The Classy Trashy

It was a pretty magical Sunday in mid-April of 2013. Misha and I were both celebrating our birthday weeks and had decided to meet at the Performing Arts Center for a matinee of ‘Jesus Christ Superstar’. When I arrived at the theatre, she had already purchased us each a can of Sofia, a sparkling wine that came in a pink can with a straw. We made sure to get another for intermission. After the performance, we decided to do a little bar-hopping but made the agreement that we would not go to any bar that we worked at. We needed to enjoy a day off. Our first stop was at Darwin’s and we really wanted to keep drinking some bubbly, but unfortunately, we could not think of anywhere besides the bars we worked at that would find what we were looking for.

That’s when we hatched a plan: create a cocktail that would become famous, so that no matter what bar we were in, we would be able to get our Sofia Blanc De Blanc.

Thus, the ‘Classy Trashy’ was born.

Misha Daniels was born in Portland, but moved to Dutch Harbor when she was 12. After moving to Anchorage in 1998 to attend college, she would travel back to Dutch Harbor for summers, and for a little while after she graduated college. Her career in the service industry started in her teens working in fast food restaurants, and like many bartenders, she became a barista for a while. She started working in restaurants in her early 20’s and soon found that bartending was not only something she excelled at, but something she truly enjoyed.

During her career, Daniels has worked at a wide variety of bars and restaurants and gotten a feel for every side of the business. From fine dining and wine pairing, to Irish pubs that can get a little rowdy, she understands the crowds and the cocktails. She studies her craft in her free time, and enjoys experimenting with friends, and creating new drink menus for her places of employment. These days Daniels has found her home in two local bars, both legendary — Darwin’s Theory and Mad Myrna’s. She also travels to Tales of the Cocktail, or TOTC. What began in 2002 as a walking tour of the New Orleans cocktail bars, has now grown into the world’s premiere cocktail festival. The event offers seminars, tastings, networking and special events. The pillars of the foundation, which have created the 4-day annual event are education, advancement, and support. Daniels has traveled for the event six times and visits New Orleans on a regular basis to continue fostering the relationships she has made while she is there for education.

Her first year attending TOTC was more rambunctious and fun, and her favorite class that she took was on creative garnishes, including making pirate ships out of orange peel and lemons. As she continued to attend and learn, she became more focused on education that taught her advanced techniques. One recent class was titled Dangerous Cocktails.

“There was a lot of talk about infusing. We don’t always know that some of these trends can make people sick if they are not done correctly, like fat washing for example.” Daniels recalled “Recently, bitters took off in a big way, and people were talking about tobacco bitters because of a great company in San Francisco that does it. What they don’t know is that those bitters are tobacco flavored; if you actually condense tobacco to that level of flavor you might give someone a heart attack.”

Responsibility is something that Daniels takes very seriously.

“We are serving an illicit drug and we have to be careful,” she said. “I feel TOTC has kind of shifted back into that. Last year at the big the main kickoff party there was no alcohol served. It concentrated on the importance of hospitality and responsibility, including non-alcoholic cocktails.”

Most of Daniels’ customers probably aren’t aware of the amount of personal time she has spent working on her craft; they just enjoy her personality and style. Local beer goddess Darcy Kniefel of Midnight Sun Brewing Company said, “Misha is easily the most personable bartender in the state of Alaska. She not only knows what you are drinking, she asks you the right questions. She knows when you are having a bad day and doesn’t let you get too crazy. She knows when you are having a good day and helps you have even more fun!”

Kniefel has been in the bar industry in Alaska for a long time and pointed out another one of her favorite traits that the mixologist possesses.

“She cares for everyone that she works with, and she cares for everyone that she works for. That’s very important,” Kneifel said.

Daniels’ friend and co-worker Varian Oatman, who performs at Mad Myrna’s as drag queen Issa Man is in full agreement.

“I fucking love her,” He said. “She is excited about the show. I don’t even necessarily go to her for the alcohol, because they are all great bartenders. I go to her for her smile.”

Daniels has a clientele that will follow her to whichever bar she is working at, but as a professional, she has her own reasons for staying at her current bars. Co-workers at Darwin’s Theory are some her favorite people.

“Darwin’s is 12 women that are funky and different in our own ways,” she said. “Darwin’s is special. It is 12 women that get along. We respect each other, we love each other, we don’t put up with any bullshit from each other. We expect the best from one another and give it in return. We all might slip up here and there, but then we are able to have a conversation about it and work it out.”

Myrna’s is also an emotional connection, not only because of her co-workers but also because of the time she spent there as a customer before getting hired.

“I like Myrna’s because there have been times that I felt like a misfit, and before I started working at the bar, it was a really welcoming place, and I was the girl that had a bartender that would introduce me to other customers,” she said. “This is a place where I have met so many of my close friends. I am also able to be kind and show empathy to those that don’t always experience it. This is a safe social place for a lot of people, they might not have anywhere else where they can totally be themselves and maybe they don’t have anyone to talk to that they can be honest with. I really enjoy being able to be kind and warm to people beyond serving them a drink. I get a lot of hugs here, and smooches on the cheek here.”

Daniels was not working at either of her current bars when the Classy Trashy was launched, but it was conceived at Darwin’s, and the launch party for the cocktail was partly held at Mad Myrna’s. While Daniels has created many cocktails in her life, this is the one that has had the most longevity and reward in her life, although she does feel some guilt about it.

“I feel like I need to apologize to the world. I feel like there have been hangovers, unplanned pregnancies, drunken booty calls, inappropriate Facebook comments as a result of this cocktail. There are probably some lives that have been destroyed,” she lamented. “I feel like the person who created that Trashcan, or the Long Island, and wonders how many Long Island babies there are out there.”

After the launch of the drink that was supposed to cause sparkling wine to be readily available everywhere, there ended up not being enough supplies for every bar to carry it at the time, so in that respect, it did not achieve its goal, but there were some other nice things that happened.

“Coppola Vineyards paid for my hotel room one year at Tales of the Cocktail, and my Dad and I went down to the vineyard, and they wined and dined us; cabana by the pool,” she said.

For now, Daniels will continue to make drinks for her customers, and keep making people feel welcome. In her free time, she vacations to music festivals, concerts, and Disneyland as often as she can. Sometimes it’s the only way that she can get a break. She knows that she is lucky to have a job where she can take time off for these activities, and so much more.

“Bartending has been great to me, and I hope I can be as good to the industry and the people in return,” Daniels said. “I am grateful and lucky that I have a following, and I work in cool places. I have been very fortunate.”

The Classy Trashy

The concept behind this cocktail was simple. Create a drink that required Sofia sparkling wine in a can and make it customizable for each bartender and patron. The flavors can be any combination, it is the construction that matters most.

2 parts flavored vodka or rum

1-part fruit puree or fruity liqueur

1-part fruit juice

Place all liquids inside a pint glass or large beer glass. Top with ice to rim to create an ice shelf. Top with an upside-down can of Sofia Sparkling Blanc De Blanc (Classy), as if it were a Red Bull in a Trashcan cocktail (Trashy). Insert straw.

As the person enjoying it sips on their cocktail, the first few drinks will be sweet. As the sparkling wine fills the glass and mixes, the texture and flavor will begin to change with each drink.