Derek Brown (mixologist) explained

Derek Brown
Birth Date:21 September 1974
Birth Place:Washington, D.C.
Nationality:American
Known For:Columbia Room, The Passenger, Mockingbird Hill, Eat the Rich, Southern Efficiency
Occupation:Entrepreneur, Mixologist, Writer
Organization:Drink Company

Derek Brown (born September 21, 1974) is an American entrepreneur, writer, and bartender. He owned the bars Columbia Room, The Passenger, Mockingbird Hill, Eat the Rich, and Southern Efficiency in Washington, D.C. Brown is a Distinguished Fellow at Catholic University's Ciocca Center for Principled Entrepreneurship.[1]

Early life

Brown was born in Washington D.C. and grew up in Olney, Maryland. He lived briefly in Charleston, South Carolina and Atlanta, Georgia before returning to the D.C. area to attend George Mason University.

Career

Beginnings

Brown began bartending in 2000 at Rocky's,[2] a bar in the Adams Morgan neighborhood of Washington D.C., before moving on to Chef Frank Ruta's Palena and becoming interested in wine. He started working at Michel Richard's Citronelle under the tutelage of sommelier Mark Slater and then moved on to work alongside Chef Johnny Monis as the sommelier at restaurant Komi and was included in Wine & Spirits magazine's 2007 Top 5 New Sommeliers in America.[3] While at Komi, Brown was a founder of the underground cocktail club Hummingbird to Mars that operated out of Bourbon in Adams Morgan.

He returned to the bar full-time in 2008. He worked alongside owners Ian and Eric Hilton to open the speakeasy The Gibson on the 14th Street Corridor in Washington, D.C., which served classic cocktails.[4]

The Passenger and Columbia Room

In 2009, restaurateur Paul Ruppert approached Brown about opening a bar in a space adjacent to the Warehouse Theatre. Brown brought his brother Tom Brown on board, a bartender at wine bar Cork at the time, and they decided to turn the space into two projects. The first was The Passenger, which opened in November 2009. The Passenger is named after the Iggy Pop song of the same name.[5]

In March 2010, they opened the Brown's Columbia Room, a 10-seat cocktail location in the back of The Passenger. Columbia Room focuses on a tasting menu that combines seasonal ingredients, classic cocktails, and attention to craftsmanship.[6]

Recognition

Closing and Re-Opening

On January 1, 2015, The Passenger and Columbia Room closed. The building at 1021 7th St NW was sold to make way for an office and retail development by Douglas Development Corp. The Columbia Room re-opened in Blagden Alley in February 2016 under Brown's direction.[16] The Passenger re-opened north of its old location on 7th Street in the fall of 2016 under the sole ownership of Tom Brown.[17]

Drink Company

Formerly known as Laughing Cocktail, Drink Company is owned by Brown and Angie Fetherston. They formed their partnership in April 2010 and have since worked together on many projects, including a trio of bars named Mockingbird Hill, Eat the Rich, and Southern Efficiency - known as the DB3 - in the Shaw neighborhood. They also led the efforts in working with D.C. City Council to pass a proclamation naming the Rickey the official cocktail of Washington, D.C.,[18] with the author of Prohibition in Washington D.C. Garrett Peck.

Mockingbird Hill, Eat the Rich, and Southern Efficiency were named among Bon Appétit magazine's 2014 "50 Best New Restaurants in America".[19] After a period of time when the three bars were turned into a seasonal, pop-up model, the location closed.

Mockingbird Hill

Mockingbird Hill, which opened on June 5, 2013, was a bar that specialized in sherry and was influenced by bars in Madrid. The name of the bar was derived from The Clash song Spanish Bombs which pays homage to those who fought against the fascist regime in the Spanish Civil War.

Eat the Rich

Eat the Rich, which opened on October 18, 2013, was an oyster bar created by Brown, Angie Fetherston, and oysterman Travis Croxton of Rappahannock River Oysters. Featuring local oysters and a Chesapeake Bay-centric menu, Eat the Rich was a tribute to the oyster houses of Washington, D.C., and Mid-Atlantic cuisine.

Southern Efficiency

Southern Efficiency, which opened on December 21, 2013, was a Southern food and whiskey bar.

Writing

Brown had a regular web column for The Atlantic from 2009 to 2011.[20] He is now a freelance writer with articles published in The Washington Post, The Huffington Post, Entrepreneur Magazine, Punch Magazine, Table Matters, and Bon Appétit Magazine.

In 2019, Brown (with Robert Yule) published Spirits Sugar Water Bitters, an outgrowth of his work as Chief Spirits Advisor to the National Archives Foundation.[21]

In 2022, Brown published Mindful Mixology: A Comprehensive Guide to No- and Low-Alcohol Cocktails with 60 Recipes, an outgrowth of his work advocating for mindful drinking by both workers and patrons in bars.[22]

Professional accolades

Personal life

Derek Brown lives in Washington, D.C., with his son.

