What was your first job in the beverage or hospitality industry ? Ironically enough , my first job was as a bus boy working under the table when I was 12 years old at a Greek restaurant in my home town of Reading , PA .

What is your favorite spirit to work with at the moment ? My favorite spirit is gin right now — there are so many great ones out there , and they have unique botanicals that add such great aromatics and complexities to cocktails .

Avra ’ s Wine List includes more than 1,200 varieties and spans the globe ; what are some of the more unusual offerings ? At our multiple Avra locations , I try to have something for everyone , but something new I just added to to the Rockefeller Center location is Silva Daskalaki “ Grifos .” The wine is from Crete in Greece , made from a white grape called vidiano .

It has extended skin contact made in amphorae clay pots , then aged is

barrels . Due to the skin contact , the color of the wine comes off orange . It has a brightness and freshness while showing off a profound structure . I bought every last case in New York City !

How did Avra ’ s own branded wine offerings come about ? When we looked at having our very own Avra wines , we most importantly wanted the wines to be well made and balanced for their style . The main question when going through the process was , “ Do I want to have another glass of this ?”

We are very proud of our friends that have helped us realize this . Our Cyclades assyrtiko was released in 2021 , our Napa Valley cabernet in May 2022 , and we are very excited for our Provence rosé to come , which we are anticipating in January 2023 .

Avra ’ s list of spirits spans in the hundreds with 25 varieties and includes hard-to-find-American whiskies and Shibui whisky from Japan . What spirits have been popular with guests ? The Shibui line up is absolutely stunning and authentic as it comes from Okinawa — I put

them up against anyone . However , what is the most popular would have to be tequila .

I cannot remember another time where all the chat was about tequila . Clase Azul has always been towards the top of convo . I just brought in the very coveted Día de los Muertos 2022 release from them . The bottle is remarkable in its flavors and colorful handmade decanter that is finished off in Martinique rum casks .

Another stunner is the single estate Maestro Dobel “ 1967 ” Extra Añejo tequila ; truly a sipper among the best .

Do the cocktails follow a Mediterranean theme to go with the food concept ? They do — and naming them is one of my guilty pleasures . Their names follow everything from Greek mythology to Greek landmarks .

The cocktail program includes traditional recipes , andunique and fun flavors . We infuse Greek spirits , such as rakomelo tsipouro ( Greek grappa aged with honey / spices / herbs ) in the Rockefeller Center location ’ s Onassis Manhattan and in Miami we use mastiha ( digestive made from tree sap in Chios , Greece ) to make our Mojito .

What ’ s your current goto cocktail or beverage ? My favorite cocktail right now is our Poseidon ’ s Potion at the Rockefeller location . It is a play on a traditional cocktail called a Last Word . I substitute Luxardo maraschino with a rosemary syrup that we infuse in-house .

POSEIDON ’ S POTION

1 oz . Arbikie ’ s Kirsty gin 1 oz . Green Chartreuse 1 oz . Rosemary syrup 1 oz . Fresh lime juice 1 Egg white

Dry shake ( without ice ) all of the ingredients first . Add ice and shake again . Strain into a coupe glass . Garnish with a lime twist .

8 • Winter 2022

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