Gray Whale Gin Opens Virtual Bar To Hire Out-Of-Work Bartenders

As bars and restaurants remain closed around the country due to the COVID-19 pandemic, out-of-work hospitality pros continue to struggle. Some have been able to pick up shifts making bottled cocktails, but many more are sidelined, forced to wait out the closures and hope their employers can make it through the crisis.

Brands and consumers have given generously to aid organizations like the USBG National Charity Foundation as well as venue-specific GoFundMe pages. And industry members can also apply for unemployment benefits and government-backed small business loans.

But one spirits brand has announced an initiative to get bartenders back behind the bar doing what they love. California-based Gray Whale Gin is hiring bartenders to work at their just-launched virtual bar.

Gray Whale Gin comes from the Golden State Distillery in Sebastopol, CA. It features botanicals foraged along the migratory path of the California Gray Whale—so they’ve really cornered the gray whale-focused gin market. In addition to juniper, they’re using Baja limes, Sonoma fir trees, Mendocino Coast sea kelp, Santa Cruz mint and Central Valley almonds in a cornucopia of local ingredients.

To submit a recipe for consideration to the virtual bar, interested parties should create an original cocktail featuring Gray Whale Gin and send it to the company via email. Selected bartenders will be paid $350 for their “shift,” which includes creating social content for their drink. Over the next 15 weeks, Gray Whale Gin will celebrate each bartender and share their creation on the brand’s Instagram. In addition to posting a photo and details of the selected drinks, Gray Whale will be hosting a virtual happy hour and interviewing the selected barkeeps on Instagram Live.

The initiative kicked off on April 2, featuring LA-based bartender Mink in the first virtual bar shift. Mink’s cocktail, dubbed “Archangel,” included Gray Whale Gin, Aperol and muddled Persian cucumber. About his drink, Mink said: “I wanted to introduce a simple cocktail that would be easily replicable at home, but still give you guys enough complexity. With the almonds and kombu coming from Gray Whale Gin, we get a sort of depth or umami flavor that breathes new life [into] this bright, refreshing, and boozy cocktail.” 

The program will run for 15 weeks and is open to U.S.-based bartenders only. There is no purchase necessary, as the selected bartenders will receive a bottle of Gray Whale Gin to craft their cocktails. To submit your own recipe for consideration, email info@gsdspirits.com with the name of your cocktail, plus the ingredients and the method for creating it. Also include your name, where you are from, and your Instagram handle.

Being selected doesn’t replace getting behind the stick and mixing up drinks for customers, but it’s a way for bartenders to flex their creative muscles, make some money and share a new recipe with the world. And it supports Gray Whale’s mission to assist in these unprecedented times by getting people back to doing what they love.

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