Bartender Masterclass: On Mastery featuring Master Bartender Yael Vengroff (Part 1)
09/23/20 • 39 min
Training for Mastery takes years of work and dedication, and after a certain point there is no road map in any industry that helps the novice graduate to the journeyman, and the journeyman transform into the master.
In our continuing Bartending Masterclass, host & Master Bartender Michael J. Neff, discussed the different phases of mastery. This time, we’re focusing on Mastery of the Heart with special guest Ms. Yael Vengroff (aka Yael Stormborn).
Yael is a long-time bartender who cut her teeth in some of the most storied bars in Houston (Grand Prize) & New York City (Pegu Club, Painkiller) before moving to Los Angeles to take over as Bar Director for The Spare Room in the Roosevelt Hotel in Hollywood and Genghis Coen. The group also has bars in Seattle and Nashville, which Yael helms, as well.
She has many accomplishments to her name, including winning the women-only charity speed competition Speed Rack, as well as being named Best American Bartender at the prestigious Tales of the Cocktail.
Some highlights from Part 1 of our conversation:
“Our biggest mountain to climb after (COVID) is, how do we keep the sexy, how do we keep the romanticism, how do we keep all these things.”
“Vulnerability breeds vulnerability. It means accountability. It means admittance. It means transparency.”
“If you’re not a bartender-owner, your top-tier management better be that soldier that is so intuitive and that leads back to vulnerability. People without vulnerability don’t know how to listen.”
“The reason that I can do what I do, and that I do what I do, is that I’m not afraid to talk about my weaknesses. And my shortcomings. And my mistakes.”
Weird-tempo Banjo Tune: Katy Hill
Training for Mastery takes years of work and dedication, and after a certain point there is no road map in any industry that helps the novice graduate to the journeyman, and the journeyman transform into the master.
In our continuing Bartending Masterclass, host & Master Bartender Michael J. Neff, discussed the different phases of mastery. This time, we’re focusing on Mastery of the Heart with special guest Ms. Yael Vengroff (aka Yael Stormborn).
Yael is a long-time bartender who cut her teeth in some of the most storied bars in Houston (Grand Prize) & New York City (Pegu Club, Painkiller) before moving to Los Angeles to take over as Bar Director for The Spare Room in the Roosevelt Hotel in Hollywood and Genghis Coen. The group also has bars in Seattle and Nashville, which Yael helms, as well.
She has many accomplishments to her name, including winning the women-only charity speed competition Speed Rack, as well as being named Best American Bartender at the prestigious Tales of the Cocktail.
Some highlights from Part 1 of our conversation:
“Our biggest mountain to climb after (COVID) is, how do we keep the sexy, how do we keep the romanticism, how do we keep all these things.”
“Vulnerability breeds vulnerability. It means accountability. It means admittance. It means transparency.”
“If you’re not a bartender-owner, your top-tier management better be that soldier that is so intuitive and that leads back to vulnerability. People without vulnerability don’t know how to listen.”
“The reason that I can do what I do, and that I do what I do, is that I’m not afraid to talk about my weaknesses. And my shortcomings. And my mistakes.”
Weird-tempo Banjo Tune: Katy Hill
Previous Episode
Episode 15: Bars in Crisis—The Case for a Bailout
In this, the second wave of shutdowns across cities due to the shocking rise of Covid-19 cases, the bars in America are bearing an undue burden and forced to make a terrible choice: shut ourselves down and risk our lives, our livelihoods, and those of everyone who works for or around us; or find some way to skirt the rules, stay open, and contribute to the general health crisis that is crippling our country.
If bars in a community fail, the economic and cultural impacts to that community will be felt well beyond the bar industry itself. Bars promote local economies, and it is the local economies that will suffer, sometimes for decades to come.
There is a way to prevent both of these tragic outcomes: a bailout. We’ve bailed out many industries before, and in this podcast, we examine what those are, and apply the same kind of thinking to bars and the local economies they anchor.
Oh, and there might be some conversation in here about a church diocese or two. Listen to find out how these things relate, and please share this with anyone who will agree and, maybe as importantly, those who won’t.
Next Episode
Episode 16: Tequila, Tahonas & Terroir with Jesse Estes of Tequila Ocho (Part 1)
In this episode, Tequila Ocho Global Brand Ambassador Jesse Estes joins us to talk all about agave spirits, diving specifically into Tequila! This isn’t your average tequila talk—our topics range from the changing definitions in agave spirits generally to how everything about tequila can be thought of in...reverse?
There is something for both experts and neophytes in this, the first of our two-part conversation with Jesse Estes. Stay tuned for Part Two.
In the meantime, check out our other Spirit School entries on our website (https://thecottonmouthclubpresents.com), or browse conversation with some of the world’s best bar professionals in our Masterclass Series.
Jesse Estes is a London-based spirits educator, author, and former award-winning bartender. He has worked behind the bar at establishments like The Lonsdale, Green & Red, All Star Lanes, CalloohCallay, and The Luggage Room, as well as performing guest bartending shifts around the world. He has won a number of cocktail competitions and regularly acts as a judge and chairman for various cocktail competitions and spirits awards including the Drinks International's International Spirit Challenge and the Tequila Masters.
In 2013, Jesse developed the bar program for London's first 'agavería' – a bar specializing in Agave Spirits – El Nivel. That same year, Jesse was named one of London's Best Bartenders by the Huffington Post. He is often consulted as an expert on agave spirits, and has been interviewed or featured in publications such as: Imbibe, Esquire, Shortlist, Spirits Business, Forbes and Drinks International, among others. In 2019, Jesse was one of the first people to sit the WSET Level 3 in Spirits, which he passed with Merit.
Jesse is now the Global Brand Ambassador for Tequila Ocho and can be found leading seminars, tastings, and masterclasses on tequila and other agave spirits across the world. He is also the author of two cocktail books, Tequila Beyond Sunrise and From Dram to Manhattan, and regularly contributes articles to trade publications. Jesse recently became the Agave Spirits Curator for Spirits Kiosk, a craft online spirits retailer directed at discerning drinkers.
Get in touch at [email protected]
The Cottonmouth Club Presents: Bars, Bar Culture, Cocktails & Spirits - Bartender Masterclass: On Mastery featuring Master Bartender Yael Vengroff (Part 1)
Transcript
(Intro)
Coming out to you almost live from Cottonmouth studios in fabulous Houston, Texas.
Michael Neff (MN):
Hey folks. Thanks so much for listening to our podcast. The Cottonmouth Club Presents in which we discuss bars, Bar culture, cocktails and spirits all through the specific lens of hospitality that only exists in places like bars. My name is Michael Neff Master Bartender. And your host for the series, so you might have noticed we've taken a little break, as you all
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