At The Mothership, a beloved and busy corner bar in the Bay View neighborhood of Milwaukee, Wisconsin, owner/bartender Ricky Ramirez likes to keep the drinks flowing however he can. This includes offering a selection of draft cocktails, which “can be still, nitrogenated, or carbonated,” he explains.
Ramirez keeps three drinks on draft at a time, all carbonated. The Clover Club Spritz contains London Dry Gin, Dolin Génépy, raspberry, A’Siciliana Limonata, and rhubarb-rose foam; the Oolong Island Iced Tea features a mix of Tito’s Vodka, Beefeater Gin, Planteray 3-Star Rum, Lunazul Blanco Tequila, yuzu saké, clarified lemon, watermelon oolong tea, cola tonic, and Angostura bitters; and the Fancy Paloma is a blend of Cazadores Blanco Tequila, Combier Pamplemousse, Cocchi Rosa, clarified lime, Jarritos Grapefruit, and The Bitter Truth Grapefruit Bitters.
While noting that he has seen it all, Ramirez acknowledges that some cocktails work better on draft than others. “Anything that could spoil in the lines, like dairy, is best to avoid, and it’s important to remove as much pulp as possible from citrus and juices,” he advises. “For still drinks, Daisies and Old Fashioned–style cocktails are a good bet. Negronis are popular too, as long as there’s quality control with the vermouth. For carbonated drinks, long drinks with a little flair tend to work best.”
Opened in 2019 (and newly reopened after it was affected by flooding in August), The Mothership is known for its playful sense of humor—its logo is a spaceship, and its website bears the satirical hashtag #veryseriousbar—but beneath the irreverence lies a deep commitment to inclusive hospitality, affordability, and sustainability (it eschews garnishes, for instance) as well as top-notch mixology. Sourcing from independent producers while pushing Milwaukee’s bar culture forward is also important to Ramirez and his team, and those values are reflected in everything from the recently renovated space to the menu.
The current cocktail list is divided into four parts: In addition to the draft cocktails, there are sections labeled “OG Drinks,” “Remixed OG and House Drinks,” and “Mothership in Paradise,” which includes Ramirez’s most technique-driven, layered, and complex cocktails. A recent hit in the “Remixed” category has been his take on the Grasshopper. Invented in New Orleans in the early 1900s, the Grasshopper found its true home in Wisconsin in the mid-20th century, when every classic supper club across the state had one on the menu, often blended with ice cream and served as a boozy dessert. Over time, the drink earned an unofficial title: “the dessert cocktail of Wisconsin.” Ramirez has reimagined it for modern times. The Mommy Grasshopper is as lush, green, and over-the-top as the original, but it’s dairy-free, thanks to the use of soy creamer along with housemade crème de menthe, amaro, macadamia nut, almond, crème de cacao, and a float of overproof rum.
That’s just one example of Ramirez’s thoughtful, customer-centric approach to his craft. “I grew up in a working-class immigrant family right here in Bay View,” says Ramirez. “The Mothership is built for this community. We’ve never been about fancy bells and whistles—just great drinks, fast service, and taking care of people.”