Our Favorite Drinks Professionals Raise a Toast for Father’s Day

As a rule, dads tend to receive short shrift on Father’s Day: they still have to grill dinner, and they’re lucky if anyone remembered to buy a crazy pair of socks or something from that $20 “dad gifts” table at Bloomingdale’s. Speaking as a dad, the fact is we don’t really need that much. Your love is enough. No, really—keep the socks. We reached out to some of our favorite bartenders and industry folks to find out what inspires them about their fathers, stepfathers, grandfathers, mentors, moms who fill the “dad role,” and more, along with suggestions of a drink in their honor.

Kyle Smith

Bar Manager, Etta River North, Chicago

Chicago Brand Supporter, Westward Whiskey

Mixologist Counselor, Camp Yoshi

My dad, Kevin, has been the pillar of consistency for my family for as long as I can remember. He’s a quiet, patient man who knows what (and who) he loves, and puts his all into those things. From raising my sister and me to being a cornerstone of support for my mother as she battles MS, he is someone you can always count on. He sets the bar pretty damn high.

He’s not a big drinker by any means, but over the past year or two, he’s starting to put together a small home bar inventory, so he can make a few classic cocktails whenever the itch strikes. He’s been an Old Fashioned kind of guy for a while, but lately, he’s exploring the bitter side of things with Negronis and such. Next time we get together, I plan on whipping him up a Boulevardier riff with Westward Pinot Noir Cask, Carpano Antica, and Campari. Classic, thoughtful and straightforward, kind of like my old man.

Morgan Barron

Head Bartender, Don Ciccio & Figli,Washington, D.C.

Head Bartender, Kimpton Banneker Hotel, Washington, D.C.

Having been adopted and raised by my amazing single mom, Margot, I grew up incredibly independent and outspoken. During my junior high years, my mom found love again and I had a father figure, Rowan, for the first time in my life. The thing I respect most about my dad is his stoicism. If my mom taught me to be bold, confident and heard, then my dad taught me the habits of a stoic. He showed me how being a bit reserved and a silent observer of my surroundings could help make me a stronger and more insightful contributor when I find the right moments to speak up.

My dad loves an ice-chilled glass filled with limoncello right before getting ready for bed. I would love to serve him one of the cocktails from our Don Ciccio & Figli menu originally named Minta. But I’ve renamed it The Stoic’s Delight in honor of him. I would be curious to see my dad’s impression of Fernet!

The Stoic’s Delight

1.25 oz Don Ciccio & Figli Limoncello

1 oz Don Ciccio & Figli Fernet

1 oz Bourbon

.5 oz Peppermint Syrup

.5 oz Fresh Lemon Juice

In a shaker, combine all ingredients with ice. Shake well and strain into a coup cocktail glass. Express the oils from lemon peel and discard the peel.

Gustavo Rojas

Beverage Supervisor, Coronado Marriott Outlets, California

My mother was actually my father figure. She always inspired me and taught me to not be a conformist. She encouraged me to always work hard, keep my ethics high, and always look ahead, never back.

I created the 13 Sur cocktail after being inspired by my childhood home at 13 Sur in Atlixco Puebla, Mexico. I always think about the pomegranate and lemon trees on our property. Combined with my mother’s love for chiles poblanos, this recipe combines nicely with the Amaras Mezcal Reposado.

13 Sur

1.5 oz Amaras Espadín Reposado Mezcal

.75 oz Ancho Reyes Verde

1 oz Pomegranate Juice

.5 oz Fresh Lemon Juice

.25 oz Agave Nectar

3 dashes Orange Bitters

Pink Himalayan Salt

Rose Petal or Charred Lemon Peel for Garnish

Combine ingredients (except garnish) in a shaker with ice. Shake and strain into a highball or Collins glass over fresh ice.

