Taste the Craft Cocktail Culture in the USA

David Nepove, mixology expert and former president of the United States Bartenders’ Guild, says that an emphasis on creativity and quality ingredients such as fresh-squeezed juices and house-made syrups set craft cocktails apart from more standard mixed drinks.

“What makes a great craft bartender is someone who truly embraces the history of the cocktail,” he says. “To invent an original drink isn’t as important as understanding how the classics were made and then using that knowledge to inspire your creativity.”

True to their international roots, Americans drink cocktails made with vodka, rum, tequila, gin and other liquors with origins from all over the world. But the country’s quintessential spirit may be bourbon, a whiskey that’s predominantly produced in the southeastern state of Kentucky. Bourbon plays a prominent role in the Old Fashioned (bitters, sugar, water and bourbon or rye whiskey, served over ice). Nepove calls the drink a “benchmark” cocktail — one that can instantly show whether or not a bartender knows the craft.

“If a bartender is passionate about the craft of the cocktail, it will show in a drink as simple as an Old Fashioned,” Nepove says, adding that he’s instantly put off by “mistakes” such as muddling fruit in the drink or adding club soda. (In the traditional recipe, fruit is used only as a garnish.) “If you make a good Old Fashioned, you are showing your respect and passion for the classics.”

Bourbon is also often used to make the whiskey sour, another delicious classic. At a high-volume nightclub, this drink might be made hastily with a syrupy store-bought sour mix, but Nepove says craft bartenders will instead use fresh-squeezed lemon juice and real sugar. For a twist, some will then add egg whites, shake the mixture with ice and strain the drink into a coupe glass.

If you’re looking for a quality cocktail in San Francisco, California, Nepove recommends bars like ABV, Trick Dog and Dirty Habit. At ABV, beards and flannel shirts are a de facto uniform for bartenders, and the cocktail menu features the scotch-based Whiskey in Church, the gin-based Tarragon Collins (a twist on the classic Tom Collins cocktail) and even craft mocktails like the Pineapple Basil.

Several cocktails on the ABV menu feature mescal. Though not as popular in the USA as tequila, this agave-based spirit from Mexico is quickly becoming trendy with U.S. craft bartenders. Nepove explains that mixologists like to “rediscover” liquors like mescal and sherry (a fortified wine) to inspire new recipes. “When we rediscover a spirit and find that it can be used in a cocktail, it opens up whole new doors for creativity,” Nepove says.

In New York City, New York, bars like Clover Club, The Dead Rabbit and Employees Only anchor the craft cocktail scene. Employees Only, which was prominently featured in the 2013 documentary Hey Bartender, exudes a speakeasy vibe and is known for its stellar service. The cocktail menu includes classic options like Manhattans and martinis, as well as house specialties such as the Billionaire Cocktail (bourbon, fresh lemon juice, grenadine and absinthe bitters).

The Violet Hour, a swanky bar in Chicago, Illinois, mixes up creative, pop culture-inspired drinks. The Violet Hour has received a James Beard Award for Outstanding Bar Program.

Nepove calls out The Aviary for its bartenders’ inventiveness. “They’re doing amazing, creative cocktails and using cutting-edge technology,” he says. To make a drink called the Bitter, for example, The Aviary’s bartenders trap smoke in a cocktail glass by applying a blowtorch to a coaster made from a bourbon barrel stave.

Elsewhere, bartenders are pouring craft cocktails at Anvil Bar & Refuge in Houston, Texas; Fools & Horses in Portland, Oregon; and Arnaud’s French 75 Bar in New Orleans, Louisiana.

Nepove says imbibers can identify good craft bars in any city by paying attention to the ingredients the bar uses and how well bartenders treat their customers. “A great bartender is going to say, ‘What do you normally drink? What do you usually like? Are you in the mood for whiskey or rum?’ And then they can find a variation,” he said. “They include the guest in the decision-making process and make them feel welcome.”

“Every city in the country has a great cocktail bar,” Nepove added. “You just have to make sure you find it.”