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LEAH HOUGHTALING that guest's palate—using only fresh ingredients available that day from the farms," Splendorini says. Michael Mina San Francisco customers can also select from a variety of on-the-menu libations with local or in-house crafted ingredients. The Siegel ($11) includes Hakushu Japanese whiskey, yuzu juice, Angostura bitters and a house-made liqueur with Rangpur lime skins, Kaffir lime leaves, shiso and Ras el Hanout (a Moroccan spice blend). The Bushukan Folly ($11) is all local—it mixes Hangar One Buddha's Hand vodka from California, quince purée, lemon and a habanero tincture. The chock-full-of-vegetables brunch staple is at great way for bars to showcase local produce and spirits. At Cibolo Moon restaurant at the 1,002-room JW Marriott San Antonio Hill Country, a Bloody Mary bar stocks a plethora of local ingredients on Sundays. For $10 per drink, guests check off their preferred mixers and add-ins from a printed menu, including Texas spirits Tito's Handmade vodka, Rebecca Creek Bourbon and Republic of Texas pico de gallo-infused tequila, as well as locally sourced vegetables and garnishes. While the local food movement has become so pervasive that it's expected by many restaurant guests, for the most part locavore cocktails are still a nice-to-have, rather than a needto-have offering. Instead of an overt demand from customers that bars stock specific local items, "it's more of a talking point for guests, whereas with food it can be a make-or-break requirement," says Island Creek Oyster Bar's Hegde. "Guests are not demanding local ingredients in their cocktails," says Dan Hoffman, director of equipment and beverage specifications for the Bethesda, MD-based Marriott International hotel chain. But he notes that Marriott guests "do like the element of discovery and opportunities for learning when locally produced ingredients are featured in cocktail menu descriptions and sales dialog." And the popularity of local drinks is expanding, Hoffman says. LEARNING TO LOCAVORE There are a few things you can do to make a locavore cocktail program a success. For one thing, though it may appear that only small bars have the time to craft locally focused drinks, Hoffman points out that batching these cocktails can also make them feasible at high-volume bars. Splendorini believes that locavore punches, infusions and house-carbonated cocktails easily lend themselves to busy bars. They are simple to prepare "and can include locavore in every expression, from the base spirit, the cordial and fresh juices and products," he says. Having a personal connection with local purveyors is a bonus to any locavore cocktail program, operators say. Island Creek Oyster Bar often gives regional suppliers a direct mention on the drinks menu, and may even name a libation for a person with a direct association to the drink. "The best advice I can give is to form relationships and cultivate friendships with your local purveyors, producers and farmers," notes Founding Farmers' Arroyo. "Better relationships www.cheersonline.com The Rhubarb Martini, above, and the Sage Riesling cocktail, right, are locavore libations from Ithaca, NYbased Felica's Atomic Lounge. will give you more consistent access to products, and introduce you to other purveyors in the area." Felicia's Atomic Lounge's Sauter and co-owner Leah Houghtaling often meet with the owners of a local farm during the growing season and also when they are gathering ideas for their winter seed orders. The farm lets the bar staff know what's being harvested that week, and what's upcoming. To keep costs down, Sauter uses seconds (bruised or "ugly") fruits and vegetables for cocktails; when they are chopped, muddled or used in infusions, appearance doesn't matter. Woodberry Kitchen's Polyoka advises operators to start small. "You can't wake up one day and decide 'let's do a locavore cocktail program.' We have learned over the last five years that it's a constant evolution." He suggests selecting one ingredient that can be replaced by a locally sourced item. For instance, Woodberry Kitchen began by replacing sugar with local honey, and then moved onto citrus. Going locavore is a process, Polyoka says, "one that needs to happen in increments." Kelly Magyarics is a wine and spirits writer and wine educator in the Washington, D.C. area. She can be reached through her website, www.kellymagyarics.com, and on Twitter @kmagyarics. MAY 2013 | 35