Local MGM Grand mixologist says preparing drinks is an art form

Shawn Barker, a mixologist at Wolfgang Puck?s Bar and Grill inside the MGM Grand, demonstrates one of the many drinks in his repetoire. Barker, who lives in the southwest, says that mixing drinks is an art form, and true mixologists know their liquor.marlene karas/view Advertisement

In the great engine that is the Las Vegas economy, alcohol is the universal lubricant that keeps the gears turning. The city has no shortage of places to get your drink on or bartenders to make those drinks. Some of those bartenders see the job as not only a simple matter of slapping taps and throwing a few liquids together, but as a culinary art. Shawn Barker is one of those, but don't call him a bartender -- he's a mixologist.

Barker, who recently moved to Wolfgang Puck's Bar and Grill in the MGM Grand from Chinois at the Forum Shops at Caesars, does indeed seem like a kind of artist. At Chinois, he created a whole menu of new drinks. To his thinking, mixing a drink isn't a simple matter of combining alcohol A with alcohol B, adding fruit juice and stirring the whole thing up.

"A mixologist needs to take pride in their work," he said. "It doesn't matter how faithfully they follow a recipe, it won't be the same if they don't put love in it."

He said he feels you must take into account a patron's personal preferences and adjust drinks accordingly. "It takes a bit of ingenuity to create appealing drinks for such a diverse range of people," Barker said.

For instance, he notes that men and women have different taste preferences, with women generally preferring a drink with more sweetness and fruitiness.

"It's a challenge to make a drink balanced for both sexes," Barker said.

Barker, however, is not afraid of a challenge. If a customer complains about the taste of a drink, rather than remix it from scratch, he tries to ascertain what the customer doesn't like about it and adjust it with a simple addition from his vast arsenal of liquors, juices and mixers. Frequently, he takes a drink that was returned and transforms it into a drink the same customer raves about, he said.

Another challenge Barker enjoys is creating a recipe using a new liquor. Liquor companies are constantly reworking formulas and creating new brands and tastes, and occasionally, the taste of these new brands leaves something to be desired, he said. Barker revels in finding that something and creating a new and tasty drink.

"You've got to work from the base forward," Barker said. "If you try to create a name and then match the drink to it, you're not going to be as successful."

He usually tests new recipes during happy hour, which should stand as a tip to the gourmands of alcoholic libations seeking the next big thing.

Barker, a long-time resident of the southwestern part of the valley, has spent his entire professional career in Las Vegas. He was inspired by the bartenders he worked with to bring the level of his mixology up, studying with a number of mixologists and taking a course with Francesco Lafranconi, the founder and director of Southern Wine and Spirits of Nevada's Academy of Spirits and Fine Service.

"Shawn is by far the best I've worked with," said Darren Levaton, a manager at Chinois who worked with Barker during his time there. "His knowledge of drinks, combined with his interaction with customers and co-workers, is amazing."

Barker also draws inspiration from the competition. He frequently samples new drinks from other locations while trying to come up with a new recipe. This isn't to say that he slavishly recreates the drink, but rather that some aspect of the libation will spark an idea that he will expound upon to develop a new creation, he said.

"You should never be afraid to steal a good idea," Barker said.

One thing Barker doesn't do is flair bartending, the mix of juggling and drink mixing popularized in the Tom Cruise film "Cocktail" and in national flair bartending competitions.

"It's impressive, but I think focusing on flair can take away from the taste," Barker said. "I prefer to concentrate on the taste, style, form and color of a drink."

Watching Barker mix a drink, his hands are a blur as he grabs and replaces bottles in rapid succession, seemingly from memory. "A good mixed drink is usually semi-complicated, with four or five ingredients," Barker said. "The trick is to make it interesting, but simple enough to mix it at a good speed."

In well under a minute, he produces one of his signature drinks, a Ginger Peach Bellini, a drink that is primarily sparkling wine or Champagne and peach nectar.

"This is a recreation of a classic cocktail," explained Barker, "but I've made a few changes and refined it."

He mixed four different drinks while explaining the tools of the trade and how to mix a great drink instead of just a drink.

"Never mix the drink in ice," Barker said. "It dilutes the drink."

He insists that a really good mixologist can be identified by his or her knowledge of spirits. "Some spirits need to be shaken to wake the drink up," he said. "Others, gin for instance, should always be stirred."

To illustrate the point, Barker quickly prepared two identical gin drinks with the single important difference being that one was shaken and the other one was stirred. The shaken drink appeared cloudier than the stirred one, which was crystal clear.

Barker hopes to create a full menu of new beverages in the coming months. When asked about the recent revival of absinthe, long-banned, but recently re-legalized, he expressed excitement. "Right now, there's a whole ritual to how you drink it, pouring it over a sugar cube and all," Barker said. "It's virtually untapped for mixed drinks."

He noted that as far as he knew, no one is serving it yet, but he's eager for its arrival. "I can't wait to get my hands on it," Barker said.