Berlin drinking culture: spirits with a history
Gin, vodka, Korn, liqueurs – for around ten years, the number and variety of spirits produced in Berlin have been growing. A young generation of distillers is making Berlin what it once was: a city with a pronounced fondness for drinking. There are said to have been more than 300 distilleries around 1900. And Berlin in the 1920s was particularly thirsty: in its dance halls, bars and revue theatres, people drank, celebrated and danced through the night just as exuberantly as in Paris, London and New York.
We can almost smell the smoke from those impossibly long cigarettes, hear the jazz band and the heels of Charleston dancers on the parquet floor. We are certain that Berliners swept through the Golden Twenties in style, with a healthy tipsiness. But which spirits filled the partying crowd’s glasses? And how can we enjoy the drinks of the Roaring Twenties as authentically as possible today? At the counter of Salut! Bar in Schöneberg, Dejan Spasovski and his team answer these questions for us.
SALUT! BAR HAS A CLEAR CONCEPT: CLASSIC DRINKS IN ART DECO AND ART NOUVEAU SURROUNDINGS. LET US TRAVEL BACK TO BERLIN IN THE TWENTIES. WHAT ARE WE DRINKING?
Berlin was not really an international stronghold of cocktail culture at the time. People mainly drank American classics such as the Martini, Old Fashioned, Martinez and variations of the Cobbler. One of the few recipes from that period is the “Berliner Luft”. Thorsten Pannek, a well-known Berlin bartender, researched the drink for us:
- 2 cl Gilka Kaiser-Kümmel
- 4 cl Mampe Halb & Halb
- 2 cl Asbach brandy, aged 8 years
- Method: “Stir the whole lot over ice and into the glass. Express an orange zest over it.”
MAMPE HALB & HALB AND GILKA KAISER-KÜMMEL ARE AMONG THE OLDEST BERLIN SPIRITS STILL AVAILABLE TODAY.
Mampe Halb & Halb has existed since 1852. In the twenties, the producer supplied all of Berlin with not only its bitter liqueur, but also gin and vodka. Kaiser-Kümmel also has a long tradition and is still available. It is used, for example, in a modern Berlin cocktail. In 2009, Thorsten Pannek created the “Berlin Sour”, which also appears in Difford’s Guide:
5 cl Gilka Kaiser-Kümmel
2 cl Maraska Maraschino
2.5 cl fresh lemon juice
1 cl cane sugar syrup
1 egg white
Method: Shake all the ingredients vigorously in a shaker and strain into a chilled sour glass.
WHAT DEFINES THE DRINKING CULTURE OF THE TWENTIES FOR YOU, AND HOW DO YOU BRING IT TO YOUR BAR?
Our creations are not limited to that one decade. Classic cocktails in the true sense date from the early nineteenth to the mid-twentieth century. Cocktail culture flourished during Prohibition in the United States from 1920 to 1933. Drinks generally had few ingredients but were complex and sophisticated, with an emphasis on quality ingredients and the right balance. Proper mixing requires years of experience and trained senses, and is certainly comparable to the work of good chefs. This is the philosophy we follow and develop through our own recipes.
YOU HAVE ORGANISED YOUR MENU BY THE SPIRITS CONTENT OF THE DRINKS – IN OTHER WORDS, THEIR EFFECT. WE LIKE THAT. WHAT MAKES YOUR DRINKS SPECIAL?
Yes, we organise our menu by effect. But it goes deeper: we want simply reading the menu to make you crave a good drink. Then there is the personal advice from our bartenders. We enjoy experimenting with unusual flavours and make many things ourselves. For example, we cook our own syrups, make liqueurs, infuse base spirits and explore the effects of different herbs. This produces new variations all the time, often inspired by recipes from 100 to 200 years ago.
IN DECEMBER 2014, YOU CELEBRATED THE END OF PROHIBITION AT YOUR BAR. WAS IT A THEME PARTY?
From time to time, we like to come up with something special for our guests. We have coordinated every detail of the Salut! Bar’s interior with that era. We appreciate aesthetics and enjoy celebrating the lifestyle of the period. So this is a fundamental aesthetic concept we follow, and “Repeal Day” on 5 December, marking the end of Prohibition, was the perfect occasion to celebrate it with the right drinks and outfits. We will repeat such themed evenings from time to time.
THE SPIRIT OF THE ROARING TWENTIES IS PERFECT FOR A PARTY. HOW CAN PEOPLE THROW AN AUTHENTIC TWENTIES PARTY AT HOME? CAN YOU SHARE A TYPICAL DRINK THAT IS EASY TO MIX?
The most important thing is probably a dress code; otherwise, the atmosphere will not feel authentic enough. I would happily recommend Mimi, who also offers rentals. You can stream suitable music from the twenties and thirties on the familiar platforms – there are plenty of compilations. Champagne, the most typical drink, is essential. You can find perfectly drinkable options for €15–20. Otherwise, I advise everyone not to stress about shaken drinks at private parties. Get a mixing glass, a bar spoon and a strainer to hold back the ice when pouring. Recipes where the ingredients are simply stirred cold over ice and then poured into a cocktail glass require less effort.
WHICH BAR DO YOU VISIT WHEN YOU ARE NOT AT SALUT! BAR, AND WHAT DO YOU DRINK THERE?
At weekends, we recommend Rum Club at Apostel-Paulus-Straße 35 in Schöneberg to our guests; it is practically around the corner. Among other things, you can enjoy several hundred rums, neat or mixed. A fine cigar selection rounds things off nicely. Dirk Becker is an unofficial rum ambassador and also runs Rum Depot, a specialist spirits shop offering premium and rare products, with a strong emphasis on rum.
We leave Salut! Bar in high spirits, now fans of the twenties. Not only the drinks but also the music puts us in a good mood. And it gets even better when you can move to it. At SwingStep Berlin – Everyone can dance you can spontaneously join a drop-in beginner class every Monday. Dance, dance, dance!
Text: Anne Mörtl and Daniela Walz
Camera: Philipp Grieß
Editing: Firas Sabbagh
Sound: Bruno Chaouch
Dancers: Anna Clausnitzer and Oliver Fuhrmann
Photo: Timeline images
Photo: Berliner Luft, 2015 © Ramtin Zanjani; courtesy of Saint Monday Magazine
Foto: Salut! Bar, 2015 © Philipp Grieß; courtesy of Saint Monday Magazine
(Saint Monday / 06/2015)