Dennis Asaka and Derek Brown are two local mixologists that make house calls… White House calls. Neither of them will admit to serving President Obama a cocktail, however.
Things might have been different had they offered to mix him an Irish Blue, one of Brown’s signature drinks made with the new Absolut Berri Acai, featured at the vodka’s launch held at Brown’s nightspot, The Passenger, Sunday night.
“We’re debuting [Berri Acai] here, inviting bartenders in DC to come and try the new flavor because everyone respects Derek,” says Asaka. “He’s a mixologist that really knows what’s going on with the cocktail scene.”
Brown, a pioneer of DC’s cocktail lounge concept, agrees that his love for mixing drinks makes himan example — and more than a little touchy about his profession. “I’m obsessive compulsive… I even have my stirring technique perfected with rice.”
Yet Brown takes it in stride when the President playfully suggests that a mixologist is no more than a glorified bartender.
Brown boasts about a recipe for a phenomenal martini that he would love to make when next he serves at the White House. Though Obama will have to appreciate that it’s not shaken, it’s obsessively stirred.
*A version of this post is available on NBC’s Niteside.
