THE LEGEND REBORN A NEW BOTTLE FOR THE ORIGINAL 1745 RECIPE
The sleek, more efficient shape creates an easier pour while clear glass reveals the glowing amber liquid inside. The detailed neck and slashed shoulders capture attention, while its taller stature and more striking label make this famous liqueur stand out anywhere.
Learn more about the legend and how to use it at
PursuitOf1745.com
THE SPIRIT LIVES ON
“One of the top five liqueurs ever produced in the history of distilled spirits.” – F. Paul Pacult’s Spirit Journal
ENJOY OUR GOOD TASTE WITH YOUR GOOD JUDGEMENT.® ©2009 DRAMBUIE IS A REGISTERED TRADEMARK OF THE DRAMBUIE LIQUEUR COMPANY LIMITED, EDINBURGH, SCOTLAND. IMPORTED BY DRAMBUIE IMPORT COMPANY, MIAMI, FL. LIQUEUR - 40% ALC. BY VOL.
CONTENTS FEATURES
Volume 60
17
Wine Values The timing has never been better to stock up on value wines that deliver. By W.R. Tish
I May 2009 I Issue No.11
DEPARTMENTS 2
Behind The Bar By David Kratt
4
Tapping the Trade By Liane Fu
6
NewsFront BE AMERICA News Flash
8
Industry News
10
Eye on Trade By Liane Fu
A-2
Social Responsibilty By Daina Paulin
A-4
ABL Conference Coverage By Daina Paulin
Unpredictable Gin Different flavor profiles means there’s room for gin to run. But which way? By Jenny Adams
A-6
NABCA Conference By Daina Paulin
A-8
At the Bar By Robert Plotkin
A-10 Spiritscope By Duncan Cameron
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A-12 Brand Profile: By Elyse Glickman Ferrari-Carano Wines A-96 Beverage Network Crossword
Speak Easy A chat with Patron’s John McDonnell
PRICE LIST A-14 Official Price List Section A-77 Brand Index A-94 Industry Directory
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A-96 The Beverage Network Crossword
Cocktail Shake-offs Noah Rothbaum explains how spiritsponsored c o c k t a i l competition s provide an education forum and 32 brand visibility.
HOW CAN WE HELP YOU? Subscriptions: To subscribe, or receive help with an existing subscription or change your address, please call us: Phone: (808) 591-0049 Fax: (808) 591-0038 e-mail:
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38
Brand Profile: Hpnotiq The blue liqueur sets its sights on the female d emo g r a ph ic. By Alia Akkam
JUST A CLICK WAY! hawaiibevguide.com s SUBSCRIBE ONLINE! s Up load Trade Events Photos s Advertising Editorial Planner s Brand Index Listing A-Z s DOWNLOAD THE BEVERA GE NETWOR K CROSSWORD
Exploring Pisco Peru and Chile’s national cocktail may just go the way of the Mojito. Alia Akkam investigates.
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THE MAY BEVERAGE NETWORK CROSSWORD PUZZLE!
