Single-spirit bars may offer a chance to go deep into one category, but are venues that sell all expressions a better way of attracting customers? Our debaters weigh up the options.

Canon bar in Seattle stocks over 4,000 different bottles

In recent years, bars across the world have been shifting their focus to just one single spirit in their venues, whether it be gin, whisky, rum, or Cognac.

Even if specialising in one spirit, many single-spirit bars have at least a few other options for customers who want something different. But is a bar that offers all manners of spirits poised to be more successful?

Whatever the size of the menu, these bars often need knowledgeable servers and bartenders who can help customers navigate the options.

Which is better, a single-spirit bar or one that covers all bases? Two experts talk it over on the following pages.

Jamie Boudreau, owner of Canon, Seattle

Canon started off as a neighbourhood restaurant that morphed into a cocktail bar/restaurant hybrid as people requested increasingly complex drinks. I had always wanted a place that felt as though you were ensconced in alcohol, but the plan was never to have the huge collection we have. Seattle is not a big enough market for single­-focus bars and way too expensive to operate in to isolate so many people by focusing on only one spirit.

The challenge of opening this kind of venue is alienating people and having to win them over from the get go. You must know every spirit inside and out. There’s no excuse otherwise. An advantage is that it does enable you to master a spirit and perhaps think of things that others haven’t.

Controlling stock is one of the most time-­consuming aspects of the job itself. The bonus is that if someone asks for something that you don’t have, there are bound to be similar options behind the bar that may even be better than the original order. The bar is organised in multiple ways. Some sections are alphabetical. Some spirits are placed in categories. Most are marked by location using a map-­like grid system.

People definitely like their American whiskey here, but with 4,000 labels, nothing moves unless you are trying to move it, by featuring it on the menu or putting it in cocktails or specials.

I hire knowledgeable people who are already familiar with many of the distilleries. They also have tools at their disposal such as books and learning aromas, as well as a daily budget to taste new things and learn on their own.

When I open my next bar, it will be a smaller programme, slightly more focused (while still representing all categories) with a tight­-knit revolving cocktail programme that can be executed with speed. This needs to be able to be run with minimal guidance from me, as Canon consumes most of my day, and I’ve yet to find a single person that can handle the systems that are needed to make such a programme as Canon’s work.

I’ve never opened a single-­focus bar, but I guess I’d say, go deep, go wide and ensure that all of the staff know all the details of the spirit you have chosen.

Thomas Solberg, bar manager at Black Rock, London

The entire concept of Black Rock was to simplify whisky and make it accessible. It’s seen as an elitist category, and we wanted to be able to break down these barriers for people and help them explore it. We do this in a few ways.

First is price; we structure it on a three-­tier system so that all drams are either priced at £7, £9 or £11. This takes away having to have a conversation about how much the whiskies cost.

The next thing is flavour. We felt that 99% of people don’t know what the flavour is with a brand name, and therefore we decided to remove this and instead position and group the whiskies in terms of flavour profile. This enables us to start a conversation around palate preferences instead of brand, as flavour is something guests understand and know what they want – whether it’s spicy, floral or fruity. If you guide someone to a whisky through flavour profile they’re more likely to become an advocate. Similarly, if people know they like a certain whisky brand we help them explore other brands they might not have tried, as their favourite will be sat alongside whiskies with a similar flavour profile. There’s such a wide array of flavour profiles in whisky that if you don’t like whisky, maybe you haven’t tried the right whisky for you.

The biggest challenge is when you get groups where one or two guests admit that they really don’t like whisky. We do have a small offering outside of whisky but we endeavour to get them to try the cocktails. We always check back, and if they don’t like it, we are happy to get them something else. A lot of guests have the impression that you can’t do certain things with whisky so we want to show the variety you get in the category. The benefits are seeing people who thought they could never like whisky, taste something and say ‘it’s really good’.

The tip I would offer to new single­-focus bars is don’t dig your heels in. You think your single spirit is the cat’s pyjamas but there are a lot of people out there who don’t. You have a great opportunity to change people’s perceptions and see the spirit in a new light. If you can create a middle ground where these folks feel they can get introduced to the spirit in a friendly environment, you’re on to a winner.