Allow us to introduce a man who needs no introduction. Simon Ford is truly a name that everyone in the industry knows whether they’ve worked with him, drank with him or simply just heard his name. He’s been a bartender, a bar owner, a global brand ambassador, a beverage journalist, host and producer of the “Spirited Awards” at Tales of the Cocktail and launched a spirits company, The 86 Co., that has been widely celebrated and embraced by the industry.
You might think that a beverage renaissance man as much success as Ford would have a Kanye like ego, but no, the truth is you’d be pressed to find a nicer guy. Although I can’t remember the exact instance when I met Simon Ford (let’s just pretend it was Tales, because it probably was at some point) but we became fast friends and one of Thirsty’s favorite drinking buddies. He is insanely hilarious, incredibly knowledgable, genuinely gregarious, intensely passionate and surprisingly humble.
We are still waiting for him to move back to NYC, but until then, he has some spot on recommendations and terrific shout outs for you to get familiar with no matter what industry you are in. So since this is one of our absolute favorites ever, ladies and gentlemen, let’s go drinking with Simon Ford.
We all know that you love all spirits and are quite the expert, but you had to get your start somewhere. Tell us about very first time that you got properly tipsy and what were you drinking?
I come from the West Country of England, which is famous for being the home of Scrumpy, an unusually strong, and generally unfiltered hard cider. We would pick it up from local farms and get sloshed on it on school camping trips (sorry to my teachers).
What is your current go-to drink order?
If I go to a proper cocktail bar, I will be the annoying guy that asks for ‘dealers choice’. I like a bar to give me a signature drink or the cocktails they do best. Given what I do, it would be silly for me to walk into a great cocktail bar and not try their cocktails.
Outside of those moments, my current go to drinks order is a glass of champagne to start, followed by a Fords Gin Martini, and then over to a good bottle of Pinot Noir.
What is your favorite places to hang out over a drink or 3 when you are in NYC?
That might be the toughest question I have ever been asked. New York is still my favorite city to drink in and my favorite night out because it has so many places I love and so much variety and because I go out pretty much every night when I am there. I have accumulated a decent list of staple drinking dens for myself. I do have to say that a good evening in New York often starts with a seafood platter, cocktails and champagne at Maison Premiere in Williamsburg.
However, more recently Caffe Dante has become my new favorite hangout and a place where I can go to get lost in time. On my last visit to NYC, I popped in for an aperitif and left eight hours later because I was having so much fun and felt so relaxed there.
Finally, a trip to New York always feels incomplete if I don’t visit the Clover Club and the NoMad. These days when I visit New York, I often make a pact with myself that I will not go to Mothers Ruin or Employees Only. However, I inevitably end up at Mothers Ruin and Employees Only usually without remembering how I got there or what time I left.
Coffee or Tea?
Like all good Brits, I drink 2-3 cups of tea a day. However, I am really only a tea drinker at home because, despite the amazing emerging coffee movement happening in the US right now, it is still very difficult to find a good cup of tea. There’s a great Japanese Tea House called Cha An in the East Village that I like but I am still on the hunt for a good traditional English Tea (if anyone has any recommendations….).
When I buy teas for my home, I shop from The Rare Tea Cellars and In Pursuit of Tea. Both have some of the best Teas I have ever come across. I actually got to spend some time with the man behind In Pursuit of Teas, Sebastian Beckwith. His job is to travel the world in search of exotic teas, which is my dream career move if my liver tells me ‘no more to cocktails’.
I do drink coffee at least once a day when I go out. I am partial to the coffee at Ninth Street Espresso and there is a chain of Swedish coffee shops called Fika that I quite like. My controversial statement for this interview is that I think the best coffee in the world is served in Australia and Sweden.
I think the best coffee in the world is served in Australia and Sweden.
You are kind of a big deal with an extensive resume, rolodex and your own spirits company, not to mention that you are the MC of The Spirited Awards at Tales of the Cocktail. How did you get started in the biz?
I am? And I still can’t believe they trust me with that microphone at Tales of the Cocktail each year. My start in this industry happened when I was 18. I took a job in a fine wine and spirits store. One of the first things I (stupidly but luckily) said was ‘I don’t drink red wine’. My then boss sent me home that evening with a bottle of Malbec from Cahors and told me to write about the wine, complete with production, background and tasting notes. It would be the beginning of my education in wine, which I continued until I received a Wine and Spirits Education Trust Diploma that I studied through when I was running a wine shop in London called Oddbins, (that was just opposite The Savoy Hotel where I started getting a taste for cocktails). I loved it so much that I worked a few grape harvests in France. Eventually, my interest moved on to spirits and from there I got into cocktails.
Where do you take out-of-towners for cocktails for an “Only in NY” experience?
I like to take out-of-towners on a mini tour of what I consider quintessential NYC experiences. It starts with a burger at PJ Clarkes, a trip up to the Top of The Rock, (2) beers at McSorley’s Old Ale House and a walk across the Brooklyn Bridge, and, if I am feeling flush we will grab food at the River Café and enjoy the view and if I am feeling thrifty we get in the line for pizza at Grimaldi’s.
