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www.cheersonline.com 10 • March/April 2017 DRINK CULTURE CHEERS Q&A: DARNELL HOLGUIN AND RYAN WAINWRIGHT The United States Bartenders' Guild (USBG) in February announced that Darnell Holguin (above, left) and Ryan Wainwright (right) as the two winners for the 2017 USBG Legacy Cocktail Showcase. Both bartenders will now travel to Berlin in May as U.S. representatives in the 2017 Bacardi Legacy Global Cocktail Competition. Holguin's cocktail, It Was All A Dream, combines Bacardi 8 rum, orange juice, passion fruit condensed milk, Averna and allspice dram. Playa Fortuna by Wainwright mixes Bacardi Superior rum, lime juice, coconut syrup, Falernum and a few drops of hydrated cream of tartar. We recently caught up with the New York-based Holguin and Los Angeles Wainwright to fi nd out more about their winning recipes and what inspires them. Cheers: What inspired your winning Legacy cocktails? Ryan Wainwright: My drink for Legacy was something totally different until my girlfriend surprised me with two tickets to Puerto Rico as a chance to get away. It was right before the submission deadline and I found myself fl oating in the waves just off the coast of Playa Fortuna sipping a coconut. It was with that in mind that I wanted to create some- thing that was honestly Puerto Rican. That tipped its hat to all that is Puerto Rico while at the same time never losing sight of the rum—the true star of the show. Darnell Holguin: My mother inspired it really. Every morning for breakfast she would make us this traditional Dominican breakfast drink called morir soñando, which literally translated means "to die dreaming," an expression that meant it was to die for. It consisted of orange juice, evaporated milk and condensed milk. Cheers: What inspires you when creating new cocktails? RW: My number-one inspiration is tasting spirits. I love to sit and taste something and see what triggers of fl avors start to go off. I also get inspired by music, art and just living. I like my inspirations to come from outside but be rooted in the classics. Getting involved in your community is really one of the best inspi- rations. When you walk to work instead of drive, or maybe take public transportation, your mind starts to run with sights, smells and ideas. DH: I draw inspiration from everything around me. My mind works in funky ways. Sometimes it's a name I want to use, an ingredient I haven't used, the profi le of a spirit, even a classic. I make cocktails for guests to enjoy, so I look for fl avors that can tap into their subconscious. I want that sip you take to bring you back or awaken your palate. Cheers: What are your favorite spirits, liqueurs and fl avors to work with? RW: I will drink whatever hits the mood. That being said, rum has been my crush for the last two years. I woke up one day and realized that I didn't understand rum at all, and it bugged me. I was really into whiskey then, and the idea of rum was one that didn't really get me excited. So I made it my goal to fi gure it out. It took me a bit of reading, tasting, asking a lot of questions and making a lot of mistakes. But now I must say that rum is quite an amazing spirit. DH: I've learned that I haven't been drinking a lot of whiskey as of late. I've been gravitating towards rum and gin. Two spirits that have so many different expressions out there now it's astonishing. I'm a sucker for Luxardo maraschino. It's just so good! Cheers: Which mixologists have inspired you? RW: My nearly fi ve years at the Tasting Kitchen [in Los Angeles] is probably where I learned the most. I have been doing this for over 10 years, but the time I spent from 2010 to 2015 was a huge growing period. The bar was and is helmed by Justin Pike [who had worked under Jeffrey Morgenthaler in Portland, OR]. Besides Justin, there was John Coltharp, Eugene Shaw, Dan Long, Devon Espinosa, John Neumueller, Noelle Chaplin, Mia Andreoli and Longrada Lor. It was an honor to work alongside them and see what being a true bartender was: To produce an honest drink without pretense or a show. It was about the guest fi rst, and then getting that guest the best product. DH: It starts with Duane Fernandez Jr. He opened all doors and win- dows into this industry and created an environment for me to fl ourish. I owe a lot of my career to him. Juan Coronado, the fi rst Dominican mixologist I've met, is still killing the game and opening doors. Ariel Suarez, Cliff Mejia, Hector Videla, Elvis Rosario, Veronica Correa are young, driven, passionate mixologists that I'm lucky to call friends and inspire me to do more. Cheers: What advice do you have for aspiring mixologists? RW: If you are new in this business, be silent and listen—it is amazing what you will soak up. Get a job at the place that when you walk in you say, "I have to work here." When they turn you down, apply again. When they turn you down, tell them you'll do anything they want. Don't give up. Do their dishes. Be their best dishwasher ever. Show them by your silence and work ethic that you are someone they need. I never said no, I just always watched. I learned so much about what I wanted to be and what I never wanted to be. You'll be amazed at what years of work will build. DH: When out in Miami for Legacy, I had the pleasure of meeting someone who told me "the only thing I know is that I don't know." That resonated. It's important to remember that for every- thing you've learned, there is always something you have no idea about. Stay humbled. Seek knowledge and inspiration. If you can't step out of your comfort zone to ask for help or do something you haven't done before, then how can you appropriately serve a guest? Cheers: What are your favorite bars in your area? RW: Welcome to LA! Downtown it's Redbird, Faith and Flower, 71 Above, ERB, Tony's Saloon. Mid city, go to Big Bar, Normandie Club, The Ponte, Melrose Umbrella, Tiki Ti, and on the West Side, Tasting Kitchen, Scoppa, Corner Door and Cassia. DH: Bathtub Gin in New York has awesome cocktails and a combina- tion of party atmosphere on the weekends and lounge chill vibes on the weekdays. They're also some of the best staff around. Cafe Dante really just nails it with their cocktails. Every single thing is thought out. It's lovely. For a shot and a beer, I give it to my boys at Peter Mcmanus pub. Longest family owned bar in NYC and an awesome group of people. That would defi nitely be my "Cheers." Darnell Holguin (left) and Ryan Wainwright, winners of the 2017 USBG Legacy Cocktail Showcase. It Was All A Dream by Darnell Holguin Playa Fortuna by Ryan Wainwright