UPDATE 04/03: Bar Palmina will open a permanent location at 1306 N. Front St. in May.
After working as a photographer for 15 years, Nikki Graziano came to a realization: she no longer liked the job — and it led her to drink a lot.
Eventually, Graziano needed a liver transplant in August 2022, a procedure that prompted her to stop drinking. She found she didn't miss the alcohol, but she did miss the taste of some of the drinks and the craft of creating a great cocktail. Graziano said juices became boring, she couldn't drink coffee and soda didn't do it for her.
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"I went from heavily drinking to not drinking at all, not really by my choice, so I missed the taste of whiskey," Graziano said. "I didn't miss getting drunk and treating my body like crap, but I missed a nice cocktail where somebody put time and effort into it and wrapped up like a little gift just for you."
One year and one public fundraiser later, Graziano opened Bar Palmina in October, naming it after her grandmother, who taught Graziano how to cook. It's a non-alcoholic, pop-up bar located at The Matchbook in Kensington. It's open Thursdays, Fridays and Saturdays, serving spirits made with non-alcoholic whiskey, rum, aperitifs and wine.
For people pursuing dry January, or those just interested in a non-alcoholic social space, Graziano is serving three non-alcoholic specials this month: a Clover Club with sumac instead of raspberry, a penicillin with a barley malt she smoked herself and a mocktail inspired by her grandmother. That one includes pasta water, oregano, gin, vermouth, basil and lemon.
Non-alcoholic spirits need more of a culinary touch in drinks than regular liquors, Graziano said. She uses a sous vide technique to bring out more flavor, and substitutes emulsifiers and stabilizers like Xantham gum for sugar to ensure her drinks don't get too sweet.
"It's not the same as just mixing the stuff and calling a cocktail," Graziano said. "You're missing the alcohol, you're missing that complexity, so you have to do a lot more work to get to a place where it is something that tastes really good, it's not watered down or completely slammed with sugar."
Later this year, Graziano said she hopes to find a partner or investor and move into a more permanent space so she can offer more wines and beers. She'd also like to gain a proper kitchen space so she can do more work on-site.
Last year, Bar Palmina hosted several community nights, including a yoga night. Graziano said she'd like to do more of those in 2024, including a trivia night, to make her bar more of a community space.
"I wanted a place to have cocktails that wasn't so clunky and socially weird without the alcohol and couldn't really find it, so I made it," Graziano said.