We met up with flair bartending God and 5 time world champion, Tom Dyer, to discuss the Beaumont top barware tools. In particular the top barware tools for flair bartending! Flair bartending isn’t an easy business and it is even harder if you are using hard to work with bar tools. For example, we wouldn’t advise you attempt to flair with a Beaumont ice pick, just in case the sharp end goes somewhere it shouldn’t!

Without further ado here is Tom Dyer’s top 5 Beaumont barware tools for flair bartending:

1. Flair Bottle

The first and maybe the most obvious choice is the Beaumont flair bottle. It is the obvious choice as it is a Beaumont barware tool specifically designed for flair but it is also an irreplaceable tool for all levels of flair bartender. To this day if I am practicing a new move or trying something out I will always use the flair bottle. It is designed to be weighted exactly like a real glass bottle but without a glass bottle’s limitations, perfect!

Made from a very strong shatter-proof plastic this flair bottle is basically ‘unbreakable’ – so long as you are using it to practice flair bartending! It should survive many drops over many years. I always say to all flair bartenders, for any move that you are trying for the first time – use the flair bottle – and when you are feeling confident enough with that move, upgrade to the real deal.

2. Mezclar Tin on Tin Cocktail Shaker

For me this is the best shaker combination for serious bartenders, from mixologist to flair bartenders, you can’t beat the tin on tin Boston can set. The Beaumont Mezclar tin on tin Boston can set is made up of a standard 28oz Boston tin and a smaller 18oz Boston tin. The 28oz Boston tin can be used for almost any shaker or bottle/tin routines and putting them together you get one of the best tools for an emerging form of flair bartending called craft flair.

Craft flair sometimes referred to as working flair involves a whole host of new flair bartending moves designed specifically for use behind the bar and during service. As a result the flair moves are often less dramatic but more intricate – as behind the bar you are working with limited time and in a limited space! The tin on tin is perfect for this application and there are a whole host of new moves emerging both behind the bar and on stage as a result of this shaker combination.

3. Collinson Bar Spoon

Long handled bar spoons are very fashionable these days, I think we have seen the return of the long handled bar spoon in line with the rise in popularity of craft flair. As I said before, the craft flair moves are often more intricate and performed closer to the body.

A great example of this is the finger/thumb roll or spin you can perform with the Collinson bar spoon. This is a great move to be able to pull off and not to hard to learn and practice – it is particularly effective behind the bar, drawing the customers eye and sparking their sense of intrigue.

4. Mezclar Preciso Jigger

This is a very well weighted jigger as opposed to what else is available on the market. It is very easy to manipulate in your hands and with your fingers and this is one of the things you should always look for in a jigger as a flair bartender.

It is also very useful to have the 25ml and the 50ml measure in the same barware tool. You can see a lot of craft flair bartenders perform some very cool and intricate moves with this jigger, it is particularly good for a bottle arm roll.

5. 28oz Black Vinyl Coated Boston Can

This is one of the best Boston cans I have ever used and that is due to very special vinyl coating. The vinyl coating gives you a great deal of extra grip, which makes this Boston can perfect for when you have wet hands behind the bar. It is also fantastic for the whole range of body rolls performed with a shaker, such as arm rolls and chest rolls.

The vinyl coating allows the Boston can to grip your clothing better giving you much more stability when trying to perform what are already quite challenging and advanced flair bartending moves. This is by far the top Boston can for beginners and with time and an increase in skill I would advise moving on to the tin on tin Mezclar Boston set. You can see Flavius Lupo perform these moves below with a standard Boston tin, very hard to pull off: