Cocktail culture is thriving in large part due to a passionate contingent of exceptional bartenders and mixologists. This feature places a spotlight on the craftspeople behind the bar, and not just the structure itself. Meet bartender Marcos Tello from The Edison in Los Angeles.
Josh Lurie: Do you consider yourself a bartender or a mixologist? What’s the difference?
Marcos Tello: I consider myself a bartender! The term “mixologist” was first put in to play by Dale DeGroff who was trying to set apart the bartender to who created “hand crafted” cocktails and the one bartended as a “day job” and just poured “Jack & Coke”! The origin of the term is an old one that was originally spelled “mixicologist” and there is an 1895 book of the same name by C.F. Lawlor. It was meant as a joke! All joking aside, I long for the day that the word bartender is synonymous with someone who tak es their craft seriously.
JL: How did you become interested in mixology?
MT: I had always been intrigued by “the bartender.” I used to bartend all my friends parties but it wasn’t until I started a cocktail catering company “Drinks First” and took a class on mixology in New York (the now defunct “Cocktails in the Country” by Gary Regan). I came back, fully inspired, and committed my life to the craft!
JL: What’s your first cocktail memory?
MT: My first memory was at “Cocktails in the Country”, after a truly “spirited lunch” I went to make my first cocktail and cut myself with a pairing knife! It was very embarassing and I looked like such an amateur in front of all these great bartenders who attended the class. Another one is walking in Milk & Honey for the first time! I still remember the smell and what it looks like in my mind.
JL: What’s your current favorite spirit or liquor?
MT: Probably Cachaca! I love rum and it is in the rum distillate family! As one of the oldest spirits on this earth (rum) it intrigues me that it is used more often! Sagatiba is my favorite brand!
JL: Which cocktail is past its prime?
MT: The flavored martini or anything that ends in the suffix “tini”. It’s so played out and just plain wrong since the martini is, in the true sense of the word, a cocktail (and the glass that you put “cocktails” in are named “cocktail” glasses! However, people insist on being ignorant even if a bar boasts a great classic menu with bartenders who know what they’re doing!
JL: What’s the cocktail of the future?
MT: Punch Bowls! I’ve been saying this for about a year now. In a time where everything old is new again, punch bowls were the first bottle service (which in my opinion is the biggest scam on consumers today!). Punches are delicious, well worth the money if you’re gonna pay for the whole bottle and take the awkwardness out of figuring out who knows how to mix “cranberry and vodka”. With punches you just serve your glass, they stay cold, are quite potent, and look amazing!
JL: Describe one of your original cocktails. What’s it called and what was your approach?
MT: AM Punch (AM =Amy & Marcos)
Description: A traditional style punch made with St~Germain, Fresh Lemon, Anejo Tequila, Apple Brandy, and Orgeat, in a lovely, bubbly bath of Champagne. Winner of the Le Bar St~Germain’s Cocktail Competition for the month of August.
My inspiration for this punch was my girlfriend whose name is Amy! She loves Tequila and I love Apple Brandy so I found a way to combine the two!
JL: Do you have a cocktail mentor, and what did they teach you?
MT: Yes. I actually have a couple. One is Chad Solomon from Cuff & Buttons in New York. Another is Dave Wondrich. And still another is Vincenzo Marianella from Copa D’ Oro in Los Angeles. They both have taught my so much but from Chad I learned strict attention to detail. And from Vincenzo I learned speed and improv. And from Dave I learned the passion for the history of the “craft”.
JL: Outside of your bar, what’s your favorite bar in town and why?
MT: The Village Idiot (not for cocktails but for ambience)…They pour the best “Guinness” in town and are a great gastro-pub!
JL: Who’s another mixologist you respect and why?
MT: Sasha Petraske…He was one of the revolutionaries that re-ignited the “cocktail movement”! The quality of his places (Milk & Honey, Little Branch, etc.) are what we all aspire our bars to be on the same level with!
JL: If you had a bar of your own, what would you call it?
MT: Can’t say…it’s in the works and I don’t want anyone to steal the name! But I’d love to name them after the Old Hollywood Haunt’s like Embassy Club, Ciro’s, Vendome Club, etc.
JL: What’s the best simple cocktail for people to make at home, and what’s the recipe?
MT: Old-Fashioned
· Sugar Cube
· 6-8 Dashes of Angostura
· Dash of Soda Water
· 2 oz. Bourbon
· Muddle Sugar Cube w/ Soda & Angostura, Add Bourbon & Ice, Quick Stir & Enjoy!
· Garnish: Lemon Peel & Orange Peel – Glass: Old Fashioned Glass
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Blog Comments
ucad
March 4, 2010 at 10:42 AM
[…] … Today I want to talk about finding new blogs. Looking back at blogs collected in the past …Food GPS Q&A with bartender Marcos Tello (The Edison)… percent money back guarantee with our Cisco 642-415 UCAD, 642-972 DCASD and 642-061 RSSSE […]
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October 1, 2009 at 1:51 AM
[…] Marcos Tello was working at The Varnish tonight and, well, it’s poetry. Watching Marcos mix and pour, create and incorporate was incredible. I left feeling completely inspired by two of the best cocktails to ever touch these lips — one absinthe based and the other absinthe “enhanced” — and wondering what happens when consumption becomes craft. […]
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July 27, 2009 at 4:18 PM
[…] or the current scene as it exists in Los Angeles, it’s well worth reading into the minds of Marcos Tello of The Edison, Eric Alperin of The Varnish, […]
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July 21, 2009 at 12:41 AM
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April 2, 2009 at 10:03 PM
[…] by a panel of local professional palates, Chuck Taggart of GumboPages.com, LA bartending luminary Marcos Tello, (pictured to the left judging in fabulous drag) and Catherine Schimenti, Craft pastry chef and […]
mattatouille
February 25, 2009 at 10:52 AM
Marcos is a great bartender! He served me well at The Varnish last night.
laurat
February 7, 2009 at 4:16 PM
can i get an amen on his comment about bottle service being a ripoff. if new orleans bars/club offered only bottle service people would stop going out. wow one of his fondest cocktail memory is the first time he stepped foot in milk and honey what a compliment to sasha petraske. i hope one day to have the honor of visiting this establishement. the recipe he concocted with st. germain sounds delicious.
Food GPS » Blog Archive » Mixologist: Marcos Tello - attopbusiness
January 28, 2009 at 5:48 PM
[…] Description: A traditional style punch made with St~Germain, Fresh Lemon, Anejo Tequila, Apple Brandy, and Orgeat, in a lovely, bubbly bath of Champagne. Winner of the Le Bar St~Germain’s Cocktail Competition for the month of August. .. Read more […]
H.C.
January 28, 2009 at 4:15 PM
nice series 🙂 can’t wait to hear what some of the other best mixologists/bartenders of L.A. have to share.
And how darling for him to craft a drink for his g/f!
mattatouille
January 28, 2009 at 1:51 PM
What’s angostura?
Joshua Lurie
January 28, 2009 at 2:25 PM
Angostura bitters:
http://www.angosturabitters.com/