VinePair

MARCH 18, 2025

Its semi-savory quality led us at Pitts to pairing it with sumac in a highball, but our house Cosmo recipe uses a hefty pour of the vodka as the base. Ben Hopkins, head bartender, Pitts , Brooklyn Yes, there is non-alcoholic vodka, and yes it works. Its both practical and conceptual. We love it.

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Vodka Bartender Bartending Bar Management 105

VinePair

JANUARY 17, 2024

By the time Booker and Dax closed in 2016, I was the head bartender, and I spent the next year at the NoMad learning to make a lot of very good drinks very quickly. Dave Arnold and Don Lee then opened Existing Conditions in 2018, and I will eternally be grateful that they saw fit to bring me on as head bartender.

Simple Syrup 116

Simple Syrup Infusions Head Bartender Bartender 116

VinePair

MAY 13, 2024

The Vodka Y Soda isn’t just a two-ingredient highball; they add guava and pasilla into the mix, and the result is refreshing and intensely flavorful. Romeo’s , helmed by alumni of fellow EV-staple Virginia’s, offers a chill spot for fancy drinks and basic highballs in an aesthetic that references the ‘90s. But it was like any disaster.

Highball 119

Highball Vodka Bar Hospitality 119

VinePair

NOVEMBER 20, 2024

That ignited the curiosity of then head bartender and current Clemente bar manager Richie Millwater, who was so inspired by the ingredient that he started using it in all sorts of R and D projects. It all began when Sebastian built a cocktail featuring chef Brock’s barley miso for the menu at EMP.

Bar 105

Bar Simple Syrup Highball Head Bartender 105

VinePair

SEPTEMBER 17, 2024

Whether you’re making a spirit-forward Old Fashioned that calls for a high-proof whiskey or you want a lighter, fruitier style for your highball, there’s a bottle below that will complement any mood. Alessandro Arduini, head bartender, Amarena , NYC “The best bourbon that I would choose to mix in a cocktail is Garrison Brothers Small Batch.

Bartender 98

Bartender Bartending Head Bartender Highball 98

VinePair

MAY 22, 2024

According to Janice Bailon, head bartender at Latin American restaurant Leyenda in Brooklyn, creating an excellent cocktail starts with a clear intention. When she gets started on a new recipe, she asks, “Where do I want this to be? What do I want it to convey? What’s the storyline?” Top with soda, add garnish.

Bartender 98

Bartender Bartending Tequila Head Bartender 98

VinePair

MAY 21, 2024

But once upon a time, back when Dante opened in 2015, the cocktail to drink was the Garibaldi, an obscure highball made of Campari and “fluffy” orange juice and topped with an orange wedge. The Green Giant was created by former head bartender Tom Macy in 2012.

Bar 105

Bar Club Muddling Gin 105

VinePair

JUNE 25, 2024

Evan Flynn, head bartender, Death & Co , Denver “ Wyoming Whiskey’s Double Cask Bourbon. It’s 100 proof, so it stands up well in cocktails but doesn’t blow people’s heads off if they want to drink it neat. I really love what Wyoming Whiskey is doing [with this bottle]. It’s kind of my platonic ideal of a bourbon.

Bartender 111

Bartender Bartending Head Bartender Whiskey 111

VinePair

APRIL 25, 2024

There’s a Margarita & Soda, which reinvents the drink as a highball. At The Cabinet , the East Village bar that boasts the widest selection of mezcal in New York City, head bartender Diego Rivera has two Margaritas on the menu. There’s a Tommy’s Margarita , the modern interpretation that eschews orange liqueur.

Tinctures 105

Tinctures Tequila Liqueur Infusions 105

Cheers

FEBRUARY 23, 2024

Gins play well with fresh herbs, fruits and produce so they’re a natural choice as a base for more refreshing, citrus-forward cocktails such as highballs, smashes and sours, says All Saints’ Weller. “Sometimes you need to add a touch of navy strength [gin] in a citrus cocktail or a fizz.”

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Gin Infusions Bar Management Bar Manager 116

VinePair

OCTOBER 15, 2024

Tim Sweeney, head bartender/partner, Pebble Bar , NYC “With a price tag of around $30, Buffalo Trace is a great bang-for-your-buck bourbon. It packs a punch at 100 proof, making it perfect for a wide range of cocktails, from a refreshing highball to an egg white Whiskey Sour or a classic Old Fashioned.

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Bartender Bartending Lead Bartender Whiskey 105

The Bartender Company

NOVEMBER 25, 2022

Some of the most popular feature two measurement options, allowing the head bartender to craft perfect drinks. Accurate measurements of spirits protect against out-of-control overhead expenses while ensuring that the general manager stays happy. Jiggers come in a variety of shapes and sizes.

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Bar Tools Bar Bar Spoon Bartender 52

VinePair

MAY 23, 2024

It is a blended malt Scotch whisky, so has incredible body and mouthfeel but with a really balanced, non-smoky, approachable flavor profile that hits home in a classic Old Fashioned , a refreshing highball, or even a Piña Colada. Though it is not the cheapest, it creates exotic and complex sours, highballs, and Negronis.”

Bartender 105

Bartender Bartending Head Bartender Highball 105

Bartender.com

JANUARY 9, 2024

We celebrated my dad’s birthday every year at Trader Vic’s and I developed an even deeper personal affinity for tropical-style drinks during my time as the head bartender at The Polynesian.

Bar 52

Bar Bar Management Bar Manager Alcohol 52

Cheers

FEBRUARY 19, 2025

Indeed, Ben Yabrow, head bartender at Sip & Guzzle in New York, observed the clarified cocktail trend at top bars in London, Paris, and Madrid as well as pop-ups from numerous bars. There are countless ways to clarify drinks, some of which are trickier than assembling IKEA furniture, but still very doable!

Zero-Proof 75

Zero-Proof Infusions Vodka Tequila 75