Just wanted to take the time to acknowledge and congratulate our resident mixologist and bartender extrodinaire Ian Ward for being honored as the best mixologist in San Diego by City Beat Magazine which has a pretty good finger on the dining scene pulse.
Best of San Diego 2008: CREATE
November 11, 2008
These are some of the best things in San Diego that — somehow, someway — use creativity or make us feel creative. From a salon where you’ll likely score the best-looking bangs you’ve ever had to a group of misfits who put on weirdly entertaining circus shows, to a tiny place that keeps hip-hop alive and even a t-shirt company that lets its buyers vote on the designs worthy of being printed, we’ve used every last creative bone in our collective body to round this one up.
Best mix master (cocktails division)
Margaritas made from coconut milk? A cocktail garnished with house-cured bacon? Sometimes that stiff price for a drink is worth it, especially when ultra-creative Whisknladle bartender-in-chief Ian Ward is at the helm. The unassuming Ward sowed his spiritual oats in New York and Atlanta before heading to La Jolla, where he’s known to obsess over his craft by puréeing his own juice, infusing the liquors in-house and growing and making his own ingredients. He can spend up to 10 minutes crafting one cocktail.
Don’t think it’s worth it? Try the crazily smooth “Smoked Pear and Vanilla” (be careful, though—they may taste as right as rain, but they’re dangerous). Or forgo the usual Sunday morning bloody mary for the Thai chile-garnished London’s Burning, with Tanqueray and lime juice mixed with a puréed mix of avocado, cilantro and roasted jalapeños.
–V.H. McLoughlin
Below are his current creations.
Cucumber & Honey Mimosa brut, cucumber water, honey
Maria Sangria coriander tequila, white wine, roasted red peppers
Bubble Pop Electric bubble gum vodka, lemon, candy rim
Lavender Cosmo blueberry lavender vodka, white cran, cassis
Ginger Margarita Herradura Silver, ginger gastrique, spiced rim
London’s Burning Blue Coat gin roasted jalapeno water, lime
New Fashioned Cinnamon infused bourbon, apple & orange