Pour One with Lauren “LP” Paylor O’Brien

The Ultimate Drink Master reflects on reality tv, rethinking hospitality, mindful consumption and the power of intention.

WORDS Lauren Buzzeo

A remarkably insightful innovator in the beverage and hospitality spaces, these days, Lauren “LP” Paylor O’Brien has become something of a household name thanks to her winning turn on Netflix’s Drink Masters, a 10-episode cocktail competition reality show that featured 12 talented bartenders from across North America. She wowed audiences with her veritable gamut of bar techniques and culinary skills, including a fair share of molecular gastronomy, that crafted some of the most visually stunning and drool-inducing yet incredibly thoughtful cocktails ever seen.

A multitasking entrepreneur through and through, LP’s experience includes a wide range of roles and titles, from beverage director and brand ambassador to R&D production chef, cofounder, nonprofit committee member, spirit judge and, oh, official bartender for the Emmy Awards.

Today, her company, LP Drinks Co., which includes Focus on Health, Cocktails + Comedy, and Bodega Culture under its umbrella, focuses on creating safe, diverse and inclusive spaces that promote comprehensive wellness and balance within the hospitality industry. As of December 2022, LP is also a co-owner of Siponey Spritz Co., the first B Corp Certified spirits-based canned cocktail company. Despite all the action, we had a chance to catch up with LP and see, well, how it’s all going.

You’ve had some big news, some big changes. How are you doing? How’s life been since the big win?

Yeah, life has been great. I mean, it’s certainly busy and what better time to practice work-life balance, managing a calendar, prioritizing the people that you want to collaborate with in the organizations that align with your mission and values, and the power of no. So definitely embracing all of those things. And I’m very fortunate and lucky to be in a position where I get to collaborate with amazing creatives and bring a bit of intention in everything that I do.

What were your expectations and hopes going into the start of filming Drink Masters—what was your “why” behind being interested in the show?

Funny enough, I saw the flyer for Drink Masters kind of floating, and it wasn’t very obvious what the opportunity was—what I mean by that is it didn’t say, like, “Drink Masters! New show on Netflix!” It was very much like, there’s an opportunity to be featured on this major streaming network that’s going to be focusing on molecular gastronomy and that incorporation into drinks. I was like, oh, I don’t have time for this, I have a full-time job, it sounds cool but I don’t know if it aligns with me. Eventually, I got an email from one of the casting producers and it said hey, you’ve come recommended for an opportunity to potentially be a part of this amazing series. And then another email in a bit more detail about what the opportunity was. I went to my employers and was like, is this something that you think I could potentially do? It does require me to be away for several weeks, but I am interested, and what a better way to challenge myself. And it aligned with what my role was at the time. They were very supportive and so I submitted this initial kind of application, went through a series of interviews and then going into the experience, I just needed to prove to myself that I could still do this—I needed to prove to myself or showcase why this industry. To me, it’s a creative outlet. It’s like an artist having their canvas, and being able to make drinks that taste delicious and have a story, intention, meaning behind them, and then are aesthetically very beautiful and providing experiences, that’s always been something I’ve been interested in.

Do you think the show brought a new level of awareness to the intricacies and thoughtfulness behind mixology?

Yeah, I do, absolutely. You know it’s interesting, I can take a step back and reflect now and say, yeah, the reason I joined was XYZ in the moment. I think for me it was like, it’d be really cool to participate in this thing that would allow­ others to to gain a bit more of an appreciation for what the craft is. It was the first time we could really highlight behind the scenes, very similar to what we see on cooking shows, that step-by-step process, being a part of the experience versus just being a part of that end result that is received at the bar. And I think it really did a great job of highlighting different personalities, different types of mixologists and bartenders. There are so many categories of drinks and different­ types of bars—you have your dive bars, you have your craft cocktail bars, you have your bars that are focused on molecular gastronomy—and the show really did a great job because the cast was so diverse and displaying those nuances and differences that really exist…Really talented individuals, and I’m just really grateful that I got to be up there with them.

