How to Drink Buck & Birch with Tom Chisholm, Co-Founder

It’s rare that one would move to another country purely because of how it looked in a film...but our guest did just that and it only took the perfect job opportunity to tempt to return to the UK.I’m Susan Schwartz, your drinking companion, and this is, Lush Life Podcast, every week we are inspired to live life one cocktail at a time by everyone in this industry. Jack Sotti, Senior Tanqueray Gin & World Class Ambassador at Diageo fell in love with New Zealand after seeing the Lord of the Rings movies. He bought a one way ticket to Auckland and the rest is history. After wangling his first bar job there, his career took off and continued to rise, winning Australia’s Bartender of the Year at the Diageo Reserve World Class Australian finals in 2015. You’ll have to hear how he won that and what he did after in today’s episode.Our cocktail of the week is Nocellara Gimlet.Ingredients:50ml Tanqueray Rangpur2 Nocellara olives25ml Lime juice25ml Simple syrupMethod:Muddle the olives in the shaker. Add ice and shake hard to pulverise the olives. Fine strain into a Nick and Nora glass. Garnish with a Nocellara Olive.If you are confused by the UK use of millilitres and want to know how many ounces to use or vice versa, you can find a downloadable cocktail measurement converter on my website alushlifemanual.com, where you’ll find this recipe, more gimlet recipes, plus all the cocktails of the week, as well as links to all the ingredients.Full Episode Details: https://alushlifemanual.com/how-to-keep-the-chefs-happyAlways remember the wise words of Oscar Wilde, “All things in moderation, including moderation,” and always drink responsibly!-----If you live for Lush Life would you consider supporting us by buying us a coffee…Just go to buymeacoffee.com/lushlife and you can donate once or monthly to make sure we are still here every Tuesday.Life Merchandise is here – we’re talking t-shirts, mugs, iPhone covers, duvet covers, iPad covers and more covers for everything, and more!Theme music for Lush Life is by Steven Shapiro and used with permission.Lush Life is always and will be forever produced by Evo Terra and Simpler Media Productions.Until next time, BOTTOMS UP 🍸

30 Juni 20201h 3min

The motto for Hendrink’s Gin is “No other gin tastes like Hendrick’s Gin because no other gin is made like Hendrick’s Gin.” That sentiment could be true about anyone I interview, but it’s especially apropos in regards to my guest today, Hendrick’s Gin UK Brand Ambassador.Sasha Filimonov never set out to be in the hospitality industry, in fact, she was on track to having her dream job when the financial crisis changed all that. Her journey to Hendrick’s Gin UK Brand Ambassador took many twists and turns until the day that two of her passions collided - her love of martinis and the world of Hendrick’s Gin. Today she joins all the different pieces of the puzzle that led to her dream job.Our cocktail of the week is Hendrick’s Gin Tini Martini (a miniature version).Ingredients:30ml Hendrick’s Gin4ml dry vermouthSlice of cucumberMethod:Spray Tini Martini glass with dry vermouth (or pour in 4ml and give it a rinse). Add gin to mixing glass with ice. Stir down until chilled. Strain into chilled Tini Martini glass. Garnish with a slice of cucumber.You’ll find this recipe, more Espresso Martini recipes and all the cocktails of the week at alushlifemanual.com, as well as links to all the ingredients.Full Episode Details: https://alushlifemanual.com/how-to-understand-all-the-different-pieces-of-the-puzzleAlways remember the wise words of Oscar Wilde, “All things in moderation, including moderation,” and always drink responsibly!-----If you live for Lush Life would you consider supporting us by buying us a coffee…Just go to buymeacoffee.com/lushlife and you can donate once or monthly to make sure we are still here every Tuesday.Life Merchandise is here – we’re talking t-shirts, mugs, iPhone covers, duvet covers, iPad covers and more covers for everything, and more!Theme music for Lush Life is by Steven Shapiro and used with permission.Lush Life is always and will be forever produced by Evo Terra and Simpler Media Productions.Until next time, BOTTOMS UP 🍸

