With Tales of the Cocktail (TOTC) just around the corner, we turn to the pros to get their tips and tricks for making it through the week, as well as their best memories from festivals gone by.

Click through to the following pages for tips and stories from previous TOTC festivals

Seminars, tastings, parties, dinners, debates, bar crawls, health and wellness classes – year after year, Tales of the Cocktail delivers an eclectic itinerary in New Orleans, US.

Proceedings will kick start on Tuesday 16 July – but how do you ensure you don’t burn out before the festival’s closing party on Saturday 20 July?

Here, we ask some of the brightest names in the industry for their top tips on how to survive your first Tales adventure.

Plus, they’ve got more than a tale or two to tell from previous festivals.

Click through to the following pages for the full ‘tales of wisdom’ ahead of this year’s show.

And, if you’re looking for the best events to make an appearance at, see our round-up of unmissable TOTC 2019 events.

Mia Johansson, co-owner of Swift, London

“Have fun, enjoy yourself – but pace yourself. It’s a very intense environment, and it’s very easy to burn out too quickly. RSVP to the events. It doesn’t matter how well you know the Beefeater rep, so does everyone else. They can’t guarantee you anything. Also, don’t forget to stay safe. Nola is a wonderful town, but you also need to be careful.

“The music scene is unmissable, literally – there are saxophonists and musicians on every street corner and in every bar. But you should absolutely seek out bands and performances too.”

Simone Caparole, award-winning bartender and co-founder of Muyu liqueurs

“The festival offers various levels of engagement, and it is entirely up to you what level of intensity and the style of events you engage with. You can attend interesting seminars relating to bar trends and intellectual topics, which can enrich your knowledge and perhaps help you with your next bar programme.

“Parallel to this, there are other kinds of activities which are perhaps more aimed towards a fun and entertaining purpose such as cocktail parties organised by various spirits brands.

“Nevertheless, whichever kind of events you decide to engage with, you will be in the heart of the French Quarter of New Orleans, which in my opinion is something you should see at least once in your life. Some iconic classic cocktails were actually created there and are still made in the original bars, which can feel like stepping back to the early 1900s.”

Sly Augustin, managing director at Trailer Happiness

“Drink water, bring shorts, drink more water, find a pool. There are a lot of great events during the week and you should try to do a lot of things, but not everything. Tales will defeat you.

“After scrounging a wristband from a brand rep (thanks Dan Warner), I managed to see members of the Wu-Tang Clan perform in a room with around 150 industry folk. I was supposed to be up o the mezzanine, but the guys down in the front were having too much fun, so I joined them. What followed was one of my best memories of anything, let alone Tales, and I don’t think I’ve ever made as many new friends in a single night. ” (See JJ Goodman’s comment on the next slide for full details).

JJ Goodman, founder of London Cocktail Club

“My favourite day of the whole of Tales is the Sunday. Obviously, it finishes on the Saturday, so technically it doesn’t count, but hear me out. Head to Bacchanal where the industry’s finest who have been celebrating a hard week of work and play can now finally get some rest, put their feet up with some rosé wine and a cheese board, and swap stories from their week. It’s a precious place, full of fond memories for me.

“My fondest memories are the parties. Last year I slept through Diageo’s Snoop Dogg concert, I’ll never live that down. I also missed Trailer Happiness’s Sly [Augustin, MD] on stage rapping with the Wu-Tang Clan. Magic happens in tales and you can’t see it all, though try your best. If you’re from Europe and you get lost, either head to the old absinth house before 6pm, or after midnight get yourself to Alibi – there’s always someone to share in ice cold beer with and find out what’s happening next.”