We Ask Bartender Aaron Pollack—Why Participate in Martini Week? (May 20 – May 26)

We ask Aaron Pollack, bartender at The Victor Cocktail Bar and Love Street Bar in Chicago why bartenders should participate in Martini Week, May 20- May 26th.

During this year’s Martini Week, The Victor Cocktail Bar and Love Street bars will be serving the CALM WATERS Martini made with Junipero Gin, Tattersall Blueberry Amaro, Domaine de Canton French Ginger Liqueur, Maraschino Liqueur, Apologue Persimmon Liqueur and Bittermens Transatlantic Bitters.

“This Martini variation started out as something completely different in our R&D process,” explains Aaron. “At first, I was looking for just a slight hue of a cool-toned color, to “hint” at what was originally planned to be subtle background flavors to a more delicate finished cocktail. But after playing around with the combination of blueberry and persimmon (two of my favorite pie flavors, FYI), it really started to dance around on the palate, especially with the complement of heavy pine/juniper notes from the Junipero Gin. The cocktail needed a little more body to it, so a kiss of Maraschino added the weight and sweetness we needed, while the French Ginger helped us really lean into the culinary aspects of the final offering. I wanted to showcase and highlight some very “Midwest” flavors into this stirred offering, show our roots as a cocktail group.”

Junipero Gin, America’s original craft gin, launched its charitable Martini Week program in 2022 as a tribute to San Francisco, the birthplace of both the Martini and Junipero Gin, that is now a national invitation to enjoy one of the world’s most iconic and popular cocktails.

Aligned with Junipero’s ethos to “Live Life Unfiltered,” Martini Week encourages Martini enthusiasts as well as participating bars and restaurants alike to “Express Yourself” with a new favorite Martini while raising funds for local organizations. Junipero’s goal for this year’s Martini Week is to raise $40,000, surpassing in a single year the $30,000 raised to date.

During Monday, May 20 through Sunday May 26th, participating bars and restaurants will create their own unique Martinis featuring Junipero Gin, and for each signature Junipero Martini sold, Junipero will donate $2 to support local charitable organizations. In addition to the original beneficiary, San Francisco’s Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence®, Martini Week 2024 will donate funds to other local organizations in each participating city, including local chapters of the Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence in Boston, Nashville and Atlanta, Milwaukee’s Pridefest, New York’s Ali Forney Center, and others. Participating cities include San Francisco, Los Angeles, Palm Springs, San Diego, Boston, Milwaukee, Madison, Nashville, Atlanta, Chicago, and New York.

“I truly feel that this summer is going to be the summer of the true, real Martini,” says Aaron.

“We’re going to run our original, Calm Waters Martini at both bars for the week, and it’s currently on the menu at Love Street as well. More than likely staying on for the entire summer, it’s been one of our top-sellers. The average guest’s palate has really evolved over the past few years. This most recent Martini enthusiast popularity growth has led to more refined tastes. It’s been exciting to help guide our guests on a journey to deeper, richer cocktails and for a good cause.”

“Just like its iconic cocktail inspiration, Martini Week is growing in popularity with each year, and we anticipate even more success in 2024,” says Page Stoup, Junipero Brand Lead, at Hotaling & Co.

“It’s inspiring to see how local bartenders are bringing their creativity to Martinis and even more amazing to see how everyone is raising a glass to support important community-building organizations.”

For more information and a full list of participating bars and restaurants nationwide, please visit: juniperogin.com/martiniweek.

The post We Ask Bartender Aaron Pollack—Why Participate in Martini Week? (May 20 – May 26) appeared first on Chilled Magazine.