Do you always order "the usual" at the bar, wherever you are, whatever the season? Read here. A journey through space, in France or to read tarot cards: drink lists in Milan change like the seasons and are a phenomenon for fans. To collect experiences and gadgets
Do you always order "the usual" at the bar, wherever you are, whatever the season? Read here, the best cocktail bars have original, thematic, seasonal drink lists – just like restaurants. On the kitchen we now have certainties. A good restaurant is recognized when the recipes are seasonal, the raw materials are sought after, the chef puts his own creative touch and the menu changes quite often, say at least once a season. A good bar works exactly the same way.
A respectable cocktail bar has at least three things: a list of great classics, your own proposals signature and drinks designed to follow seasons. And possibly mix well in all cases.
Classic or signature?
If you enter the Camparino in Milan, ask for a shaker, at the Bar Basso, a Wrong, if I have Mattia Pastori in front of me, I'll have a Negroni del Professore, his signature smoked in coffee, but if there's Oscar Quagliarini, I'll have fun with his vermouth, the OSCAR.697. Knowing how to make a Martini or a Boulevardier is like knowing how to make spaghetti with tomatoes, the base, but then there are the specialties of the house that have made history, the cocktails that distinguish a professional and above all the novelties. It is true that we tend to drink more or less the same things (you are a nigger, it is difficult to order a Piña Colada) but it is also true that new recipes and alternative twists entertain, and make going out for a drink more interesting.
The identity that pays
Having a strong identity is fundamental and the signs and the furnishings are not enough, and above all a proposal for an identification cocktail is needed, a style that distinguishes the restaurant, even better if this is declined from time to time into something new. "The thematic lists, the Pinch figurines, the videos, but also the small details like the uniforms and all the gadgets given over time, such as t-shirts, pins, matches, bookmarks and business cards, are the result of a great effort towards the 'elective affinity with our customers and have the purpose of establishing complicity”Explains Erik Viola, Pinch's barmanager, a restaurant on the Navigli in Milan that has always dedicated its seasonal lists to themes from space to comics. You want to amaze, amuse yourself, you want to experiment but above all you want to involve your guests – and make them come back for an extra occasion, like discovering the new list.
In Milan it is a trend, between those who work well, and here are the premises (and restaurants) that have interpreted the theme in their own way. From Armani you drink following the capitals of fashion, at the Daniel restaurant the Milanese aperitif is staged, from Ceresio 7 the sartorial list develops on fabrics and textures, from Iter you travel from nation to nation. And if you want to "read the tarot" instead of a menu, everyone at the Park Hyatt.
Pinch, the design cards
Pinch over the years has been decidedly prolific and the change of seasonal menu has always been an opportunity to "reinvent", each time offering a different look. Each list has always had a well-defined theme, a pretext for the experimentation and creativity of the bartenders as well as for the creativity of those who design the lists, Corrado Garcia, former Wired art director. The last drink list focuses on the theme of art and is inspired by the masterpieces of artists such as Magritte, Frieda Kahlo, Leonardo, Gauguin, Picasso … inspiration to recall worlds, flavors, colors and tastes that distinguish cocktails recipes as well as menu.
Emporio Armani Cafè, the cities of fashion
Elegant, essential, at the bar of the Emporio Armani Caffè and Restaurant you can drink with the list created by Mattia Pastori going to Paris, Milan, London, New York, touching the cities of the great fashion shows. Milan, the city of happy hour, of conviviality, of classics like the Milan-Turin or of twist like the Spritz Mediteranneo, based on Italicus Rosolio di Bergamotto. Paris is dedicated to champagne cocktails, from French 75 to an original Champagne Mary with cherry tomato juice. London identifies the new trends in mixology and New York the atmospheres of the night, such as the M&M with mezcal and bitter Montenegro.