LyAnna Sanabria

Bartender, Portland, Maine

Brand Rep, Bimini Gin

My dad is a motorcyclist and loves to have people around. He travels and makes friends, then keeps them for life. At his gatherings, he likes to assign roles. One of his friends—or more often mine—will be assigned the “bartender.” Depending on how much he trusts them, he will ask for a Cuba Libre. He will explain that it isn’t just a rum-and-coke and that it needs balance and must have a lime!

This Father’s Day, I would make him my Cube Libre that I just created for the opening menu at Pacifico in Saco, Maine. I’m sure he would have a second one with dinner, then I would make him a classic martini. He loves watching action flicks (as he calls them), sitting there with his legs crossed, watching intently and drinking what he calls a “martini”: either warm or cold gin, undiluted (if I remember) and generally ungarnished. I would make him a 50/50 with Bimini Overproof Gin, C Comoz Blanc Vermouth and three dashes of Regan’s Orange Bitters. We would probably be watching “Armageddon” and crying. Cheers, Pop!

Mija’s Cuba Libre

.75 oz Bimini Coconut Gin

.75 oz Santa Teresa Rum

.5 oz Fernet Branca

1 oz Coca Cola Syrup

.5 oz Nielsen Massey Vanilla Paste Simple Syrup

.75 oz Fresh Lime Juice

2 Dashes Angostura Bitters

Combine ingredients in a cocktail shaker with ice and give it all a quick shake. Pour into a rocks glass or highball with ice and top with Topo Chico sparkling mineral water. Garnish with dehydrated lime.

Zev Gonzalo Glesta

Bartender, Union Square Hospitality Group, NYC

I chose my Father’s Day father figure to be...my dad! He’s always been a supportive guy, a DIY-er and for the most part, can never really sit still, except for a good documentary. My dad is Canadian-born and for the majority of his adult years, has been a New Yorker (where he met my mom and gained his “New York-ness”). My twin and I were born in Brooklyn, but my parents both received job offers in Australia when we were four years old. The skyscrapers were suddenly beaches, the subway was now a “yute,” and the pace of life was a drastic decrease from NYC’s hustle.

Aussies often say “no worries, mate,” which pretty much means, “it’s chill.” My dad’s old-school mentality and crazy work ethic made him respond, “Yes! Worry mate!” It didn’t make him the most popular guy, but it made him stick out like the New Yorker he is. Since we moved back to Brooklyn, “no worries, mate” has become a well-appreciated slogan in our household to jokingly calm my dad down.

My drink of choice to share with my dad on Father’s Day is a cocktail I called the “Wattle it Be”—A great representation of Aussie ingredients enjoyed as an homage to the Old Fashioned. It uses native wattle (Australia’s national flower) in the syrup, mixed in with the wonderfully tropical, delicate Starward Two-Fold Australian Whiskey.

Wattle it Be

2 oz Starward Two-Fold Whisky

1/4 oz Wattle Seed Syrup

2 dashes Aromatic Bitters

Combine ingredients in a mixing glass with ice. Stir and strain over a large ice cube in a rocks glass. Garnish with a bottlebrush leaf.

Nick & Ric Offerman Cheers'ing with Lagavulin Offerman Edition, Guinness Cask Finish

Nick Offerman

Brand Spokesperson, Lagavulin Single Malt Scotch Whisky, Isle of Islay, Scotland

This year, I was able to bring my dad Ric Offerman in on the second release of the Offerman Edition Lagavulin Guinness Cask Finish. He’s a Jimmy Stewart kind of a guy, a retired school teacher who was just elected mayor of our hometown, Minooka, Illinois. To have my dad involved was so fun. He comes from a family of famous card players in the Tri-County are. Granny was a brutal Euchre player. When she would trump her last trick, she had this arthritic knuckle she’d rap on the table. It was devastating, as you can imagine.

Granny and my dad used to enjoy Manhattans together. As a young lad, I was in charge for a while of making the Manhattans. I will say they weren’t terrific. I think I could make a decent one today, and you bet your sweet bippy he’d drink it. He’s a very generous man, and I think he’d drink it and like it. But even if he didn’t, he’d drink it because he wouldn’t want to hurt your feelings.

