AQUARIUS: the "mad genius" of the zodiac. If everyone goes right, Aquarius goes left simply because they find that path more interesting. Starting today, Spaghetty Western is launching a zodiac column because you’ve all been waiting for nothing else... Oh come on, we’re kidding! But it was the most interesting way to introduce Federico Leone, because he insisted from the very beginning on telling us his sign (typical Aquarius, the little know-it-alls of the zodiac) and above all because someone like him, perhaps, needs no introduction.
How are you, really?
We’ve talked about burnout until we’ve become annoying; we’re dissecting it everywhere (maybe we’re at the limit too, or maybe we’ve just realized that certain things need to be talked about) and it has become a bit of our mantra to ask the people we talk to: "How are you?". Often, such a simple question holds a disarming power, especially because we are fucking tired of hearing only about mixing techniques, food pairings, and brands (we’ll leave that to the others, who are certainly better at it than us).
“It’s a simple question but actually a very difficult one, because we are all used to talking about work, numbers, results… much less about how we really are. I would tell you that I am living through a moment of great construction. Not necessarily of balance, because I believe that those who create something are rarely completely still or calm, but certainly of greater awareness. For many years I lived in this industry at a very high speed: events, nights, travels, relationships, always with the feeling of having to chase something. Today, instead, I am trying to give more value to the direction, not just the speed. I am learning that growing doesn't mean always being everywhere, but understanding where it truly makes sense to be. And then I am rediscovering something very simple: that this work only really works when you stay human. Because in the end, we work with bottles, cocktails, and bars… but in reality, we are always working with people.”
Twenty years of facets
20 years of a career in this world make you a speaking protagonist even when you aren't trying to be; 20 years inside mechanisms and politics that perhaps give you the opportunity to say exactly what you think, because by now you already know the dark sides and the beautiful sides. We often all hide behind a facade (and we all do it, so don’t hide behind a fake politeness) that forces us to play a role and prevents us from saying what we might want to scream. Mind you: it doesn't always mean offending someone, but just giving your own opinion even if it goes against everyone else.
“The most rewarding side, without a doubt, is seeing the real impact you leave on people and places. When you start this job, you think the product is the center. Then over time you understand that the product is almost an excuse: the real work is creating connections, inspiring, transmitting energy, helping a bar grow, seeing a bartender find their own identity. The beautiful part is when you realize you’ve contributed to building something that remains even after you leave. The most complex part, however, is probably the speed at which everything is consumed today. Ideas, trends, people, even human relationships. It’s an industry that continuously risks confusing noise with value. Before, certain things had time to ripen: a bartender grew behind the bar, a venue built a clientele over the years, a brand consolidated slowly. Today, people often look for immediate results, fast virality, the number. I, on the other hand, still believe very much in continuity. In projects that walk through time. Because real things might grow slower… but they stay.”
And what if the real priority was living?
Seneca in “On the Shortness of Life” (and I’m a bit sorry to share this work, in fact, it bothers me, but we’ve started this will to educate... just kidding, or maybe not) says it clearly: "It is not that we have a short time to live, but that we waste a lot of it." Perhaps the new generations, after centuries, are truly understanding all of this. What if it wasn't a lack of will to sacrifice one’s life, but instead a crazy desire to live one’s own time? It’s something to reflect on.
“No, I don’t think it’s wrong. In fact, I believe they are forcing us to ask ourselves an important question: are we sure we haven't romanticized suffering too much? My generation grew up with the idea that the more you consumed yourself, the more you were worth. Endless shifts, zero balance, always being available. Almost as if sacrifice were a mandatory language to prove passion. The new generations, instead, are saying something very simple: ‘I want to love this job without destroying myself.’ And honestly, I find it hard to consider that a negative concept. Then of course, the opposite risk exists: wanting to get everything immediately without going through the process. Because experience, competence, and credibility require time, mistakes, and real presence. But I believe the right spot is in the middle. Not glorifying exhaustion, but not losing the value of discipline either. The real luxury today, in my opinion, is not working less. It’s managing to build a sustainable life doing something you truly love.”
Culture in 30 seconds
In an era where everything runs because that’s how communication is (and we aren't here to attack it, but just to draw attention to it), it often happens that training turns into a 30-second Reel. Very often we convince ourselves that that little bit is enough to create solid foundations to build something (let’s just hope a surgeon doesn’t have the same idea, otherwise we’re fucked), but perhaps the truth lies in the middle. Perhaps the truth lies in taking that Reel as a starting point to push curiosity to dig deeper.
“I believe the problem isn't the short format. The problem is what you put inside it. A Reel can be empty or it can ignite curiosity. And curiosity, in our industry, is worth a lot. Because maybe a kid sees a 20-second piece of content and from there a research, a study, a passion is born. The risk, however, is when bar culture becomes only aesthetics. When everything is reduced to the spectacular gesture, the bottle flipping, the perfect drink in slow motion… and the depth behind that gesture is completely lost. Behind a cocktail, there are history, technique, hospitality, listening, mistakes, hours behind the bar, people. I try to use these tools without demonizing them. It would be useless to be nostalgic saying ‘it was better before.’ The world changes and you have to know how to speak the language of the present. But I also believe that true training still needs time, discussion, and presence. A Reel can open a door. But certain things you only learn by living the bar, breathing the service, looking people in the eye. Bar culture cannot only be content. It must remain experience.”
An Aquarius
We know you are an Aquarius, a free spirit constantly looking for new stimuli. So, what projects are you working on that we don’t know about yet?
“Let’s say I find it hard to stay mentally still, so yes… I am definitely an Aquarius. I get bored easily when things become too predictable. Right now I’m working a lot on an idea that interests me deeply: building brands that aren't just products to drink, but experiences that truly manage to walk inside bars and into people's lives. I’m interested in creating projects that have identity, ritual, memory. Not the classic brand that passes through, makes noise for six months, and disappears. I’m also working a lot on the training and activation side, looking for a more contemporary way to tell the story of our industry, especially to the new generations. Less staged, less vertical, more authentic. And then there are some personal projects related to the world of aperitivo and beverage that I am developing together with others with great care. I like the idea of building something that has a strong aesthetic but also a precise vision behind it. I am in that beautiful and dangerous phase where there are many ideas on the table… and I am trying to understand which ones truly deserve to become real.”
And now we’ll do the answering
“I’ll ask you a simple but in my opinion very important question: today, in the world of bars and hospitality, what still truly moves you? Because we are surrounded by so much content, so many venues, so many trends… but the things that stay inside us are always few. So I’m curious: what is it that today makes you say ‘something real is happening here’?”
What moves us today is real genuineness, the warmth of people. What pushes us to return to a bar is that feeling of home that we feel as soon as we walk in. As if that place truly becomes our “moment of real life.” Regarding people, however, the ones who really capture us are those who show they have the balls. Mind you: we aren't talking about those who impose themselves with aggression, we’re talking about those who get back up with a smile and, above all, without ever taking themselves too seriously.
I would like to dedicate this to my dad who left me at the end of August. If I keep going forward today, even in the heaviest moments, it is thanks to a phrase he always repeated to me: “WHO GIVES A FUCK… KEEP GOING!” Inside who I am, there will always be a piece of him too. And it moves us that Federico decided to link our words to something so deep and intimate.
