Meet at Tales

Elliott Clark, also known as the Apartment Bartender, is a well-respected tastemaker, cocktail creator, spirits writer, and photographer in the spirits industry.

What started out as a hobby for making cocktails at home has developed into a full-blown career that takes Elliott all over the world mixing drinks for some of the world’s most notable brands, and making the world of spirits more accessible to the at-home cocktail enthusiast.

You can follow along at @apartment_bartender on Instagram or dive deeper into his cocktail creations and general spirits education at www.apartmentbartender.com.

Jordan started Q Mixers after a warm summer night drinking gin and tonics in his backyard with good friends. A few sips in, his teeth felt sticky, the bubbles were gone and the taste of his gin was lost in cloying sweetness. Picking up the tonic water he saw why – a big plastic bottle already flat, loaded with High Fructose Corn Syrup! In gin-induced flash of inspiration, Jordan knew he needed to make a superior tonic water – one that would make his favorite drink even better.

Jordan created a prototype in his kitchen, purchasing quinine bark on the internet to create what would become Q Mixers’ original flavor, Q Spectacular Tonic Water. After posting an offer to try his concoction on Chowhound.com, NYC hot spots including Milk & Honey, Little Brand, Gramercy Tavern, and Blue Hill at Stone Barns sought Jordan out and quickly began buying his tonic water. In retrospect it all makes sense – by 2006, the best bartenders had figured out that using better ingredients, including fresh juice and muddled herbs, creates much better cocktails. Tonic water was the next frontier.

Over the past 15 years Jordan has built what is now America’s leading premium mixer company. Today, Q mixers are available in 11 flavors including Spectacular Tonic, Ginger Beer, Sparkling Grapefruit and the newest, Hibiscus Ginger Beer. Each flavor is made with real ingredients, less sugar, and more carbonation than factory mixers and helps make your favorite drink even better. Q products are proudly served by thousands of America’s best bars and restaurants including all the Four Seasons and Buffalo Wild Wings in the country, and carried by just about every major retailer in the US including Target, Albertsons, Kroger, Total Wine, Walmart, Whole Foods an Amazon.

Jordan Silbert lives in Brooklyn, NY with his wife and two kids. And he still really likes gin and tonics.

Lisa Wicker has done it all across her 20 years in the alcohol beverage space, from working as a grape picker in a Southern Indiana vineyard and starting a winery in Kentucky, to refining her distilling with some of the biggest names in whiskey.

Through her experience, Lisa has developed a healthy respect for the nuances of raw materials and the impact of assemblage on wine and spirits.

She got her start in whiskey moonlighting as a student of distilling by night at a distillery down the road from the Kentucky winery she was building by day. Her passion and talent were evident and she shifted to distilling full-time.

“Once I started distilling exclusively, I didn’t look back. I laugh when I think about it, because I was convinced making wine was the greatest job ever. I realized I’d been mistaken all along – Distilling is the best job in the whole world.”

In her current role as President and Head Distiller for Widow Jane, Lisa splits time between Bardstown, Kentucky, where she has shepherded the development of the largest heirloom corn cultivation in the US, and Widow Jane headquarters in Red Hook, Brooklyn, where she oversees the Widow Jane team production space and 15,000 square feet of Rickhouse space applying art and science to blend Widow Jane 10 Year Bourbon in a maximum of five-barrel batches. It’s this practice that produces a more complex, multi-faceted flavor profile than any single bourbon can achieve.

“The throughline between every job I’ve had in the beverage industry is a commitment to craft, authenticity, and quality. In the same way you can’t take bad grapes and make good wine, you can’t take bad grain and make great whiskey.”

She continues, “I consider myself to be extremely lucky, not only for the trajectory of my career that’s shaped who I am as a distiller. But also for the team, we have in place at Widow Jane. I get a lot of the public recognition, but I’m grateful for the collaborative environment we’ve built and to be able to call everyone on our team a colleague and friend.

Lisa also serves as a distilling consultant at the George Washington Distillery at Mount Vernon, in Alexandria, Virginia, where she was awarded Highly Commended Master Distiller/Blender in 2019.

