Iñaki Jiménez, Bartender at Mandala Cocktails-Lab

Born in San Sebastián in 1973, Iñaki Jiménez has lived in Alicante since he was 14. It was in this city that he started serving drinks on a summer terrace at just 15 years old. At 16, already deeply attracted to this world, he bought his first cocktail book. He describes himself as completely self-taught, as there were hardly any schools for training at the time, and he shares how he experiences his profession.

How did you become a bartender?

I started with classic cocktails, like most of my colleagues at the time. It’s true that I’m a big fan of cocktails with tequila and mezcal; I really enjoy the whole Mexican culture of spirits. At 20, I started taking it even more seriously, and I began managing bars. At 25, I joined a very powerful group in Levante, and for all these years until now, I’ve been dedicated to managing this group’s leisure businesses, where we’ve focused on setting up cocktail bars, nightclubs, and pubs.

Where did you start?

My parents had owned a nightclub and bars, so I grew up with it at home. I combined working with them with a job I had alongside a painter-decorator for many years, and I realized that what I really loved was the bar. I decided to take it seriously and start training. In 1993, I started at a tavern in Santa Pola with some friends, where we made mixed drinks and some very beachy cocktails. It was the era of mega-sized colorful glasses, shots, and from 1999 onwards, we created our first cocktail menu.

Did you have a mentor or were you self-taught?

I was self-taught until I was 26, when I decided to pursue extensive external training. I’ve been fortunate enough to go to London three times for courses with greats like Hugo Díez, Jorge Balbotín… Fortunately, I’ve learned from very important people in the cocktail industry.

What ultimately hooked you on this profession?

Ever since I was little and saw my parents going to clean the nightclub, I knew. After working in the tavern for the last few years, I saw that I liked the sector and that I needed to take another step and train seriously to achieve that leap in quality of product and service, as we were doing the basics with glass pitchers, highball glasses, and little else there.

Does any moment from your career in this world come to mind that you remember with particular fondness?

The most fun and cherished memory was my first trip to London with my wife. I had already gone alone, but she was very excited to accompany me, and that trip was very intense as we spent three whole days only visiting cocktail bars, and my wife ended up saturated. She only wanted to see shops, and the only ones she saw were at the airport, (laughs out loud).

Any special anecdote you remember?

The truth is, we’ve hosted many famous people incognito at our venue. For example, a super curious anecdote happened with Fito from Fito & Fitipaldis, who came to the bar for a quiet cocktail before his concert, wearing a cap and sunglasses. He pleaded with us not to tell anyone he was there, saying he needed to disconnect for a moment because he had a performance in 30 minutes at the theater across the street. We served him the margarita, and of course, people recognized him and approached him, and he told them he wasn’t Fito. People insisted he was, and he kept saying no, he wasn’t, that everyone told him he looked a lot like Fito but he wasn’t him (smiles).

Do you remember your first cocktail?

The first cocktail we created at the Colocao tavern was a combination of exotic juices with blue Curaçao, similar to a Blue Hawaii. It was refreshing because instead of juice, it had carbonated drinks, and that was the moment we started making tropical mixes.

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Which cocktail have you made that brought you the most joy and of which you are most proud?

The Mediterranean Paloma, without a doubt. A gin brand called us to do a pairing route through Levante, and the truth is, it was so well received that it was a total success. We were in Madrid at Atocha Station preparing the cocktail with the pairing, and it’s a cocktail whose recipe we’ve probably given to more than 30 national bartenders who wanted to include it on their menus, such as Hard Rock Ibiza, and other very prominent venues. This is a great satisfaction, that top-level people ask us for the recipe to have it on their menus. The cocktail is truly a very refreshing drink with gin, ginger liqueur, jasmine syrup, citrus, and a grapefruit soda… And it’s spectacular to enjoy in spring and summer.

Any famous client you’ve served?

I’ve been very lucky that the group I worked for for 20 years has organized many concerts for Shakira, Alejandro Sanz, Luis Fonsi, Maná. We did all the Operación Triunfo concerts from the 1st Edition with Bisbal, Chenoa, Bustamante…

What do you enjoy most about your profession?

Interacting with my clients, who have become like family.

What do you like least about your job?

Clients leaving dissatisfied. That’s why we try to do a good public relations job, and it’s our working rule that a client cannot leave unhappy. If a client orders something that they ultimately don’t like, but they ordered it because it looks appealing—because our menu is very visual, exotic, and tropical—and many people order a cocktail based on its image and then the taste isn’t what they expected, we are very flexible and change it immediately. It’s essential for us that they leave happy.

