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How Virtual Gigs Are Helping Bartenders Stay Afloat—Even Beyond Cinco De Mayo

Tara Nurin
This article is more than 3 years old.

Like almost everyone else in the bar business, the two women behind the cocktail-crafting team “Cocktail Bandits” have lost most, if not all, of their business this spring. So how are they spending Cinco de Mayo? Making beet margaritas for money.

“We are making a beet margarita cocktail called ‘Beets Me’ because that’s the only answer that we have when it comes to the state of our industry and the world!” email the bandits, Johnny Caldwell and Taneka Reaves, jointly.

The Charleston, South Carolina-based cocktail consultants are earning $1,000 to work a virtual 15-minute shift Tuesday night for Patron tequila. They’ll join a lineup of 19 other Patron-friendly bartenders from around the country who’ll successively present their own recipes for a simple yet creative margarita via the brand’s Instagram feed from 5pm-10pm EDT. Patron is calling its May 2020 holiday campaign #SimplyCinco.

Caldwell and Reaves chose to use beets because they wanted to feature a local seasonal ingredient. Beets, as they say, are packed with vitamins and antioxidants, and they find their color “rich and beautiful.” As for picking up a cool $1,000 in the middle of the financially devastating coronavirus, well, that’s basically a no-brainer.

“The hospitality field is an integral part of social interactions yet the most vulnerable because we rely on tips and side jobs to supplement our income. Collaborations like #SimplyCinco are greatly appreciated and much needed,” they email.

#SimplyCinco comprises one of just a few nationwide programs to directly pay bartenders to work while they can’t perform their usual jobs because of social distancing mandates. Unlike spirits-industry initiatives that donate money to worthy beneficiaries like the United States Bartenders Guild National Charity Foundation Bartender Emergency Assistance Program and HEARD Cooperative or those that showcase bartenders who make drinks for virtual tips from an online audience, these pay cash out of pocket to bartenders they hire for a one-time or ongoing gig.

Matt Klette, trade advocacy manager for the Deutsch Family Spirits Portfolio, devised a program for Redemption Whiskey and Gray Whale Gin that has both brands individually paying bartenders $350 each to write a recipe and present the resulting drink during a live 20-minute “Virtual Bar” segment streamed on Instagram.

Combined, the two brands have fielded 2,000 inquiries and 1,200 recipes from around the world (though they’re only hiring US-based bartenders) and are planning to schedule around 30 episodes each.

“This is a fun way to show the versatility of our products with some of the bartenders’ creative modern cocktails,” he says. “It’s also fun for consumers to get a peek behind the curtain of what goes into making these cocktails - the bartenders are right there showing you how to do it.”

Interested bartenders can email Info@Redemptionwhiskey.com to submit Redemption recipes and info@gwspirits.com to submit for Gray Whale, and Klette selects his favorites on a rolling basis. He asks his chosen creators to shoot a short video of themselves making their drink and each brand streams their respective videos on IG the day of the bartender’s appearance. On the given night, depending on the brand, either he or the co-founder of Gray Whale interviews the bartender live on IG Stories while both host and guest make the drink at their homes. Redemption airs a new interview every Sunday and Tuesday, while Gray Whale broadcasts on Thursdays and Saturdays at 8pm EDT.

The program is set to run ten more weeks – the Deutsch Family portfolio has allocated $20,000 for “payroll” — but may extend it if they continue to receive enough irresistible submissions … and the bar industry remains closed.

“It’s one thing to get a handout but there’s some dignity in getting hired to do what you do best,” says Gray Whale co-founder Marsh Mokhtari, who pays out immediately via Venmo. He enjoys giving these bartenders an opportunity to build their brand through their interviews, during which he might chat with them about their inspiration, their career journey, their pre-COVID travels or their new baby.

He also brings a lighthearted touch by trying out the recipe himself alongside the expert.

“Sometimes I’m an epic failure. Sometimes we’ve had them be so complicated like involving rice washing – it’s like milk washing – and I’m like, ‘What is this and where the hell am I going to get these ingredients right now?!’” he says.

Not all of the program organizers produce spirits. In a creative twist on alcohol delivery, events company Sourced Craft Cocktails has launched two similar programs, both of which pay their bartenders. In one program, a company that wants to bring its employees together for a virtual happy hour can set a date and time and a Sourced bartender will bring a cocktail kit to each employee’s house (in a few specified cities). Each kit contains a recipe and fresh ingredients for four servings of a drink the employee has selected off a menu.

At the prescribed time, the employees log into a dedicated site where they’ll find the bartender leading a class on how to make each of their drinks.

A residential program has a bartender delivering a 750 ml bottle of a spirit to a customer’s house along with a batch of fresh mixer to go along with it. This version doesn’t come with a lesson or a virtual party but between both programs, Sourced has put $59,790.14 in hourly wages and travel reimbursements in bartenders’ pockets since March.

For one such bartender, the experience has also meant more than money.

“Without being able to keep my hands busy and creating an experience for people, I’ve found myself feeling a little lost, to say the least,” says Los Angeles’ Dakota Nate. “This new program has not only given me back my creative edge but driven me into a new ritual of daily affirmation and appreciation that I plan on bringing into my day to day once life as usual resumes again. Not to mention, driving around Los Angeles in the middle of what would be rush hour traffic is absolutely bonkers."

Sourced has themed packages for holidays like birthdays, Mother’s Day and, not surprisingly, Cinco de Mayo. This festive drinking holiday probably couldn’t have come sooner this year, both for starving businesses and restless citizens.

Social media analytics firm ListenFirst reports that social media engagement around Cinco de Mayo has fallen into a progressive and precipitous decline. Now forced to reach their audiences in new ways with new messaging, engagement is picking up as alcohol brands are changing tactics.

Mokhtari says Gray Whale’s social media posts usually get around 250-300 likes. His Virtual Bar posts, however, receive around 1,500 each.

ListenFirst finds that, coincidentally, a Patron Instagram photo post about where to buy the spirit for home delivery or in take-out cocktails generated 3,025 responses over the week ending May 4 – more than any other Cinco post on the platform. That compares with an average 213 responses to Cinco social media posts by other liquor brands over the same period.

The enthusiasm for the post, labeled with the #SimplyCinco tag, bodes well for Tuesday’s margarita marathon.  

As the cocktail bandits write, “Margaritas are a party in a glass, and for some reason, margaritas make everyone happy!”

Its success could compel the spirits brand, which has placed itself among the world’s most generous during this time of need, to launch additional campaigns that support consumers emotionally and bartenders financially. After all, everyone could use a shot of extra happiness these days … and nights, as well.

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