Los Muertos
Day of celebration to honor loved one lost – Dia de los Muertos. This Mexican holiday represents vibrancy and love. November 1st and 2nd is a time for family and friends to gather for festive food, drinks and dancing. Marigolds have long been used in ceremonies and rituals to pray respect to the deceased. We used handmade marigold flower crowns and marigold scented candles to pay homage to the Mexican tradition.
We invited our friends and family to join us at Apartment A to have a Sauza Tequila cocktail we created to celebrate the occasion. Our cocktail reminds us of the best parts of life: adventure, opportunity and love. We served the “Last Dance” from a Mikasa pitcher as everyone enjoyed tacos and danced to bachata.
Below are a few of the other cocktails we created using Sauza Tequila, Menage a Trois Berry Vodka, Cocktail Crate Syrups and Hooch limeade soda.
Megavirus
Sauza Blanco Tequila – Six & Twenty Cream Whiskey – b’Lure Blue Hibicus extract – Lemon Juice – Cocktail Crate Ginger Bee syrup
Rebirth
Sauza Reposado Tequila – Sage Liqueur – Rose Extract – Lime Juice – Tonic Water – Black Lava salt rim
The Ritual
Crown Royal Vanilla – Amaro Montenegro – Menage a Trois Berry Vodka – Hooch Limeade Soda – Wild Hibiscus Syrup
THANK YOU
www.sauzatequila.com www.b-lure.com www.cocktailcrate.com www.oandohooch.com www.amaromontenegro.com www.crownroyal.com www.sixandtwentydistillery.com www.apartmentachs.com www.creechsfloristinc.com
Euphoria Greenville 2016
Greenville, SC is quickly becoming a top tourist destination in South Carolina. With a growing food and beverage scene in addition to breweries like Thomas Creek Brewing, a food could have a field day. Euphoria Greenville is a four-day Fall festival that celebrates food, wine and music. Attendees have an assortment of curated seminars, music events and a lively culinary stage.
The tasting tents are full of local and regional chefs offering samples from their menus.
Taneka and I performed on the culinary stage on day 3 of Euphoria. We told the thirsty audience a bit about our business, the cocktail we created and gave a few tips for the home bartender.
We also co-hosted a craft cocktail class with the head bartender at American Grocery, Kirk Ingram. We prepared four custom cocktails as Kirk gave a brief history on mixology culture and the inspiration behind his craft cocktails. Our sold-out class had several questions and beaming feedback on the drinks.
My favorite event of Euphoria has to be the VIP party at Aloft. The open bar featured surprisingly yummy signature cocktails and there was wall-to-wall buffet including a build-your-own-taco bar!
The band was rocking and guest danced until the last song ended. Events like this give us the opportunity to meet others in the industry. We bumped into a Remy Martin representative, a regional sales manager for a major hotel chain and award-winning journalist.
Euphoria had a feel like no other festival we’ve attended. All the organizers were relaxed and professional. There easygoing attitude helped us enjoyed the festivities and Lexus Greenville made sure we arrived to all the events safely. Not to mention, our media bags were packed to the top with swag including a full-sized apron, a gourmet salt rack, and chocolate macaroons! Our calendars are already marked for Euphoria Greenville 2017.
BevCon 2016
The Cocktail Bandits, were so excited to attend the first ever BevCon!! It took place at the Hyatt Place on August 21st through August 23 in Charleston, South Carolina. BevCon is a 3 day conference for beverage professionals by beverage professionals focusing on ALL THINGS DRINKABLE: coffee, soda, juice, beer, wine and spirits. It’s more intimate than most food and wine festivals, and is only for people in the beverage industry. This meant that classes were more in depth and business focused. Each day we learned about something or someone new in the industry, which is what this conference was all about.
Day 1.
The first day of BevCon, we took a morning Rum excursion around Charleston Harbor. It was incredible. Paul Yellin, from Cane’s Rhum bar curated some tasty bites to pair with our cocktails as Rum author, Robert Moss, gave us rum knowledge. It was a perfect way to start off the conference.
The opening event happened at High Wire Distllery, is where Angel Postell, the founder of BevCon spoke about the mission of this event. After the greetings and salutations, we were able to sample different foods and drinks, all while listening to live music. It was a hot day, but everyone managed to have a good time.
Day 2
Day two was the beginning of the seminars.
The very first seminar was about the definition of “craft”. This was an interesting panel that was comprised of 5 different business owners, all talking about what craft meant to them. A few of them wanted to get rid of the word, but the others appreciated the term because they felt their product is indeed craft. It was an interesting discussion.
The next seminar was called “Getting Inked”, which was a panel of influential media people such as Kat Kinsmen, F&B writer for Extra Crispy and Hanna Raskin, the F&B writer for Post and Courier. They were educating us bar professionals about different ways to get published. Some of their tips were; ‘to NOT overload Media inboxes with random press releases and to make sure whatever you want published has some relevance to the author or editor writing topic.’ What we found most interesting about this panel, was that there were NO social media influencers involved. It will be interesting to hear from the SOCIAL MEDIA perspective next year. Since that such a huge outlet for the Food and Beverage industry now.
The final seminar we attended on day 2, was a class called, “How Far You Can Twist a Classic?” This class discussed how a classic cocktail, the French 75, can be modernized, but still remain a French 75. Kat Kinsmen led this session, she has been on the hunt for French 75’s for the last 5 years! She has tried numerous renditions of this classic beverage and wanted show us two very different ways that 1 cocktail can be created.
She invited two Atlanta bartenders, Tiffanie Barriere, and Jenique Keyatta Holder-Mincey to create their versions of the French 75. Tiffanie created her CLASSIC cocktail with Cognac, lemon juice, and simple syrup, then topped with champagne. Jenique’ created her French 75 with a twist. She used gin, lemon juice, guava, and then topped it with champagne. Both were delicious and it proved that it is more than one way to create the same drink.