This month feature
s clues about Gin. 10 Bony 11 Sward 13 Purple vegetable 14 Shallow area
Across
37 Reverend ( abbr.) 1 Imported Gin, 66 Shoot clay 39 Gap with 38 pigeons down 68 Id’s counterpart 40 American Cancer Society s 5 Standard or 70 Hawked average (abbr.) 8 Girls 71 Waitress on 41 Aaron’s son, Cheers Moses’ 12 Horse 72 Meditation nephew 13 Hole maker 73 Upper body 44 Wrath muscles 15 Margarine 74 Aye 45 Bride’s headdress 16 Kid’s cereal 75 Annoyance 47 Record brand 17 Sugar-free 48 Diverge brand 18 What cars 50 Improvise travel on a speech 19 Arranges 52 Neither’s partner 1 Greenwich 21 Imported Gin Mean Time 54 Helper 2 Boat movers 23 Arise (2 wds.) 55 Proof ending 3 Clench you 25 Food and Agriculture teeth 57 Whitley ____, 4 Six-sided polygon Imported Organization (abbr.) Gin 5 Marsupial 26 African nation 59 Workplace 29 Chart 6 Music 62 ____ Sapphire, Imported 31 Makes a sweater 7 Pull in a fish Gin 35 Venus 8 Domestic Gin 65 Citizen 9 Healing plant
20 “I dream of __” (old TV show) 22 Talk 24 Example of perfection 26 Fruit 27 Arched 28 Italian herb 30 Brand of dispensable candy 32 Book by Homer 33 Light cake 34 Operate 36 Both 38 Imported Gin, with 1 across 42 Billion years 43 Land 46 Fluids 49 Domestic Gin 51 Sleeping place 53 Opposes customs 56 Platter 58 Small particle 59 Footgear 60 Baby powder 61 Yes 63 Competitio n at the Greek games 64 Yoga practicer 65 Cooking measureme 67 Before, poetically nt 69 Stood opposite
Solution
Down
MAY09_crossw ord.indd 1
MAY 2009 HAWAII BEVERAGE GUIDE 1
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BEHIND THE BAR Publisher/Editor:
TAKING NOTICE OF THE NOT SO OBVIOUS
38
Christopher Teves Accounting:
Josie Ancog
Staff Writer:
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Consultant:
Campbell Mansfield
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Hawaii Beverage Guide is an independent monthly trade publication devoted to the beer, wine and liquor industry in the entire state of Hawaii. The views expressed in this publication other than our own editorial comment do not necessarily express the opinion of the publisher. Because of the confidential nature of the matter contained herein, Hawaii Beverage Guide is restricted to members of the industry. Subscriptions are accepted on this basis only. Nothing may be reprinted or reproduced in whole or in part without written permission from the publisher. Published monthly by Service Publications, Inc., dba Hawaii Beverage Guide. Prices are $40.00 + tax per year; $6.00 + tax per single issue, airmail extra. Periodicals postage paid at Honolulu, Hawaii. Contents copyrighted 2009 by Service Publications, Inc. 6
National Coverage, Local Advantage The Beverage Network Publications are serviced by Beverage Media Group, Inc. 116 John Street, 23rd floor, New York, NY 10038 TEL s FAX
www.bevnetwork.com 2 HAWAII BEVERAGE GUIDE MAY 2009
by David T. Kratt
C
ustomers know it when they see it. They notice things like timely service and a pleasant personality. It’s like walking out of a movie theatre and deciding whether you liked the movie. But just as most of us don’t really know what goes on behind the scenes of making a movie; most customers don’t really know what goes into providing good service. Here are a few examples of behind the scenes behind the bar:
Good bartender / other bartender routine – Dividing the bar into sections can cause it. Customers coming in to see one bartender in particular could also cause it. And inexperienced bartenders may tend to do it when his or her co-bartender started out servicing a customer first. Feel free to add to this list the next time you find yourself giving customers a hands-off treatment. You don’t want to be the “other” bartender. You may not have landed the leading bartender role but you can earn bestsupporting honors. Help cover the busier bartender’s section when you can. Make it a point to stop by customers who so far have been waited on only by your cobartender. Say things like, “How are you doing tonight?” “Good to see you,” or “Are you doing okay here?”
It’s a pleasure to be of service – Bartending is not just a job. Okay, it’s a job, but customers should never figure out that plot twist. Conceal any it’s-just-ajob attitude with good dialogue. Instead of saying nothing, you say things like, “It’s my pleasure,” “I’m on it!” or “You got it!”
Roll out the red carpet – Regulars are our bread and butter during the slow times and off-season; and they show us we’re doing something right. Take away our regulars and what do we have? Regulars are those people that attract people. But still, it’s easy to take regulars for granted. We get a little tired of seeing the same old faces every time we walk behind the bar, many are not the greatest tippers, some we’re not all that crazy about and a few, shall we say, are pains in the behind the scenes. Movie-goers have no idea what effort goes into good acting. But we do! Sometimes it takes quite the effort to not fall out of character with regulars. Now just remember to begin your “Best Actor Award” speech with, “I’d like to thank all the regulars….”
