During the month of October a series of sessions specifically for you lovely lot are being run as part of London Cocktail Week (Month).
It’s been a shit week, it’s been a shit year actually but it’s not all doom and gloom. The wonderful team over at London Cocktail Week have been working harder than Trump’s accountant to help the industry. Firstly by extending London Cocktail Week to the whole of October to help get people back in bars and get those tills ticking over across the capital. They have also been working with brands and industry experts to curate a whole load of sessions to give you something else to focus on and enjoy.
You can find a full list of trade activities on the London Cocktail Week website which can be searched by day or area. If you want to focus on education then the Masterclass section is for you, the only problem will be deciding which to pick. If you just want to know where to get a delicious drink, and who could blame you for that, then Bar Takeovers & Pop-Ups is probably where you want to click your mouse.
Now of course you will need to register and RSVP for many of these events but before you do that you need to get hold of your London Cocktail Week wristband which is free to those working in the trade (£15 to others).
There is a whole lot going on and you probably won’t be able to get along to everything you want so below you will find some of the highlights from the main sponsors as picked by Co-Owners and Organisers Hannah Sharman-Cox and Siobhan Payne.
Before we get to that however it is important to stress that the London Cocktail Week (Month) team will be doing everything they can to ensure all the activities they run will be adhering to the governments guidelines so you can enjoy with confidence. Hannah and Siobhan have this to say:
“While safety is paramount, this new curfew is certainly a blow for the hospitality industry, especially for those operators who have been working tirelessly to keep their staff in jobs, their rents paid and their guests safe. Our festival starts on Thursday 01 October and is geared up solely to encourage Londoners back into those responsibly operated bars – many of which are independently owned and may not be able to stay open with these new rules in place. However, we feel now more than ever we have a responsibility to forge ahead and support those which can remain open, giving Londoners a safe way to enjoy October and the city’s award-winning cocktail culture.”
MOËT HENNESSY UK
Lead Activation: Moët & Chandon Cocktail Upgrade and the 17:43 Toast – All Month
Moët & Chandon will be adding some luxury to guests’ London Cocktail Week experience – for the first time ever, a collection of venues will be serving a £9 Moët & Chandon cocktail upgrade as part of The Cocktail Tours.
In tribute to the year the Moët & Chandon House was founded, there will be complimentary champagne cocktails at 17:43 every Thursday (from 8th October) for consumers in each of the partnering bars and on the 1st October Moët & Chandon will be sending a Magnum of champagne to ALL of the 250 bars taking part in The Cocktail Tours, for staff to toast the start of the month-long festival at 17:43.
Additional Moët Hennessy UK activations include:
Launch of Belvedere’s new innovation, Belvedere Heritage 176, through a series of intimate dinners, talks, tastings and take-overs across the city by Mark Tracey, Belvedere Vodka UK Ambassador. Amplification of Belvedere Pure’s ‘Made with Nature’ campaign through bespoke terraces and partnerships with local farms to create bespoke set-menus. Series of “Kitchen Table” pairing dinners at Tayēr + Elementary. Series of food and music-led activations with Hennessy Cognac.
DIAGEO
Lead Activation: The Whisky House at Goods Way – All Month.
New for 2020, The Whisky House at Goods Way is a unique collective of curated experiences, events & masterclasses to showcase and celebrate whisk(e)y. Set up in the brand-new food, drink and music hub, Goods Way in Kings Cross, the activity will offer exploration and tastings of exclusive whiskies, innovative masterclasses and interactive evening experiences.
The Whisky House at Goods Way will encompass bookable masterclasses from ‘World Class Drinks at Home’, and the team at Crucible, plus the specially-created ‘Whiskey Rock’n’Roller’ and the ‘The Malts Locker’ pop-ups within Goods Way’s in-house venues – Sweetwater and Nola’s, with tableside interactive experiences to enhance your evening – expect tastings of Talisker, Mortlach and Lagavulin at Nola’s and Bulleit, Roe & Co. and Guinness at Sweetwater. All London Cocktail Week wristband wearers will receive a Johnnie Walker Highball cocktail on arrival.
Additional Diageo activations include:
Belsazar masterclasses at Hicce Kings Cross. Tanqueray masterclasses with new brand ambassador Pippa Guy. Cocktail Porter Cocktail Kits as part of an immersive at-home & online drinks experience featuring Three “Bottle Cocktail Challenge” winners from the World Class GB final 15.
