London Cocktail Week 2022 will run from 13-23 October 2022 - now encompassing two weekends, following two years of extended month-long activities.

Drinks International has announced the appointment of Shay Waterworth as its new editor to replace the outgoing Martin Green from April onwards.

The Scandinavian chic approach has had a huge influence on the modern bar scene. Thin glassware, no garnishes and plain interiors have become the norm for a lot of top bars around the world and to fit this aesthetic many have reduced their spirits offering.

London Cocktail Week founders Siobhan Payne and Hannah Sharman-Cox, alongside Global Bartending’s Dan Dove, have announced the launch of the Pinnacle Guide, a new one, two and three ‘Pin’ recognition system for the world’s best bars.

Mexico City’s Hanky Panky has announced a takeover series that will see the bar play host to some of the world’s most celebrated bars before embarking on their own world tour.

The World’s 50 Best Bars reflects travel restrictions and spotlights neighbourhood bars, says Nick Strangeway.

In the 2021 World’s 50 Best Bars list, Athens claimed as many bars as Tokyo and Milan, and more than Paris, Madrid, and Seoul. For anyone who has kept an eye on global bar lists, this will come as no surprise, but the Greek capital’s rapid ascension to hospitality powerhouse has been remarkable.

There wasn’t a huge amount to celebrate last year, but it doesn’t take much of an occasion for champagne corks to fly in the world’s best bars – almost 90% of our bars stock the French sparkler. Three-quarters have two champers and two-thirds have three or more.

High-end bars rarely allocate bar-top space to draught systems, meaning the bestselling list is a battle of the bottles.

Cocktail Bitters are evocative of the Golden Age of cocktails – of brown and stirred-down drinks, braces, waistcoats and fine moustaches which went on to make an implausible comeback in the early 21st century.

Believe it or not, cachaça is the third most popular spirit in the world. In its homeland of Brazil, there are some 5,000 registered brands, with many more unregistered, and 40,000 distilleries.

The glow up that the tequila category has undergone in recent years must be the envy of the wider spirit world.

Barsol reigns supreme in the pisco category. The Peruvian brand took a whopping 31% of the first-choice votes and 23% of the top-three pours in the World’s Best Bars.

No brand has had a more dominant performance over the 13 years of the Brands Report than that of Hennessy.

Just as Ketel One was on the precipice of completing the perfect 10, in swoops Grey Goose to snatch the vodka crown.

If you had to bet your house on one brand topping a list, it would probably be Jameson in the Irish whiskey category.

Topping gin for seven of the last nine years, Tanqueray is once again king gin. The Diageo brand, famed for its juniper forward Tanqueray London Dry and Tanqueray No. Ten gins, was the house choice in 25% of the world’s best bars.

The usual crowd have populated this year’s bestselling rum list. In fact, nine of the 10 brands remain a constant, with the first seven in the ranking identical to the previous year. 

Brands Report editor Hamish Smith explains the methodolgy behind the report's polling system.

Norway has banned alcohol sales in bars and restaurants for a month in a bid to slow the spread of the Omicron variant.

Drinks International's Global Bar Edition, which includes the official guide to The World’s 50 Best Bars 2021, has launched in digital form.

COP26 littered newspaper headlines throughout November. The focus was supposed to be on resolving the climate change crisis, but predictably turned into a game of political chess. In the absence of any authoritative leadership, our industry needs to set an example.

Lynnette Marrero, the co-founder of Speed Rack and bar manager of Llama Inn, New York, has been named the winner of the Altos Bartenders’ Bartender Award 2021 at The World’s 50 Best Bars.

The World’s 50 Best Bars has released the shortlist for its inaugural Siete Misterios Best Cocktail Menu award.