Never play the typecast role – She quickly maneuvers her way toward the bar; then looks around before climbing into a barstool. The bartender slowly dislodges from his comfortable spot behind the bar. He tosses a cocktail napkin at her like a Frisbee and stone-faced says, “What do you need?” She thinks, is this bartender having a bad night or is he always this way? Well…which is it? You’re bored? Fatigued? You just got a bad tip? An annoying customer is making you cranky? You’re in one of your moods? You’re burnt out by working with the public? Good bartenders never spoil a happy ending for customers, especially with an opening line. Q Please send correspondence to dtkratt@ chartermi.net or P.O. Box 638, Grand Haven, Michigan 49417.
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TAPPING THE TRADE By Liane Fu
Robert Sullivan Bartender at Azure Restaurant in The Royal Hawaiian Hotel & Michel’s at the Colony Surf
Robert “Sully” Sullivan
W
hen I was a teenager, the legal drinking age in Hawaii was 18. People who waited till they were 21 to drink legally sometimes thought of us as lucky. Robert Sullivan, known as “Sully” was still a teenager when he got his first bartending job at Garden Court in Liberty House. Fresh out of High School, he got a job as a busser at Garden Court. He had his eye on bartending even then and went to bartending school to improve his chances. He let them know that he completed the course, and they let him fill in at the bar here and there. “Soon after that, the main bartender was offered a job at Michel’s because they needed someone right away. However, he also had an offer to work at the airport bar, which was a high paying union job, so he took the airport job and sent me to Michel’s. It’s one of those situations where I was in the right place at the right time.” “Michel’s is a very high end, very proper kind of place. The clientele there was mainly older and wealthy, we had movie stars and Presidents. Younger people came in mostly for proms and birthdays. It was different in the other bars around town. In 1977, it was a kind of wild time, all the bars were busy in those days, especially in the summer. Drinking age in California was 21, so kids would come here for the summer and drink. There were a lot of places to
4 HAWAII BEVERAGE GUIDE MAY 2009
drink and dance at that time. There’s not many places like that now.” He still loves working at Michel’s. He says, “ I’ve been there 30 years and I still never get tired of looking out at the water. It’s like what you would think a restaurant in Hawaii would look like: open air, right on the beach, you can hear the waves roll up on the sand. You can see the ‘green flash’ on the horizon.” At that point, I had to interrupt him to ask for more details about how to see this mythic “green flash”. He said, “You have to time it because you can’t stare at the sun for a long period of time. It should be a really clear horizon without cloud formations, and just as it’s about to disappear, the top tip of the sun will change from yellowish to lime green. Sometimes it’s bigger, sometimes it’s smaller. It lasts for two or three seconds. When it’s a particularly good one, you can hear people along Waikiki clap because when the sun goes down, we all kind of stop to watch the sunset.” I asked him about the bar at Azure which he works at on the weekends. He says he feels very fortunate to be working at Azure in The Royal Hawaiian Hotel, one of the premier hotels in Waikiki. He was interested in a part-time job there and was spotted serendipitously by Joey Gottesman, the Royal Hawaiian Beverage Manager, in the lobby who put in a good word for him. He says,
