#82 Simon Ford - Ford's Gin, Plymouth Gin, 86 Co., Martinis, London, NYC, First Brand Ambassador, Tales of the Cocktail,
About this episode
Simon Ford discusses his journey in the spirits industry, from his early career to founding The 86 Co. and creating Ford's Gin.
Simon Ford is the co-founder of The 86 Co. and creator of Ford's Gin, and the man widely credited as the first brand ambassador the modern spirits industry ever produced (though he's not so sure about that). In this episode, we trace his career from a London wine shop job secured despite admitting he didn't actually like wine, through his years at Ideal Brands working on Absolut alongside Nick Blacknell, Dick Bradsell and Wayne Collins, to opening the celebrated Koba bar in Brighton and the call that sent him off to launch Plymouth Gin around the world. We follow Simon through his years as Plymouth's North America ambassador, the move to New York in 2006 at the height of the craft cocktail renaissance, and the senior Pernod Ricard directorship he turned down to build something of his own. We dig deep into the founding of The 86 Co. in 2012 alongside Employees Only's Jason Kosmas and Dushan Zaric — the survey of 149 bartenders that shaped Ford's Gin, the 90-plus formula iterations before Simon was satisfied, the moment Dale DeGroff invested on the spot after tasting it at the distillery, and the blind taste test at Pegu Club where Audrey Saunders put Ford's up against 14 other…
People in this episode
Host: Tristan Stephenson
Guest: Simon Ford
Topics covered
- spirits industry
- cocktail culture
- brand ambassador
- gin production
- entrepreneurship
- craft cocktails
Keywords
- Simon Ford
- Ford's Gin
- Plymouth Gin
- Tales of the Cocktail
- craft cocktails
- brand ambassador
- entrepreneurship
Mentioned in this episode
Organizations: The 86 Co., Plymouth Gin, Ideal Brands, Koba, Brown-Forman
Products: Ford's Gin
Places: New York, Pegu Club
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