Given the almost rapturous liquid abandon that overtook the event, I read with interest Francine Cohen's coherent, sober & detailed piece in INSIDE F & B about the "3 Hour Tour" that cocktail catering ninjas The Tippling Point threw in association with Moët Hennessy USA during the Manhattan Cocktail Classic. Francine talked to the bartenders about their creations for the cruise around Manhattan that occurred 3 days into the marathon cocktail conference, on a clear, warm early summer evening that was really almost an absurdly good time. Her piece (here) inspired me to finally sort through the 300 or so photos I'd taken on the boat, which I've posted to an album on Embury Cocktail's Facebook page in two parts: Part 1 here, Part 2 here.
In many of the shots you'll see a cardboard cutout of a photo a smiling, congenial looking fellow, attached to a stick about 5 feet long. The cutout was wildly popular, inspiring women to outbreaks of uncontrollable affection, was integral in limbo contests and participated in further shenanigans. I'd sort of heard the story of what that was all about on the boat but it had receded into a fine cocktail-coloured memory haze, so emailed Francine for some clarification. She responded:
The cardboard cutout guy is Tad Carducci. He is one half of The
Tippling Bros. a cocktail consultancy with Paul Tanguay with such
notable projects as Mercadito (Chicago, Miami) and more under their
belt. Tippling Point is the affiliated cocktail event production company that's comprised of Tad, Paul,
Jason Littrell and Gianfranco Verga, and they produced the cruise that day. Sadly, Tad was overscheduled
on the Sunday of the cruise - he was giving a seminar at Astor during
the MCC that didn't end until after the boat left the dock. Timing just
stunk. He and Jason tried furiously (and amusingly) to find a solution,
even looking into having Tad get on another boat that could pull up to
the cruise so he could hop on mid-sail but it wasn't feasible. So,
instead, in inimitable Tad fashion he sent a stand-in in the form of
his cardboard likeness. As you know Flat Tad was a big hit. Though not
nearly as good company as the real fellow.
L-R: Litrell, Flat Tad, Paul Tanguay and Gianfranco.
Jason Littrell confirms that this sort of desperate plotting did take place:
We actually thought about feasibility scenarios including helicopters, jet boats, parachutes, and 3D projections, but the Flat Tad was the most reasonable option...though his body wasn't there, we couldn't have done it without him.
Even though these ideas proved untenable, it's pleasing to know that such hare-brained schemes are dreamt up, even if they are not executed, for they reveal true madcap camaraderie, and are a perfect expression of the cocktailing spirit
INSIDE F & B
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