Next week the glitterati of the global bar industry will descend on Barcelona for the World’s 50 Best Bars ceremony, the first time it has been held outside of London.

This month Joe and Daniel Schofield, alongside wine expert James Brandwood, will take over the lower ground at Manchester’s Stock Exchange Hotel to launch new cocktail bar Sterling. 

London bar Lyaness has announced a day of collaborations with Madrid bars Salmon Guru and Viva Madrid on 13 September.

Streaming platform The Avenue has launched the online cocktail competition Battle of the Bottle taking place this October and with a top prize of $10,000.

Thousands of microdistilleries are helping to change the face of Brazil’s national spirit, creating aged and wood-blended expressions that are pulling in new fans.

Tess Posthumus reports from the recent tales of the cocktail – and finds it’s becoming so much more than just a cocktail festival.

Julie Reiner will return to her old territory this September, to open Milady’s at the corner of Prince and Thompson Streets in SoHo, New York.

As the submission deadline approaches for the World’s 50 Best Bars Siete Misterios Best Cocktail Menu, Drinks International sat down with Lab 22 head bartender Max Hayward to reflect on what the accolade has meant for the bar.

Lyaness at Sea Containers London took top honours as it was named World’s Best Bar at the 16^th annual Tales of the Cocktail Spirited Awards at the New Orleans Ritz Carlton Hotel.

Tales of the Cocktail Foundation (TOTCF), organizer of drinks industry conference, Tales of the Cocktail, where new ideas, products, and techniques are exchanged, has announced its partnership with Singapore Tourism Board (STB).

From the bartenders’ handshake cocktail to being sold in cans in supermarkets and restaurants, the negroni continues to dominate menus across the globe. Millie Milliken takes a closer look at the evolution of the Italian classic.

Edrington UK has announced its appointment of Beckie Sullivan as UK national brand ambassador for Courvoisier.

Jazz club and cocktail bar Oriole has launched its latest cocktail menu this month which celebrates the ingredients and traditions of the Old World, the New World and the Orient.

Parisian bar Little Red Door has launched a new menu for 2022 called Flourish, using directly sourced produce at the core of each cocktail.

This summer, bar brand Callooh Callay will be taking over 20 bars across 20 consecutive days in July, the first nationwide bar takeover rally in the UK.

Flor de Caña has announced the opening of inscriptions in Europe for the 2022 edition of its Sustainable Cocktail Challenge. 

Award-winning Parisian cocktail bar Le Syndicat has announced a series of takeovers by London’s Silverleaf and Mexico City’s Hanky Panky to coincide with the Cocktail Spirits show.

Harrison Kenney of Sydney’s Cantina OK! has been crowned winner at the 2022 Patrón Perfectionists cocktail competition global final at Hacienda Patrón in Jalisco, Mexico.

Having recently returned from the US visiting both Oakland and Arizona Cocktail Weeks I was amazed by the differences in approach. In Oakland there was a much bigger trade focus and it felt more relaxed, whereas in Arizona it was one massive party for consumers.

Diageo World Class will host the 13th edition of its global finals in Sydney, Australia from 12-15 September this year.

A group of Ukrainian spirits industry professionals have launched a fundraiser calling on bartenders around the world to create a cocktail dedicated to Ukraine.

Bacardi has announced that it will be extending the availability of its bottled cocktails range, Tails, to the off-trade.

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

Cardrona Distillery has opened entries to UK bartenders to its inaugural cocktail competition, Cardrona Club.

Last year’s launch of Panther M*lk, a vegan oat milk RTD made with gin, rum, brandy and overproof spiced rum, shows just how quickly the pre-mixed cocktail industry has evolved since the days of mediocre Gin & Tonics.

Panther M*lk, the world’s first ready to drink alcohol cocktail made from oat milk, spirits and liqueurs, has launched in the UK in two flavours.

The team behind Milroy’s of London have opened a new high-end venue called Silverleaf at Pan Pacific London near Liverpool Street.

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.

Once again, we asked our 100 global bars to rank their best-selling classic cocktails and a new champion has emerged this year.

Grey Goose has announced the launch of Duet, a pop-up cocktail bar series and martini cocktail kit.

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

Manachain Monaghan from the UK has been crowned global champion of Flor de Caña Rum’s Sustainable Cocktail Challenge with his ‘Steamship’ cocktail.

New York-based media company NBTV Studios has announced the UK launch of streaming platform, Spirits Network, and is inviting UK bartenders to audition for its inaugural programme, Shake Off.

Deano Moncrieffe and Emma Murphy, the team behind acclaimed Dalston agaveria, Hacha have announced the opening of a second London site in Brixton.

London Cocktail Week has once again been extended to the whole month of October for 2021 and the full trade schedule has been released.

Fernet-Branca has announced that after a year’s hiatus, the Barback Games will return to London Cocktail Week for a third time, on 28^th October.

Pernod Ricard UK has highlighted the consumer trends accelerated by the last 18 months and urged retailers to “capitalise on the huge opportunity within premium spirits and wines this Christmas”.

Edrington UK has announced a series of workshops and events for the London trade as part of October’s London Cocktail Week.

The London Essence Company has announced that The Essence House pop-up is returning to Covent Garden throughout October for London Cocktail Week 2021.

Milan bar Officina is set to host Officina Cocktail Week with bartenders from some of the World’s Best Bars set to attend the inaugural event.

Wristbands are now available for London Cocktail Week 2021 which will once again be extended for the entire month of October.

The Old Man Singapore has launched a new “v3” menu inspired by the life experiences of Ernest Hemingway as well as the women he loved.

Douglas Ankrah, the inventor of the Pornstar Martini and creator of Soho’s LAB Bar has sadly passed away.

Aperitivo cocktail bar Archivio, based in Verona, will host bartender Jad Ballout this August to showcase his latest bar concept, Dead End Paradise.

The World’s 50 Best Bars has created the Siete Misterios Best Cocktail Menu Award which will be announced at the live awards ceremony on 7 December at London’s Roundhouse.

James Grant from Canada has been crowned the 12th winner of Diageo World Class following a first ever virtual event for 2021.

Digital platforms that can predict your favourite cocktail, sustainable socialising and the rise of at-home mixologists will reshape the drinks industry, according to Diageo.

Praphakorn Konglee from Thailand’s Find the Locker Room bar has won the Bacardí Legacy Cocktail Competition 2021 with is drink ‘Out of Sight’.

For the first time, London Cocktail Week has announced a one-off Warm-Up festival, taking place 05-11 July 2021.

Internationally awarded London bar Coupette has announced the launch of its Apples cocktail in RTD form from Saturday 29 May.