Mary was born in the Philippines but grew up in the Bay Area, California. She has worked in hospitality for nearly 20 years and has been bartending for over 12 years. She is a founding member of USBG Silicon Valley, and an alumna of the Tales of the Cocktail Foundation CAP program, BAR 5 Day, Camp Runamok, and many other industry programs. She was the Season 7 Ms. Speed Rack CA, and 2 time BARMANIA champion.

Her recipes and views have been featured in several national publications, including Liquor.com, PUNCH, Saveur, and USA Today. In 2019 she was honored with a commendation from the City of San Jose for her contributions to the city’s food and beverage community. In 2019 she was named as a Top 10 honoree and in 2020 was named a Top 4 Honoree for American Bartender of the Year through the TOTCF Spirited Awards. She has traveled all over the world to visit bars and distilleries in order to explore the world of spirits. She currently works as a Spirits Educator.

Masahiro Urushido, an ace bartender with more than 17 years of experience, is Managing Partner and Director of Deliciousness at Katana Kitten, a Japanese-American bar that opened in the West Village in 2018, co-created with Cocktail Kingdom Hospitality’s Greg Boehm and James Tune.

Neal Bodenheimer is the Managing Partner of CureCo, the acclaimed group behind Cure, the James Beard Foundation Award Winner for “Outstanding Bar” in 2018, Cane & Table, and VALS in New Orleans; Partner of newly opened Dauphine’s in Washington, DC; and Operator of newly opened Peychaud’s at the hotel Maison de Ville. In addition to all these titles he’s also the Co-Chair of Tales of the Cocktail’s Board of Directors.

A New Orleans native, Bodenheimer discovered his passion for the beverage industry during his very first bar job at just 18 years of age. After graduating from the University of Texas at Austin, he embarked on a year-long trip around the world to explore global food and beverage traditions. Eager to put his experience to work, Bodenheimer then moved to New York City, where he worked for six years at respected restaurant groups including Steve Hanson’s B.R. Guest Corporation and Danny Meyer’s Union Square Hospitality Group.

When Hurricane Katrina hit in 2005, Bodenheimer felt called back home to New Orleans. In 2009, he opened Cure, which quickly gained national recognition as a pioneer of the New Orleans craft cocktail movement. Cure was named one of “America’s Best Bars” by Esquire in 2011 and received the award for Outstanding Bar Program from the James Beard Foundation in 2018.

In 2012, Bodenheimer and his partners opened Cane & Table in the historic French Quarter of New Orleans. The concept garnered significant critical acclaim, including being named one of the “Five Best New Cocktail Bars in America” by Bon Appétit, cited as one of the Best Bars in America by Food & Wine, and described as one of the best new bars in the South by Garden & Gun and Southern Living.

Bodenheimer took the helm of the Tales of the Cocktail Foundation, the non-profit arm of the premier cocktail and spirits festival, in 2018. He continues to serve as Co-Chair of the Board of Directors for Tales of the Cocktail Foundation.

In 2020, Bodenheimer joined partners Matthew Kohnke, Turk Dietrick, and Fredo Nogueria for CureCo.’s newest concept, VALS. A true neighborhood spot located just up the road from Cure, VALS features traditional and regional Mexican-inspired cuisine with an emphasis on agave spirits.

Most recently, in 2021, Bodenheimer joined the teams of Dauphine’s in Washington, D.C. as Partner and Peychaud’s in New Orleans as Operator. At Dauphine’s, the latest concept from Washington, D.C. Long Shot Hospitality, Bodenheimer developed an inspired menu built around the playful spirits and iconic cuisine of New Orleans, allowing Bodenheimer to fulfill his dream of opening an establishment that pays homage to his hometown. Soon after opening, Dauphine’s went on to receive a glowing review from The Washington Post. While at Peychaud’s, Bodenheimer focused on perfecting classic drinks such as the Sazerac, French 75, and Vieux Carre, treating guests to a true New Orleans experience in the heart of the French Quarter.

Shannon Mustipher is a cocktail consultant, spirits educator, and the author of Tiki: Modern Tropical Cocktails (Rizzoli/Universe). After launching a Caribbean rum-focused bar at Gladys Caribbean in 2014, she went on to found Women Who Tiki, a tropical cocktail-centric pop-up that gathers a team of women bartenders to share their talents and collaborate on creating a one-night-only experience.

