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Looking to elevate your cocktail game, streamline your bar operations, or simply unlock the secrets of the perfect pour? You've come to the right place!
At Überbartools™, we're passionate about all things bar-related, and we're dedicated to sharing our knowledge and insights with you.
The Pour Challenge
Anyone can pour liquor right.
What's not to know.. pick up a liquor bottle, pour into a jigger, serve into a glass of some sort...yawn.. it's so easy.. a child can do it?
Pouring alcohol consistently, without spilling or wasting a drop takes lots of skill, whilst it may appear so easy, yet many of us know intuitively the simpler something appears the more difficult it’s likely to be.
Ironically when children play games, it takes practice, practice and more practice before mastery is attained.
To prove have you taken: A series of deceptively easy tests (or are they?) to challenge:
- TEST WASTE: Pick up a liquor bottle, pour alcohol into a jigger, tin or glass without spilling a drop.
- TEST ACCURACY: Pour an exact shot of alcohol - i.e 1 oz, 30 ml etc. repeat (3 times)..then measure each portion to check for.
- TEST CONSISTENCY: Prepare the same cocktail 3 times ensuring it LOOKS and TASTES the same.
- TEST SPEED: Prepare 3 different quickly, just like a real bar situation, except don’t waste a drop, serve each drink accurately and consistently!
Odds are that most people will fail some if not all the above? Why?
Possibly the answer may lay with bar managers not really understanding the impacts and consequences of pouring failure.
From experience people don’t treasure what’s not valued.
The impact of inconsistently made cocktails affects the bottom line, reducing Spend Per Guest, increasing costs as liquor is over-poured or just wasted.
Once drink inconsistency is identified as an issue, one can then start looking at impacts on business outcomes such as provided guest value for money, quality and ultimately guest satisfaction!
Bars wanting to sustain profitability long term need to get the Pour Challenge right, there's nothing childish about disappointing guests...it's not a game!
Did you complete each test without failing any test?
THE BATTLE FOR ON-PREMISE POURING AGREEMENTS
Around the world at any one time 10,000s of on premise accounts are looking to either tender or re-tender their speed rail business to a dominant Liquor Company.
The process occurs every 1 -2 years involving a roller coaster ride of posturing as Liquor Company’s vie or die for business.
Prospective bar brides sit patiently on the throne waiting for liquor beaus to make lucrative offers, turning the process into a total Dutch auction.
Is this circus really worth the effort long term to a Liquor Company when one considers some of the unintended consequences.
- Liquor Companies invest in huge amounts of time, effort and money into retaining or gaining business, diverting staff and resources from more profitable activities
- Reduced margins from discounted pouring agreements necessitate cost cutting down stream usually reflected in reduced head count. The standing few are left to pick up the slack of the near departing, placing additional stress on the already stretched.
- Supplier/customer relationships are reduced to a transactional game based on “cost per shot (nip)”, where it’s questionable whether sustainable loyalty is really created between bar and Liquor Company.
Is it possible to change pouring agreements and transition them from 1-2 year sugar fixes to more orderly 3-5 year deals (with allowances for reasonable cost increases)? Can relationships be re calibrated around the “value” to a business of a sole relationship with one company rather than essentially a “zero sum game” based on a "cost per shot" game of roulette.
Is follows that greater business certainty creates longer more beneficial outcomes for bar and Liquor Company creating with it potentially positive impacts on long term profits.
Imagine how 3-5 year contracts would change the structures of Liquor Companies as reduced venue churn, reduces back office staff time working out deals, BDM’s refocusing time to building sustainable relationships based on "value to a venue “rather than cost of a shot".
Ultimately a rethought strategy would open up new possibilities creating new win/win scenarios for brand, bar and the totally forgotten party in this game of thrones: the guest.
Organisation focus misdirected towards short term plays takes focus away from the bigger picture allowing smaller craft brands to seep through the cracks or wedges created by behemoths bucking it out!
Maybe it’s time for a rethink!
