Flair bartending brings elements of the circus and Las Vegas to your event. Party guests love watching our skilled "flairtenders" toss, spin, flip and juggle liquor bottles as they prepare drinks for the crowd.

Professional flairtenders are highly valued on cruises, in large bars, casinos and nightclubs. Our flair bartenders are among the most skilled in Los Angeles. They practice "working flair," which means the quality of drink service is never compromised.

Anything within reach is fair game for the flairtender, a juggler at heart whose routines may include flying bar utensils, multiple-bottle drink mixing and perhaps small flaming streams of liquids. (The flames last only a few seconds and stay well under control. Safety is basic flairtending.)

When most people hear about "extreme bartending" or flairtending, they usually think of Tom Cruise in the 1988 movie "Cocktail." The practice actually dates back some 150 years, to when the legendary mixologist "Professor" Jerry Thomas poured his flaming drinks from mixing glass to mixing glass, creating an arc of fire.

In the two decades since Cruise's movie popularized the practice, flairtending has evolved into both a profession and a sport. There's even a governing body, the Flair Bartender's Association.

Flairtending competitions are growing in popularity and typically find corporate sponsors from the liquor industry. The competitions divide their contests into working flair (real drinks) and exhibition flair, in which the bottles are mostly empty and no drinks are prepared. There are events in Las Vegas, New York, Paris, London, Orlando and even Moscow.

Flairtending competitions started right here in Southern California. A T.G.I. Friday's in Marina del Rey sponsored the first contest in 1985. Flairtending isn't for all events or parties, but any high-energy affair could benefit from the showmanship and style of Bartending Solutions' flairtenders.

Contact a Bartending Solutions L.A. event organizer today to reserve a flairtender for your next event.