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Takuma Watanabe unveils his take on a ‘Grand Encounter’
In its latest ‘Grand Encounter behind the bar’ series, Grand Marnier challenges celebrated mixologist Takuma Watanabe to meld classic and modern influences.
The distinctive silhouette, resembling a pot still in orange glass, is a familiar sight on backbars around the world. As an orange liqueur, it is an invaluable weapon in the mixologist’s arsenal, featuring in classic recipes for more than a century. Yet Grand Marnier, in its latest video content series, is demonstrating that the classic liqueur has some modern tricks up its sleeve.
The series, ‘The Grand Encounter: Behind the Bar’, takes its inspiration from the liqueur’s longstanding recipe. Its own ‘grand encounter’ of Cognac and bitter orange liqueur combines French heritage with contemporary Bigaradia oranges. Although known for its hero serve, the Grand Margarita, Grand Marnier is versatile enough to mix into a number of classic cocktails, as well as brand new creations.
The series therefore challenges world-leading bartenders to come up with their own recipes that combine unlikely elements in pursuit of an unexpected collision that, ultimately, produces something extraordinary. Takuma Watanabe is the second to take on the challenge, with his episode titled ‘Classic + Modern’ which sees him reinvent the classic martini, with a modern twist.
Operating out of New York, Watanabe melds the city’s vibrant spirit of creativity with his Japanese heritage. His bar Martiny’s, ranked fourth in North America’s 50 Best Bars 2024, finds inspiration everywhere, with drinks paying homage to everything from tea ceremonies to tiramisu. His second venture, L’Americana, opened earlier this year, expanding his repertoire with an Italian influence. Lastly, his latest bar, Midnight Blue, merges cocktails and jazz into one experience for locals in New York City.
The martini (as might be suggested by his bar’s name) has a special place in Watanabe’s heart. He was also inspired by the classic sweet of orangette (candied orange dipped in chocolate). Hence, he took the classic element – the martini’s core structure – and heightened it with modern twists: earl grey, cacao and, of course, Grand Marnier. Running through the cocktail with bar entrepreneur Carina Soto Velasquez, he explains how the drink adheres to his mixology philosophy.
“This Grand Encounter of classic and modern day, from techniques to inspiration, inspires my day-to-day across both of my bars and their teams who, as they work together and interact, represent the art of the Grand Encounters themselves through the harmonious collision of their many different backgrounds and generations.” commented Watanabe. “My focus, eternally, is on exploring something new, whilst remaining reverent to the past”
Velasquez has hosted the series with a view to exploring mixology with some of the world’s best bartenders. On that, she has some authority: she has opened a portfolio of bars in Paris, winning global awards for her entrepreneurial approach.
She also knows something of the spirit of the ‘grand encounter’, as she brings her Columbian heritage to the Paris drinking scene. That spirit has reached even further this year, as she recently joined Equal Parts, a cocktail bar with an agave focus in Hackney, London.
She saw Hugo Togni – whose Bar Pompette was a fellow honouree in North America’s 50 Best Bars 2024 – create a Margarita Suzette in the first episode of the series, titled ‘Paris + the World’. The series will then conclude in November with the final episode featuring Deniseea Head, titled ‘Elevated + Local’.
In fact, Togni and Watanabe are about to have their very own ‘Grand Encounter’. In celebration of World’s 50 Best Bars, the duo will host a bar takeover at Mauz in Madrid on 20 October. For one night only, they will bring their ‘Grand Encounter: Behind the Bar’ concept, referencing both ‘Paris + The World’ and ‘Classic + Modern’, to a genre-defying, continent-spanning takeover. With wide-ranging influences proving the value of audacious flavour combinations, the evening promises to encapsulate the essence of Grand Marnier’s ‘Grand Encounters’.
The ’Grand Encounter: Behind the Bar’ video content series has worked in partnership with Campari Academy US, a hub designed to educate, spark conversations and inspire bartenders of all levels. Bartenders can head to the platform to discover the rest of the ‘Grand Encounter’ series and more.
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