Exclusive interview with mixologists-AWS
What are your sources of inspiration when you create a cocktail?
Daphnée: For me it’s research. I train a lot of bartenders and I always tell them: learn your classics. I always buy books! For instance, I’d be in the plane and I would read a book about dark cocktails in Latin America! The last book I bought was no later than yesterday! I look for cocktails that I didn’t try yet. It’s my life, my passion. Since 7 years I do cocktails full time, I participate to contest, so I need to research all the time because there is always something to learn. That’s my inspiration.
Mike: It really comes from anything, like a spirit or a flavor, or a fruit that I am rediscovering. Sometimes the name comes first. It could be, just an idea as simple as a turn of phrase. And then that will lead to creating a drink based around that. It can come from so many different things.
What is your favorite spirit to use in cocktails?
Daphnée: My favorites are the same as always: Agave spirits. It’s probably a cultural connexion that I have with Mexique. And I’m happy, because before the pandemic, I was trying to offer Tequila to consumers, there was not a lot of Mezcal in the market, there is still not much, but people were not into it. It’s been a drastic change, when I came back from Vancouver in 2022, people kept asking for Tequila! I was wondering what happened in a year and a half! So I’m happy that the market demand caught up with my interests!
Mike: My favorite spirit is probably cognac. It's the best of both worlds. It has the sort of richness, complexity and depth of a whisky, but then it also has fruity characteristics. So you can make your stirred stiff drinks, but then it also plays very well with lighter fruity, floral flavors as well. I'll usually use the VS if I'm making something with a lot of other ingredients or some fruits, because it's kind of robust enough to stand up to that. If I'm making something a little more delicate, usually the VSOP.
What is the trendy spirit in 2023?
Daphnée: I think in general, people want to drink more premium spirits. With Agave spirits, the demand is crazy! and it’s more Tequila than Mezcal. But, yeah, people are interested to know what they put in their body, sugar levels, alcohol level, they want to understand the process and the ingredients. Also, the non-alcoholic trend is here to stay. I currently work on a non-alcoholic cocktail menu. We also have to explain that it comes with a cost for consumers. But demand is there.
Mike: Agave spirits are getting bigger and bigger. I keep seeing more Tequila brands, mezcal brands, some focusing on additive free tequilas. That seems to be always in my social media and I really love agave spirits. That's huge.
As well the non-alcoholic category is obviously blowing up. Which is really fun to work with, and it creates an opportunity for everyone to enjoy cocktail culture. More and more people are asking for interesting non-alcoholic cocktails, rather than just a club soda. Any decent restaurant or bar now needs to have some good nonalcoholic options. Also, people are willing to pay for it, which is nice, because you can actually put a lot of work and effort into it and be able to charge for it.
What is your favorite fruit to work with?
Daphnée: With the boom of the porn star Martini, that began in Europe and reached Montreal, I got some fun with passion fruit. It’s a more expensive ingredient so usually it is not included in my menus, but with the porn star Martini, people are asking for it, which is a good reason for us to get it. It’s so nice because it is very aromatic, very concentrated, acidic, it brings another dimension to the cocktail. Also I got the chance to be invited to a seminar about tropical cocktails and since then I use a little more juice. It’s my personal path, because originally, I’m much more into pre-prohibition cocktail with just alcohol.
Mike: Probably a tie between grapefruit or passion fruit. Both very versatile. Passion fruit is just certainly, that tropical style of drinks, very fun and interesting. And grapefruit is probably one of my favorites. It plays very well with a lot of things like Whisky, gin, vodka.
Do you plan to explore cocktail tricks or techniques this year?
Daphnée: My style is already defined. I put 4 or 5 ingredients in a cocktail. I know people like to do transformations. I don’t want to do foams or dry ice…I think the best technique is to really understand the ingredients you use. If you want to make a concept like peanut butter and strawberry, you have to think, what it will bring to your alcohol. I think an important technique is also understanding that the cocktail is multidimensional. The taste is only sugar, salt, acid, all the aromas come from the smell. So bringing a simple zest can sometimes bring a lot.
Mike: I kind of plan on exploring more and more different ways to add acidity to drinks. So I'm often reaching for citric acid or malic acid rather than just pieces of lemon or lime or vinegar... I find that is always a neat experience. My favorite style of drinks is often stirred cocktails.
That could sound like it would be a stiff kind of sipper, but then if you add a different way to add acidity without shaking and citrus, that can really elevate it. It tricks your brain into thinking you're sipping something fruity and light, whereas it's it is still like a stirred, stiffer drink.
I also plan on dialing in a little more culinary techniques into the cocktails. I have a couple of Italian concepts in our restaurant group, using a couple of cheeses. Recently I did a Parmesan tequila that has worked really well.
To Follow Daphnée and Mike:
Daphnée Instagram: @daphnee.dee
Mike Fox Instagram: @mikefoxwpg
Mike’s projects coming up include expanding "The Plaza" - an outdoor patio concept with a container-style cocktail bar, live music and events, located in the heart of downtown Winnipeg.