at Azure, they do a lot of fresh fruit juices in the drinks. The drinks are all hand crafted. The bar has no blenders, and no soda guns. The cocktails all give you an idea of fresh muddled fruit. “People enjoy the freshness of the cocktails, the drinks are a lot smoother, not too tart and not too sweet.” Recently, I had a chance to sip on some of those fresh juice cocktails at the elegantly renovated Mai Tai bar and enjoyed their craftsmanship and balance immensely. There was a time when Sully almost bought a business servicing Aloha Airlines. Fortunately, just before any money was exchanged, he went on vacation to China with his fiancé Cynthia Fenner, the wine buyer of Nieman Marcus. When he returned, Aloha Airlines was no longer in business. If his vacation was any shorter, he might easily have suffered significant financial losses. Sometimes being lucky requires that you be in the right place at the right time. Sometimes being lucky requires that you NOT be in a certain place at a certain time. It seems Sully has both types of luck. They say that good things happen to good people, and in the case of Sully, it happens to be true. Q Liane Fu is a Certified Sommelier and President of The Wine Stop. She can be reached at
[email protected] Suggest story ideas to
[email protected]
Olympic Café 4-1354 Kuhio Hwy Kapa’a, HI 96746 808-822-5285 Reservations accepeted. Hours: Breakfast: 6AM to Noon everyday Lunch: 11AM-9PM Weekdays, 11AM - 10PM Fri/Sat, Noon to 10PM Sunday Dinner: 4 – 9PM Weekdays, 4-10PM Fri/Sat
O
lympic Café, on the second floor has great open air views of the morning sun rising over the ocean during breakfast and awesome tropical sunsets as the sun settles behind the sleeping giant in the evening. The tradewinds are refreshing, and you have a nice view of historic downtown Kapa’a. The service is quick and the food is plentiful. With all these elements in alignment, it is not surprising that Olympic Café has become a convenient meeting place for friends and business people. Olympic serves nearly 100 lunch choices such as salads, wraps, steaks, seafood, sandwiches, burgers, pasta dishes, stir fry, burritos, quesadillas, and fish tacos. They serve everything but pizza and sushi. Rumor has it that Olympic’s kalua pork dishes are the best on the island. And for dessert, their ice cream pies are fantastic and huge. As a matter of fact, Olympic Café is known for big portions of everything at really reasonable prices. To wash it all down they have Hawaiian beers on draft and outstanding tropical drinks all made
with Finest Call mixers. Finest Call mixers offer unmatched product quality with each flavor specifically formulated to deliver the perfect cocktail with more juice and real fruit than other mixers. The flavors are premixed and come in vivid fruit colors that make beautiful and refreshing cocktails. Finest Call mixers are made for speed as they all come in easy to pour containers with colorful caps and neckbands which make it easy to identify different flavors. Treat yourself to a visit during Happy Hour from 3-7PM which features appetizer and drink specials and full bar service. Try some of their signature tropical drinks such as the Alii Margarita, Kauai Five-O, and The Blue Kauaian all made with Finest Call mixers. Their entire lunch menu is available for dinner in addition to some special dinner items including fajitas, fresh ahi and Thai pasta. The ambiance is casual and cozy with great views from mauka to makai. It’s a great place to “people watch” while sipping on a refreshing tropical cocktail made with a colorful Finest Call mixer. ■
NEWSFRONT
BEAM GLOBAL SPIRITS & WINE NAMED IMPORTER OF THE YEAR In addition to winning 28 medals at the 2009 San Francisco World Spirits Competition, Beam Global Spirits & Wine was awarded the coveted title of Importer of the Year. Beam Global’s portfolio of brands took home 12 double gold medals and nine gold medals. El Tesoro Platinum won “Best Tequila” and a double gold medal, while (ri)1 Whiskey took home a double gold medal in its inaugural year. Other brands receiving recognition were Ardmore Traditional Cask Scotch Whisky, Canadian Club Sherry Cask Whisky, Jim Beam Bourbon, Laphroaig Scotch Whisky, Old Grand Dad Kentucky Straight Bourbon, Courvoisier Exclusif, Baker’s and Booker’s Bourbon.
HORNITOS TEQUILA TEMPTS CONSUMERS TO MISCHIEVE Hornitos Tequila, a member of the Sauza family, is launching a new multimillion dollar campaign designed to engage consumers throughout the night. Titled Mischieve, the campaign encourages consumers to embrace new experiences while still enjoying Hornitos Tequila responsibly. Aimed at social, urban males, the campaign will be supported through print ads, pointof-sale materials, on-premise events and live on-premise photo booths where consumers can capture their revelry.
