AJ Major

Idle hands are the devil’s playthings

Growing up in a small town in Ireland, having nothing to do except being on the wrong side of the law got AJ started on a tough track. Tough enough to have him sent to rehab before the age of 18 as well as facing time behind bars. This made AJ take stock of his life at a very young and realize that “just because I’ve had a tough childhood doesn’t mean I have to have a tough future”. AJ figured he was over and done with his former life and made a conscious decision leaving it behind, never to look back.

Working in pubs and bars around Europe AJ learned how to pull a pint and quickly realized that working with guests and talking to all kinds people was his passion and could very well be his life’s blood. Experience had taught him that putting his hands to good use was the best way of avoiding temptations of the past, so AJ was willing to work hard and cheap. This attitude and a good portion of young boldness quickly set him on the path of managing bars – first at Sunny Beach and later at Rosie McGee’s in Copenhagen managing a staff of thirty. Managing the mayhem of having a young staff who’s there for the job and not for the passion soon had AJ looking to the cocktail bar scene with different standards behind the bar and facing a different clientele.

It was a serendipitous meeting with Gromit Eduardsen – one of the cocktail pioneers of Copenhagen – and another good portion of his Irish boldness that had circumstances arranged for him to be trained as a proper cocktail bartender by Anders Henze-Pedersen (Denmarks best bartender 2013).

AJ feels that as long as he does his thing with passion and does it well, it exerts a certain kind of vibrant energy, that excites his guests.

“I don’t need time off, this passion is enough”. There’s a future to plan for and while being busy behind the bar the devil will have to struggle to get a hold of AJ’s hands.

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Alexander Banck-Petersen
CoC's photographer and occasional writer. I enjoy cocktail photography almost as much as cocktail imbibery. I try to do the drinks justice by making them appear as appealing to the eye as they are to the mouth and nose. I have a weakness for gins and I'm fond of bitter stuff as well, but I'll enjoy a good rum, bourbon or whisky if I'm forced. :)