Schumann, Charles (1941–), the world’s most published author of cocktail books today, could easily be called the godfather of contemporary German bartending. In the mid-1970s, when he began his career in Harry’s New York Bar in Munich, cocktails had fallen into disrepute in Germany. See Harry’s New York Bar. With very few exceptions, they were uninspired concoctions with ready-made garnishes, drunk by old men in dusty, if not dubious, hotel bars.
Although Schumann was not the only gifted barman in the country at that time, he was responsible for demonstrating that mixing drinks can be a “fine art.” By his uncompromising quality standards, his distinctive style, and, not least, his substantial charisma, Schumann became, if not the role model, then a spiritus rector, a guiding spirit, for barmen all over the country. Thus, Schumann is highly responsible for the appreciation cocktails have gained over the last decades.
His own early creations, the notorious Swimming Pool and the Flying Kangaroo, were heavy variations of the Piña Colada and are dissed today by Schumann himself but were very popular in the 1980s. See Piña Colada. Later, he developed mainly rum-based drinks, always mixing white and brown rums together, often pimped with overproof rum and always rather fruity—tiki-style, but sort of Bauhaus-tiki, served without the usual tackiness. This less-is-more attitude is also behind the design of his three bars in Munich. His original Schumann’s American Bar, opened in 1982, was renamed and relocated as Schumann’s Bar in a larger, more temple-like location in 2003; Schumann’s Tagesbar opened in 2001, and Les Fleurs du Mal opened in 2013 on the floor above Schumann’s Bar.
International recognition came with the publication of his books: American Bar was released 1991 and later published in the United States, the United Kingdom, France, and Japan. The worldwide success of this cocktail compendium may partly be due to the fine artwork of illustrator Günter Mattei, who also designed Schumann’s earlier works Schumann’s Barbuch (1984, translated into Italian, Spanish, and Danish) and Schumann’s Tropical Barbook (1986, English, Spanish, Italian).
Several decades on, the workaholic still plays host in his three bars. In 2019, he fell into controversy when outcry over strongly negative comments he made in Schumann’s bargespräche, a 2017 film about him, and elsewhere regarding the role of women in the bar industry caused him to return the Bar Icon award the 50 Best Bars organization had just given him. Whether these were made for the sake of argument as his defenders claim, pointing to his history of mentoring women bartenders and hiring them for some of his bars, or represent deep convictions as his critics say, pointing to his refusal to hire women at his main bar, the episode shows that the bar world has moved beyond the “boys will be boys” attitude that prevailed in Schumann’s heyday.
See also Embury, David A.; and Meier, Frank.
“Charles Schumann Faces Allegations of Sexism and Misogyny.” Mixology, October 14, 2019, https://mixology.eu/en/charles-schumann-sexism-best-bars/ (accessed March 11, 2021).
By: Stefan Gabányi