Strictly for the lovers, what is your favorite spot for a romantic date night drink in NYC?
I think the most romantic restaurant in New York is Peasant but the places I like to go for romantic drinks on a date start with an aperitif at Amor Y Amargo. Let’s be honest here, ordering an aperitif looks sophisticated. Knowing an excellent aperitif bar where to order a good aperitif is not only sophisticated, it’s impressive and sexy. The real romance starts after dinner though (how cheesy do I sound right now?) which, for me, would either mean drinking bottles of wine at Terroir or grabbing cocktails in a quiet corner at Death and Co or PDT. I actually think I might be the last person left in the World that still enjoys the novelty of walking through a hot dog joint and a phone box and to get to a quiet little cocktail bar but I don’t care, besides they always play great music and their drinks rock.
Most under the radar impressive bar in NYC?
Dear Irving is the hidden treasure of New York for me. They serve exquisite cocktails in an exquisite setting and I think The Daily deserves more recognition than it gets.
Any recent cocktails or menus in NYC that are blowing your mind?
I really like what Nico de Soto is doing with his menu at Mace. Following a guide of botanical flavors makes all of the cocktails look really inviting and I find it hard not ordering at least three that sounds delicious. I think is impossible to discuss cocktail menus and not mention The Dead Rabbit. They have taken cocktail menus to a new level with what they have been doing. It’s a book and it’s beautiful with fantastic art and I think they have their own unique style of drinks also.
Another favorite cocktail menu of mine is the one at Pouring Ribbons. I love the flavor map on the front page that has been designed to guide guests through a choice of cocktails for their mood and palate. Doing this must really challenge the bar to have cocktails covering all styles in all areas of taste sensation and it has lead to a really complete and concise menu.
What’s your favorite Brunch (AKA day drinking) spot in NYC?
Day drinking is my favorite type of drinking without a doubt. If you start at brunch you will probably be done by 10PM and in bed early enough for it not to ruin the following day. The Clover Club in Carroll Gardens is my favorite place to do this. They do a mean Bloody Mary and they show brunch goers that there is so much more that can be done with brunch cocktails. They also have some very decadent eats to compliment the drinking.
Best meal pairing experience you ever had?
Eleven Madison Park when Leo Robitchek was there. The wines and cocktails that were paired with our meal were exquisite and somewhere in the middle of our 15 fantastic courses of deliciousness we were escorted to a small bar in the kitchen where Leo made us a handful of insanely creative cocktails to go with a handful of special dishes. They were 3 Michelin star quality cocktails being paired with our 3 Michelin star dinner.
What is your hangover remedy?
Lots of caffeine (coffee and tea), lots of dark chocolate, and a handful of smoothies and juices despite people around me telling me that these juices are nothing but sugar – I don’t care; they are making me feel better about my existence. It’s either this or more booze, so they should just leave me alone. I also can’t seem to stop eating when I am hungover.
The 86 Co. has a cast of true characters, who is the best drinking buddy for a wild night out?
Me :) Most of the 86 Co are smart enough to know when to put the breaks on when needed and save their soul, liver and brain capacity for the next morning however there are two of us in the company that may never learn this art which is Jason Kosmas and I. Jason Kosmas is way more down to earth than I though. He will take you to a dive bar in the East Village until they kick you out (usually Box Car) whereas I would opt for the fancier quality cocktails at Attaboy or Oysters and Wine at Blue Ribbon. With this said, Tim Cooper is now on the team and a night with Tim is like rolling a dice.
Special shout to any NYC bartenders or drinks makers out there that you do your best to visit when in New York and you think deserve some special love?
I trip to New York is not complete for me if I don’t get to see Jamie Gordon, Julie Reiner, Leo Robitcheck, Joaquin Simo, Ivy Mix, Naren Young, Maxwell Britton, Kenta Goto, Allen Katz, Frankie Marshall and TJ Lynch, if I can find him. The icing on the cake is when I get to grab a Guinness with Sean Muldoon. I have a list of people I would love to see more of when I visit New York but I only occasionally get the chance to.
Toby Cecchini, Eben Freeman, Dave Wondrich, Steve Olson, Don Lee, Greg Boehm, Dale DeGroff, Eben Klem, Shawn Kelley, Chris Patino and Robert Simonson are part of the reason I will move back to New York one day.
What are you most proud of in your career thus far?
I am only just coming to terms with being proud of this because the journey has been a tough one but creating Fords Gin is the thing I am most proud of in my career so far. The recipe for Fords took 4 years and 83 versions to create before I was happy and I believe all the time we spent perfecting the recipe paid off. It has received some really great reviews, won some prestigious awards and I see it being served in some of the best bars in the world. I would have never of guessed when I got my first job in a wine shop that one day my name would be on a bottle of my favorite spirit.
Do you have a mentor or someone you look up to or people to thank?
