row, Loungerati dispatches their cocktail correspondent and bon vivant Fredo to the Crescent City. This time the man at seat F14 has Media Credentials and will be blogging/tweeting (in between sips) the event on Friday and Saturday. He will also be reporting for the Parkville Luminary, Kansas City's fastest growing weekly publication. Along with the lectures, competitions, tastings, happy hours, and parties, Fredo will be taking time to chronicle the events and sample the local fare. New Orleans isn't all Vieux Carrés and Sazeracs, attending Tales is a great way enjoy the culinary tradition and support the city's tourism.

Fredo's Tales Itinerary

Friday, July 23

• Science of Stirring Seminar with Thomas Waugh, Dave Arnold, and Eben Klemm
• "On the Rocks" Happy Hour - a uber tasting of 23 spirits in one of their purest forms.
• USBG Milagro Tequila Margarita Competition - 28 bartenders from 15 different cities will put their best margaritas up against one another using Milagro Tequila.
• Bar Room Brawl presented by Grand Marnier at Generations Hall - Bar teams from around the country duke it out by creating original cocktails using Grand Marnier. The judges will crown one team the Champions of the World and attendees will determine the People's Champion.

Saturday, July 24th

• Rolling Out the Red Carpet for Rookies Seminar - This session would focus on techniques that experienced bar professionals can use to communicate good cocktail techniques and ingredients to rookie home bartenders. Robert Hess of Drinkboy is a featured Panelist.
• Tiki Now! The New Breed of Tiki Bar Seminar - An investigation and analysis from the death of the Tiki Bar to the resurgence to the new trends emerging.
• The Julep Story from 1488 to the Present Seminar
• Dinner at the Pork & Bourbon mecca Cochon Restaurant with Payman Bahmani of Life's a Cocktail 
• Plymouth Gin Bartender's Breakfast at 11pm!

In addition, he may finagle a seat at the Spirited Awards Ceremony and Dinner presented by Pernod Ricard on Saturday night. This year Tales of the Cocktail did not offer individual tickets but rather sold tables of ten for $650. These were promptly snapped up by liquor brands and sponsors. So hopefully a bit of schmoozing and networking can materialize a seat for the Lounger.

Other activities on the wish list:

• Grab an hour or two of sun by the Hotel Monteleone Rooftop pool
• Muffelata sandwich at Central Grocery (this will also be midnight snack - those friggin sandwiches are enormous)
• Get to a Jazz Bar for the real deal
• Oysters at Acme
• Deliver a package to Rio Mar
• A Pimms Cup at Napoleon House 
• A Vieux Carré at the Carousel bar
• A Sazerac at the Roosevelt Hotel
• Sleep for a few hours and stay hyrdrated

Follow Tales of the Cocktails at Twitter: #totc

Follow Loungerati at Tales: #talesloungers