On May 11, 1911 H L Mencken of the Baltimore Evening Sun wrote: “The average bartender, despite the slanders of professional moralists, is a person of self-respect and self-possession; an individual who excels at a difficult art and is well aware of it; a person who shrinks from ruffianism as from uncleanliness; in short, a genteel person. The bartender is one of the most dignified, law-abiding and ascetic of men. The bartender is girt about by a rigid code of professional ethics, whose work demands a clear head and a steady hand. The bartender must have sound and fluent conversation and cannot be drunken or dirty …”. Today, we are embracing the definition and holding bearers of the title of bartender to a higher standard. Bartenders are perceived to be all-rounders. They are our councillors, friends, and psychologists. A bartender can hold court and still manages to make a drink that keeps a smile on your face. The bartender is a team player. The bartender sets the tone and style for any bar. The bartender keeps the peace and carries out the serve and drink responsibly mandate so that consumers are able to enjoy the bar experience and still get home in one piece. Above all, bartenders are honest and operate with integrity. A bartender knows how to make and serve the drinks we love to enjoy.

Annually, on February 24, World Bartender Day is celebrated globally, and this year Jamaica was no exception. The concept of celebrating these professionals is somewhat novel. In fact, many bartenders operating here in Jamaica are not even familiar that such a date exists, not to mention the Bartender Appreciation Day celebrated in December. This year’s celebration was made special as the Jamaica Union of Bartenders and Mixologists Limited (JUBAM) partnered with Select Brands-distributed Martell cognac in celebrating the bartending community through an expression of cognac. Bartenders were invited to have a drink on the cognac brand as well as learn more about cognac.

An objective of JUBAM is to assist in providing greater recognition for the bartending profession. Oftentimes, the Jamaican bartender is perceived as someone with little to no academic education and who has taken up this line of work because there is nothing else to do. Unlike their bartending counterparts in the United States, locally our bartenders require no certification to land a position; they just need to be able to whip up some drinks and all is in motion. In my opinion, there needs to be a standard set for operating in this role. In services marketing theory, there is a category of service known as people processing services. That is, services directed at people’s bodies. The bartender is entrusted to make drinks that we will consume, these drinks will go directly into our bodies! Therefore, having this knowledge, will we as consumers continue to allow persons not trained or certified to have this much control? As consumers we must demand from bars, restaurants, hotels and places of entertainment trained professionals. In doing so, we recognise the importance of this profession and the potential impact on the bar and beverage industry as well as the economy on a whole. The bartender is crucial to our tourism product, entertainment communities and inextricably linked to health objectives of food safety and sanitation.

Let us continue with the conversation around solidifying the bartending craft here in Jamaica and move with alacrity from talk to credible action. The next steps would include job descriptions, compensation packages, and so on. The work for our bartending community is just getting started. Let us not only celebrate but elevate.

Readers’ Grapevine Club: If you are new to wines and want to join us on our wine discovery, then this is for you. On the third Thursday of each month (commencing March 2020) I will highlight your feedback on our grape variety of the month. I know that you have all tried moscato and are enjoying every sweet note; however, for the coming weeks, try to purchase a bottle of riesling from your local store, and call a few friends. Share with me a description of the wine using the information about reading wine labels and what you thought about that experience.

Grape Variety of the Month: Riesling

Readers’ Feedback:

Extraordinary wonder and joy are interwoven through ordinary life. Seek them relentlessly. Please share with me your wines, spirits and cocktail experiences or comments on the above article at debbiansm@gmail.com, or follow me on IG @debbiansm #barnoneja.

Debbian Spence-Minott

An Alumna of the US Sommelier Association

CEO of the Academy of Bartending, Spirits & Wines

President, Jamaica Union of Bartenders and Mixologists (JUBAM) Limited

Marketing Studies Lecturer – The University of Technology, Jamaica