A Menu Celebrating French Terroir

This terroir menu aims to pay homage to France. At Moonshiner, we have always had a lot of Italian staff, but also people from all over the world, and France is the country that welcomes us. We have therefore worked on local products and French traditions, and the menu will serve as a guide where each cocktail is a journey, a stroll, a path to discover the twelve selected regions through one or two highlighted products. Our technical mastery allows us to maximize the product to showcase the characteristics of the region, territory, and traditions.

With this new menu, we are inaugurating a series for the coming years. Since our overall concept resembles a tribute guide to France, we can easily imagine other variations, such as a menu inspired by cities, for example.

Creation Process of the Terroir Menu

Nothing is easy in this world. Today, cocktails have truly become like dishes, and the working techniques are vast. This menu took about four and a half months to come to fruition because we wanted to genuinely get to the heart of each product to highlight.

Every team member is important for recipe creation: we share and validate everything. For the new menu, the guidelines were provided by two of my bartenders, and the rest of the team supported them in the development process. Of course, we had meetings to test and define what needed to be modified. There are no real rules for finding inspiration, but when I was more involved in creation, as an Italian, I liked to start from the idea of a dish.

In my eyes, sharing tasks is very important; one must know how to delegate. A head bartender should not be involved in all the small aspects of bar life, precisely because there are many tasks to perform. However, ultimately, for a cocktail to be included on the menu, it must be validated by everyone.

The Choice of an Annual and Conceptual Menu

This new menu is intended to last a year. Since last year, this has been our policy for two reasons: first, many customers want to retest cocktails over a long period; second, some recipes use non-seasonal ingredients – like Champagne or hops – and will therefore remain for the entire duration of the menu.

Of course, some drinks will be subject to seasonality, and their composition will need to be modified. Ideally, we want to maintain the structure and simply change the unavailable ingredient, but nothing guarantees that this will always work; there will be some things to revisit.

I took over Moonshiner in 2018, and at that time, the only concept of the menu was the division between cocktails with or without whiskey. Over time, we realized that customers wanted to be guided in a direction, that we tell them a story by explaining the drinks. We then began to offer themed menus, such as the one inspired by Parisian broths. This change thus originates from customer demand, but now it is also useful for stimulating our team's creativity!

Always a Privilege Given to Whiskey in Cocktails?

Moonshiner offers more whiskey-based cocktails – Scotch, Bourbon, or Japanese – than any other spirit. This remains a hallmark of the bar. Previously, it was common for a customer to say, "make me a cocktail, but not with whiskey, because I don't like its taste," and I would make a small bet by suggesting they try a cocktail with this spirit: if you like it, great, if not, I’ll replace it with something else, and in 80% of cases, it worked.

It is part of our job to introduce new flavors. But I think that in the current state of cocktails worldwide, it is more about offering well-balanced cocktails, and the alcohol now plays a secondary role.

Revamping the Whiskey Menu to Surprise the Customer

For the past two years, I have sensed more interest in cocktails than in whiskey tasting among our clientele. Perhaps this is due to the wonderful rise of cocktails in our establishment?

However, we still have enthusiasts, which is why a revamp of the whiskey menu will take place. Indeed, today, in this field as in all others, customers want to be surprised, discover something different, and not drink what they have already seen 1000 times. Therefore, from 150 references currently, we will reduce to 50. Among these, there will be 30 fixed references, with known and rare labels, and 20 that will have an annual rotation, ideally changing every Whisky Live.

Within this rotating section, there will be five very rare or ultra-premium editions. My ambition is to rebalance the scale (currently 80 – 20) between cocktail and whiskey tasters. When someone asks for the whiskey menu, we always encourage them to ask for advice to try a distillery they don’t know or have never tested. I like to spend a little time with the whiskey enthusiast, discussing their tastes, letting them smell the product among three or four of our selections. Being good advice, in short.

Upcoming Creation of a Classics Menu

We will also soon launch a classics menu, as customers often request it. These will be our own recipes, meaning we will not change the cocktail, but it often happens that the same classic has several recipes. We will therefore offer the classics menu of Moonshiner, including around 50 drinks. There will be no additions of infusions or modifications of ingredients compared to the original recipe, but, in our eyes, the best version of it. This work is already largely done, as we have noted our thoughts and observations over the years regarding our preferences in this area.

On the new menu, apart from the "itinerary," there will also be a section called "off the beaten path" featuring four barrel-aged cocktails. These are classics reworked in our way, with revisited recipes, including the famous Vieux Carré. This is the only cocktail that has been on the menu since the establishment opened. Initially, it was pre-batched and bottled. Now we age it in a small 10-liter barrel for at least two weeks. It’s an iconic drink that remains very popular, even though it fluctuates with the seasons. Personally, when customers ask me for a suggestion after the second or third cocktail, I suggest they try this one, and it is generally well-received.