23 Juni 202034min

Could you imagine getting a job in one of the most iconic bars in the world off of an advert on Gumtree, the global classifieds ads website. Our guest did and it kick-started a career in the industry that would take her all over the world.I’m Susan Schwartz, your drinking companion, and this is Lush Life Podcast, every week we are inspired to live life one cocktail at a time by everyone in this industry. Rebekkah Dooley took that first job and never looked back - creating award-winning cocktail menus for London bar Callooh Callay, moving to New York to work at The Dead Rabbit and now back to London. As well as working with The Umbrella Project, she has launched Discard the Zine, a new drinks magazine. She’s here today to tell us how that first experience at Milk & Honey set the bar very high!Before we begin, you can find links on how to donate to some of your favorite bars or have cocktails delivered right to your door during this rough time on the homepage of my website alushlifemanual.com. Our cocktail of the week is Rebekkah’s Salted Espresso Martini.Ingredients:40ml Grey Goose Vodka20ml Salted Coffee Liqueur*25ml EspressoMethod:Add all of the ingredients into a shaker. Add Ice. Shake, shake, shake! Strain all of the ingredients into a coupe glass. Garnish with 3 coffee beans.* To make the salted coffee liqueur, you’ll need to mix:300g coffee liqueur,340g 2:1 sugar syrup,And 3g Maldon sea salt togetherA trick is to combine the liqueur and salt separately before adding the sugar syrup as the salt won’t fully dissolve otherwise.--You’ll find this recipe, more Espresso Martini recipes and all the cocktails of the week at alushlifemanual.com, as well as links to all the ingredients.Full Episode Details: https://alushlifemanual.com/how-to-set-the-bar-very-high

16 Juni 202048min

We left our guest just as she was finishing up her Diageo Global World Class Competition experience. For those of you who missed part 1, go back to the previous episode and start there!Now is the time to delve into Part 2 of our interview with Lauren Mote and discover where she landed when she brought food, wine and work together.I’m Susan Schwartz, your drinking companion, and this is, Lush Life Podcast, every week we are inspired to live life one cocktail at a time by everyone in this industry. Now that you know a little bit about Lauren, it’s time to find out how everything she learned along the way led her to launch her award-winning, internationally renowned bitters company Bittered Sling and what being the first Diageo World Class Global Cocktailian really means. Before we begin, you can find links on how to donate to some of your favorite bars or have cocktails delivered right to your door during this rough time on the homepage of my website alushlifemanual.com. Our cocktail of the week is the Third Pole, referring to the Himalayas being the third largest body of snow on our planet, after the Antarctic and Arctic areas. Ingredients:1.50 oz Bulleit Bourbon0.75 oz Cynar Amaro0.75 oz Lemon Juice1.00 oz Chaga Chai Tea Syrup*2 dashes Bittered Sling Kensington Aromatic BittersDehydrated lemon wheel with skewerMethod:Put all the ingredients in a shaker. Add ice and shake. Double strain neat into a double rocks glass. Garnish with dehydrated lemon wheel on a wood pick standing up from the cocktail which signifies the flag atop the mountain claiming your achievement.--*To make Lauren’s Chaga Chai Tea Syrup and learn more about the story of the cocktail, you will have to visit alushlifemanual.com where you will find this recipe, more recipes, and all the cocktails of the week as well as links to all the ingredients.Full Episode Details: https://alushlifemanual.com/how-to-bring-together-quintessential-ingredients-that-define-a-cocktailAlways remember the wise words of Oscar Wilde, “All things in moderation, including moderation,” and always drink responsibly!-----If you live for Lush Life would you consider supporting us by buying us a coffee…Just go to buymeacoffee.com/lushlife and you can donate once or monthly to make sure we are still here every Tuesday.Life Merchandise is here – we’re talking t-shirts, mugs, iPhone covers, duvet covers, iPad covers and more covers for everything, and more!Theme music for Lush Life is by Steven Shapiro and used with permission.Lush Life is always and will be forever produced by Evo Terra and Simpler Media Productions.Until next time, BOTTOMS UP 🍸

