Some people fall into bartending, trying to pay their way through uni; others take it up because they’re dissatisfied with other careers.

It was the latter for Mahbub Hasan, who runs Apollonia in Circular Quay. Before he flung himself into bartending full time, he was an engineer. “I hated it,” he says.

What a boon for the bar world that was. Mahbub is one of the top 25 bartenders in the Espolòn Afterlife To The Bone cocktail competition, and below, lightly edited and condensed for clarity, he talks about his cocktail Better Red Than Dead, the creative process, and why he does what he does.

What’s the big idea behind your drink?

So the drink name on the drink is Better Red Than Dead. We have this book shop in Newtown that is called Better Read Than Dead and why not just replace that, know, use that pun because the drink is red.

It’s a twist of a Pink Squirrel.

Where did that idea come from?

I’m working in Malaysia, running this place called Reka Bar and a guest walks in, he is from the US and he asks us for a drink called Pink Squirrel. And I was like, what is it again?

I was looking through the rules and regulation of Afterlife cocktail competition. And I saw that, okay, you gotta revive a cocktail from the past that no one has talked about. I was like, okay Pink Squirrel, let’s do that

So tell us what’s in your version of it?

Yeah, so my version of pink squirrel calls for Espolòn Reposado. And I take inspiration from the Pink Squirrel itself, keep all the DNA that is intact, but obviously move that creamy sort of texture towards a bit more of a modernised version of it, where I make a ratafia aux noyau, which is basically cognac, a bit of almond that goes in there, peach kernels, and then we add a bit of tea in there, infuse it up and then add a bit of white cacao and lactic acid.

Tell us about the creative process for you generally. Where do get your ideas for drinks from?

Most of the time I’ll look at aroma compounds. Let’s say I’m working with a certain ingredient that has similar compounds to that found in citrus, I pair them up. So it technically just works in a DNA form. Like the compounds are the same. And that’s how I look at it. And so the creative process actually works the same way.

How would you describe your approach to bartending?

Yeah, I am kind of a nerdy sort of bartender. I think I remember my classics and like to look towards them. I’m also hardworking.

Why do you do what you do?

Yeah, I think I asked that question to myself a lot as well. I was an engineer — I’m still am engineer. Before I became engineer, I was doing part-time nighttime working clubs and I loved it. Just the vibe, the adrenaline rush.

And then I came back, went back to doing office work and it was more of the boring stuff. No one talks, if you make a joke, no one understands. I hated it.

Better Red than Dead

45ml Espolon Reposado
25ml Ratafia Aux Noyau
10ml Cacao Blanc
3ml Improved Lactic Acid

“Method: Stirred, Straight Up

For the Ratafia Aux Noyau:
300ml Courvoisier VS
100 ml Grand Mernier
10gm Rooibos & Vanilla Tea
50gm Crashed Peach Kernels
100gm Pomegranate ALIRS
10gm Fresh Mint

Preparation: Sous Vide for 30min at 55c and strain off the tea & Mint from the mixture. Leave the other ingredients to infuse in room temperature for 3 days. Strain out and bottle.

For the Improved Lactic Acid Solution:
50 milliliters water
10 gm Lactic acid powder
1 gm sodium citrate powder

Measure ingredients separately, then combine. Whisk until the solids are fully dissolved. Bottle, then refrigerate.

For the Dried Milk Foam:
500 ml whole milk
100 gm glucose

Heat the milk and glucose together, while continuously stirring, until just below boiling point. Use a hand-held blender to blend the milk into a thick foam. Allow the foam to stabilise and spoon carefully onto a baking tray lined with baking paper. Dry the milk for six to eight hours in the oven at 68°C with the fan set to the lowest setting. Store in an airtight container with silicone granules in a dry place.