BACARDI MARTINI LTD
Lead Activation: “Celebrating the Nation’s Favourite Passions” – All Month
Bacardi Martini Ltd have committed their focus across a wide number of bars to support them during London Cocktail Week, with a consumer-facing message celebrating the nation’s favourite passions. Feature activities include Pavillon Bleu at Coupette which sees St Germain liqueur, Noilly Prat vermouth and Grey Goose vodka transport guests to the south of France, with oyster shucking, spritzes and french snacks, “Lost in The Jungle” a jungle-themed takeover of the LCC Bethnal Green Mezzanine with Bacardi rums, and a night exploring the fascinating relationship between perception and flavour with Bombay Sapphire and one of the city’s most sustainable bars, Scöut.
Additional Bacardi Martini Ltd activations include:
Share The Rare chance to win a dram of Craigellachie 31 at Milroy’s Soho and Shoreditch. Series of Hacienda Teresa bar takeovers featuring rum, chocolate pairings, and Latin American music hosted by Santa Teresa 1796 . Creative workshops at the Mezzanine, Hoxton Southwark, inspired by the natural world. Aberfeldy takeover of The Sun Tavern hatch with takeaway hot and cold honey-infused Aberfeldy cocktails.
EDRINGTON BEAM-SUNTORY UK
Lead Activation: Tending to the Tenders – 19-25 Oct
Callooh Callay and Edrington-Beam Suntory UK are partnering to create a health and welfare hub which offers support, advice, workshops, healthy food (and cocktails) plus some pampering to everyone in the hospitality industry.
Guests will have access to a space where they can chill out with industry pals, grab a quick coffee before a shift, have access to welfare services and be a part of some inspirational workshops and seminars with speakers from the trade and other amazing industries. There’ll be healthy lunch and snacks throughout the week as well as a beautifully designed cocktail menu featuring Maker’s Mark, The Macallan, Laphroaig and House of Suntory.
Additional activations include:
VR experience to transport people to Islay with Laphroaig at Oriole. Series of masterclasses and takeovers celebrating Japanese bartending with House of Suntory at Scout, Three Sheets and The Mandrake. Plus a series of ingredient-led masterclasses at The Gibson with Courvoisier.
BROWN-FORMAN UK
Lead Activation: London Shuffle Club Brown-Forman Takeover – All Month
To celebrate the launch of own-distribution, Brown-Forman will host a month-long immersive pop-up at London Shuffle Club in Shoreditch, featuring Jack Daniel’s, Woodford Reserve, Chambord and their newest acquisition, Fords Gin, plus many others. Enjoy limited edition drinks served from the airstream on the heated outdoor terrace, plus whisk(e)y tastings in a hidden bar and a tasty menu of pizza, or brunch in the morning.
For the trade, Brown-Forman will be hosting a full venue takeover from 5-9pm every Sunday for the month of October where guests will be treated to free shuffleboard games and drinks of course.
Additional activations include:
Fords Martinis, with oysters on the house, in a series of takeovers throughout the month. Woodford Reserve masterclasses exploring the role of aroma in flavour perception.
FESTIVAL HOTEL PARTNERSHIP: SEA CONTAINERS
This year, for the first time, London Cocktail Week is promoting a hotel partner for the festival – Sea Containers, home to the multi-award winning bar Lyaness. The hotel is offering 15% off the best available room rate throughout the month of October with the code LONCOCKTAIL , and there will be a series of activations throughout the month there, including Sunday Lyan with Hannah Sharman-Cox and Siobhan Payne on 4 October to kick off London Cocktail Week, Hendrick’s Tini Martini in-suite pop-up 05-07 October and The Last Dance with Declan & Co. brought to you by Global Bartending Talent Agency on 15 October.
The main sponsors are all also offering portfolio support of the £6 Cocktails Tours across London.
The individual brand sponsors are putting on some amazing stuff as well which you can find on the LCW(M) website:
Aecorn, Beaufort Spirit, Black Tot Rum, Bumbu Rums, Crystal Head, Diplomatico, Discarded, Don Papa, Double Dutch Drinks, Everleaf, Five Hundred Cuts Rum, Flor de Caña, Four Pillars Bloody Shiraz, Frapin Cognac, Graham’s Port, Havana Club, Hendrick’s Gin, Hepple Gin, Ilegal Mezcal, Lone Wolf Cactus & Lime Gin, Jagermeister, The London Essence Company, Luc Belaire, McQueen & The Violet Fog Gin, Mirabeau Rosé Gin, Monkey Shoulder, Mount Gay, Muyu, Peroni, Sliabh Liag Distillers & Torres Brandy.
We can’t wait for it all to kick off and we look forward to seeing lots of friendly faces over the next month.