A View from the City: Helsinki

Hamish Smith speaks to Jarkko Issukka Co-founder/bartender of Lilla e

Courvoisier launches its Toast of Paris Cocktail Competition

Courvoisier has launched its Toast of Paris International Cocktail Competition for the second year with ‘Le Jour et la Nuit de Courvoisier’.

González Byass launches Tío Pepe Challenge 2017

González Byass has launched the 2017 edition of its international cocktail competition, the Tío Pepe Challenge.

Goose Island to open first UK bar

Chicago’s Goose Island Beer Company is to open its first bar in the UK. 

The Warren Column: No Politics

Jan Warren harks back to the old days when local bars were where revolutions found their feet

Tennessee Calling winners announced

Jack Daniel’s Tennessee whiskey has named the three winners of its Tennessee Calling competition. 

Tony C to launch Untitled in Hackney

Tony Conigliaro of London cocktail bars 69 Colebrooke Row and Bar Termini and drinks innovation company Drink Factory, will open his third bar concept, Untitled, in Hackney this December.

A View from the City: Newcastle, UK

Hamish Smith speaks to Neil Donachie, owner of Shilling, Newcastle, UK

The Chameleon

Shingo Gokan talks to Hamish Smith about adapting and surviving

A View from the city: Beirut

Hamish Smith speaks to Jad Ballout, bar manager at Central Station Boutique Bar

Warren Column: Mood Swings

What’s the best way to cope with feeling moody when you’re behind the bar? Jan Warren shares

Alive and kicking

New York’s Dead Rabbit has been named the world’s best bar. Hamish Smith catches up with co-owner Jack Mcgarry to see what’s next for the winning team

Braced for impact

Grant Murray from Scotland won the Peter F Heering classics global final in London Cocktail Week

The search is on for next Bols Pioneer

Dutch distillery brand Bols is inviting bartenders to compete in its next global bartending competition Bols Around the World: The Bols Genever Edition.

World Class opportunity for drinks enthusiast

Diageo, organisers of the World Class Bartender of the Year competition, is offering a once in a lifetime opportunity for a travel and drinks enthusiast to go on the ultimate cocktail adventure and host a new global travel show.

Cheeky Tiki

Scott Schuder has big plans to recreate his paris tiki bar in other cities. Hamish Smith finds out more

Warren Column: Rematch Beeyatch

Jan Warren has a crush on the cocktail competition that appeals to his baser bartending instincts

Prepare to shake

London Cocktail Week is coming up in October. Christian Davis gives a sneak preview of the UK’s biggest bar festival

A View from the city: Montevideo

Hamish Smith speaks to Nicolás Fumía, F&B Manager Moderno, Hyatt Centric Montevideo, Uruguay

Tahona Society crowns Dandelyan’s Ramage 2016 winner

Dandelyan’s Kelsey Ramage has been crowned the sixth winner of The Tahona Society Cocktail Competition.

Get ready for anything

The World’s 50 Best Bars editor, Hamish Smith, gives us a preview of what to expect when the ranking is revealed on October 6

Black Cow announces UK brand ambassadors

Black Cow Vodka has announced the appointment of Harry Roper and Georgia Billing as its first UK brand ambassadors.

Gin Mare competition winners

Robyn Wilkie of The Social Company in London and Fabio Brusco of the San Rocco restaurant in Alicante, Spain were the joint winners of the Gin Mare Mediterranean Inspirations cocktail competition this week.

Barra México organisers hail second show a success

The team behind Latin America’s ‘first and only’ trade show has hailed last month's event a success and plans to extend the show to two days next year. 

Shahbazkhani is Bacardi Brown-Forman’s head of trade advocacy

Bacardi Brown-Forman Brands (BBFB) has announced that Shervene Shahbazkhani is its UK head of trade advocacy.

Pitch perfect

Hamish Smith talks to Hidetsugu Ueno about the making of Japan’s most famous bartender

Thom Solberg is Rebel Yell cocktail competition winner

Thom Solberg of Black Rock bar in London’s trendy Shoreditch has won the Rebel Yell Bourbon Cocktail Competition.

Heering announces its Classic Challenge semi-finalists

Peter F Heering has announced the 10 global semi-finalists of its 2016 Classic Challenge.

The Soldier

Steve Schneider nearly didn’t make it – in any sense of the phrase. He tells Hamish smith how he went from coma to top tender

Bar Guide Dubai

World's 50 Best Bars editor Hamish Smith has been to Dubai - here is his bar guide

Malic is Diageo Global Travel’s best bartender

Andrej Malic of Celebrity Cruises has been crowned Diageo Global Travel’s ‘best bartender’ at the Diageo Reserve’s World Class competition heat held last night in the Diageo 396 Bar, Miami.

LAB to close and reopen under new ownership

Iconic London cocktail bar LAB will close next month to make way for a new venue co-owned by bartenders Bobby Hiddleston and Mia Johansson and Nightjar and Oriole owners Rosie Stimpson and Edmund Weil.

Bar Convent Berlin kicks off with global drinks forum

A conference on the future of the drinks business will preceed Bar Convent Berlin 2016 in October.

Alvino’s wins Chairman’s Reserve Mai Tai competition

Emporia Brands has announced the winner of the Chairman’s Reserve Mai Tai competition - Alvino’s from Newcastle.

The Warren Column: In from the cold

Ice is so much more than frozen water when it comes to its latest cocktail incarnations, says Jan Warren

A View from the city: San Jose

Hamish Smith speaks to Fernando Rodriquez, bartender at Pocket Food and Drinks, Escazu

Aidan Bowie pops up in New York

Aidan Bowie, Diageo Reserve’s GB World Class Bartender of the Year 2016, has partnered with Llama Inn in Williamsburg, NYC to open a World Class pop up bar on August 3.

Chivas’ Max is Tales’s best

Chivas’ Regal's global brand ambassador, Max Warner, has been has been named the Best International Brand Ambassador at the Tales of the Cocktail’s Spirited Awards.

Manchester’s first ever cocktail festival

Manchester’s first ever cocktail festival takes place this summer, between August 8 & 14. 

Pantiru wins Elit's Art of Martini London final

Andrei Pantiru has been named the London winner of Elit luxury vodka’s Art of Martini cocktail competition. 

Patrón Perfectionist’s Cocktail Competition returns

The Patrón Perfectionist’s Cocktail Competition has returned for 2016, and has gone international.

The Tiki Guy

Martin Cate is one of America’s cultural leaders – the kind who wears tropical shirts. Hamish Smith says ‘aloha’

The Warren Column: Wrestling with ego

Jan warren cautions that taking a reality check should be a part of everyday bar life

A View from the city: Bejing

Hamish Smith speaks to Warren Pang, Co-owner of Janes + Hooch, one of Asia's 50 Best Bars

Tales of the Cocktail Preview

Your guide to the must-dos of the new orleans contest. by Hamish Smith

Please do tell

Hamish Smith caught up with industry great Jim Meehan at Bacardi Legacy in San Francisco

Cuban cantinero wins Havana Club Grand Prix

A Cuban cantinero pulled off a shock win at the Havana Club Grand Prix on Friday, prevailing from a 44-strong field of international bartenders to be named the 2016 champion.

A View from the city: Delhi

Hamish Smith speaks to Yangdup Lama, Partner and Mixologist at Cocktails and Dreams Speakeasy

The Warren Column: Virtual reality

Jan warren bemoans the rise of social media heroes over the workaday' tenders who deliver the goods

The Joker

Hamish Smith travels to Hamburg to meet Jörg Meyer at his celebrated Le Lion Bar De Paris