9 Juni 202049min

If you add together the story of winning the Diageo World Class Competition in Canada, then of launching one successful company, and finally, of becoming the first Diageo World Class Global Cocktailian, you’ve just combined a few of the many ingredients that make up our guest today.I’m Susan Schwartz, your drinking companion, and this is, Lush Life Podcast, every week we are inspired to live life one cocktail at a time by everyone in this industry. Before Lauren Mote had become the Diageo Reserve & World Class Global Cocktailian and co-founder of Bittered Sling, she asked herself this question “How do I blend food and a real job together?” The path to that answer led her straight into the world of culinary creation. Over the next two episodes, we’ll follow her journey to discover how her cherished experiences encouraged her to succeed.Before we begin, please take the time to donate to some of your favorite bars or have cocktails delivered right to your door - you can find ways to help on the homepage of my website alushlifemanual.com. The Cocktail of the Week is the Fermented Pineapple Southside.Ingredients:60ml Tanqueray No. TEN Gin30ml fermented pineapple cordial*2 dashes Bittered Sling Grapefruit & Hops Bitters6 leaves mint plus sprig for garnishMethod:Put all the ingredients in a shaker. Add ice and shake. Double strain neat into a coupe glass. Garnish with a grapefruit cheek with a threaded mint sprig.--*To make her fermented pineapple cordial, you will have to go to alushlifemanual.com where you will find this recipe, more recipes, and all the cocktails of the week, as well as links to all the ingredients.Full Episode Details: https://alushlifemanual.com/how-to-cherish-the-individual-things-that-we-have-----Always remember the wise words of Oscar Wilde, “All things in moderation, including moderation,” and always drink responsibly!-----If you live for Lush Life would you consider supporting us by buying us a coffee…Just go to buymeacoffee.com/lushlife and you can donate once or monthly to make sure we are still here every Tuesday.Life Merchandise is here – we’re talking t-shirts, mugs, iPhone covers, duvet covers, iPad covers and more covers for everything, and more!Theme music for Lush Life is by Steven Shapiro and used with permission.Lush Life is always and will be forever produced by Evo Terra and Simpler Media Productions.Until next time, BOTTOMS UP 🍸

2 Juni 202047min

Whether someone gives it to you or you buy it for yourself, a one-way ticket out of town can, in some cases, mean the end of one life and the beginning of a new one. In our guest’s case, this was the start of something great. Landing in London, the light turned green and he was off.I’m Susan Schwartz, your drinking companion, and this is, Lush Life Podcast, every week we are inspired to live life one cocktail at a time by everyone in this industry. I met Tomáš Čistý when I was invited to interview the participants of a cocktail competition last year. The cocktail he created blew the judges away. After a ride on the rollercoaster of his life, as he calls it, he is now on the brake run, slowing down before another double dip might appear ahead. He’s now settled as Bar Manager of the private club 12 Hay Hill in London and Brand Ambassador of Wrecking Coast Distillery in Cornwall, and loving it.The Cocktail of the Week is the Cornish Highball.Ingredients: 40ml Wrecking Coast Distillery Scurvy Gin10ml Green Chartreuse25ml Lime juice20ml William Fox Oak Moss Syrup100ml London Essence SodaMethod:Add all of the ingredients to a highball glass filled with ice. Stir. Drink! --Full Episode Details: https://alushlifemanual.com/how-a-one-way-ticket-can-change-your-lifeAlways remember the wise words of Oscar Wilde, “All things in moderation, including moderation,” and always drink responsibly!-----If you live for Lush Life would you consider supporting us by buying us a coffee…Just go to buymeacoffee.com/lushlife and you can donate once or monthly to make sure we are still here every Tuesday.Life Merchandise is here – we’re talking t-shirts, mugs, iPhone covers, duvet covers, iPad covers and more covers for everything, and more!Theme music for Lush Life is by Steven Shapiro and used with permission.Lush Life is always and will be forever produced by Evo Terra and Simpler Media Productions.Until next time, BOTTOMS UP 🍸

