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idea to heart by bringing the kitchen to the bar. Some of his concoctions—heady mash-ups of savory, smoky or sweet—are more like salads in a glass. For instance, the namesake Pepper Smash is comprised of Tito's Handmade vodka, pulverized red bell peppers, caramelized onions, a sautéed jalapeño, basil and lime juice. "A great chef told me once you want to create a sauce or dip that enhances the main course but doesn't steal the show. That's so true today, even with cocktails," says LaBonte. "Finding that perfect balance takes years to master. Most mixologists mask their cocktails with one flavor overpowering another." TAKING ON THE CLASSICS Fans of classic cocktails, on both sides of the bar, might roll their eyes at LaBonte's gastronomic perorations. But their passion is indulged at numerous other spots in Dallas. Bartenders Eddie "Lucky" Campbell and Michael Martensen were bending their customers' ears about the classics and delighting their taste buds with Sazeracs, Aviations and Sidecars a decade before the mixology boom began in Dallas. All that evangelism has paid off: Now they're the high priests at popular temples to old-school cocktailing—Campbell at the Chesterfield downtown and Martensen at the Cedars Social, in a rapidly gentrifying area south of downtown. Both establishments feature encyclopedic menus suffused with lore and history: how Sazeracs were first (and best) made with Cognac; the 19th-century origins of fizzes; the way Prohibition changed everything about drinking and more. "We wanted the menu to say, 'This is what we do, we're not Cheers contributor, author and "Modern Mixologist" Tony Abou-Ganim Takes On Vodka just the extension of a restaurant,'" says Martensen. But he adds that education is only part of the formula for success at the Cedars Social and other such cocktail lounges. People drive the experience. "A lot has to do with the personality behind the bar," says Martensen. "You order an Old Fashioned now, and they're happier to make an Old Fashioned than pour a beer. It speaks volumes about the culture of the workforce." Campbell gets a thrill whenever customers enjoy a spirit they previously disliked. "Classic cocktails were more balanced, so that the flavor is greater than the sweetness or tartness. We hear it all the time, 'This is the only place I drink bourbon.'" Earning bar-goers' trust is also key for Jason Kosmas, who Tony Abou-Ganim has been one of the leaders of the craft cocktail movement for two decades. Abou- Ganim's latest book, Vodka Distilled, focuses on defining and understanding the venerable clear spirit and the vodka marketplace. The new book, a companion piece to Abou-Ganim's 2010 The Modern Mixologist: Contemporary Classic Cocktails, will be available in February. Prior to its launch, Abou-Ganim will serve as a celebrity bartender at the 2013 Cheers Beverage Conference in Dallas Feb. 12-13. He will also be doing a panel/tasting on vodka and vodka-based cocktails at the show. Don't miss this opportunity to meet and learn from this esteemed cocktail guru how to work with the world's most consumed spirit. For more information on the show visit CheersConference.com. made his mark at Manhattan's famed Employees Only and looms large on the Dallas scene. He's beverage director at the Village Marquee Texas Bar & Grill in the ritzy Highland Park Village shopping center and created drink menus at Malai and Mesa restaurants. www.cheersonline.com Tavern, Kosmas came up with a variation of the Pisco Sour he dubbed the Egg Man—as in the Beastie Boys song. He infused the sour with roasted pineapple. "The pineapple was the draw," says Kosmas. "That would lead people to other questions: What's Pisco? Why eggs?" During an earlier Dallas gig, at Neighborhood Services NOVEMBER/DECEMBER 2012 | 37