Pizzeria and Cocktail on Tap

The idea obviously originates from the speakeasy concept, with a pizzeria hiding the bar. There has always been an exchange between bar and pizzeria customers. However, for the past three or four years, a clientele has developed solely for the pizzeria. Since I took over management in 2020, along with the pizzaiolo, we have revamped everything to make the experience more authentically Italian.

Additionally, for a few months now, I have installed a cocktail tap system – a somewhat reworked Spritz; this reinforces the transalpine identity and is very practical, as the space is small, allowing us to offer a form of aperitif. It should be noted that one cannot eat within the Moonshiner, but it is possible to take cocktails from the bar into the pizzeria. The latter is doing well, with about 100 to 120 pizzas per day, but obviously, the bulk of the revenue comes from the bar, as it remains a small pizzeria.

An Italian Bar School?

It is true that there are many Italians in the bar world. Moreover, during the last Top 500 ceremony that brought together everyone from the cocktail bar scene in Paris, I found myself in a room composed of 60% compatriots! In my opinion, we naturally have a welcoming ease, hospitality, while maintaining the professionalism and respect required.

Why is that? I heard someone explain that it comes from childhood, from family gatherings. At Christmas or New Year's, there are many guests at home. Consequently, everyone is a bit stressed in the preparation, but we strive to make everyone feel at home. And, ultimately, this translates into our profession.

I encourage all my bartenders, Italians or not, to talk with the customer – especially if they are alone: where are they from? What do they do? Why did they come here? And actually, I’ve noticed that for an Italian, it’s quite natural; I don’t need to tell them to do it.

Finally, Italy has quite a vast gastronomy: not only does each region have different dishes, but even each city within the same region. Having this culture undoubtedly helps us with creativity. One last note: in the taste world, bitterness is the last taste that the human body develops because, in nature, it is associated with poison. However, we have this ease; it certainly opens up horizons.

A Look at the Italian Cocktail Scene: The Virtues of Dialogue Among Bartenders

The Italian cocktail bar scene has seen considerable development over the last six years. Quality has always been present, as many of today’s renowned cocktail bars, such as Freni e Frizioni, 1930, Jerry Thomas, or Antiquario, have been around for ten or even fifteen years, but they had the good idea to collaborate with each other, to discuss.

When I arrived in Paris, it was also the case: bartenders would discuss and exchange recipes, discoveries among colleagues. Then, it changed a bit and became more closed, similar to what I had experienced in Italy. Fortunately, I feel that it is starting to open up again. Rome and Milan are the two pillars of the Italian cocktail bar scene, and the Roma Bar Show is beginning to gain recognition. The same approach is being replicated internationally: thus, among Italians, during such events, we start exchanging contacts. I think this is the key that explains why the cocktail bar in Italy has developed so much: this collaboration, this type of exchange, sharing.

Moreover, Moonshiner will organize guest events with some of these transalpine establishments.

From Savona to Paris

I am from a small town in the Genoa region called Savona – the birthplace of the citrus-based drink chinotto. Twenty years ago, I was in high school, and one of my friends was opening his bar. I helped him build his establishment, and one day he offered me a chance to work as a part-timer. Creativity, the relationship with customers: it immediately fascinated me to the point of wanting to make it my profession. I then managed a cocktail bar, but my town is quite small, so I also pursued studies in accounting for security.

Later, I was offered to take care of a cocktail bar and beach restaurant. The project was magnificent and worked very well, but the relationship with my employer was not great. In 2015, I came to Paris for a vacation to see friends. During this time, job opportunities arose, and I moved here without knowing how to speak French.

In France, the profession of bartender was already considered a real job, unlike in Italy at the time. And there, it became 110% of my life: I started a bit as a bartender, first in preparations and then increasingly in service - as my understanding of the French language improved. Today, the clientele at Moonshiner is more international, but nine years ago, speaking English was not enough.

I have climbed the ranks over time: bartender, assistant bar manager, to manager of the establishment today. I also manage purchases for the entire group (note: Liquid Corp, which also includes Dirty Dick, Louie Louie, and Oxygen La Défense). My role as manager has allowed me to implement improvements. For instance, I observed that by strictly separating those who handle preparations and the staff assigned to service, each ignored the other's imperatives, and since 2019, I have instituted that everyone should engage in each task to better understand the overall functioning of the bar. I have also established four shifts per week for the team: 10 hours a day, four days a week, and three days off.