The Number Nine turns nine

I remember the first time I visited SIN + TAX. As an aspiring journalist, very much wet behind the ears, I was somewhat nervous upon visiting this speakeasy — the trend of hidden bars that was booming overseas but had yet to take off locally. It hadn’t opened to the public yet. It was 11am. And you entered through a pizza shop’s restroom.

The bar was obviously closed, but it would be the first of many visits I’d make, and the first time I’d meet the head bartender, Julian Short, who was just as new to the industry as I was.

“When we opened, we had this raw ambition and naivety. The saying ‘ignorance is bliss’ is certainly true. I wasn’t in charge of paying bills or doing the admin; I was just making drinks and having fun,” says the mixologist.

Nine years on, with uncountable cocktails drunk, shots downed, great nights out, and a good few hangovers later, all courtesy of SIN + TAX, I catch up with Short to reflect on how this small cocktail bar has become one of the best bars in the country.

“On a personal level, everything I’ve given the bar (and industry), I’ve received back,” says Short. “When I started at SIN + TAX, I just wanted to make good drinks. I thought, here’s something I’m good at, I enjoy it, and people seem to enjoy it too … Nine years on and the philosophy is very much the same.”

In just under a decade, Short has gone on to take ownership of the bar — together with business partner Evert de Jong — and to shape the local drinks scene, receiving numerous awards and accolades along the way. Perhaps most impressively, though, he’s also created one of those special places people are always eager to visit, with the bar having retained its popularity over time and through numerous iterations.

In the beginning, the bar was notoriously difficult to get into, with the space seating just 40 people. Post-pandemic, they decided to take over the outdoor courtyard, which expanded the seating to 100. This was a bittersweet moment for die-hard cocktail connoisseurs who revelled in the exclusivity. “In some ways, it’s taken away that small, intimate feeling the bar had, which I really loved, but it’s also allowed us to do so much more,” says Short.

In many ways, he feels like he’s just reached the point where he can say he has a great bar — even if many have been saying it for a good few years. He explains that, with the high staff turnover in the industry, particularly in Joburg, it’s difficult to retain a whole team who are at the required level. Now, he finally has a team where everyone is familiar with the operation, understands cocktails, and knows what to do, allowing him to concentrate on other areas of the business.

He now wears many hats at SIN + TAX. While he still works the bar a few times a week, his focus, on top of running the business, is predominantly on cocktail development, menu design, and curating his wine list.

Speaking of the menu, Short touches on the bar’s current offering — a grand difference from the little booklet with a handful of cocktails when they first launched. Now, there are two full menus: the black book, which includes the most popular cocktails from previous years, and a seasonal themed menu. The black book features the likes of the SIN + TAX Penicillin, The Paintbrush (a grapefruit-and-thyme twist on a French 75), and the bar’s signature drink, The Number Nine, which has been on the menu from the very start.

This was the drink that landed Short the bartender job to begin with. He’d just returned from his first international competition in Mexico and had used that trip as inspiration. “I had such beautiful memories of the markets, the fruit stalls brimming with pomegranates, the tastes of coriander and lime, and, of course, the tequila.”

The cocktail quickly became one of SA’s most recognised cocktails since the Pornstar Martini (a story for another day). It has remarkable balance and complexity. There’s the sweetness of the pomegranate shrub, which also offers some sourness; there’s the caramelisation and acidity of the lime, which adds depth; and a smoky earthiness from the mezcal and tequila, the combined result delivering umami aplenty.

It’s a deceptively simple drink, one that is both interesting and alcohol-forward enough for a seasoned cocktail drinker while being more than quaffable for a cocktail-bar newcomer. It even received the nod of approval from chef David Higgs, who, as one of the bar’s early frequenters, called it a classic.

“What I always enjoy about Julian’s cocktails is that he’s great at bringing savoury elements into drinks,” says the acclaimed chef, “and the Number Nine is a great example of that. I love coriander, I love tequila, and then it has that beautiful pomegranate — it’s incredibly balanced. It has everything I look for in a cocktail.”

The finishing touch, and the drink’s most recognisable feature, no doubt, is another nod to Short’s first trip to Mexico in the form of a stamp of Frida Kahlo stuck to the side of the glass. It has become somewhat of a keepsake, with many now residing in more than a few phone cases as a memory of this most magnificent drink and a memento of a great night out.

While Short is certainly still having fun and making drinks, there’s now a sense of intention in what he does at the bar, the cocktails he creates, and how he manages his own ever-growing public image. “It’s a lot more calculated now,” he explains. “The bar is a well-oiled machine. There’s still that ambition, but it’s more considered.”

As SIN + TAX heads towards a decade of slinging, stirring, and shaking up drinks for Joburg, the journey is far from over. With Short at the helm, the bar remains a hub of innovation, passion and, perhaps most importantly, a place to have a great cocktail and some fun, even if it is just a tad more grown-up and considered.

Quick Questions with Julian Short

Go-to cocktail to make for yourself: A Last Word: equal parts gin or mezcal, green Chartreuse, maraschino liqueur, fresh lime juice, and a pinch of salt.

Trends to watch: Martinis are big right now and milk punches are on the rise — they’re fantastic for texture and flavour.

A cocktail that needs to go: The Long Island Iced Tea. We’ve moved on.

Most memorable cocktail experience of the past year: Touring with Giovanni Allario, the head bartender at Moebius in Milan. His ability to draw inspiration from his surroundings and translate it into cocktails is unbelievable.

Favourite spirit: Last year was a big bourbon year, and this year I’m really into SA brandy — the KWVs and the like. We might also start flirting with gin a bit again.

From the February edition of Wanted, 2025