In 2020, Shannon’s work garnered a number of accolades: she was awarded the Tales of the Cocktail Foundation Pioneer Award, and inducted into the Dame Hall of Fame. Her first book, TIKI: Modern Tropical Cocktails received the IACP Best Book in Beer, Wine, and Spirits.

Shannon’s writing, cocktail recipes, and opinions have been featured in a number of publications, including Vinepair, Saveur, Imbibe, GQ.com, and Liquor.com. She currently resides in Brooklyn, NY, and enjoys traveling, cooking, and collecting “too many books”.

Tony Abou-Ganim is widely regarded as one of the pioneering and leading bar professionals in the world. He has made dozens of national TV appearances on shows including TODAY, Iron Chef America, Good Morning America, CNBC, Fox News and more. Abou-Ganim is the author of The Modern Mixologist: Contemporary Classic Cocktails (Agate, 2010) which offers readers an in-depth look into spirits and ingredients available to today’s mixologist, both professional and amateur alike. This entertaining and informative journey will take readers from the early stages of the cocktail to what Abou-Ganim has come to deem “Modern Mixology.” Abou-Ganim also has a DVD to his credit, Modern Mixology: Making Great Cocktails at Home, and hosted the Fine Living program Raising the Bar: America’s Best Bar Chefs. Abou-Ganim has also won three Iron Chef America competitions; pairing cocktails with Iron Chef Mario Batali; with Iron Chef Jose Garces and most recently with challenger Chef Sean McClain. His signature branded line of Modern Mixologist bar tools and his second book, Vodka Distilled (Agate, 2013), are available now at www.modernmixologist.com.

Abou-Ganim grew up in the bar business, learning the craft from his cousin Helen David at the Brass Rail Bar in Port Huron, Michigan. His initial introduction to the business was steeped in the tradition of classic cocktails and professional barmanship, teaching him the necessary steps to become a leader in the beverage industry. After graduating from college, Abou-Ganim further developed an appreciation for a hand-crafted cocktail using only the freshest ingredients while working at Jack Slick’s Balboa Café and then during the opening of “Harry Denton’s,” a legendary hangout in Fog City. In 1993 he moved to New York City and took a position as the opening bartender at Po, Mario Batali’s first restaurant.

Tony later returned to San Francisco to open Harry Denton’s Starlight Room atop the Sir Francis Drake Hotel and it was here that he developed his first specialty cocktail menu featuring several of his original cocktail recipes including the Sunsplash, Starlight and his most famous of them all, the Cable Car.

In 1998, Abou-Ganim was selected by Steve Wynn to develop the cocktail program at Bellagio Las Vegas. He not only implemented his philosophy of bartending and drink preparation, stressing both quality ingredients and proper technique, but also created several original cocktails for the resorts 22 bars. In 2002, he won the Bacardi Martini World Grand Prix – one of only two Americans to ever win this title.

In 2014, Abou-Ganim teamed up with Caesars Palace to develop the cocktail program at The Lobby Bar. There he collaborated on the menu development as well as assisted with training bar staff, stressing both quality ingredients and proper technique. In 2015, he began working with Levy Restaurants to design signature craft cocktails in the lounges and beverage destinations throughout both Oracle Arena in Oakland, and T-Mobile Arena in Las Vega, home of the Vegas Golden Knights, the Las Vegas Ballpark home of the Aviator AAA Baseball Team and most recently Allegiant Stadium, home of the Las Vegas Raiders.

Abou-Ganim was asked by Beard Award-winning Chef Shawn McClain to spearhead the dual-faceted cocktail program at McClain’s newest social dining concept at Mandalay Bay, Libertine Social, which opened in 2016. He and McClain, along with Richard & Sarah Camarota ventured together most recently in October 2019 opening Highlands Steakhouse, Hearth 71, and the High Bar on the third level of the 400 Renaissance Center in Detroit Mi.

As one of the National Ambassadors of the U.S. Bartenders Guild, www.usbg.org, and Associate Member of the Museum of the American Cocktail, www.museumoftheamericancocktail.org, Abou-Ganim continues to educate about the history and lore of cocktails. He also operates his own beverage consulting firm specializing in bar staff training, product education, and cocktail development.

Keep current with news, appearances, and special events at www.modernmixologist.com on Facebook and on Twitter @MdrnMixologist.