My name is Sly Augustin.
And I own a bar in Notting Hill Gate called Trailer Happiness,
which also happens to be one of the best-run bars in the world,
so I've been told.
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I think most people love the idea of owning a bar.
Why would you not want to own a bar, where you can, you know,
get all your friends to come down and celebrate with you?
I was coming here before it was Trailer Happiness.
It was a bar called Canvas.
The previous owner was somebody who I'd sat down with in here and had drinks,
we even had conversations with.
He knew me and he knew how much I appreciated what he had created
at that point.
That was important for him.
I'm sure, I had no doubt, that he could have sold this
bar to anyone.
But at this point, it was very unusual to have such a informal relationship
between a customer and a bartender.
And without fail, every single person I brought down here was just like, "Wow,
this is awesome," you know?
And so you take a certain sense of pride that you have this thing that not many
people know about.
All of a sudden, all of this money that I'd spent on alcohol suddenly became
an investment, you know?
It was all research now.
The time that I'd spend here wasn't just leisure and luxury, it was me getting
to understand what it is that makes this bar great.
One of the things that really impressed me when I first I come to Trailer Happiness
was just how creative the bartenders here were.
And there was one particular bartender here, who I nicknamed The Wizard,
no matter what I said to him, he seemed to understand exactly what
I wanted, relatively specific ingredients, to just saying random words and emotions,
you know, like happy sunshine.
And that was magic.
When the opportunity came, I went to one of my closest friends,
a guy who doesn't actually drink alcohol at all.
And he said to me, "Look, I've seen you in that bar and it always
feels like your bar anyway.
So, you know, why not go for it?"
My favorite elements of Trailer Happiness are obviously, it's a place that just is
conducive to relaxation, you know?
I always say that it's very difficult to have an attitude in a place like this.
It just feels stupid to be angry in this bar.
What you should find and what you should see when you're looking for Trailer
Happiness is a quirky shop front which looks a little bit like a tiki bar and
also a furniture store.
♪ [music] ♪
So this was to celebrate the solution of independence.
And it is a remarkably good stuff.
One of the best labels in rum.
This is a good rum.
The first time I had rum was at my grandparents' house.
I was actually born in this house.
It's a place that I remember just being filled with happy people, laughing,
drinking, and celebrating.
And it was also the first place that I remember tasting rum.
So my granddad left his glass out.
I just, you know, as you do, stuck a couple of fingers in there,
had a taste, went back in a few times as I recall, so...
There's something familiar about being in a room filled with people that are just
enjoying themselves and enjoying each other's company.
When this bar decided to sell rum, rum was nowhere near as popular
as it is today. It wasn't trendy, it was very, very niche.
And if you wanted to try certain rums, you were probably limited to maybe three
bars in the UK.
And I think this is important for everybody as well, is find a rum that is
kind of like your kind of keystone rum, you know?
You know what I mean?
You kind of get a sense of what works for you and what doesn't work for you,
if that makes sense to me. Do you know what I mean?
But you have a base.
There are not many spirits, in my opinion, that lend themselves so well to being
mixed with fruits, and vermouth, and whatever else you throw at them.
Rum is a very confident spirit when made well.
And it complements pretty much any drink you can put it in.
For me, there's not a greater responsibility than being in control with
somebody having faith in you to trust you with their happiness, right?
To say, you know, "I want to have a good time, and I think that you're the person
who's going to take them to that place," you know?
Or, "If I hang out with you, I'm going to enjoy myself.
If I go to a place that you tell me to go to, it's going to be a good time."
♪ [music] ♪