There are so many to mention. Here are some of the people that have mentored me that I feel it is important for me to mention (now that you have given me the chance)
- Wayne Collins for teaching me to how bartend and getting me started on my cocktail history
- Charles Rolls (Co-Founder of Fever Tree Tonic) and Oliver Payton (Famed London Restaurateur and food television personality) for being the best sounding boards an anxious first time entrepreneur could have wanted when I was starting The 86 Company.
- Steve Olson and Doug Frost were the first to give me an education in Spirits when they brought the Sterling School of Spirits to London about 16 years ago.
- Dave Wondrich for continuingly teach me cocktail history and forever being my favorite partner in crime
- Dale DeGroff, Audrey Saunders, Allen Katz, Julie Reiner, Shawn Kelly, Ana Jovancicevic, Jacques Bezedenhout and Gary Regan for taking me in and welcoming me to the USA when I first arrived, It was amazing to have such a great group of like minded friends form the offset. Without them NYC (and San Francisco) would have been a very lonely place(s).
- Finally I would like to mention a gentleman called Nick Blacknell who has been my most constant mentor throughout my career. He is one of the great marketing geniuses of the spirits world. He was the Director of Marketing when I worked for Ideal Brands (Absolut, Chivas, Perrier Jouet, Martell, Cognac, Bulliet Bourbon) in the 90’s, he was the director of Marketing at Plymouth Gin and guided me through launching the brand in 8 countries and when I moved to Pernod Ricard he took over as the Director of Marketing for Beefeater Gin followed by Jameson’s Whiskey and his talents are now being utilized at Havana Club. There is only one part of my career that he hasn’t mentored me on is my journey as an entrepreneur with The 86 Co. In fact I am pretty sure he thinks I am mad for doing it.
Any advice for aspiring young guns wanting to break into the industry?
What I have always liked about this industry is that mostly the good people who work hard are the ones that end up doing well. My advice to anyone wanting to break into the industry is that you have to be humble and you can’t lose your sense of humor as humor goes a really long way in this business. We should remind ourselves that part of our role as members of the hospitality industry is to keep the energy positive whether we are creating a relaxing night or starting the party.
Please try to notice the good things that people are doing and if you have to point out the negative do so in a constructive way. Take what you do seriously, but not yourself and please remember that we are not curing cancer; we are entertaining the privileged people of the world with what we do. I also like to advise people to try and become an expert in something specialized as part of their journey and be known for something.
My passion and expertise has always been gin for example and it has taken me around the world and led to me making my own. I also believe that everyone in our industry should try and find mentors as well as become a mentor and not be afraid to teach and share your own knowledge to inspire others. Our industry is founded on a culture of mentorship and of sharing knowledge and ideas.
Respect the history of our industry but don’t be afraid to be creative and challenge how things are done to push it forward and finally, its a industry made up of equal parts fun, decadence and hard work. Be careful not to burn out.
Spill it ….shameless what are you working on right now at The 86 Co.?
This might be the most exciting month in the history of The 86 Co since we launched back in September 2012 because we have a couple of very exciting things happening right now. Probably the most exciting of them is the imminent arrival of our first new product since we launched. Caña Brava 7 Year Old Reserva Anéja rum, which is also The 86 Co’s first aged spirit, will be available in select markets from December 1st. We are just planning the launch events at the moment.
It is a really significant launch for me personally because it is a reminder of when we started making our first spirit together as a company and with Francisco ‘Don Pancho’ J Fernandez, the first Master Distiller we partnered with when we created Caña Brava 3 Year Old. That happened over seven years ago which I still can’t believe. The rum itself is my new favorite thing to drink too. It has a rich chocolaty flavor with grassy sugar cane notes and it finishes uniquely dry for rum. Dushan and Don Pancho also decided to bottle it at 45% ABV (90 proof) making it work a lot like a Rye Whisky when used for cocktails.
We are making great spirits that work well in cocktails, listening to the ideas of the bartending community that we are a part of and we are providing platforms for the industry to share ideas with each other.
We have just changed the color of the glass for our Fords Gin bottles from clear to green and as gimmicky as that sounds the purpose of us doing this is to encourage bartenders to reuse our bottles. Since launching we have noticed that there are many bars around the country reusing our bottles for water, syrups and juices and it was pointed out on a number of occasions that we should consider making a green glass bottle because bars often reuse green glass bottles to house their lime juice. We basically listened to our bartender friends and decided to do it.
To mark the launch of #FordsGinGoesGreen I just finished a six city tour of seminars with Iain Griffith from the WhiteLyan who was leading a great discussion on how bars can reduce waste, become more sustainable and save money while doing it. I believe that all of this is very much what The 86 Co is about. We are making great spirits that work well in cocktails, listening to the ideas of the bartending community that we are a part of and we are providing platforms for the industry to share ideas with each other. The only downside of doing all of this is that I am exhausted, but I wouldn’t have it any other way.
Details on Simon Ford
Instagram: @Simon_the86co | @Fordsgin | @canabravarum
Twitter: @SimonJFord @Fordsgin
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