Vol. 10, No. 8 | Before Sunset: Paris to London

Hey Ya’ll!

I’m writing this on a train from Paris to London, sitting next to Thandi, so this feels like the perfect time to remind you that Shebeen is coming up in two weeks. I’d love to see some of you there! Tickets are here.

I’ve been on the road nonstop for two weeks with another two weeks to go. Here’s what I’ve been thinking about:

• Detroit - I haven’t been to Detroit in ten years and the last time I was there, it was January and so I went from the airport to the recording studio we were staying at (who am I?) and stayed there for three days until it was time to get back to the airport. This time, the weather cooperated and it was nice to see more of the city. We hosted an event at Father Forgive Me and I loved the space so much that I came back the next day during regular hours to work and drink some orange wine. I’d consider moving there for this spot if I wasn’t so intimately familiar with Detroit winters.

• London - This is the most time I’ve spent in London. I’ve been incredibly impressed with the produce. I always felt like France had the best produce, but I now think I was wrong. London has it beat. I also like London restaurants much more than I thought I did. A few great eats last week: Bistro Freddie and Nessa.

• Paris - I arrived in Paris exhausted after peopling for two weeks. Fortunately, Thandi wasn’t feeling well (I know this sounds ridiculous…don’t worry, she saw this and laughed) so I had the chance to stay in my hotel. It reminded me how much I enjoy taking a down day while traveling to just rest and watch Netflix.

• De Vie - We went to dinner at De Vie last night to celebrate Thandi’s birthday and the food didn’t disappoint. This is still one of my favorite restaurants this year. It’s confusing because it’s a cocktail bar that does a pairing dinner. I’ll be honest, the cocktails aren’t my favorite. But I’ll go back every time because the experience is so perfect.

• Ice - I’ve been in a lot of seminars and conversations with bartenders over the past few weeks and there’s been so many thoughts around ice and the temperature of drinks. De Vie for example is an iceless bar. They batch all their cocktails and then chill their glassware with liquid nitrogen. A cold glass and perfect temperature on a cocktail, for many bartenders, is the mark of a quality bar and doing things to standards. However, I’ve been thinking a lot about places like the Caribbean where this is pretty much impossible. Ice melts incredibly fast. I’m still swirling some thoughts around this but I think this is such a Eurocentric view. Or maybe they’re right and that’s what a cocktail should be. And then that reminds me why I prefer drinks…sometimes cocktails, sometimes something else entirely. (Drinks at Shebeen will have proper ice because Thandi makes cocktails. Fool around with me and you’d be getting a ti’ punch.)

• Cocktail Bars - There’s a shift going on in cocktail bars. I’ve been observing this younger generation and what they’re starting to get excited about again are classic cocktails. Cocktails that are made really well without the modern techniques like clarification or carbonation. They weren’t in the industry when the cocktail renaissance started 20 years ago, so this is them going back to the past. It’s interesting to see this cycle. I, for one, welcome it. Most of the time, I just want a well-made daiquiri…rum, lime and sugar. I also think it aligns with where things are in the world. Everything feels so complicated. Simplicity in cocktails/drinks is a refreshing change.

Hope you’re all well!

Shannon

(P.S. - Did anyone get the movie reference in the newsletter title? Before Sunset is one of my favorite movies. Talk about simplicity. The entire movie is a couple walking through Paris, just talking.)