Source: San Antonio Express-NewsSept.迷你倉新蒲崗 07--On Wednesday, 12 people paid $1,500 each for probably a once-in-a-lifetime chance to taste a dram from one the rarest bottles of whisky on the planet: The Glenfiddich 50 Year Old Scotch Whisky, worth $25,000. It was one of only six bottles available in the U.S. this year.And that wasn't the only unique bottle at the dinner. The extraordinary tasting event at Bar 1919 in Southtown also featured dinner pairings by Feast executive chef Stefan Bowers to an all-star lineup of six single-malt whiskies; the youngest bottle was 15 years old.Even two years ago, a tasting of this caliber more likely would have been in Austin or Houston instead of here.Long known more for margaritas, beer and Tex-Mex than a cocktail culture, San Antonio bars were accustomed to playing second-fiddle to other Texas cities.Previously, when national liquor representatives visited Texas, they tended to schedule appointments in Houston or Dallas and lumped San Antonio into a Central Texas region based in Austin.But that has changed as the city's exposure has increased with events such as the San Antonio Cocktail Conference, which attracts bartenders from all over the country.Also, the city has attracted national and international media attention: the Wall Street Journal Weekend Edition featured The Granary 'Cue & Brew in its Food & Drink section; Esquire magazine's blog also gave The Granary some love and listed The Esquire Tavern in its list of America's Best Bars; Southern Living sang the praises of Southtown and its restaurants in a feature devote to the neighborhood; the U.K.'s The Guardian featured a top 10 list of San Antonio cafes and restaurants; Imbibe magazine, dubbed "the ultimate guide to liquid culture," featured several San Antonio bars in its first all-Texas issue this spring; and Bravo's "Top Chef: Texas" season shined a big spotlight on the city, too.And locally, there are more people appreciating the cocktail revolution and supporting the 10 craft bars that have opened in the past four years -- keeping pace with the booming culinary scene here.San Antonio now is a serious booze market, so serious that WB Liquors and Woodford Reserve are using it to test a new way to sell whiskey, which could become a model for the rest of the country. (Scotch whiskies are spelled "whisky" and all others are "whiskey.")"I think it really puts us on the map," Bar 1919 owner Don Marsh said of the dinner. "We're going to get recognition that San Antonio is a player in this (whisky) market as well."Brent Taylor, VP of marketing WB Liquors, couldn't agree more."I just think that (San Antonio is) a growing market. I think you're starting to see clearly set itself apart from Austin."The growing cocktail culture in San Antonio doesn't mean the city has forgotten its old friend, tequila, but it is appreciating better quality agave spirits.Juan Pablo De Loera is the Texas ambassador for Mexico-based Milagro Tequila, which won the two highest awards at the San Francisco World Spirits Competition -- a Double Gold medal and Best in Show across all white spirits. When De Loera was hired nearly two years ago, he was given the option to live anywhere in the state."One of the reasons I chose San Antonio was naturally, the relationship it has with Mexico both culturally and geographically. And, it's like a gateway between Mexico to Texas. It's just a natural market for tequila and whiskey because whiskey is very big in Mexico as well," he said.De Loera sees San Antonio maturing as families move here from Mexico and California and other states, attracted by a healthier Texas economy."I think this influx of people who are coming from areas where they have 'a more developed scene in food and beverage' (brings) a more discerning co迷你倉出租sumer. ... Even the local San Antonio consumer is understanding quality spirits better and quality foods and pairings."So San Antonio is seeing higher-profile liquor events.In fact, it was during a recent Woodford Reserve dinner at Bohanan's Steakhouse -- which hosts the San Antonio Cocktail Conference -- that Woodford master distiller Chris Morris divulged that San Antonio is its test market for a different approach to selling whiskey.Whereas most liquor stores organize brown spirits by categories such as Canadian whiskey, bourbon and Irish-blended whiskey, the test concept introduced in the past month at the WB Liquors at The Colonnade focuses on flavor profile instead. Brown-Forman Corp., which owns Woodford, approached Texas-based WB Liquors with the concept several months ago after researching customer patterns and determining that flavor profile is No. 1 in the decision-making process; brand is No. 4.WB Liquors' Taylor said he chose The Colonnade store for the test because its whiskey market still is growing. The whiskeys now are organized by flavored, light and gentle, flavorful and spicy, and full-bodied and robust.The system resembles a restaurant wine list, which is familiar for people; and most importantly, it's familiar to women, who increasingly are appreciating more whiskey."We're the only retailer (doing this) in the whole U.S.," Taylor said. Next, the company will test the concept at one of its stores in El Paso.Morris will be watching with interest."This is a great, great market, a growing market, Texas in general," he said.David Allardice, the Glenfiddich ambassador for the region including Texas, agrees.He found what he considers a hidden gem on his first visit to Bar 1919 at the Blue Star Arts Complex, which is what helped convince him to hold the Glenfiddich dinner in San Antonio."I thought, 'Wow, this is a proper, serious whisky drinkers' bar, a Scotch drinkers' bar.' And I got to talking to Don (Marsh, owner) and the guy's pretty passionate."Allardice thinks Bar 1919's brown spirits selection, which includes more than 100 single-malts from every region, could stand up against bars in any major city.In 2009, Scotland-based Glenfiddich picked two 50-year-old casks and bottled them together. From that, 50 bottles were to be released each year for the next 10 years. Six of those come to the United States each year, but most are purchased by private collectors.Allardice said he knows of only one other bar in his region with a bottle: Gigi's Asian Bistro in Houston's Galleria."They charge $1,500 for a dram," he said.Wednesday's event, a mix of paying guests and industry people, included not only a dram of the 50, but also samplings of Glenfiddich 21 Year Old, 30 Year Old, 1974 Vintage that's no longer available in the market, Cask of Dreams and a mystery bottle -- a 15 Year Old cask strength.The 12 paying guests were all men. Among them was a gentleman's club owner, a bank owner from Austin, and a former liquor store chain owner. At least three of the diners were from the far North Side and had no idea a bar with such an extensive whisky selection existed here.Mark Franklin, the former liquor store owner, and the only diner who offered his name for this article, drove in from Austin with his bank owner friend to attend the event."There are no tastings like this that I've been invited to in Austin," he said after the dinner.In case you're wondering, there's still some of the 50 Year Old whisky available at Bar 1919. A 1 \-ounce pour costs $1,500, and the bottle is being kept locked away in a very safe place.jmcinnis@express-news.netTwitter: @JenMcInnisCopyright: ___ (c)2013 San Antonio Express-News Visit the San Antonio Express-News at .mysanantonio.com Distributed by MCT Information Services迷你倉
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