The Perfect Pour... Why it works for Guinness!
SOWO... SPILLS, OVER-POURING, WASTAGE, OUCH!
We all know how hard bar-tending can be - even simple mixed drinks are far from child’s play when a night is busy and nerves are high. The jigger jitters are real, and as all of us can attest, just pouring alcohol from a bottle into its final serving place can be fraught with shakes, quakes and trouble.
A slip of the hand, bump of the bottle, every innocent mishap creates potential SOWO for your venue’s bottom line. That’s Spills, Over-pouring, Wastage, Ouch – and this is an acronym none of us have time for.
In an average bar SOWO accounts for a 3-5 mL (1/10-1/6Oz) loss on every 30 mL (1Oz) shot of alcohol served, multiply this by how many serves are poured daily and you’re looking at a massive volume of liquor forfeited yearly.
Mistakes happen at all levels, but pinpointing the difference between an occasional misstep and a pattern of poor performance can save a significant amount of your stock and sanity.
Recognizing bar-tending bad habits is the first step to stopping SOWO, here’s some of the potential warning signs:
Improper Positioning
Holding a bottle in an awkward or unusual manner making it difficult to stop or better control a pouring process potentially results in over-pouring alcohol. This problem is usually easy to fix with proper training, however if the behaviour is a result of general carelessness or laziness this may be a sign of other risk factors.
Flash Over Function
Unusual bottle cuts and martial moves based on show rather than care can increase the frequency of mistakes and disrupt the work flow of a bar with collisions, distractions, spilt drinks the result.
Sloppiness
Nothing is a bigger risk factor than good old-fashioned sloppiness. A need to slow down is often difficult to distinguish from a lack of care, and a staff member with little to no pride in their work is challenging to correct.
Premature Pouring
A safe pouring process requires the filling of a jigger to capacity, stopping the liquid flow from a bottle, and then emptying the jigger into a glass or shaker. Watch closely for a bartender who cuts corners and dumps the jigger just before it’s full, yet continues to free pour more alcohol into a receiving vessel. This really bad habit is possibly the most costly, as every ½ second of pouring time equates to 5 mL (1/6 Oz) of extra alcohol being poured away FREE!
The best way to stop SOWO is to invest in bar training programs that continuously re-enforce HOW and WHY you want bar practice to be done. Reward good practice, re-inforce bad practice with consequences!
WHAT'S NOT MEASURED IS NOT VALUED
The old adage what's not measured is not valued!
This blog is not about comparing the merits of style, art, and experience of free pouring bartenders; but rather the acknowledgement that without measurement, there's no accountability, without accountability, profitability and consistency will surely suffer.
Über recommends always measuring or portion controlling spirits, wine, beer and sparkling wines! See our selection of accurate and cost effective pouring and measuring tools... Click here
One can tell a lot about a business by the activities and actions that are valued; as value determines where focus goes.
Business budgets and projections are judgments based on some form of calculation... lowering the gap between goal and reality requires measurement with arising actions.
There isn't a sports star, business person, doctor, scientist, plumber, architect, politician, exam, race or just about any form of performance activity that's not measured... the exception is what happens behind a bar.
Profit is the ultimate indicator of success in business (NGO's accepted)... The insurance policy one takes to protect profits comes down to the investment one makes in training with the commensurate tools to pour and measure alcohol, accurately and consistently. Über has a range of pouring and measuring tools to assist bars increase profitability, consistency and reduce over-pouring and waste. Click here
The prize for making profit is the chance to come back tomorrow to do it again. The penalty on the other hand: the doors shut!
If you want to quickly increase profits, improve drink quality and consistency whilst reducing unnecessary alcohol wastage one of Über’s tailored pouring solutions will solve your problems full stop... More information Click here
BOTTLE NECKS... BOTTLE D'OHS
Over the last five years many iconic brands bottles have been redesigned, together with even more new brands entering the market.
Bottle design in the 21st century is built around LOOKS – internationally renowned designers are employed to develop a unique brand-focused look where the bottle becomes the message to drive presence, equity and ultimately, sales.
