The Concoction, a community of bartenders turned seven, and Corridor Bar and Kitchen turned into a celebratory location where mixologists took centre stage at the other side of the bar for once. The event was a special one for the community as a new logo was launched, embossed within an ice-cube that grabbed the spotlight before the tipple flowed. The seventh-year celebration was even more special because the community, which was originally the Kolkata bartenders community, took a larger shape with bartenders from all over east India, now affiliated with the India Bartenders’ Guild
The event featured a bar takeover by four of Kolkata’s finest bartenders, where each brought out their speciality. Starting with Abhishek Das from Conversation Room, who brought the flavours of Meghalaya with Sohra’s Picante, an Absolut Vodka-based cocktail with King chilli, rectified pineapple juice and lime acid. Another cocktail on offer from Abhishek was Mawphlang’s Rob Roy, using Ballentine’s 1 as the base, Tambul rosso, Vertiver bitter and smoky whisky.
Abhishek’s partner behind the bar for the first takeover was Sougata Ghosh from Mehico, who presented Chhena Poda, a Jameson-based cocktail with chhena, nuts, cardamom, acids and chocolate bitter. Sougata’s second cocktail was Madhuca, for which he used Beefeater Gin, mahua, grapefruit, sonic (Soda and Tonic) and saline, presenting a rather refreshing cocktail. Sougata’s specialty for the night was featuring the flavours of Odisha through his drinks
Abhishek made Swanan Sarkar chug a bit of liquor to officially hand over the bar to the next set of bartenders. Swanan from Nutcase Etc. brought the flavours of Sikkim with Himalayan Drift and Highland Bloom. The first, Himalayan Drift was made with Beefeater Gin, Timur pepper cordial, wild strawberry soda and cream cheese foam. Highland bloom made with Ballentine’s 1, Sikkim estate tea syrup, super lime and former. Served in a glass filled with ice, it was the perfect summer cocktail
Swanan’s partner behind the bar was Surajit Dey from Olterra with his drinks highlighting the flavours of Assam. Halamari Harvest was his first offering made with Assam tea infused Beefeater Gin, Kagzi lemon, honey-ginger syrup topped with a jeera biscuit. The second one, Ghost of Assam, packed a spicy kick. An Absolut Vodka-based drink with cilantro leaves, bhut jolokia, fresh citrus, sucrose and spice dust. Surajit’s drinks were the strongest ones on the night
Tanmoy Roy, better known as Tony in the industry, has been one of the biggest supporters of The Concoction, and is the founder of Y Not?, an alco-bev company. He said, “This started with me being a guest of five bartenders who wanted to create a community and I remember how they organised the first event all on their own at Tantra back in 2017. They have come such a long way since then. The kind of support that this community gives to anyone in the profession is immense. Even during the pandemic, they came forward and helped the ones who lost their jobs with basic needs like ration. It is a large and beautiful family now.”
Indranil Chatterjee, president, East-India Bartenders’ Guild, said, “Back in 2017, when we started with just the five of us, the idea was to build a supportive community for bartenders and mixologists, impart our knowledge onto the youngsters and up and comers. The community that started as the Kolkata Bartender Community is now the Bartenders Community for the entire east and we are able to tie in bartenders from Meghalaya, Nagaland and Arunachal. It’s completely non-monetised, so anyone who is a bartender is always welcome to join.”
Joy Guha, the head of operations for SOCIAL in East India, is another pillar for The Concoction since its inception. Speaking about the community, he said, “Whenever there is an issue like the pandemic, the F&B industry is always the first to take a hit in terms of jobs. This community has stood by those who lost their jobs, taking care of something as important as mental health and what they do and the way they accept newcomers is so nice. It started with five, and now that number has gone up to 221.”
Veteran food blogger Luna Chatterjee was also present and handed a certificate to one of the up-and-coming bartenders. Speaking about the event she said, “I first came to know about The Concoction during covid times. I know most of these city bartenders and trust me they are wizards in their trade. This is a beautiful initiative and I wish them all the luck and I am sure the future generation of bartenders will benefit a lot from this community”
Anubrata Mukherjee, the general manager of Five Mad Men, one of the founders, spoke about how the idea came up: “The five of us have almost grown together in this industry. The Concoction is the brainchild of all our ideas put together.”
Arghya Acharya, the general manager of Playboy Guwahati, another founder of The Concoction, said, “We do something special for our inauguration day, for our anniversary and special days. Today is an even more special day for us with the launch of a new logo… it is one of the best days of my life.”