26 Maj 20201h 8min

Not everyone has the foresight at a young age to know who British Philosopher Alan Watts is and also to heed his advice when planning their future. Well, our guest did and maybe that’s why he is the brand ambassador of one of the most profitable whiskies in the world.I’m Susan Schwartz, your drinking companion, and this is, Lush Life Podcast, every week we are inspired to live life one cocktail at a time by everyone in this industry. My guest, John Wayte, UK Brand Ambassador of Monkey Shoulder Premium Blended Whisky, may have studied Philosophy at university, but he wasn’t quite sure he would emerge as a philosopher. He spent more time organizing parties and ski trips for his fellow students than pouring over Plato.He did have the wherewithal to look at the future before him and deduce that serving alcohol linked everything he was doing. That led him straight into a career in the booze industry and he hasn’t looked back. Now with the enviable position of Brand Ambassador to the massively successful Monkey Shoulder, a whisky that prides itself on being as much fun as the whisky inside of it is fabulous, he is right where he dreamed he could be.The Cocktail of the Week is the Monkey Shoulder Lazy Old Fashioned!Ingredients & Method:Remove 100ml of Monkey from your bottle. Enjoy the spare whisky as you like… secret ingredient in an apple tart?Pour 90ml of sugar syrup back into the bottle.Add 30ml of Angostura Bitters back into the bottle. Label the bottle so you don’t get confused…! Shake and store in the fridge, you’re ready to pour 12 Old Fashioneds over ice. Garnish them each with an orange zest. Run a bath, put your feet up and be lazy.Finally save the empty bottles, in case you get stuck on a desert islandFor the Monkey Colada and its sister the Smokey Monkey Colada, you’ll have to head to alushlifemanual.com, where you can find this recipe, more whisky recipes, and all the cocktails of the week, plus links to where you'll find all the ingredients.--Full Episode Details: https://alushlifemanual.com/how-to-follow-the-advice-of-a-modern-philosopherAlways remember the wise words of Oscar Wilde, “All things in moderation, including moderation,” and always drink responsibly!-----If you live for Lush Life would you consider supporting us by buying us a coffee…Just go to buymeacoffee.com/lushlife and you can donate once or monthly to make sure we are still here every Tuesday.Life Merchandise is here – we’re talking t-shirts, mugs, iPhone covers, duvet covers, iPad covers and more covers for everything, and more!Theme music for Lush Life is by Steven Shapiro and used with permission.Lush Life is always and will be forever produced by Evo Terra and Simpler Media Productions.Until next time, BOTTOMS UP 🍸

19 Maj 202044min

When you walk into a bar and think this is fabulous. I assure you a whole lot of thought has gone into you having that good time before you’ve stepped through that threshold.For our guest today, it’s been his life’s work to make sure everyone has a good time and his mission is making you leave feeling the same way you came in.I’m Susan Schwartz, your drinking companion, and this is, Lush Life Podcast, every week we are inspired to live life one cocktail at a time by everyone in this industry. Everytime I’m in Dishoom, I toast to Robbie Bargh, the Founder & Director of the Hospitality Concept Agency, Gorgeous Group. Many moons ago, when I met him for the first time, Robbie was in the throes of working on the launch of what is now one of the most recognized Indian restaurants in the UK. Robbie is one of those geniuses who knows inherently what makes a good time and how to distill that good time into whatever project he is working on - bar, restaurant and even an upcoming theatre project.It was a delight to finally find out how it all began.Before we begin, you can find links on how to donate to some of your favorite bars or have cocktails delivered right to your door during this rough time on the homepage of my website alushlifemanual.com. The Cocktail of the Week is the Gorgeous Negroni Sbagliato:Ingredients:25ml Campari25ml Sweet VermouthSparkling Pink ChampagneMethod:Add the Campari and Sweet Vermouth to a wine glass. Add ice and gently top up with the Sparkling Pink Champagne. Stir it all together.--You can find this recipe, more recipes, and all the cocktails of the week at ALushLifeManual.com, where you’ll find links to all the ingredients.Full Episode Details: https://alushlifemanual.com/how-to-make-sure-everyone-has-a-good-timeAlways remember the wise words of Oscar Wilde, “All things in moderation, including moderation,” and always drink responsibly!-----If you live for Lush Life would you consider supporting us by buying us a coffee…Just go to buymeacoffee.com/lushlife and you can donate once or monthly to make sure we are still here every Tuesday.Life Merchandise is here – we’re talking t-shirts, mugs, iPhone covers, duvet covers, iPad covers and more covers for everything, and more!Theme music for Lush Life is by Steven Shapiro and used with permission.Lush Life is always and will be forever produced by Evo Terra and Simpler Media Productions.Until next time, BOTTOMS UP 🍸

12 Maj 202051min