Mix Master

When Farmhaus first opened its doors in the Lindenwood Park neighborhood of South City last April, its staff was in a unique situation: the pastry chef didn’t like eating pastries, the chef rarely ate his own food, and general manager Eric Scholle, although tasked with bartending, didn’t like drinking cocktails — and he still doesn’t. “I’m a Miller High Life guy,” he says.

Although cocktails aren’t his drink of choice, Eric’s creative, experimental approach to bartending and one-of-a-kind house-made infusions have garnered Farmhaus much positive attention and praise. It’s his methodology that sets him apart from other local bartenders and mixologists. Unlike his contemporaries, he infuses spirits with fresh, locally sourced ingredients, which removes a step from the drink-making process. For example, a traditional mojito recipe requires the time-consuming process of muddling lime and mint leaves. A mojito at Farmhaus, however, would skip that step by using house-made Moroccan mint-infused rum. For Scholle, the fun isn’t in laboring over complicated cocktails, but in inventing his own unique flavors and concoctions. Each of his drinks is named after or inspired by a personal story or anecdote, many of which involve the Farmhaus staff.

Just as the chefs at Farmhaus focus on using locally grown, farm-fresh ingredients, so does Eric. “I [approach] cocktails like these guys [chefs] would a dish. I just think of flavor combinations and kind of make it happen,” he says. “If I can’t make it with what I have, then I’ll just do something else. We’re driven by what we can get.” Last winter, with less fresh produce available, Eric kept the restaurant’s cocktail menu local with a clever solution: make drinks with candies purchased at Crown Candy Kitchen in downtown St. Louis. Creativity with sugary confections led to some of the most popular spirits Eric has served: eggnog taffy martinis, marshmallow martinis, and chocolate martinis, as well as Swedish Fish vodka and gummy bear vodka, just to name a few. This winter, guests can expect drinks featuring his signature chocolate vodka and a new coffee-infused bourbon. 

Eric’s candy-inspired cocktails are sweet, subtle, flavorful, and belie the myth that infused vodkas taste synthetic or excessively syrupy. “I’m only interested in making these creations and having people try something totally unique and different,” he says. “These cocktails, I put a lot of work into them, and I want people to try those, not a vodka martini.” But he’s quick to add, with a smile, that he’ll happily attempt to make any drink, even a cosmopolitan or old fashioned. Of course, he doesn’t have those recipes committed to memory. After all, those are ordinary drinks. And where’s the fun in that?

RESOURCES: 
Farmhaus Restaurant, Kevin Wilmann (chef de cuisine/owner), www.farmhausrestaurant.com, 314-647-3800, 3257 Ivanhoe Avenue