Have bartenders reached the limits of cocktail innovation?

In an industry where recipes are recycled and refreshed, Amy Hopkins asks the world’s leading bartenders what could possibly be next for cocktail innovation?

Tony Conigliaro’s Prairie Oyster is one example of how cocktail culture is constantly evolving

In this age of cocktail antiquarianism, where classic serves remain a pertinent trend across the global bar scene, the line between innovation and reinvention is fine.

While a handful of high-end establishments have built reputations on their ability to create inventive and extravagant drinks, others are content mimicking or tweaking old trends, and are loved for doing so. But the much-lauded resurgence in the classics, where styles such as the Old Fashioned, Martini and Whisky Sour play a starring role, has prompted some to question if today’s bartender has the need to seek true creativity.

On the flip side of this, the weird and wacky creations of mixology alchemists, who continue to transgress industry boundaries with their gastronomy-inspired creations and scientific methods, suggest that cocktail culture may have reached the pinnacle of its ingenuity.

However, due to restrictions in cost, time and skill, few of these new trends actually manage to trickle down to the mainstream, while their creators are increasingly poached as brand ambassadors, bar consultants, and spirits producers. All considered, it seems necessary to ask: Where can innovation go from here?

Innovation is not dead

For Tony Conigliaro, creative mind behind London’s original molecular mixology bar 69 Colebrooke Row, innovation is by no means dead, and will continue to be fed by the blurring of boundaries not only between food and drink, but also between cocktails and other cultural areas such as music, art and literature. “It’s good to work with narratives outside of our industry and then incorporate them into your drinks – this is how you innovate and keep the industry fresh and exciting,” he says.

Along with 69 Colebrooke Row, which Conigliaro revealed is working on a series of cocktails inspired by opera, one other such bar with the funds and talent necessary to remain in a near-constant state of innovative flux is the award-winning Artesian at London’s The Langham Hotel.

Here, head bartender Alex Kratena and bartender Simone Caporale have the freedom to travel the world on voyages of cocktail discovery, creating a brand new menu every year. Their latest edition, which took six months to research and a further six months to create, includes rare ingredients, high-tech machinery and even 150 handcrafted brass pineapple vessels.

“We are constantly thinking of what we will create next,” says Caporale, “this allows us to continually evolve. Every week our entire team sits down in a creative session to air our ideas, which has been a very good exercise for us.”

Eau de vie in Melbourne, Australia embraces innovation in cocktails

Expensive habit

The Artesian does, however, have the good fortune of numerous accolades, brand support, and a celebrity status within the bar community that allow it to take liberties with experimentation — something most mainstream cocktail bars could only dream of. High-tech tools, comprehensive education programmes and pricey ingredients are often the reserve of the bartending elite, meaning that innovative cocktail techniques are not democratised in the mainstream.

It can be argued that such establishments therefore often turn to classic cocktails to pique consumer interest, as these serves are not only popular, but are easy to research due to today’s accessibility of information.

Others claim that the classic cocktails of a bygone era are simply unavoidable, and that completely new concepts are extremely rare. “In reality, nothing is really new,” explains Tim Philips, owner of Sydney bar Bulletin Place. “Innovation is collating different influences from outside and inside our industry and putting them into a drink in a unique way. Every good idea is generally inspired by someone else’s good idea.”

Jon Hughes, bar manager of Edinburgh cocktail bar Bramble echoes this thought: “It’s difficult to do something that so consciously rejects the cocktails of the past or avoids incorporating these styles. But this isn’t necessarily a bad thing as it’s possible to unlearn some of these to make way for innovation. It’s always useful to know where you have come from when thinking creatively about drinks.”

But, with such prevalence of reliving, recreating and reinventing the past, is the industry in danger of falling prey to cocktail cannibalism? Will the industry be subject to revisiting the classics of different eras again and again?

Nourishment for the industry

According to James Coston, UK brand ambassador for syrup creator Monin, brands can play a part in creating a blueprint for classic cocktails of the future. “Bartenders in the mainstream are always trying to catch up with industry innovators, who have the facilities to push boundaries and create modern classics. These guys are expected to reinvent the wheel, but this can filter down. Brands such as Monin help this process because we are always striving to make the most cutting edge trends available to mainstream bartenders, and satisfy demand for innovation.”

Greg Sanderson, venue manager for Eau de Vie in Melbourne, similarly notes that brand investment is important for nourishing the industry, both in terms of finance and in education. “Companies like Ketel One, which launched the global bar community Ketel One Fraternity, are great examples of how having the support of a decent budget can work. The brand holds events across the globe to entertain bartenders, and educate them at the same time.”

For others, it is the integral imaginative streak in every good bartender that will allow the cocktail and bar industry to progress. As Sanderson claims, innovation will find a way to continue because “this industry is just filled with too many creative minds and people with itchy feet”.

In sum, while it seems the proverbial wheel will continue to be reinvented for some time yet, bartenders are confident that a widespread creative ethos in their industry will keep the cocktail industry innovative, and prevent it from becoming stale.