The week in pictures
Bacardi-owned Tequila brand Patrón headed to the Wilderness Festival in Oxfordshire last weekend.
The festival, which was headlined by Robyn, Bombay Bicycle Club and Groove Armada, saw the Tequila brand host a pop-up bar where revellers could enjoy Perfect Patrón Margaritas, Jalisco Mules, and Patrón Palomas.
Visitors could also try out the brand’s new cocktail dispenser, where they could purchase Patrón’s latest Watermelon Punch signature serve.
This week, the Glasgow Distillery welcomed two new whisky stills to its facility in Hillington, Scotland, named Margaret and Frances.
The stills, which are identical to the distillery’s current equipment, have been named after two of Glasgow’s most influential female artists.
Margaret and Frances MacDonald were sisters who studied at The Glasgow School of Art in the 19th century. They became members of The Glasgow Girls – a group of pioneering female artists who influenced the city’s style.
Stirling-based Boë Gin was the title sponsor at this year’s Hamilton Park Racecourse Ladies’ Night.
The event, which took place on 3 August, saw the Scottish gin brand present the Vibrant Violets award for those wearing their best purple-hued outfits.
Around 10,000 racegoers were in attendance at the Saturday event, which featured seven races, performances from Nadine Coyle and Max George, and a DJ set from Blue’s Simon Webbe.
London cocktail bar Mr Foggs Tavern in Covent Garden has partnered with Cointreau and Mount Gay Rum to launch a summer slushie cocktail menu.
Guests can cool down with the Caribbean Ice-Land, made with Mount Gay Black Barrel Rum, Angostura bitters, sugar syrup, coconut and pineapple; and the Row Row Your Boat, which combines Cointreau, Cabrito Blanco Tequila, Bobbs Abbots Bitters, sugar and lime juice.
Last week, SB’s deputy editor Melita Kiely went in search of some sun, sea and sand in Greece, courtesy of JackieO’ Beach Club on the island of Mykonos.
The club welcomed swarms of partygoers from around the world as it celebrated its 11th birthday with a lavish three-night music festival featuring German house duo Milk & Sugar, dance sensation Ultra Naté, and Greek-Cypriot singer Anna Vissi.
With second-to-none hospitality, killer cocktails and lashings of Champagne – all with a backdrop of rugged hillsides and the deepest blue sea – the birthday bash made for an unforgettable experience.
City of London Distillery has teamed with Harvey Nichols Knightsbridge to transform its Fifth Floor Terrace.
The distillery created the space to “honour London’s rich gin history” and will be serving up cocktails including the Grapefruit Gimlet and Rhubarb 75.
Visitors to the terrace will also be able to attend one of the distillery’s Make Your Own Gin experiences, hosted by Joe Brayford.
It was a busy week for team SB this week as we hosted two rounds of The Spirits Masters blind-tasting competitions.
On Tuesday, SB travelled to Baltic Restaurant in south London for The Vodka Masters. During the contest, Silver, Gold and Masters medals were awarded to the best bottlings from across the category.
Thursday saw the team head to Little Yellow Door in Notting Hill for The Travel Retail Masters, which saw travel retail-exclusive gins, whiskies, Cognacs and Tequilas all compete for medals.
The results for both competitions will be published in the upcoming September issue of The Spirits Business.
On Wednesday, SB’s Owen Bellwood headed to St John’s Square in London for the opening of the Fentimans Secret Spritz Garden.
Open until 30 August, the garden will see the brand exhibit its range of tonic waters and mixers in a number of Spritz cocktails created by Dino Koletsas, formerly of the Artesian bar at The Langham hotel.
Filled with medicinal herbs and plants, the Secret Spritz Garden will also host Spritz‐making masterclasses and offer floristry, flower‐pressing and limoncello‐making workshops.
Tequila brand Storywood this week hosted an event in London to celebrate the unveiling of its new core range of spirits.
Taking to Smokestak in the capital, Storywood Tequila showcased its reposado and añejo Tequilas at the London event alongside a number of Mexican-inspired dishes.
The Tequila brand, which rebranded its range in July, uses Speyside Scotch casks for ageing.
SB also paid a visit to London bar Coupette this week to sample its latest cocktail menu.
The calvados and cider-focused bar in east London launched its Summer cocktail menu last month, which features drinks such as the Shimmer (pictured), which is made with 30&40 Eau de Vie, green apple, sage, wine, génépi and sage soda.
Drinks on the menu were developed by the bar’s in-house team, while the design of the new cocktail list was created in collaboration with local sign writer Ged Palmer.
Today (9 August) is World Baijiu Day 2019, and to celebrate, UK distributor Cheng International has been showcasing the Golden Empire cocktail to mark the occasion.
The Fenjiu baijiu-based serve was created by Andrea Dionori of London’s Crazy Bear during the inaugural Fenjiu Cocktail Competition earlier this year.
SB‘s Nicola Carruthers was whisked off to Finland to visit Kyrö Distillery earlier this week. The trip took in breakfast in a forest, followed by foraging for gin botanicals which were blended to create a gin for taking home.
The group of journalists, bartenders and retailers also visited the distillery and visitor centre to learn about the story behind Kyrö, which is housed in a former dairy factory, as well as a peek at the brand’s second whisky distillery which is nearing completion. The tour also took in a tasting of the full spirits range, and a dip in the on-site hot tub and sauna.
