Dare to Flair

Age: 26 Years Old
Nationality: England:
Lives: LONDON (England)
Bartending: 8 Years
Flairing: 7 Years

Tom Dyer is one of the world’s best and most innovative flair bartenders.

 

I had the privilege to meet him at a flair competition in Toronto in 2005, and was lucky enough to pick his brain and have him give me a few pointers!

 

Here is my interview with Tom Dyer.

 

1. Why did you get into flair?

 

I started working at a restaurant and was a buss boy and a bar back. When I turned 18 I had the choice to become a server or bartender. I started working on the bar, and enjoyed it, but I wasn’t hooked just yet. It was when I went to see the Roadhouse world final flair competition in November of 2000 that I decided that this is what I wanted to do. I turned down a job at a bank and quit my university, and have never looked back since.

 

2. Other than yourself, who is your favourite flair bartender?

 

This brings me back to the competition I mentioned at the Roadhouse in November of 2000. I saw Nicolas St Jean flair and was amazed by the show he put on, and to this day I still think it is one of the greatest routines I have ever seen. I do have a few other favourites such as Sebastian Oguic for his shear style and grace, I could watch it all day. A new guy coming up called Alex Searle for his dedication to be original and Tomek Malek and Marek Posluzny for the amazingly difficult and aggressive moves they bang out on stage.

 

3. What is your favourite flair bar?

 

Well I have a load of favourite places from all over the world. They include some of the obvious and some you may not have heard of.

They include:

Las Vegas – Carnaval Court for the crazy parties and biggest shots of Jager in the world.

London – Roadhouse, the home of flair in my opinion and the greatest competition around.

Romania – Interbelic, new to the scene, but mixes mixology and flair with some top tunes.

Prague – Coyotes for the great show.

Japan – Liner flips for their love of flair.

Taipei – Luxy for the amazing nights out and the flair shows every night.

4. What is your greatest flair achievement?

Well recently I reached my ultimate goal in flair, which was to win the Roadhouse world final competition. I have been trying for 7 years and I won the 7th time lucky. I have also made some other big achievements, such as winning the UK championship 6 times and winning over 50 competitions worldwide. Now that I have reached my ultimate target though I have set some new targets for myself, which I am keeping secret for now.

 

 

You can check out what Tom’s up to by checking out these sites:

www.dangerousdyer.co.uk

www.creativebartending.com

www.worldflairassociation.com

Thanks again Tom!

When you start to seriously get into flair bartending, you will need to invest in a few flair, or practice bottles.

These bottles are great for practicing new moves and sequences, without worrying about having broken glass everywhere.

Flairco is the original and largest designer of flair bottles in the world.

Originally, there were only a few different bottles available.

Today, there is a huge variety to choose from including different branded name bottles, glow in the dark bottles, customized logo bottles, light up bottles etc.

Ranging in price from around $19.95 (basic), to $40.75(lighted), flair bottles are very durable and should last a lifetime.

However, flair bottles are NOT un-breakable. They are shatter proof. I’ve used over 250 flair bottles to date, and I have had a few break on me. ( Don’t throw them off the roof in the dead of winter!! )

Recently, another brand of bottles has hit the market place as an in-expensive alternative to the original.

They are known as “flip” bottles. They come in a variety of colors, and you can pick them up for around $10.

My experience is that these bottles are inferior to the Flairco brand. Although they look and feel similar, there’s just something different about them. I’ve also seen them break far more often than the original.

For your own flair bottles or any other bar products, click here.

The “Red Bull” pour is another fairly easy move to help get you started.

This move, when executed properly, can impress even the toughest critic at your bar.

The key to this move is to moisten the hand, firmly slide the can into the center of the palm, and then hyperextend the fingers to achieve maximum suction.

If you don’t feel confident that there is a strong hold, don’t attempt the pour.

This move can be done with any can, including tall boy beer cans.

Remember, if you are just starting out, never attempt moves for the first time in front of your guests. You should be able to hit any move 90% of the time before you perform it live.