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Worldwide Best Bartenders
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Italy/Ireland
Massimo (Max) La Rocca
Formerly of Sheen Falls Lodge,
Kenmare, Ireland
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How did you get started in
the bar business?
Only in 2005, after
being a very creative deejay, web designer, pastry chef assistant, and a waiter
abroad for many years, I met an old friend who was a Head Bartender and
Hospitality School teacher and proposed me to attend an A.I.B.E.S. course
(Italian Bartender Guild). From that
point onwards I just fell in love with the profession, the relationship with the
guests, and the hosting part of it, such a big interchange of energies.
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How many bars have you worked at, and approximately how
long at each gig?
I started at the "Lab American Bar" (www.lab-bar.it)
in Italy for 3 years, then few months at the prestigious Hotel De Russie (www.hotelderussie.it)
followed by 2 years at "St George" Boutique Hotel (www.stgeorgehotel.it)
in Rome as Bar Manager and one more year as Senior Bartender at my latest
workplace with the Relais & Chateaux Family.
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List the people who have taught you the most about tending
bar, and tell us what they taught you.
I haven't had a real
Mentor as such, at my first job the owner of the Cocktail Bar (a bit old school)
told me to "STEAL WITH MY EYES*" but after while I realized that by only by doing
so it would take me ages and started practicing in my HOME SINK by counting,
pouring, mixing, shaking, then reading bartending books, attending few seminars
but most of all....INTERNET, if you know how to use it is a VERY powerful tool
especially watching VIDEOS; every time there is a new detail you can add to your
performance behind the stick.
*I
had only to watch [other bartenders] without asking questions and learn [from
them].
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What do you differently from most other bartenders?
I would say that being
Italian, my behaviour behind the mahogany is very much about my culture; I'm
talking about the sense of hospitality, warmth, style and humbleness, things
that sometimes I don't seem to find in
other countries (I said “sometimes” so please don’t take me the wrong way).
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What do you consider
to be your specialty or specialties?
One
of the drinks I'm very "happy" about is my "Tommy's
Camomile N.10, a signature cocktail I created pairing the ingredients with
some of the key elements that compose Tanqueray n. 10 itself such as camomile
and limes.
and made by using
- Tanqueray n. 10 Gin
- Agave Syrup
- Fresh lime juice
- Camomile Foam
- Lime Jelly
Camomile Foam (makes 1/2 liter):
400 ml water
15 g chamomile powder
10 ml Galliano
40 ml simple syrup
1,5 gelatine sheets
put chamomile in hot water for 20 minutes
add galliano and syrup
meanwhile bloom the gelatine in a container with REALLY cold water for 10
minutes
fine strain chamomile infusion and the gelatine (after squeezing out the water)
in a container and whip for few seconds.
Put everything into a whipped cream canister and add a a cartridge of nitrous
oxide let set in the fridge for at least 3 hours
Lime Jelly
400 ml warm water
add 100 gr lime juice and 75 gr granulated sugar
add peels of 4 limes, let it aside for 10 minutes for the peels to release
their oils, add 4-5 gelatine sheets (3 gr each) previously bloomed in COLD
water,
whip everything together and place in cylindric mould
let rest in the fridge at least for 3 hours.Back to Top
Do you think that you might have been the first bartender
to do something that is now fairly commonplace?
There’s a chance,
though I can’t be sure, that I was perhaps the first bartender to
use a teapot to perform
the
throwing technique of mixing cocktails., getting the idea from the
Tuareg Tea
Ceremony.
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Tell us anything else you’d like us to know about yourself.
I recently launched
Listen to the Ice,
a bilingual blog dedicated to the Mixology World, with the goal of
providing all colleagues and people in the industry who put heart and
professionalism into the Bar World, with useful information, recipes, videos,
links and very interesting researches as well as updates on seminars, workshops,
trainings, Bar Shows and new business trends.
The name of the blog refers to an element that many contemporary bartenders do
not pay enough attention to...the sound of ice in the shaker, a little "alarm
bell" we have to listen to and that is determinant to the success of a cocktail.
The main concept is sharing researches and knowledge, things that can benefit
the growing Worldwide Bartenders Community, everything that focuses on the
mission we all have in common:
customer
satisfaction and because
sharing is caring!
The blog was born in 2007 in Italian and only a few months later, I had many
contacts from bloggers from around the world asking for an English version of
the blog contents.
The Blog provides:
- Information in English and Italian (I recently added a widget for translation
into other languages);
- Pleasing graphic and colors to facilitate reading;
- Professional and updated content using a simple
language, understandable also to people that are not in the business.Back to Top
Please list one to three recipes that you think best
display your talents.
The Striding Man
60 ml Johnnie Walker Gold Label
20 ml homemade Cinnamon syrup (1 to1)
15 cml Lemon Juice
15 ml Egg white
Dry shake, add ice, shake again, and strain into an
ice-filled old-fashioned glass.
Garnish with ginger slices and powdered cinnamon
The Giant's Gate
(winner of Diageo world class competition in Ireland)
4 Cardamom Pods muddled in tin
40 ml Bushmills Malt 16yr
10 ml Lime Juice
20 ml Sugar Syrup (1 to 1)
20 ml Guinness Stout
10 ml Egg White
Shake over ice then double strain into a chilled cocktail
coupe. Garnish with skewered raisins
that have been soaked in Bushmills 16.
Smoked Americano
50 ml Cynar
50 ml sweet red vermouth
stir into the mixing glass, rim an old fashioned glass with
smoked Atlantic sea salt moistening the rim with an orange wedge; add fresh ice
to the glass; strain and garnish with twist of orange and an artichoke leaf.
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Here are a few little tips I've learned along the way
Learn to be a good host, ask thousands of questions to your head bartender or
mentor, and never stop being curious.
If you work in Hotel Bars, don't make comparison with other styles of bars
otherwise you'll end up not enjoying working there!
Watch how your head bartender welcomes people even before learning the
difference between a gin and a whisky.
Treat the bar as it was yours—it’s the only way
the make a
big difference.
Max La RoccaBack to Top
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