How San Francisco Bartender Isaac Shumway Lives To Drink Local
By all accounts last week's Craft Beer & Spirits Week was a big and boozy success. So much so that we have a few extra things to bring to you. We'll call it the digestif portion of the program. Isaac Shumway runs the bar at Ken Friedman and April Bloomfield's San Francisco restaurant Tosca Cafe. A former cook (with time at the French Laundry and Restaurant Gary Danko on his resume), Shumway became fascinated with classic cocktails and made the switch the barman fulltime before overseeing the North Beach reboot. Here we find out about the San Francisco craft spirits scene, which is one of the strongest in the country.
What's going on in the San Francisco spirits scene these days?
One thing I have always noticed about the spirit scene in the Bay Area is the quality of the products and ability to try new ideas and make them work on a global level. Anchor Steam, a pioneer in craft distilling country, produces one of the best gins in the world, Junipero, as well as whiskeys that are unique and hard to get. When you do get any of the Old Portrero whiskeys they don't stay on the shelf very long. Charbay is another pioneer distillery that is still family owned and run. My favorite [of theirs] was when they used a local IPA beer from Bear Republic called Racer 5 to distill and age into whiskey. This is beyond anything I have seen in this country. Distillery 209, Craft Distillers and Old World Spirits are making some of the best brandies and gins.
Local producer St. George is such a force in the industry. How do you work with those guys? Do they give you a heads up about new products? Ask for your feedback from the professionals working behind the stick?
St George is one of the greatest distilleries in the country. Their range, style and standards are impressive and really progressive. The folks at St George are very much a part of the tight-knit family/community that makes up our industry in the Bay Area. We are constantly invited to go to St George and learn what they are doing there.
What do SF locals like to drink? What is the most 'called' local spirit?
SF locals are always asking for all of the above I have mentioned. I would say St. George is killing it right now across the board. They carry four different style gins, a single malt whiskey, an agricole style rhum, absinthe and a blend they make from bourbon not to mention some of the best eau de vies.
Your three most popular cocktails using local spirits?
We make an old Trader Vic cocktail called the Suffering Bastard. Terroir Gin, Armagnac, Marshal Farms honey, fresh pressed ginger, lemon, aromatic bitters. We're always getting calls for Junipero gin or St George gins for martinis and tonics. We're always getting calls for Charbay and Hanger vodka.
What are some craft (small batch) American spirits made outside of San Francisco that you really like? It's a huge question, obviously. Pick five.
Ransom Old Tom Gin from Portland, Oola Vodka and Gin from Washington, Charbay Release 1 and 2 Whiskey Napa. High West in Utah makes one of my favorite rye whiskeys, Rendezvous Rye. But St George across the board makes the most amazing spirits — all the gins, the rum and the single malt whiskey especially.
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