Interests and advocacy

Brown is involved with Share Our Strength and has served as mixology chair for their Taste of the Nation fundraising event where his bars participate every year to raise money and awareness with the goal of ending childhood hunger in America. He's also an Ambassador of Washington, D.C., for Destination D.C., an organization that supports tourism and travel to D.C. He also has increasingly become an advocate for responsible, mindful drinking and non-alcoholic cocktail recipes.[28]

Notes and References

  1. Web site: Archives Foundation Kicks Off Event Series with Chief Spirits Advisor Derek Brown. 2020-06-14. National Archives Foundation.
  2. News: Storch. Jason. Restless Derek Brown. 2 April 2012. D.C. Foodies. 15 June 2011.
  3. Web site: Suriya-arporn . Korakot . 2014 Washington, D.C. Area Rising Star Restaurateur Derek Brown of Eat the Rich, Mockingbird Hill and Southern Efficiency . StarChefs . 13 December 2018 . December 2014.
  4. News: McCart . Melissa . Brothers build a restaurant dynasty . The Washington Post . May 5, 2010.
  5. News: Carman . Tim . The Passenger: Punk Rock, Cocktails, Etc., Etc. . Washington City Paper . November 20, 2009.
  6. News: Nerenberg. Kate. Columbia Room - Cocktails Dazzle in DC's Mount Vernon Square. 2 April 2012. The Washingtonian. 29 December 2010.
  7. News: Knowlton . Andres . The Top 10 Best New Cocktail Bars . Bon Appetit . June 28, 2010.
  8. News: Sintumuang. Kevin. The 25 Best Cocktail Bars in America. 2 April 2012. GQ Magazine. October 2010.
  9. News: Curtis . Wayne . America's Best Cocktail Bars . Travel + Leisure . April 26, 2011.
  10. Web site: The 2012 Restaurant and Chef Awards Semifinalists . James Beard Foundation . February 21, 2012.
  11. News: Wondrich . David . The Best Bars in America, 2013 . Esquire . May 28, 2013.
  12. Web site: The 2014 Restaurant and Chef Awards Semifinalists . James Beard Foundation . February 19, 2014.
  13. News: English . Camper . The Best New Cocktail Bars in America . Departures . April 12, 2016.
  14. Web site: The 2017 Restaurant and Chef Awards Semifinalists . James Beard Foundation . February 15, 2017.
  15. News: Spiegel . Anna . The Columbia Room Wins "Best American Cocktail Bar" . Washingtonian . July 24, 2017.
  16. Web site: Bethune . Meredith . New Space, Rare Spirits: Derek Brown's Columbia Room Returns Today . February 9, 2016.
  17. Web site: The Passenger is Back in Business, Open in a New Location . Eater DC . August 19, 2016.
  18. News: Carman. Tim. The rickey earns a place in D.C. history. 2 April 2012. The Washington Post. 15 July 2011.
  19. News: Knowlton . Andrew . America's Best New Restaurants 2014 . Bon Appetit . August 13, 2014.
  20. Web site: All Stories by Derek Brown - The Atlantic . . 13 December 2018.
  21. Book: Brown, Derek. Spirits sugar water bitters : how the cocktail conquered the world. Yule, Robert.. 29 October 2018. 978-0-8478-6146-0. New York. 1044555122.
  22. Book: BROWN, DREW. MINDFUL MIXOLOGY : a comprehensive guide to lowand no- alcohol drinks with 60 recipes.. 2022. RIZZOLI INT'L PUBL. 978-0-8478-7127-8. [S.l.]. 1260819803.
  23. News: Graff. Garrett. Attention-Getters: 40 Who Shaped 2010. 2 April 2012. Washingtonian. 6 December 2010.
  24. News: Liu . Jamie R. . 2010 James Beard Semifinalists Announced . DCist . February 18, 2010 . December 13, 2018 . https://web.archive.org/web/20181216030917/https://dcist.com/story/10/02/18/2010-james-beard-semifinalists-anno/ . December 16, 2018 . live .
  25. News: Felten. Eric. A Master of Mixological Science. 4 December 2010. The Wall Street Journal. 4 December 2010.
  26. Web site: Imbibe . 2015-01-16 . 2015 Bartender of the Year: Derek Brown . 2023-04-14 . Imbibe Magazine . en-US.
  27. Web site: The 2015 Restaurant and Chef Awards Semifinalists . James Beard Foundation . February 18, 2015.
  28. Web site: A Mixologist's Guide To 'No-Proof' Cocktails. 2020-10-18. NPR.org. en.

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