Developing a keen nose for your back bar
Acquiring the salient facts about the spirits you sell can make all the
difference when it comes to coaxing customers to trade up to premium products. Nigel Huddleston reports
Not many in the trade would argue against the philosophy that a little knowledge can go a long way. Yet outside the heady world of the cocktail-bar market, it seems that product knowledge of spirits, as a sales tool for bar staff, lags behind that of wine and beer.
Suppliers want bar staff to talk about their products, but the spirits categories are so defined by brand image that many in the industry are lost for words when it comes to what they should actually say.
"Licensees need to be able to defend the premium price of spirits," says Ali Wilkes at Diageo GB. "This means that knowledge about what makes a brand special is really
important."
Not every bar-person can expect to have a one-to-one with the marketing ambassador for every brand, but rudimentary information is easy to come by.
"There's plenty of information on the back labels of bottles and on brand websites that's easy to find - and trade reps are another good source," says Wilkes.
To provide a short cut, leading brands have supplied some key words designed to enable staff to become instantly more eloquent in describing product flavour profiles to customers (see box below).
Lee Willett, brand manager for Sauza tequila at Beam Global UK, says there are other things pubs can do themselves to improve staff interaction with customers.
"A simple yet effective way of increasing the knowledge of your bar staff is to encourage each member of staff to become a champion for a particular category," he says.
"Send each bar-person off to research their category themselves - through the internet, and by tasting the brands.
"Each week, get a different member of staff to tell their colleagues what they have learnt about their category, which could include a tasting." The benefits will inevitably rub off on customers, he adds.
"Talking about their favourite drinks is an excellent way of encouraging bar staff to communicate with customers," says Willett. "If a member of staff likes a drink, he is more likely to talk passionately about it, sell more of that drink and bring in more profit for the pub."
All too often, pubs are found wanting when it comes to the crunch, however.
Brian Cunliffe, business unit director for the on-trade at Glenfiddich and Grant's firm First Drinks Brands, says: "We occasionally carry out audits where we go into accounts and ask for a blended whisky, only to be offered a malt. It's really about licensees going back to basics and ensuring that staff have the very basic brand knowledge at their fingertips, which means doing staff training well."
The requisite level of knowledge will naturally vary from outlet to outlet, he adds.
"If you're a hotel bar, then it's going to be much more important to be able to talk about the quality of the spirit and display a detailed brand knowledge, while most pubs should be focusing initially on using the correct glassware, the correct garnish for the drink and getting the serve right.
"After that, it might be about getting staff to learn two basic things about a brand and to communicate this to the customer - but the key is always to keep it simple."
Key tasting terms on major brands
Absolut
Category: Vodka
Key tasting terms: Fennel, bread, soft pepper finish
Beefeater
Category: Gin
Key tasting terms: Juniper, citrus, coriander spice, earthy
Suggested serve: Dry Martini - three shots of Beefeater, one shot of dry vermouth, dash of orange bitters, stirred in a mixing glass filled with ice and strained into a chilled Martini glass. Garnish with twist of lemon
Bell's
Category: Blended Scotch whisky
Key tasting term: Nutty, toffee, peat, summer fruit, grass
Suggested serve: Over ice or with Coke
Courvoisier VS
Category: Cognac
Key tasting terms: Fruit, fresh oak
Suggested serve: Courvoisier and ginger - with ginger ale, ice and lemon or lime wedge in a highball glass
Courvoisier VSOP Exclusif
Category: Cognac
Key tasting terms: Floral, spicy, vanilla, gingerbread
Famous Grouse
Category: Blended Scotch
Key tasting terms: Apples, orange, peach
Suggested serve: Ginger Grouse - shot of Grouse with ginger beer
Jim Beam
Category: Imported whiskey
Key tasting terms: sweet, vanilla, dried apricot, cinnamon
Suggested serve: Jim Beam and ginger - with ginger ale, ice and lemon or lime wedge in a highball glass
Havana Club 7
Category: Rum
Key tasting terms: Vanilla, oak, clean, rich
Havana Club Especial
Category: Rum
Key tasting terms:
Smoky, honey and vanilla nose; touch of spice on the palate
Suggested serves: Classic mojitos, daiquiris and Cuba Libre
Highland Park
Category: Malt whisky
Key tasting terms: Subtle peat, fruit, richness
Jameson
Category: Imported whiskey
Key tasting terms: Toasted wood and sherry aroma, sweet wood and nutty palate
Suggested serve: Jameson and ginger ale, garnished with a lime wedge
Johnnie Walker Black Label
Category: Blended malt whisky
Key tasting terms: Creamy, vanilla, earthy, smoke, rich fruit
Suggested serve: Johnnie Walker Collins - pour 50ml of Black Label over ice in a highball, topped up with 25ml of lemon juice, 15ml of gomme and a dot of Angostura, topped with soda and garnished with lemon
Laphroaig
Category: Malt whisky
Key tasting terms: Peat smoke, seaweed, heather
Macallan
Category: Malt whisky
Key tasting terms: Apple, citrus, grapey
Maker's Mark
Category: Imported whiskey
Key tasting terms: Vanilla, caramel, new oak
Suggested serve: Summer Breeze - squeeze two orange wedges in an old-fashioned glass with a splash of Cointreau. Add equal parts Maker's Mark and ginger ale. Stir gently and top off with ice.
Martell VS
Category: Cognac
Key tasting terms: Fruity, wood, fresh grapes
Martell VSOP
Category: Cognac
Key tasting terms: Floral, woody and vanilla nose; dried fruit and sweetness on the palate
Plymouth
Category: Gin
Key tasting terms: Citrus, dry, lively, refreshing
Suggested serve: Gin and tonic - measure of gin over ice, topped with fresh bottled tonic, garnished with a wedge of fresh lime
Sauza
Category: Tequila
Key tasting terms: white pepper, citrus, floral aroma, dry (blanco); sweet (reposado - vanilla/caramel)
Suggested serve: Sauza Paloma - Sauza Hacienda over ice, fill with sparkling citrus mixer and add squeeze of fresh lime
Smirnoff
Category: Vodka
Key tasting terms: Crisp, clean, gentle hint of aniseed
Suggested serve: Screwdriver - 50ml of Smirnoff, topped up with orange juice in a 12oz or 16oz glass, garnished with an orange slice
Smirnoff Black
Category: Vodka
Key tasting terms: Malty, fruity, nutty, Ovaltine