How do you see the market currently?

Well, in February 2020, just before the pandemic, we set up a cocktail bar advisory and consulting service called Seven Drops, and in March, the pandemic hit, and we had to stop. But it’s true that from December until now, in June, I believe we’ve already completed 18 consultations and set up 18 venues with cocktail menus, trained teams with work dynamics, protocols, and services, and we are booming. Currently, mixology is a craze in Spain, especially in this Levante area. It’s true that we lack many trained professionals, and we have that handicap against us, not being able to implement very complex tastings in certain venues because the professional isn’t qualified. So, we start with much simpler and more tropical menus, where we play with spirits, juices, some purée, and little else, with beautiful decoration. But our goal for the end of 2022 is to maximize Seven Drops and launch the best professionals for the people who hire us to train their teams.

As a professional who has been working in this field for years, what trends can you foresee?

I believe the fusion of food and cocktails within the same venue, the pairings, will be the big boom. This year, many venues are already incorporating a lot of cocktails into restaurants, but in 2022, especially in Levante, which was an area lacking restaurants with cocktails, there are some very cool pairing projects. In fact, we are opening one in mid-July, a gastrobar with exotic and neo-tiki cocktails, and several similar projects are developing in the area. The venue will be called “Ö by Mandala,” which in Buddhist means “the spark of life,” and it will be next to our current Mandala Cocktails-Lab.

For people visiting your bar, what two cocktails should they not miss?

This year, we’re seeing a big boom in followers of cocktails with citrus foams, exotic foams, and airs. With smoked and flavored vapor bubbles, and perhaps I would tell you that what they absolutely must try are our neo-tiki cocktails with both citrus and flavored foams. That’s what surprises clients the most and what they like best.

Would you share any of your recipes with us?

The Guaracha, the ingredients are:

4cl Yzaguirre Blanco

1cl Oxefruit Falernum Syrup

5cl Oxefruit Guava Purée

3cl lime juice

2cl jasmine syrup Oxefruit

Top with Pink Grapefruit soda.

Who has been your biggest inspiration in this world?

I love Danielle Dalla Pola.

Any advice for someone who wants to be a bartender or is just starting out?

When I was young, I would have loved to have had a school like 359 Cocktail Concept; it’s incredible, a role model, a school that has won many awards, and I wish I had trained there. The good fortune young people have now is that in Spain, we have very powerful cocktail schools where you can learn everything, and it’s not like before when we had no option but to be self-taught.

In the time you’ve been working, you must have seen many things and met many people. What was a moment you will never forget?

My first trip to London visiting the best cocktail bars.

Any cocktail book you recommend?

Minimalist Tiki. I found it a super interesting book, very difficult to get but worth it, it’s spectacular. Or any tiki cocktail book by Don the Beachcomber or Trader Vic’s; I find them fantastic. You learn a lot and get many ideas to adapt, reinterpret, and inspire new recipes.

What music do you like to listen to when preparing your creations?

When working, I listen to a lot of funk and a lot of R, but it’s true that I’m quite a rocker. What I like personally has nothing to do with the music I like to listen to while working.

What cocktail do you like to drink?

Anything with tequila. I love a good margarita or a well-made Mexican Paloma.

What cocktail do you like to prepare?

Any tiki cocktail. I really enjoy tiki mixology.

The bottle you can’t do without at home?

Tequila, without a doubt.

And is there any special bottle at your bar?

A bottle I’m very fond of is the Berbedere Magnum that was gifted to me with my daughter’s name engraved when she was born. It was very special for us that they remembered and made that gesture. We also have other special bottles like Japanese rums, Japanese gins, Japanese whiskies, a great selection of American whiskies, from the Bourbon Bob Dylan released to more exclusive and rare American ones, a large collection of Scotch whiskies, tropical and very fun rums… Also a wide collection of tequilas and mezcals that we hold dear.

Any favorite bar tool? Any fetish, perhaps?

A two-piece Boston shaker.

Any new-generation bartender you respect or admire?

Bannie Kang from Anti:dote Singapore cocktail bar.

A bar in the world?

The American Bar at The Savoy in London.

We conclude the interview as he excitedly tells us that for the past 10 years, he has had the unconditional support of Félix Jiménez, to whom he will be eternally grateful for the support he has always given him in this sector, and that without his wife Ana, he would never have become the professional he is today.