Alcohol can be a taboo subject for some in the Black community. In a 2023 study, the National Institute of Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism found that 3.3 million Black or African American adults age 18 and older struggled with alcohol use disorder. Kaje Sanford and Javia Gilliam-Sanford told St. Louis on the Air that their intent is to be a positive influence on the relationship the Black community has with alcohol — and show the artistry behind each sip.
“It's 99% of our motto across all our bars,” Sanford said.
The couple own Pour Decisions, a full cocktail bar operating out of a converted horse trailer. Gilliam-Sanford owns their brick-and-mortar location Passport Bar, where Sanford is the head bartender. With both businesses they aim to create an environment that is fun, affordable and comes with a level of education. Gilliam-Sanford is a sommelier, and Sanford is a mixologist who specializes in liquor and spirits.
“A big thing for me is the way people build on those relationships. The familiarness and the community is how we all come together, sometimes just to have a drink or a happy hour,” Sanford said. “I really got into what a good cocktail was, how we can make those things more affordable and to expand everybody else's horizons. Sometimes [people] pay a lot for a drink that you don't like and sometimes there's cheap drinks that [people] just don't know about.”
Gilliam-Sanford and Sanford built their own relationships with drinking while they enjoyed their favorite hobby — traveling. The two tie everything they do back to encouraging others to change their viewpoint from drinking to get drunk to drinking to enjoy the flavors and also the company, as they have on their world travels
“I think when we got older, we were in different spaces where we saw how alcohol could be used as a communal tool versus a coping mechanism,” Gilliam-Sanford said. Being in a space where you felt good after you consumed alcohol with people you loved or had a good time with is another reason why we felt like we wanted to be intentional.”
On June 14, Gilliam-Sanford and Sanford are hosting “The Art of Alcohol” in Kiener Plaza. The weekend event is the brainchild of Gilliam-Sanford. The community event shares the couple’s vision of education with tastings, lessons about Missouri wine and vineyards, and a demonstration on how to achieve the perfect ice for cocktails.
Sanford said he looks forward to having approachable conversations and sharing stories to connect people to their new favorite cocktail.
“A lot of stories I tell are, unfortunately, stories of cocktails I didn't like. And the stories are not necessarily, ‘This [drink] is better or this is worse.’ It's, ‘Try it from this aspect,’” Sanford said. “Based on what [people are] describing to me, yeah, I can see what you didn't like that [drink]. I think having fun with that traditional cocktail aspect, we can add and remove as we need to. We can be flexible.”
For more with Javia Gilliam-Sanford and Kaje Sanford about the Art of Alcohol, including the conversation Gilliam-Sanford overheard that led her to sommelier school, listen to St. Louis on the Air on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, YouTube or click the play button below.
Related Event
What: The Art of Alcohol
When: 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. June 14
Where: Kiener Plaza (500 Chestnut St., St. Louis, MO 63101)
“St. Louis on the Air” brings you the stories of St. Louis and the people who live, work and create in our region. The show is produced by Miya Norfleet, Emily Woodbury, Danny Wicentowski, Elaine Cha and Alex Heuer. Darrious Varner is our production assistant. The audio engineer is Aaron Doerr.
