Winter Talent Showcase Collaboration

Anthony Giovanni & Leopold Bros.

Anthony Giovanni who regularly occupies the bar at Gaetano’s has been involved in cocktail collaboration with Leopold Bros. this last week for the Winter Talent Showcase on Monday night. He is no stranger to pouring Leopold Bros. as his personal recipe repertoire is filled with

cocktails calling for a variety of their spirits and liqueurs. Leopold Bros. has been great working with Anthony and gave him the artistic freedom to play with any of their products for the Showcase—with the exception of their Maryland-Style Rye, which they can’t even keep in stock [it really is that good].

Before we could even relay the shortage of the Maryland Rye, Anthony eagerly presented a cocktail built with the widespread spirit [seriously, everybody loves it]. Needless to say, we tracked down the Maryland Rye off a liquor store shelf to put it in the showcase on Monday night. The Leopold Bros. Maryland-Style Rye is a spirit that they crafted as homage to a popular pre-prohibition style of whiskey. With 51 percent rye, this whiskey results in spicier and more assertive characteristics with a leaner body than bourbon. This style of whiskey was the inspiration for many early American cocktails like the Manhattan and Sazerac.

Anthony will also be crafting one of his signature cocktails out of the Leopold Bros. Navy Strength American Gin. Traditionally, Navy Strength Gin was stored next to gunpowder munitions on Naval warships, so the gin was distilled to a proof just high enough so that, should it spill on the ship’s gunpowder during battle, the gunpowder would still ignite. In crafting the Leopold Bros. version of the maritime classic, they individually distill each botanical, creating a bold, aromatic gin that won’t get lost in cocktails like many sometimes do.

Leopold Bros. and Anthony Giovanni make a great duo and they will be showcasing a great lineup of cocktails for the night. You can catch Anthony throughout the week at Gaetano’s in the Lower Highlands neighborhood pouring his favorites from the Denver-proud Leopold Bros.