MAKER’S MARK TURFWAY BOTTLE TO BENEFIT CYSTIC FIBROSIS RESEARCH The 2009 Maker’s Mark Turfway bottle commemorates the 38th running of the Grade II Lane’s End Stakes. For this year’s bottle, Boomer Esiason, former NFL quarterback 6 HAWAII BEVERAGE GUIDE MAY 2009
turned on-air analyst, partnered with Maker’s Mark to create the Maker’s Mark Turfway bottle to raise funds for cystic fibrosis research. Proceeds from the sale of the bottle totaled more than $32,000 and benefited the Boomer Esiason Foundation.
KNOB CREEK OFFERS DAD A PERSONALIZED GIFT This year for Father’s Day Knob Creek Bourbon is offering gift givers the chance to personalize their own bottle for Dad. Each bottle purchased can be customized with an original printed label placed on bottles of Knob Creek Bourbon. Labels are complimentary and can be created online at www.KnobCreek.com.
BEAM GLOBAL RENEWS PARTNERSHIP WITH THE NATIONAL CENTER FOR DWI COURTS In recognition of Alcohol Awareness Month, Beam Global Spirits & Wine renewed its partnership with the National Center for DWI courts and encouraged states to establish 365 new DWI courts in the next five years. This is the third year in a row that Beam has partnered with the NCDC and is part of the group’s effort to bring national attention to the effectiveness of DWI courts in addressing hardcore drunk driving.
LAPHROAIG 25 YEAR OLD AND ARDMORE 30 YEAR OLD SINGLE MALT SCOTCH WHISKIES HIT AMERICAN MARKET Beam Global Spirits & Wine is offering two new limited-edition bottlings for their spirit collection: Laphroaig 25 Year Old and Ardmore 30 Year Old. Laphroaig 25 Year Old makes its U.S. debut. This whisky combines bold peat flavor spiced with sweet sherry notes and rich oaky undertones and has a
suggested retail price of $499.99. Ardmore 30 Year Old is aged in former bourbon barrels and handmade quarter casks, giving the whisky a unique complex flavor of its own. Only 1,428 bottles, each individually numbered, are available at a suggested retail price of $449.99.
SAUZA TEQUILA LAUNCHES MARGARITA-IN-A-BOX FOR SUMMERTIME ENTERTAINMENT America’s most ordered cocktail is now available in an entirely new format. Sauza Tequila has created the Sauza Margarita-in-a-Box, the first boxed margarita cocktail made with real tequila. The Sauza Margarita-in-a-Box contains a blend of lime juice, Sauza Blanco Tequila, triple sec and margarita mix. The compact box fits easily into a refrigerator, keeping it fresh for up to six weeks after opening. Sauza Margarita-ina-Box will be available in a 1.75L box size with a suggested retail price of $17.99.
BEAM GLOBAL SURVEY SHEDS LIGHT ON CONSUMER TENDENCIES IN A ROUGH ECONOMY To gain insight into customer’s spending habits during a shaky economy, Beam Global Spirits & Wine partnered with Clarus Research Group to survey hospitality industry personnel at the 2009 Nightclub & Bar Show held in Las Vegas. The survey found that 88% of respondents see spirits as an affordable luxury. More than 50% of respondents said people are hosting friends at home more often, but many bartenders also noted that their consumers are first hosting friends at home before heading out to bars and restaurants. As for what they are drinking, a quarter of the respondents believe that whiskey is the next big category for mixing.
Add some mischieve to your stockroom. The new Mischieve campaign from Hornitos™ Tequila is stimulating a lot more than sales, it’s changing the way people think about tequila. Mischieve is a way of life that’s playful, bold, provocative, and above all, mischievous. It’s the flirt, the affair and the idea that seems good at the time. Wherever there is mischieve Hornitos isn’t far behind.
Southern WIne & Spirits of Hawaii HornitosTM7HTXLODDOFYRO6DX]D7HTXLOD,PSRUW&RPSDQ\'HHUÀHOG,/.
#ALL 4OLL &REE