CleverRoot

s u m m e r 2 0 1 7 | 4 1 he world is not flat, and there is no longer a vast chasm between a restaurant's front- of-house and back-of-house. So says Michael Brandes, Global Business Engagement Manager for Bacardi USA. Due to the cocktail renaissance of the last two decades, there has been a blurring of the invisible line that keeps bartenders out of the kitchen (and similarly, chefs away from the back- bar). And if Brandes has anything to say about it, the blurring of that line is a beautiful thing, as restaurateurs consider their food and beverage programs holistically, with menus that incorporate spirits into dishes, meld culinary ingredients into cocktails and reveal the untapped creative potential of chefs and bartenders working col- laboratively. Las Vegas recently got a preview of this brave and delicious new world when renowned chef Rick Moonen and respected mixologist Francesco Lafranconi joined forces for "A Spir- ited Conversation," a cocktail pairing dinner party that welcomed all sides of the industry—bartenders, restaurant managers, sommeliers and other key figures—to experience a thoughtfully crafted menu and discuss the many ways the bar and the kitchen can work synergistically. "The concept was to bring together the kitchen and bar to demonstrate cocktail-pairings executed with preci- sion and intent," Brandes says. He loves working with skilled chefs and mixologists, and hopes to aim their combined talents at pairing food with cocktails. "Cocktails deserve a place at the table," he says, "because cocktail pairings offer additional elements of customizability, creativity and co- creation. A cocktail can be tweaked to the tiniest degree to match whatever nuance there is in a particular dish, which is not necessarily something that you can do with wine or beer." Rather than present a hypotheti- cal notion of what might pair well, Moonen and Lafranconi met up a week prior to road-test their pairing hypotheses and throw ideas around. What came out of that brainstorm session was a dinner that exceeded all expectations. As they arrived, guests were greeted with a trio of small bites and comple- mentary cocktails: a mini lobster roll with a D'USSÉ VSOP ® Cognac–based French 75, a confit duck lettuce wrap with a Bombay Sapphire ® Negroni and Snow Creek oysters with a Grey Goose VX ® liquid nitrogen shooter. Perhaps most surprising among the trio was the presence of an apple slice in the Negroni, "the best enhancement," Lafranconi says. The sit-down dinner then progressed with four more paired courses that merged culinary ingredi- ents with traditional bar ingredients to magnificent effect. Francesco Lafranconi mixes up a Grey Goose VX liquid nitrogen shooter to pair with Snow Creek oysters. by Xania V. Woodman / photos by Mona Shield Payne he world is not flat, and there to the cocktail renaissance of the last two decades, there has been a blurring of the invisible line that keeps T

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