BAR TAKEOVERS
After the classes ended on Day 2 and 3, there were about 10 bar takeovers each night. We couldn’t make it to all of them, for obvious reasons, but we did go to Canes Rhum Bar, McCrady’s Tavern, Bar Mash, The Ordinary, The Grocery and Proof. Our favorite bar takeover was at The Rarebit with Tiffanie and Jenique. We had a great time with them, their cocktails were amazing, they played awesome music and the bar was packed! We danced there until they closed the spot!
Day 3
Day three was packed with seminars just like the other two days. What we enjoyed about the last day was the tasting room at the end of the day. This was not a conventional tasting session. There were over 30 different beverages to sample; and most of the special sips came from small companies. We were honored to sample some of the most exclusive brands.
FINALE
The final Bev Con event took place at the Windjammer on IOP. There was good food, cocktails and music ALL NIGHT! Angel Postell and her crew did an amazing job putting on the FIRST BevCon event in Charleston. We appreciated being around some of the best and brightest in the industry.
If you missed out on this fantastic event it will be back August 20-22, 2017. We will be back. We hope to see you there!
Shake with love!
It may surprise you to learn that neither Taneka nor Johnny have any formal bartender training. Taneka has work experience in several bars and restaurants in Charleston but no one bothered to “teach” either of us how to shake a cocktail. It wasn’t until we started the Cocktail Bandits’ blog that we bought a book of cocktail recipes and most importantly, a cocktail shaker.
This basic bartender’s kit contained a shaker and other bar tools, most of which broke shortly thereafter but our home bar would never be the same. We noticed the difference a proper shake and strain can have the enjoyment of a cocktail.
As of late, our SILVERgrade shaker has been the go-to for events and home cocktail creation. The slender body aids in its handling during the “shake” and the top can be removed without a fight (a stubborn top can ruin a live demonstration or kill your flow during mass cocktail production). Our stainless steel shaker arrived with a double jigger, 2 pourers, cleaning cloth and a red velvet pouch. All the pieces can be placed inside the shaker and carried in the red bag to a pop-up event or a friends’ home.
To purchase your own SILVERgrade shaker set, visit
www.SILVERGRADE.com
Photography by Dinwiddie Photography
Nails by Jada Sanders Nails
Good Business Summit 2016
A day of business talk that felt more like a community discussion – Good Business Summit 2016. Local business owners converged at the Sottile Theater to learn, network and share ideas. Topics discussed included: diversity in the workplace, creating a corporate culture and community change.
We shared a panel with Brothers & Craft on storytelling through social media. The squad of fashionable and actual brothers, know a thing or two about marketing and brand building. They explained how their brand has collaborated with major agencies Ford Motors and hit reality show ‘Duck Dynasty’. Taneka and I shared our top tips for engaging with followers and creating unique content.
As we and other guest speakers revealed, there is no ‘secret’ to success other than hard work and a willingness to learn. The team at Lowcountry Local First should be proud of their 3rd annual conference that grows yearly and attracts keynote speakers like Matt Stinchcomb from Esty.com and Dave Dawson with The Urban Electric. Co. Next year is bound to be more informative and interactive.
Photography by Foxworthy Studios Photography
For the love of wine
Robin and Andrea McBride, of Truvee’ Wines, are truly inspirational ladies who are changing the look and taste of the wine world.
These 
sisters grew up separately, in different wine regions of the world (California and New Zealand) and their father’s last wish was for them “to find” each other before he passed away. His dream was realized when the ladies met for the first time at the ages of 16 and 25.
Years later, after learning and combining each other’s wine background and experience, the McBride Sisters created Truvee’ Wines. The word “Truvee” means “to find”, that name reflects the McBrides’ amazing story, as well as their mission “to find” the best grapes to “craft authentic, yet affordable wine.” Truvee Wines has 3 expressions: Chardonnay, a Red Blend, and Rose’.
Gentry Bourbon Launch Party
Every trip out to Boone Hall Plantation sets the stage for a majestic evening. The scenic drive down the antebellum dirt road is a picture of Southern perfection.
We were greeted by JD Madison, the man of the night’s smiling face for a quick photo session. After which we made a beeline to the bar for the signature cocktail. The newly released Gentry Bourbon is an homage to the JD’s grandfather who fostered his appreciation for the spirit.
JD prefers to drink Gentry Bourbon neat but suggest that new bourbon drinkers add soda or ice to better approach the aged spirit. Sermet’s, Mr. Madison’s King Street restaurant provided a bevy of bites including a bar complete with chocolate dipped pretzels, cookies and bacon!
We suggest sipping your Gentry Bourbon while nibbling on a piece of fine chocolate to pull all the sweet oaky note from the whiskey, in #GentleLadySips
Charleston Beer Garden
Craft beer lovers from all over the Lowcountry descended on The Grove at Patriots Point in Mt. Pleasant. Over 30 breweries from the east coast offered their best beers to be sampled by thirsty attendees. Representatives from huge brands like Oskar Blues to small micro-breweries like Boulevard Brewing were on-hand to answer questions and hand out swag. Several food trucks were conveniently located around the perimeter providing much needed refreshments between beer tastings. Local bands kept our hips shaking while we sought shade from the beaming sun. Great afternoon of frothy craft beers, greasy food and live music!
REDy to Wear Party
The pre-party for the October 24th Red Party was quite the fête! The French Renaissance theme event included a silent auction of custom hand painted party masks and hand crafted fans. A South African safari and personal wine tasting for 20 were also among the silent auction items. (more…)
