Brand Building & Market Presence
Where great brands meet great bars.
The Cocktail Guru brings the right people, the right moment, and the right experience — and everyone at the table wins. Whether you make it, pour it, or host it, this is how brands get real traction in the places that matter most.
Wherever You Fit in the Industry
You’re a liquor or beverage brand.
You want real placement in real bars, with someone who can actually tell your story. Not a sampling table. Not a logo on a napkin. The kind of presence that sticks with the trade professionals who decide what goes on menus.
You’re a bar or restaurant brand.
You’ve built something worth knowing about — and you want the right people to know about it. Maybe that’s a new market. Maybe it’s the US. Either way, you need representation that understands craft, hospitality, and how to carry a reputation into a room.
You’re a venue.
You want a night that stands out. Something your regulars remember and your staff feels proud of. A reason for the trade to walk through your door and stay a while.
A day in the trade. A night to remember.
A daytime masterclass for bartenders, followed by an evening bar takeover with guest talent, featured brands, and a menu built for the night.
The day starts with the trade. Bartenders gather at the venue for a hands-on masterclass — product knowledge, technique, real conversation. They leave with a genuine connection to the brands they worked with. That shows up later on their menus.
Then the evening opens up. A guest personality behind the bar, a specially crafted menu, the venue’s crowd plus whoever the buzz brought in. It’s a real night — not a marketing activation dressed up as one.
We handle the venue relationship, the talent, the brands, the logistics. Everyone else just has to show up.
Here's what actually happens afterwards
Bartenders who attend the masterclass walk away with a real connection to the brands — and that shows up in what they recommend and what they order. Venues build relationships with brand reps and industry figures they wouldn’t have met otherwise. We’ve watched brands go from unfamiliar to top-of-mind in a market after a single well-placed evening. Not because we pushed hard — because the experience earned it.
A Few Nights Worth Telling You About
Houston, TX — Julep Cocktail Bar
One of Houston’s most respected cocktail destinations. A long-standing relationship, a quick phone call, and it was on. Afternoon masterclass with the local trade, an evening pop-up with three brands and a full house. Good crowd, good drinks, good night.
New York City — Representing Late Checkout
A celebrated bar from India wanted a presence in the New York market. Flying a full team over wasn’t practical, so they brought us in as their representatives. We sourced the sponsors, secured the venues, and made their signature cocktails — intricate, technically demanding, genuinely stunning — at two of the city’s top bars. Their brand showed up in New York without them having to be there.
Boynton Beach, FL — Sweetwater
A new connection through a mutual contact. An introduction, a few conversations, a date on the calendar. Packed their secondary bar from start to finish. New venue, new relationships, new sponsors. The model works even when you’re starting from scratch.
A Selection Of Clients We've Worked With
Beverage Brands
375 Park Ave Spirits · Van Gogh Vodka · Caorunn Gin · Old Pulteney Single Malt · Ron Abuelo Rum · William Grant & Sons · Hendrick’s Gin · Sailor Jerry Rum · Saint James Rhum · Bacardi USA · Campari America · St-Germain · West Cork Irish Whiskey · Lillet · Sandeman Port · Chandon · Mionetto Prosecco · St. Elder · Bacardi Rum · Don Q · Barrow’s Intense Ginger Liqueur · OM Spirits · Frederick Wildman · Spencerfield Spirits Group · Mad River Distillers · Chartreuse · Edinburgh Gin · Ruffino · Keurig · Illy · Perfect Purée of Napa Valley · Wild Hibiscus · Monin · Ripe American Juice Co. · POM Wonderful
Corporate
Google · Amazon · Chase · NBC · Mohawk Industries · Harvard University · The Yale Club · Viacom · Nickelodeon · Mancini Duffy · Design Republic · Oomph · KPMG · ADP · Ova Science · JCC · Delta
Non-Profit
Cystic Fibrosis Foundation · Marion Institute · Boys and Girls Club · Child and Family Services · True Colors Foundation · The Helen Davis Relief Fund · Mill City Grows · Our Sister’s School · Houston Street Charities · Dr. Martin Luther King Community Center of Newport County · Artisphere
We don't just pour your brand. We represent it.
Jonathan Pogash has been a recognized figure in the American cocktail world since 2006. That’s two decades of relationships — bartenders, brand managers, venue owners, and industry personalities across the country and around the world.
When we represent your brand at an event, you’re not getting someone reading off a spec sheet. You’re getting someone who understands the culture of the bar, the story of the spirit, and how to make a room feel right. Someone who can inspire even the most seasoned bartender, and make every curious guest feel like they’re discovering something for the first time.
We bring the network. We bring the craft. We bring the hospitality this industry is actually built on. The rest is just a really good night.
Let's talk about what we can build together.
Brand, bar, or venue — if it sounds like a fit, let’s have a conversation. No long forms. No hard pitch. Just a conversation about what might be possible.