Ceresio 7: the sartorial paper dedicated to fabrics and textures
The new paper is dedicated to the world of textiles to celebrate the connection with the world of fashion and design, the origin of the Ceresio7 concept. The name Sartorial, is formed from the idea of creating a personalized and tailored experience, great attention is given to the taste but above all to the textures of the cocktails. The paper designed by Guglielmo Miriello and his team is divided into two sections: Textiles, where each cocktail represents a fabric, and You inspire me, a selection inspired by the great classics reworked. Among the cocktails, Pride of silk, inspired by silk, with ingredients from Japan, such as kumquats, Miyagawa mandarin and Nikka from the Barrel whiskey with hints of chamomile and acacia honey; it is served in a particular Japanese "cup" with oriental floral ornaments or Penicellin # 2 is a twist on the cocktail created at Milk & Honey in 2005, it is proposed again with Mezcal and tequila instead of Scotch Whiskey, with citrus sherbet, ginger fresh and agave nectar. It is served in a "pharmaceutical" bottle with an ironic label.
Tarot cards at the Park Hyatt
The Mio Lab card is the one signed by Oscar Quagliarini and plays on the enigmatic figures of the tarot. 12 cocktails for a bouquet of 12 cards and perfumes, because all the cocktails are transformed into fragrances to be smelled before choosing, to which are added now the new cocktail / aperitif cards: Il Sole (gin with saffron, yellow tomato , maida, lime juice, yuzu tincture, berberé) and then Le Stelle, La Giustizia, La Forza,, Il Diavolo, La Luna and L'Angelo. Already on the list since last season the Matto (gin Helsinky, rose liqueur Palent, lime, champagne), La Papessa (Ketel one vodka, pomegranate juice, lime, triple sec Giffard, lemon velvet with ginger Giffard), La Temperance (Tanqueray Gin, Pachineat snack tomato essence, Giarratana Pachineat onion water, apple cider vinegar, caper powder), L'Eremita (Gin Tanqueraye walnuts, lead tobacco, old Samperi, my Sherry, drops of ponzu sauce, honey) … Try the exclusive Q Bitter Park Hyatt Edition, a less bittering bitter with low gentian content to highlight the citrus notes of bitter oranges, cedar and tangerine.
The Spirit: like an art gallery
Since its opening in June 2017, The Spirit has thought of its own drink lists as experiences, and created two drink lists a year, Spring / Summer and Autumn / Winter: seasonal drink lists designed as invitations to travel, evocations of magic and spirituality, diving into the world of gambling and luxury casinos. For the fifth drink list, there is a tribute to one of the artists who marked a point of no return in the history of art: Vincent Van Gogh. The new cocktails become almost a pictorial exhibition, a "liquid" translation of some themes and ideas of Van Gogh. The menu resembles the guide booklets that are usually delivered at the entrance of the museums and also the external showcase becomes a poster of the exhibition in progress: The Spirit of Van Gogh!
Ristorante Daniel: the Milanese aperitif
Does a Ganassa drink it? Chef Daniel Canzian the Milanese aperitif now serves him at the restaurant, directly at the table and prepared right in front of the guests and served with small amuse bouche in combination. The paper was designed by the mixologist Mattia Pastori and wants to celebrate the typical Milanese ritual. Among the new cocktails there is the Tel Chi, a twist on the spritz with horseradish and wasabi and accompanied by a crouton with cooked ham and horseradish, or the Ganassa, a cocktail inspired by the 80s to grappa that comes with a tartlet with mayonnaise parsley and cabbage. El sciur instead is the 60s drink combined with cauliflower mousse and curry oil. Also on paper could not miss a signature by Mattia, "Il Negroni del Professore", which here takes the name of El Professur, smoked, and served with a signature recipe by Daniel The fake pheasant terrine of the Duke of Salaparuta.
MAG: the drink lists to collect
They played with a thousand inspirations, from the Milan subway stops to Alice in Wonderland. At the MAG on the Naviglio the bartender Flavio Angiolillo, the cocktail list also becomes a small souvenir, a small paper converting project always special to preserve. Now we travel, and with 13 cocktails with which we touch 13 Italian and international travel stages to begin to get the urge to vacation … For the first time the Falesne Pivo and Salam Alaykoum arrive, two cocktails inspired by Prague and Morocco designed for more people, to be shared in small sips.
Iter: from regions to nations
When they opened the drink list it consisted of postcards from Italy, one per region, then (unfortunately) they dedicated themselves to thematic menus dedicated every 6 months to a different national. Holland, Panama … like a Lonely Planet you travel with thematic cocktails made with local ingredients. Now it's the turn of France.
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