The 86 Co. - Great New Spirits Company
Using the bell curve toward better drinking
Recipes
Brain Trust
They say that two heads are better than one.
Simon Ford and Dushan Zaric, the founders of the new spirits company The 86 Co., ran with that famed adage.
To make their Cana Brava Rum ($29), Aylesbury Duck Vodka ($26), Ford's Gin ($31) and Tequila Cabeza ($35), industry veterans Ford and Zaric asked for the input of the experts: their fellow bartenders.
Ford and Zaric also tested their spirits in multiple cocktail recipes, aiming to create products that would harmonize with as many drinks as possible.
The resulting bottles were born from a perfect summation, simultaneously brimming with originality and a jack-of-all-trades accessibility.
We were particularly enamored with the rum, styled after a dry, 1920s-era Cuban rum. Made by master distiller Francisco "Don Pancho" J. Fernandez, it is a biting, crystalline expression that begs to be used in a Daiquiri (see two of Ford's daiquiri recipes).
The 86 Co. is the new bartender's baseline.
NEXT STEP: See the Classic Daiquiri Recipe
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