It's all about pisco at popular latin lounge

Spirited variety: Isaac Vazquez can mix pisco, a brandy distilled from white grapes, with just about anything. (Mike Koozmin/Special to The Examiner)

SAN FRANCISCO — Pisco Latin Lounge It was only five years ago that Isaac Vazquez ventured out to San Francisco, drinking in its bright lights and “big” city vibe, like a camel drinks up water. In other words, the young boy from Salt Lake City was thirsty, parched, downright dying for a drink. Thankfully, he immediately found his way into The City’s esteemed Bubble Lounge, staying there roughly four years, moving up the beverage ladder from bus boy to bartender. He’s since taken his lounge act over to one of San Francisco’s hottest little bars right now, Pisco Latin Lounge, adjacent to the Peruvian eatery Destino. A collage artist as well, Vazquez has a show opening Aug. 12 at the super-cool Project One Gallery. But you don’t have to wait that long to pay the charming young Vazquez a visit — he works Thursdays through Saturdays at Pisco. 1817 Market Street, S.F.; (415) 874-9951; www.piscosf.com

Where are you from originally? I was born in Mexico City, I was there until I was like 5 years old, then my parents and I moved to Salt Lake City, Utah.

Oh wow. Yeah. Yeah, exactly. Then, when I was 21, circumstances just kind of led me out here, and I’ve been here ever since.

If you left Salt Lake when you were 21 … did you go to any bars there? I just barely started to, but I guess I really didn’t know that there was this crazy nightlife, because there really isn’t any in Salt Lake. So when I came out here, and I started working at the Bubble Lounge, I hadn’t seen anything like that. The place would be packed and it was loud, and all the bartenders are making a million drinks a minute. I just kind of got drawn into it.

It’s interesting that you worked at Bubble Lounge and now Pisco Lounge, both bars that concentrate on a specific spirit. The thing about the Bubble Lounge, they focus a lot more on the weekdays on pushing champagne, and they have this crazy champagne selection. At Pisco, we have this huge pisco selection, and that’s the whole concept behind the bar. The Bubble Lounge is really the only extensive champagne lounge in The City, and Pisco is the only pisco bar in The City.

What is pisco? It’s basically a Chilean and Peruvian spirit. It’s a brandy distilled from white grapes. It’s really, really versatile. You can mix pisco with anything really. It’s great chilled as a martini, or you can have a Pisco and Coke, or a Pisco Sour; it just goes on and on.

What’s your favorite way to drink pisco? We have this drink that’s called the Peruvian Patada, and that’s [what] I’ve been drinking for a while. We put the drink on the menu a couple months ago. Its pisco ancholado … and an Italian blend of pisco, Canton ginger liqueur, lime juice, muddled mint, strained on ice [and] topped with ginger beer.

When you aren’t drinking pisco, what are you drinking? I’ve been really liking Sazeracs lately.

If you could serve a drink to anyone, who would it be? I would serve it to Ray Johnson. He is this artist who killed himself a while ago, but he was really cool, he was like a collagist. He was popular for not being popular. He was in the background of everything, but he’d find these clever ways to get his stuff out.

Are you an artist? Yeah. A little bit. I try. Me and my roommate are actually having a show in August at the Project One Gallery. It’s this awesome gallery and they have this cool little back bar and loungey DJ area. It’s really cool.


Featured recipe
 

Sideways Sour

• 2 oz. pisco
• ½ oz. lime juice
• ½ oz. simple syrup
• 2 oz. white grape juice
• Pinot noir float

Shake together pisco, lime juice, simple syrup and grape juice. Pour over ice and top with a float of pinot noir.