In a perfect world this thought process seems logical, EXCEPT that designers design for look, they don’t usually consider design for functionality behind a bar (considering speed of service, fit, ease of use and safety).
The fatal flaw is when design is predicated on looks or presence, ultimately functionality and then sales will suffer.
In the battle behind the bar there’s just one simple rule: the harder it is for a bartender to pick up, hold, and serve a bottle, the less likely a bartender will go pour that bottle, recommend that brand to a guest in an up-sell; totally regardless if the brand has paid to be promoted, profiled and poured in a bar.
To brand custodians throughout the world this news is not good.
We all know Homer Simpson’s famous “D’OH” catchphrase whenever he realises a mistake or when something bad has happened.
So we’ve borrowed that and applied it to our list of some typical ‘Bottle D’ohs:
The history books are full of ‘Bottle D’oh’s, resulting in bottle re-designs, due to on-site negative feedback.
A very memorable instance some years back saw a Vodka brand introduce a new bottle shape that could not fit a speed pourer, resulting in millions of dollars in lost sales, new bottle design etc. As we understand it, the brand manager in charge lost his/her job.
Then there was the Asian brand owned by a European company that created a bottle which tended to result in broken bottle necks in transit. Or even the Tequila brand that designed a bottle and received a massive pouring contract with a large organisation…all without a speed pourer on the planet to fit it.
So Über stepped in and designed one: the ProFlow Extreme™.
There’s no international standard on bottle design, so the sky’s the limit when it comes to getting the creative juices going. But it’s worth remembering: when designing the bottle consider how the alcohol is going to be poured from it! Design thinking will change only when spirit bottles are considered as a delivery platform rather than just a point of sale pony – designing in isolation means you potentially may not be making a statement but rather serving a sentence!
Want to avoid costly mistakes that could cost your brand sales and opportunity? Contact Über for some practical design assistance click here.
WHAT DETERMINES A SUCCESSFUL DRINKING EXPERIENCE! (WINNING AT THE POINT OF POUR)
Speak easy move fast.. Speed Behind the Bar
There’s been much debate amongst bartenders concerning the pros and cons of speed behind the bar.
Speak to any bartender working a club, Vegas Strip, high volume bar and they’ll quickly tell you speed‘s king!
If you’re working just for tips, as many do in the US, speedy drinks equals fast tips!
With many bartenders regarding themselves as guns... delays in making a drink is costly so, it’s all guns blazing or go hungry!
Like most traditions behind a bar, they didn’t happen overnight... they evolved over time.
On that basis, it’s possible that Prohibition era American Speak Easy bars are the likely modern starting point of the need for speed behind the bar!
The rationale: Speak Easy owners/bartenders never knew when they could be raided by authorities… seems logical then, if you wanted to sell plenty of drinks, make money, that a heighted sense of urgency was required... speed was critical!
During Prohibition drink quality and craftsmanship were not deemed particularly important, so speed was the catalyst to drinking quick and serving fast!
Whilst at Uber we don’t agree that fast drinks will necessarily be good in terms of quality, flavour and balance, we realize there’s plenty of room to cater for all styles and sorts of bartending/customer needs.
Customers waiting to be served is money potentially left on the table; drinks poorly executed represent money leaving a venue as a guest potentially swaps to a cheaper drink category or leaves disappointed altogether!
Speed behind the bar has consequences... it comes down to juggling between speed, care and quality… pick any 2!
Über's Top 12 Checklist
Here’s Über’s TOP 12 bullet proof questions to anchor your due diligence/checklist when evaluating any new product and service which is promised or expected to assist, power, control, transform and run YOUR business!
Too often it’s the failure to ask the right questions leaving you, over-promised and under delivered, ultimately creating frustration and disappointment! Apply these tests, ask these questions you’ll never go wrong!
Staying in control from the get go... you're guaranteed a better chance of ending up with the results you want and expect!
Good luck!
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