Friday recipe inspo: 6 more bartenders’ advice on creativity, recipes, and more

Where does inspiration come from? And once it strikes, what can you do to make the most of it?

We tend to think creative bartenders are the ones who come up with out-there recipes, or those who push the boundaries in terms of technique and flavour combinations — but I think there’s more to it than that. I think the best bartenders work creatively to find ways of making the guest feel something memorable; it’s not just about the bartender’s ego — it’s an outward-looking thing. Now, it might be the drink that carries the weight of some of that experience, but it never happens without the bartender working to make the guest feel something, and inviting them into their world.

With that in mind, we’ve got a series of interviews with some rather creative bartenders for you here.

In June, Espolon Tequila gathered 11 likeminded and creative bartenders together in Hobart to attend Dark Mofo, the winter festival of arts and culture known for being a little subversive and provocative. They discussed creativity, swapped ideas, and found inspiration in the depths of winter — and now they’re sharing what they found.

We published the first batch of those stories last week — you can find them all at the dedicated Afterlife page here — and in today’s newsletter, you’ll find five six more of those stories.

Take a look below.

Charlie Hunter: “Creative problem solving is huge in hospo.”

“It all comes back to the guest experience,” says the Dark Blue bar manager.

Boothby.Sam Bygrave

If there is a way, Nance Liong will find it

“My thought processes are a little bit linear but then also loopy,” she says.

Boothby.Sam Bygrave

Bertie Boekemann: “Don’t be afraid to fail.”

Bertie Boekemann talks creativity, why everyone is creative, and why making mistakes isn’t as high stakes as you think.

Boothby.Sam Bygrave

Elliot Pascoe: “Creativity does better with boundaries.”

One of Brisbane’s finest bartenders gets deep into the creative process.

Boothby.Sam Bygrave

Nostalgia inspires the drinks of Roy Das Neves

“I found myself being inspired by that unapologetic nature from what I saw from the Dark Mofo program itself,” says Roy Das Neves.

Boothby.Sam Bygrave

It’s important to ‘get out of your comfort zone’, says bartender Alex Kingdom

“Try to make beauty in your everyday life.”

Boothby.Sam Bygrave