David Sinclair, Brand Ambassador for Haig Club, loves his job and believes there’s no reason why bartenders shouldn’t aim high in the career stakes
SPEAKING to the SLTA from Diageo’s offices at Park Royal in London, David Sinclair is gearing up for the UK final of the drinks giant’s World Class Bartender of the Year competition later that day. And he’s excited.
“There’s big representation from Scotland,” says Sinclair, one of two Haig Club Global Ambassadors. “It’s great to see these highly skilled and talented young people get recognition in this way – it sends a strong message that you can have a fulfilling career with prospects in the hospitality industry.”
David Sinclair
Gordon Purnell of Panda & Sons in Edinburgh would later go on to secure one of the 11 places in next month’s final and the chance to win a place in the world final in Miami.
For Sinclair, it’s just one of many different events he’s involved in as a Global Ambassador for Haig Club, Diageo’s single grain Scotch and David Beckham’s first venture into the whisky business. “I could be at London Cocktail Week, doing a presentation for bartenders, meeting wholesalers, speaking at a business event and travelling overseas all in the same week,” he says. “No two days are the same – I even went to Islay the other week!”
So how did a lad from Perthshire end up rubbing shoulders with one of the world’s most iconic footballers? Sinclair did various jobs at Gleneagles Hotel, near his home in Auchterarder, working in his school summer holidays doing everything from groundkeeping to helping the leisure team.
A spell in a local bar saw him thrive in the hospitality environment. It was when he went to work at the Sheraton Grand in Edinburgh that he saw a clear career path in the industry. “As a bartender there I could see that the next step would be bar supervisor, then assistant manager and so on,” he explains. “At that time we were beginning to see the dawning of the cocktail culture – new spirits were appearing and there was much more to it than simply standing behind a bar serving drinks.
“People were talking about cocktails and there was a lot PR around to jolt people’s interest and suddenly bartenders could build a personal profile and through entering competitions become quite well know in their field.”
Sinclair moved back to Perthshire where he managed the bar at Gleneagles for seven years. But there were also spells at the Mandarin Oriental in Hong Kong and the luxury Westbury Hotel in London’s Mayfair during 15 years working at the sharp end. “A good bartender can get a job anywhere in the world,” he points out.
“You might start off in your local pub or bar but if you have a passion for the job and enjoy meeting people – the sky’s the limit,” Sinclair continues. “You can also make good contacts and you never know who’s going to walk into your bar or stay at the hotel where you work. The next person you serve could potentially be your next employer.”
Entering competitions like World Class, he suggests, is the perfect springboard for networking. “I see these talented, young people and encourage them to get involved – it’s good for them, good for the business they work for and good for the wider industry,” says Sinclair. “I would enter competitions and meet the bar managers from top hotels such as the Savoy and Old Course – you get a great sense of community when you’re in the company of like-minded individuals.
“It’s great experience and you can’t really put a price on the advice you receive and knowledge you acquire.”
What has been the highlight of Sinclair’s career? “There are so many – too many to mention,” he says. “But obviously when you’re looking after members of the Royal family or the Prime Minister – that’s pretty exciting. Winning the Glenfiddich Malt Mastermind competition in 2011 was definitely a standout moment for me because I was recognised as being the UK’s leading whisky expert in the on-trade.”
Working at Gleneagles was also a pivotal moment in his career. “I was back there in charge of the bar when 10 years previously I was cutting the grass!” Indeed, he points to his former boss at the five-star hotel, Alan Hill, as being a great mentor. “He really inspired me back then and today I look up to Colin Dunn, another Diageo whisky ambassador who is also a Keeper of the Quaich – it’s a privilege to work with somebody like that.
“Another colleague, Jean-Philippe – or JP as we called him – was a very strong leader. As a Frenchman he had amazing attention to detail and would question everything you did. I didn’t always like that but I can see now that he was instilling in me that same attention to detail and a work ethic and culture that would hold me in good stead in the future.”
Not surprisingly, Sinclair cites his current role – to which he was appointed after working as whisky ambassador for Diageo’s premium Reserve Brands – as “pretty special”. Drawing on his experience and expertise, he provides insights to bartenders and off-trade customers across the UK and educates them about Haig Club, launched two years ago by Diageo with Beckham and music entrepreneur Simon Fuller.
“It’s been a great journey so far,” he says. “It’s such an exciting and inspirational brand, one that has great appeal for young people – consumers as well as the dynamic industry operators we’re seeing coming through now. There’s fantastic innovation within the industry and we have to do everything we can to promote and support that.
“Working with David Beckham as our business partner is inspiring and being able to share a passion for Scotch with a global icon is a dream come true,” admits Sinclair. “Having worked for many years in some of the world’s most famous hotels I was lucky enough to meet many well-known people, but there are few I can say that I’ve shared a whisky with.
“What is David Beckham like? A great guy to share a whisky with.”
With a burgeoning food scene across the UK fuelled by TV cookery shows and celebrity chefs, the drinks industry has the potential to take on a similar role, suggests Sinclair. “We’re not quite there yet but we’re seeing drinks columns in newspapers and magazines now, cocktail exhibitions at food festivals and so on – plus social media is having a positive impact,” he points out.
“If I was a young bartender at the start of my career I’d be really confident about the future,” Sinclair continues. “You’ve got bar and restaurant groups with their own training academies now which simply didn’t exist before – education has a huge role to play in our industry and that really excites me.”
What is the best piece of advice David Sinclair has ever received? “This is an easy one. My granddad said it doesn’t matter if you’re a street sweeper or the Prime Minister – just do the best that you can.”