Can a machine replace this? One company thinks yes.
The folks from the Ontario-based company Bartesian dropped by BuzzFeed SF to show us their "Keurig for cocktails."
The Bartesian ($300 on Kickstarter) will launch Spring 2016, if funded, with six different cocktail capsules. We tried "Signature 1," a peach-y gin drink, and Sex on the Beach.
First, you fill the reservoirs with your own basic spirits (gin, vodka, rum, and tequila).
Then, you load the capsule, which contains ingredients like fruit juice, non-alcoholic liqueurs, muddled herbs, and bitters.
One neat thing about the capsules is that, unlike Keurig K-cups, the Bartesian pods are recyclable.
Next, the machine draws alcohol from the appropriate reservoir and mixes it with the capsule liquids to create your cocktail.
The idea is that, with this machine, you don't have to stock up your pantry with random ingredients (like bitters and fruit juice) – just booze.
I thought the "Signature 1" peach-y gin drink was sweet and palatable – not great, but not disgusting.
But a tasting panel of one isn't a good idea, so I invited my colleagues to try the cocktails.
Here's how the peach-y gin drink, the Signature 1, fared:
"Tastes like chemicals. Not good." – Brendan K.
"Strong processed flavor. It needs something else . . . Are cocktails really that hard to make?" – Jess M.
"I don't taste peach whatsoever." — Mathew G.
The Sex on the Beach tasted better.
"Tastes more like a real cocktail, but still too Kool Aid-y." – Jess M.
"Way too sweet, but at least I taste what seems like coconut." – Mathew G.
"Very OK." – Brendan K.
"No, these are not drinks I'd serve my friends." — Brendan K.
Here's the thing: it's really, really hard to make something out of a pod taste good.
The Bartesian isn't the only robot mixologist vying for your counterspace.
Robot bartenders are convenient — but, in their current iteration, they're far from the replacement bartenders they claim to be.
