Our gracious host, Diageo’s On-Premise
There we were. A party of maybe 15 people waiting at the Sahara Las Vegas lobby when a grand luxury black party bus arrived. It whisked us away down The Strip, past Resorts World and into valet at The Cosmopolitan.
Adjacent to me was Chef Enzo. You might’ve heard of him– he’s only the man behind Italian restaurant Allegro at Wynn Las Vegas. To which Chef Enzo shares Mr. Steve Wynn tracked him down personally to have him help open the restaurant many moons ago. I personally have yet to dine at Allegro but I will absolutely be paying Chef Enzo a visit. But, I digress.
If you can imagine what an adult field trip looks like, this was it. Except, we replaced the Capri Suns and sing-a-longs for premier spirits and drinking games.
I mean, we weren’t exactly taking shots but at one point during a very competitive game of bingo (I’m speaking about myself here…okay and Chef Enzo) for a bottle of one of Diageo’s elixirs, I’m pretty sure we were all about to scrape the winner for a sip.
The two competitive Leos lost but we had drinks at our first stop: China Poblano at The Cosmopolitan of Las Vegas.
Arriving at China Poblano, we were greeted with “Pepino Chico”, which is an extremely refreshing crafted cocktail made with Ketel One vodka, orange oleo saccharum, cucumber, and lemon. It was paired with China Poblano’s “Infladita de Frijol”, “Flor de Calabaza”, and “Forest de Jade”.
Co-host Sam Bracamontes, Diageo’s on-premise hospitality educator, took us next door to Jaleo by José Andrés. There we had “Tanqueray flor de Sevilla” cocktail, which was my favorite. Before I dive into the ingredients, let me just preface that there really wasn’t any.
I was shocked to learn from both Bracamontes and Meola that “Tanqueray flor de Sevilla” was actually only three ingredients: Tanqueray gin on ice, orange segments (not squeezed just for taste), and stuffed olives with orange gelée. They truly did an incredible job with this cocktail because it showcased the refinement of the gin as a stand-alone spirit.
Like the Scooby-Do gang, Meola loaded us back on The Mystery Machine and off we went back down the Las Vegas Strip, to the Sahara Las Vegas, in search of our final destination.
Past the main dining floor and into the private dining room, we made it to Bazaar Meat.
We tasted a personal favorite of mine “Cotton Candy Foie Gras”, a Bazaar Meat speciality, “Bison Buffalo-Style”, and “Not Your Everyday Caprese Bite”– a liquid mozzarella, pesto, and Campari tomato (they’re ever the Billy Nye of the Las Vegas Boulevard).
These dishes were paired with the “El Compadre” cocktail made with Bulleit Bourbon, Aperol, lemon juice, and simply syrup.
I happen to believe that Bulleit Bourbon is the perfect example of what whisky should taste like. It is deep, full, light, and has a competitive diverse profile unique all on its own; pairing it with Aperol was très génial.
I have but one question for Meola: first destination Spain ✅. Where around the world to next?
