House of U.S. Spirits Trade Events: 2nd September, London. 4th September, Manchester The House of U.S. Spirits hosted their first UK trade event last year at TT, and at the time we described it as “the largest and most diverse collection of American spirits BarLifeUK has ever seen under one roof in the UK”. The success of that event and enthusiasm of bartenders for American distilling has prompted the House of U.S. Spirits to return to our shores with an expanded programme this year, as Manchester joins London in hosting a flagship trade session. Taking place over two weeks, between 24th Augus ..read more

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Cocktails In The City: Bedford Square Garden – July 11th-13th; August 8th-10th; September 5th-7th Cocktails In The City (CITC) returns to London next week, with the first of three weekend mini-festivals held during the Summer months. Each weekend sees 20-odd top-notch bars create pop-up experiences (there are too many hyphens in that sentence) in the beautiful Georgian surroundings of Bedford Square Garden. Visitors can graze, for want of a better term, drinks from some of the best bars in the UK, attend cocktail masterclass sessions, and generally have a grand old time in the sunshine, assumi ..read more

A tour of the bars and purveyors of alcohol to be found in Tooting Market If, like me, you require a pretty compelling reason to travel to a non-local part of London on a day off, I would offer Pakistani restaurant Dawat as ample reason to make the trek to Tooting. Vinyl and sweets under the same roof… Dawat’s entire menu is outstanding, but their butter chicken is so good it could be described as a spiritual experience, unless you are a vegan of course, in which case it would be repellent. As with all things in life, reality is pliable and the true nature of a curry depends on what you bring ..read more

Meister Hunter 2024 is now open for entries Number of heats, number of competitors, prize money, amount of fun to be had at the final – it doesn’t matter what metric you use, Meister Hunter has undoubtedly become one of the biggest (and best) competitions on the circuit. And, happily, it’s back for 2024. Jägermeister’s global ambassador, Florian Beuren, today announced on Instagram that entries have opened for this year’s comp, which has a combined prize money pot of £5,000. As in previous years, a number of regional heats will take place, the winners of which will go through to a grand final ..read more

Exploring The Maven’s Five Course Cocktail Tasting Menu If you’ve never been to the award-winning Maven bar before, you’d be forgiven for not knowing it even exists. Hidden in the quaintest corner of Call Lane and marked only by a singular golden “M” plaque by the door – the only sign that up the stairs and to the left you’ll find one of Leeds’ most talented team of cocktail enthusiasts. It’s not controversial to suggest they’re doing things with cocktails the average drinks enjoyer haven’t even heard of! As the world of mixology shifts the way of gastronomy and follows in the footsteps of cul ..read more

The Beesou Spring In Bloom competition reaches a suitably top-class conclusion at its grand final It is often said that a person will become more grumpy and conservative as they get older, but to be honest, I have found the opposite to be true. Petronella Kiss Every year I find one aspect of judging cocktail competitions to be more unsettling, and that aspect is delivering regional heat results to a crowd of bartenders who have all put their heart and soul into the drinks they presented moments before. I felt this keenly during the five Beesou ‘Spring In Bloom’ heats (Bristol, Manchester, Edin ..read more

Neurodiversity Discussion and Drinks: Tuesday 28th May, Callooh Callay, Shoreditch Click to view full size Bartender Ahsoka Wallace has announced a panel discussion on the subject of neurodiversity within hospitality, along with a cocktail takeover to raise funds for non-profit organisation, Equal Measures UK. The session, which takes place at Callooh Callay on May 28th, will attempt to raise awareness about the issues facing neurodiverse people who work in hospitality. Panellists will discuss working conditions, personal experiences and coping mechanisms, barriers faced, as well positive aspe ..read more

Sixty Nine Bartenders from around the UK, France, and Germany to compete in Nc’nean Creations 2024 Nc’nean Creations has been one of the best competitions on the circuit since its launch in 2022, and now, in its third year, Creations is also becoming one of the biggest. Last year, Nc’nean increased the number of regional heats in the UK to accommodate the rising number of bartenders entering the comp, and this year two European heats, in Paris and Berlin, join the party, making Creations a truly international affair. The entry period for Creations 2024 closed at the end of March, and since the ..read more

Proceeds raised by the sale of Estes’ private Ocho collection will go directly to hospitality non-profit Equal Measures UK Jesse Estes, the current global ambassador for Ocho Tequila and son of the brand’s co-founder Tomas Estes, is to auction a collection of rare and vintage Ocho expressions from his personal collection, in order to raise funds for Equal Measures UK. For the uninitiated, Equal Measures UK is a non-profit organisation that was founded to support and champion Black, Asian, and other minority ethnicities, as well as other marginalised groups, such as queer and gender queer perso ..read more