Sean M. Penn

CEO, BSB Spirits

It may not sound creative but it is really authentic: My father is not just my dad and guiding counsel for life, but a mentor to me in this industry. He spent 35+ years working for one of the largest beverage alcohol companies at the time. He taught me to be a great father and to balance business with family. He’ll always be my life-long guy.

We would definitely enjoy a BSB Brown Sugar Bourbon 103 Old Fashioned, or what we call a “Not So Old Fashioned.” One of the great things about BSB 103 is that there’s no need for additional simple syrup. Just take your BSB, orange bitters, maybe a cherry or an orange peel. We would do it over a single cube of ice and talk about the industry, which is what we do now.

Thomas Aske

Bartender, Black Rock Bar, London

My dad instilled in me the mindset of always doing my best at whatever I was trying to achieve. The philosophy that if you have attempted something with all the effort and skill you have, then whether you succeed or fail, you can do it gracefully. He always believed in my career choices, despite them being so different to his own, and shows a huge amount of support in everything I do. Being an accountant, he also is able to help me run the businesses. Plus he likes the occasional dram himself.

Three Spirit Nightcap Old Fashioned (alcohol-free)

2.5 oz Three Spirit Nightcap

5 dashes Peychaud’s Bitters

Combine ingredients in a rocks glass with ice, stir to blend, and chill.

Jared Hirsch

Bartender, Cotogna, San Francisco

co-owner, Nickel Dime Syrups

I have such love for my dad and appreciation for the kind of person he is. It wasn’t always that way, but standing here now, as an adult with soon-to-be second-grade twins, I can look back at the choices he made and say with certainty that the life I live is profoundly better having been influenced by his. A child of the 1950s, he grew up in Brooklyn, the child of second-generation Jewish immigrants, themselves raised during the Depression. As a kid I found it difficult to relate to him: He rarely took pleasure in spending money, was often not home, and was always focused on his work (deftly balancing three different jobs). Now I realize all this work was for my and my sister’s benefit, and have come to realize how profound an effect his work ethic has on me.

When developing new cocktails, I frequently draw upon nostalgia for inspiration. It took me a long time to realize that Cherry Bomb—my cherry, coffee and cacao syrup—was inspired by his passed-down love of Egg Creams. Mine is a more complex version of Fox’s U-Bet chocolate syrup, the hallmark ingredient in a true New York-style egg cream. In honor of my dad, Steve Hirsch, I dedicate this adult version.

Close to Home

1.5 oz Hirsch Bourbon

1 oz Cherry Bomb Syrup

1 oz Whole Milk

Seltzer to top

Combine first three ingredients in a mixing glass, stir with ice. Strain into a highball glass with fresh ice (or still all in the glass). Top with seltzer and stir gently to mix.

Tyler Dunn

Bartender, Holiday Cocktail Lounge, Manhattan

Bartender, Turtles All The Way Down, Brooklyn

This Father’s Day, I will be remembering my Pop, Larry Dunn. Pop was a cowboy and ballplayer, and lived a simple, yet extraordinary life filled with generosity and teamwork, in addition to a strong and hard-nosed work ethic. I was fortunate to spend the last year of his life with him, before he passed away tragically working with one of his horses on his “dream come true” retirement hobby farm in the southwest corner of the Ozarks.

When dad would pop into the bar (which was seldom), he’d have a “fizzy yellow beer” (his words), or a spiced Rum and Coke. The thing I remember him most for, however, was every day at about three o’clock, he’d make the switch from coffee in his 40 oz Stanley brand stainless steel coffee much to (I sh** you not) Fireball and Sprite. I never got it and still don’t.

As the first anniversary of his passing came and went earlier in the month, both my little brother and I raised a glass of Fireball and Sprite to the memory of Larry Dunn.