Was there any turning point or pinnacle moment in the competition when you were like, “I got this.” You always seemed so calm, cool and collected—or was that just editing magic?

There was literally not a moment, not even after I won, that I ever felt that way. I will say that I have an amazing partner and husband who is kind of like, you know, the morning affirmations that you wish, or that we all respectively wish we did in the morning, he is the living epitome of that for me. So when I was going into this, he basically was like, just take it one challenge at a time, don’t think about winning but think about how you can just be yourself to the best of your ability in every challenge that’s ahead of you. And I said, you know, that’s great advice. So that’s really the approach I took.

I was in the library often, late nights, just like studying and conceptualizing different flavor combinations and trying to learn more about different pieces of produce and different ingredients like maltodextrin or agar agar, and figure out how I can use those ingredients, those techniques, those applications, and then manipulate them to whatever my end result is. I think I did a great job at that, but I’ll be really honest in saying that even when I was up there, final three, I was just proud of what I put out there…I would proudly serve every single drink I made—they were delicious and every time I did a new cocktail it really taught me something about myself that I truly didn’t know going into the competition. Yeah, it was a crazy experience thinking back on it.

It’s always been really important to me to figure out the ways in which I can take care of myself, but more importantly, the ways I can take those things that have worked for me and share them with others. I think simply put, the most important thing is how can I live life with purpose, with meaning, and move in a way that allows me to be fully present in everything that I do? And I think when you get to that point where, first of all, you love what you do, and you found a way to have it truly aligned with what your missions and values are, then moving with intention and moving with purpose just makes it that much more fruitful.

I think one of the things that I learned is that it’s not necessarily just about that focus on health and wellness. So, what I mean is It’s not just about waking up, getting on your Peloton and, you know, burning 600 calories, which feels great mind you because I’ve been doing that lately. But, I think it’s also about getting up in the morning, being happy with who you are as a person, being proud of the decisions you’ve made, being comfortable with speaking up and advocating for yourself and others when and where necessary, so not being afraid to be uncomfortable. With each decision you make, to get what you want at the end of the day, with your career, with your life, with your relationships.

Can you share a little bit about your recent investment into Siponey?

Yeah, absolutely. Siponey is a canned cocktail company that’s B Corps Certified, which essentially means that we donate a portion of our revenue every year to nonprofits that focus on ways to improve the environment. I now have the pleasure of being­ a co-owner with Amanda Victoria and Joseph Mintz, who are pioneers in this industry. There’s an environmental mission associated with the brand but also just being a thoughtful consumer—the power of the dollar is so important and why not purchase something that tastes good but is also good for the environment is really what we’re advocating. The RTD [ready-to-drink] category is concentrated, there are so many products, so I think I was immediately attracted to the product because of what they stand for and how different they are.

Can you share a little bit about what the future holds for you—what’s in store for LP for 2023?

We have a couple of different programs that we’re doing with the LP platform. Bodega Culture is an extension of my episode 2 cocktail on the show. I made this cocktail called Everything but the Alley Cat, which really embraced New York bodega culture. People all over the world were messaging me like “that is an amazing drink” and “I know exactly what you’re talking about.” What I realized is we can pay homage to the history that is completely and undeniably associated with bodegas in New York and the Puerto Rican diaspora while also creating a dinner series that elevates that experience but also includes every­one along the way in this journey. So we’ll have some great chefs that will really be leading what the theme is for each dinner, along with our guest host, and then I will create cocktails to pair with the delicious food. I’m really excited about that. And we have the Cocktails + Comedy tour, which is a platform that elevates the voices of BIPOC and female comedians and mixologists, raising money for charity along the way. And other than that, we are expanding with a huge emphasis on education internally, so when we bring in subcontractors, providing them with the tools and the skills they need to get those corporate executive or director-level positions. Our whole thing is really going to be collaboration with creatives and education and then really providing those fruitful experiences with everything that we do.