Served by Soberon

Matthias Soberon comes from Ghent in Belgium, land of beer and waffles, but also Jenever and a growing craft cocktail scene. During the day he’s a husband, father and music teacher, after hours he’s mixing drinks, taking photos and writing about spirits as ‘Served By Soberon’, Belgium’s leading and largest guide to cocktails.

My interview with Matthias

So, Matthias, you were never a bartender?

Apart from a few guest-appearances and a short stint of three months in a local pop-up bar (back in 2017) I never actively worked behind a bar, no!

Where did your passion for drinks come from?

From drinking them, I guess! Haha, no for real though, I always had an affinity with cocktail bars and the drinks served there. The craft that goes into preparing a drink for someone and the way flavors are put together, it just speaks to me.

You started getting serious with your Instagram, Served by Soberon (SBS) in 2017, now you have over 67 thousand followers! What key things do you do that account for your huge following?

Let’s say that I started at the right time, back in late 2016, early 2017 the online community was a lot smaller, but there was a LOT of interest and passion. When I joined, with zero experience in photography or mixology, I immediately found a lot of support there. I then dedicated a lot of my free time studying and practicing to get better at both. Spending hours on the app and posting daily pictures of course does help the most in growing, it’s a social media app after all. Engagement gets rewarded, absence doesn’t. I’ve got to admit though that once passed a certain amount of followers, you are getting noticed a lot easier as well. So the bigger you are, the easier you grow with putting less effort in ‘engaging’, of course, the quality of the content you put out has to stay top notch.

**You are very good both as a photographer and as a video host. How did these skills develop?**

I had no experience with handling a camera prior to Served By Soberon. At the beginning, I took all my photos with my phone. Later on I borrowed a simple digital camera from my brother, later on bought a second hand DSLR and then, when SBS really took off I made the plunge and bought a more professional, mirrorless, camera.
My skills as a video host probably come mostly from being a teacher. I’m so used to talking to people and ‘transferring knowledge’ that it never feels ‘awkward’. Since my ‘regular audience’ as a teacher are 12-18 year old kids, I’m also used to putting a lot of energy into what I do.

Your basement home bar and bottle collection are at your parent’s house, does that work ok?

I only live about 10-15 minutes from my parents, depending on the means of transportation, so it’s all good. Of course, there are times I wish I had more of my collection in my apartment, but in general I’m happy to just have a small selection of sipping spirits.

I think if I’d have my entire collection with me at all times, I’d even have a worse time controlling myself from making content for SBS, so it’s a good restraint.

Currently I visit my ‘bar’ one to two times a week, depending on availability and length, so it also helps me to really ‘prepare’ and ‘focus’.

You teach music, tell me more about that.

I teach general music education to kids between 12 and 18 in high school. This means mainly that I sing with them, talk about music theory, do quite some listening comprehensions and creative exercises. I’ve been doing this for over 10 years already.

How do you think music and cocktails go together?

I personally always have music on while making cocktails, but the type of music differs immensely from the vibe I’m in. This can be anything from classical piano to punk rock, from jazz to old school hip hop but even metal. Often, I’ll write down the songs that ‘hit me’ while I’m working on drinks and name my drinks after them.

Do have plans to combine your two passions in any way?

Not really. At this point in my life, Music is mainly ‘my job’ and mixing cocktails is my ‘hobby’. And I like keeping them separate from each other. I used to sing in bands or have other musical hobbies, but nothing at the moment, nor do I feel the urge to.

Take me through a typical working day for you.

I wake up at around 5.30 am, I try to be awake before my kid, so I can get some work done. My son is only 17 months old, so the moment he’s awake, HE’S AWAKE, if you know what I mean (laughs)! I read through my daily Instagram post at 6.20 am and post it, each day between 6.35 and 6.45 am. I leave for work at around 6:30 or 7:30 am, depending on the day (as I’m a teacher in two schools). Then I teach classes until 3:30 pm. I pick up my son from nursery school at around 5 pm and start his evening routine. He goes to bed at 6 pm. My wife arrives home at around 7 pm and then I start preparing dinner. Afterwards I relax with her and go to bed at around 9-10 pm, then I most often scroll through some posts of the day and write the Instagram post for the day(s) to come.

How has becoming a father changed your way of organizing your work?

Going to my parents’ house for cocktails was often an ‘easily made’ decision, especially on days my wife was working, and I wasn’t (like Saturdays). Nowadays I can’t do that, because daycare isn’t open, so I lost a lot of flexibility. This school year I have Tuesday afternoons off, so I try to create as many drinks as possible in the 3-4 hour time frame I have. During school holidays, when my kid does go to daycare, I have a little bit more flexibility. Since I do all my photography with natural daylight, I never go and create cocktails in the evenings. Evenings are reserved for either schoolwork or family time.

Have you considered doing only your social media job?

Absolutely not. I live for the fact that it’s my hobby. If I’d be doing this as a job, I’d need another ‘hobby’ to take my mind off of things.

What is the most important piece of advice you got regarding your social media gig?

Never forget why you started and what makes it fun, and take time to keep talking to people, especially those who are new to all of this, you’d be surprised what you can mean to someone.

Also, If Instagram/Social Media isn’t your job, then please, enjoy your drinks in the first place, and worry about social media afterwards. If you have a job and do social media as a hobby, try to use your time positively and not get frustrated and/or angry (with popular people that grow fast, the algorithm, likes, etc…)

Do you have a tip about work/life balance for us?

If you don’t get energy and joy out of what you’re spending most of your time on, then I’d definitely look into rebalancing. Working is important, but don’t let it control your life. You and your family are the most important.