THIRSTY BERLIN
A closer look at Bar Convent Berlin
While in town to trend-spot at Bar Convent Berlin, June Lee catches up on the 30th anniversary of the fall of the Berlin Wall and fresh highlights from the spirited city.
Berlin is known for its freewheeling, experimental spirit – from avant garde art to endless rave parties, it has the kind of scene where beers take precedence over a perfectly stirred Negroni. Sometime in 2007, however, a few bartender friends got together to do something about it and kickstarted Bar Convent Berlin (BCB) with eight exhibitors. Since then, the show has morphed into one of the world’s leading international trade shows for the bar industry, drawing its largest numbers so far at this year’s event from 7 to 9 October – 15,000 visitors and 446 exhibitors representing 1,200 brands. Naturally, trend spotting at BCB is one of the priorities when you’re among like-minded compatriots. There’s just something about the congregation that inspires creativity and camaraderie, from the large brands that spare no expense building up their booth experiences, to the small independent distiller hoping to catch a break. While the 2019 edition was held at Station Berlin, in 2020 it will be moving to larger premises at Berlin Expocenter City, with the headline “City Life Spirits”. Here are 3 trends you need to know about drinking in 2020.
SPICING UP THE RUM SCENE
Rum took the spotlight with its own House of Rum at BCB, bringing in global rum ambassador Ian Burrell to raise awareness of the revival of this category. While there were rums from 24 countries, Mauritius took the spotlight as country of honour to showcase its brands like Labourdonnais, House of Lords, Chamarel and Tilambic 151. Burrell points to the spiced and flavoured rums of Mauritius as a trend that’s catching on, especially as palates change and adventurous drinkers look to enjoy cask strength and flavoured rum styles that push the category. For those who want to understand rum categories better, Burrell says, “Dominican rums are easier to get into, while Puerto Rican and Cuban ron are in the Spanish tradition, smoother and mild. With British origins, rum made in Jamaica and Guyana can be challenging as they are heavier.” One of the benefits of the focus on rum was the many talks and masterclasses around the subject, in which Matt Pietrek offered his insights on the origin of British Navy style rum and high ester rums, and Burrell broached Rum 101 and the understanding of Rhums Madeira. For those in the know, the Havana Club session launching
its bartender-only Professional Edition C & D was the hottest seat in town. Alex Kratena and Carina Soto Velasquez were the masterminds behind the two expressions, a raw and rich golden rum and a dry, mineral and saline rum respectively.
MAKING NO/LOW SEXY
Whether consumers are practicing restraint for temporary, health or other reasons, the category of no- and lowalcohol ‘spirits’ have grown tremendously. In the U.K., non-alcoholic options grew by 80% in 2019, while brands captured about 1.3% of the total beverage alcohol market. For folks who are taste adventurers and sober-curious, things are only going to get better, with over 20 brands represented at BCB such as Undone, Gimber, Stryyk, and more that should soon make their way to a more international market. Founder Eugenio Muraro of Memento, which launched in 2017, was at the fair to introduce Memento Green, thanks to the “ever-growing global demand of industry professional and consumers.” The new inspiration comes from Mediterranean plants characterised by their herbaceous aromas, including green myrtle, melissa, laurel and orange blossom. Its fragrant profile lets it combine well with decaf tea for instance, or in low ABV drinks with tequila and agave syrup. Likewise, the effervescent CEO of Dutch VOC Spirits Léon Meijers could be found at Fluère’s booth flanked by the distinctive bottles of ‘spirito non alcolico’. Since launching the Original floral blend of Fluère, he’s since introduced Pink – a raspberry blend, and Amber – spiced cane dark roast. The flavours are individually distilled through ‘hydrosteam’ to derive true essential oils for the final product. Thanks to Meijers’ existing network with Gain Brands in Singapore (distributing his other product, Black Tomato Gin), Fluère Original is already available locally. Gourmet flavour master Monin together with super bartender Alex Kratena have combined their expertise to create an exciting boundary-breaker, the single botanical cordial. The Paragon booth was flocked on all three days with curious visitors looking to sample the three unique Pepper variants that started the project – camphoric White Penja Pepper, herbal Timur Berry and bright fruity Rue Berry.
THE UNQUENCHABLE TIDE OF GIN
The gin wave looks unstoppable, with over 160 gins represented at BCB Berlin, with many from Germany itself but just as much variety available from every part of the world. An intriguing Tarsier Gin from England but inspired by South East Asia showcased notes of galangal, Thai sweet basil and calamansi, while actual gins from Southeast Asia were noticeably not present. Broken Bones from Slovenia played up their rosehip and linden flower botanicals, while 135˚ East Hyogo Dry Gin made its global debut showcasing cedar wood, shiso leaf, chrysanthemum and sancho pepper ingredients. For fans of Monkey47, the similarly enchanting Fies Black Forest Dry Gin is from a traditional fruit brandy distiller from the Black Forest, who have modernised their offerings for a savvy cocktail loving market. Silver fir, cranberries and lavender add to its evergreen appeal. Also from the Black Forest is Boar Gin, which uses native black truffle from the Schwarzwald along with coniferous ingredients for a rounder, bolder styled gin. Boar Royal is a limited edition aged in barrique for a woodsy finish, ideal in dry martinis. Berliner Brandstifter (‘Arsonist’) launched their Berlin Dry Gin in 2013 to instant acclaim – after all, its aim is to take you on a journey through the city’s parks on a summer day. Rather than a classic dry style, the Berlin Dry Gin is on the floral, fruity side with a noticeable peach and berry sweetness.