Behind every great bar experience is a team of professionals shaping what, where and how we drink – from bartenders and venue managers to brand ambassadors and drinks consultants.
In this series, Bars & Cocktails sits down with the people behind the scenes and behind the bar to celebrate their careers and their craft. Each week, we’ll talk drinks, service, culture and community, and dive into the real conversations happening behind the bar.
Few know how to tell a brand’s story quite like Andy Tsai. As Jack Daniel’s Brand Ambassador for Australia and Brown-Forman Premium Spirits BA for NSW/ACT, he’s become a familiar face across the bar scene – and in 2024, he was crowned Best Brand Ambassador at the Australian Liquor Industry Awards.
Bars & Cocktails: How long have you been in the bar/drinks industry, and what is it about the industry that continues to excite you?
Andy Tsai: Prior to joining Brown-Forman, I spent 14 years across cafes, restaurants, pubs, nightclubs, cocktail and whisky bars, in roles from glassy all the way up to GM. Since joining Brown-Forman in 2020, I have spent two years in a sales role, and nearly four years in brand advocacy. There are several things about our amazing drinks industry that still excite me, but I would have to say it’s the people. You can have the best cocktail of your life, a 50-year-old Scotch by an open fire, a frosty lager after a 40km marathon, but without someone to let us put our feet up whilst they serve us a drink, without ambassadors to tell us the stories and build genuine love for brands, and without the warm welcome and greeting of our frontline friends in hospitality and bev alcohol.. A drink is just a drink!
I am always impressed and excited by the energy and passion of the people in our industry, the older generation passing on their knowledge, and the next wave of drinks specialists and hospo workers bringing their fresh ideas and their drinks innovations. It’s a warm, inclusive family and it feels like home!
B&C: Can you tell us about your current role and what it entails?
AT: I certainly can! I am currently the Jack Daniel’s Brand Ambassador for Australia, and Brown-Forman Premium Spirits BA for NSW/ACT. This role is a constantly evolving mixture of trade/bartender trainings including spirits education, storytelling and cocktail classes, and customer-facing events like dinners, sensory tastings, and immersive brand experiences.
B&C: What makes a good bartender a great bartender beyond just making drinks?
AT: I recall a very special moment visiting a small bar in Sydney when I was still bartending myself, and I was greeted warmly, given a menu, a seat at the bar, and a glass of water. I’d had a really bad day and didn’t feel like making any decisions or even small talk (a rare occurrence for me haha). The bartender perked me up with a failed napkin toss which landed perfectly in my lap and we both laughed. It was how my day was going. He kept it short and asked if I was feeling sweet, sour or bitter with a cheeky smile. I said all of the above, and he proceeded to make me an excellent Woodford Paper Plane.
By the end of my visit (and four cocktails later) I was chatting away and laughing, clearly loving being distracted and taken on a tour of flavour. A great bartender greets you warmly, senses your energy, and knows when to take you on a journey or just make you feel safe and welcome. A strong greeting and a warm farewell never goes astray either!
B&C: What’s a drink trend you’re loving right now and one you wish would go away?
AT: I’m not ashamed to say I love a clarified drink. The mind says it’s water, the body smiles back suggestively. Specifically a clarified Pina Colada – more of these please!
What could I do without? Anything overly rich and sickly like a maple bacon fat-washed Manhattan, etc.
B&C: Can you tell us what your favourite bar is and why? What’s your go-to drink when visiting?
I can’t tell you what my favourite bar is as it’s a constantly evolving answer depending on my mood, but an all-time great for me is Fortunate Son in Enmore. Warmest hugs, crispest high-fives, playful and balanced drinks, and the tunes that I never tire of. If you play rock and alternative music, set the timers for 1960, to click their last click at 2000, with a pinch of grunge and a splash of punk, I’ll warm your seat all night! I’ll always hassle the team for a Paper Plane or a Smoke & a Pancake.
B&C: What’s the best cocktail you’ve ever had, and where did you have it?
AT: This question is so hard! But I can tell you one of the most unique drinks I’ve had (which resonated and blew me away) was called the Minestrini, at Two Schmucks in Barcelona. It was a savoury Italian Martini with Fords Gin, parmigiano, white vermouth, minestrone syrup and pickled tomato. With every sip I kept smelling and staring down into it, smiling and totally intrigued.
A strong second place has to go to Hippo & Co in Canberra, which was essentially a Jack Daniel’s Rye Manhattan riff, but the bartender had made some of his red wine wastage into a shrub, and mixed it with a beetroot syrup. It was stirred and served up in a frosty Nick & Nora, it was earthy, bitter, sour and sweet. Delicious!
B&C: If you could have a drink with any person, dead or alive, who would it be and what would you drink?
AT: I would have a boilermaker with Wyatt Earp. Jack Daniel’s can pour the whiskey and they could both regale me of their tales from the Frontier.
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