Not-for-profit organisation P(our) has announced that ‘Understanding’ will be the topic of this year’s Symposium, held in London on 24 June.

Fruit purée and cocktail mixer company Funkin Cocktails has announced a new series of its Innovation Labs, a training programme for bartenders across the UK, in association with London’s Crucible.

Milk & Honey owner and Street Feast founder Jonathan Downey said the past decade of London’s bar scene has been a “desert in terms of change” and that hotel bars should not be named Best Bar in the World.

Bartenders Charles Roche and Eleanor Holcroft have launched a range of ready-to-drink cocktails called Liquid Intellect which focus on ‘nostalgic flavours’.

In honour of International Women’s Day, DrinkUp.London is celebrating the female bartender talent in London with an International Women’s Day Cocktail Tour on 4-11 March.

Long Tail Mixers has targeted international expansion as the premium mixers category continues to soar gloablly.

Beluga Vodka has launched the fourth edition of Beluga Signature, a multistage bartender program in seven major markets across the world.

Franklin & Sons has announced the launch of the ‘Taste Collective’ with the appointment of bartender Rich Woods, chef Sophie Michell and cookery writer and food stylist Rosie Birkett as ambassadors.

Funkin Cocktails will mark its 20th anniversary with a brand redesign which will roll out across its entire portfolio of purées, syrups, shrubs, pre-batched mixers, garnishes and draught products.

The Venning brothers won three awards at the 2019 CLASS Bar Awards last night, February 12 at Lindley Hall, London.

More than 500 WSET students graduated with a Diploma in 2018 from countries all around the world, highlighting the increased demand for wine and spirits education.

Fever-Tree has released its trading update for the year ended 31 December 2018, with full year revenue expected to be reach £236m, up 39% on 2017.

Visitor centres are shop windows for drinks companies. They are an important opportunity to show o facilities, inform and educate guests and, if successful, they can be a significant profit centre.

Bar innovator Ryan Chetiyawardana will launch three new Mr Lyan venues across three countries in 2019, including Lyaness which replace Dandelyan, the reigning world’s best bar.

The Wine and Spirit Trade Association is calling for clarity from the UK government on its post no deal tariff plans, warning that any no deal Brexit will see wine prices hit an all-time high.

Hamish smith has the lowdown on the who, what and how of the way the annual lists are compiled

Alex Kratena and Monica Berg will launch their first solo London venue in Spring 2019, it has been exclusively revealed to Drinks International’s sister publication Class.

Matt Whiley has announced he will open a sequel to his London bar Scout in Sydney in February 2019.

Stryyk, the zero-proof ‘spirit’ brand has launched Stryyk Not Vodka to its portfolio in time for Christmas and ‘Dry January’.

Glencairn crystal company has been selected by the Distilled Spirits Council of the US to be the official tasting glass for this year.

The Benevolent, the charity for the UK drinks industry, presents its recommendations to safeguard employees’ mental health on World Mental Health Day

Orlando Marzo from Melbourne’s Lûmé restaurant was named the world’s best bartender by Diageo World Class last night amid wild celebrations in Berlin.

Maverick Drinks has partnered with an online beverage learning platform called Jerry to bring the software to the UK.

Ryan Chetiyawardana’s Dandelyan was named World’s Best Bar at The World’s 50 Best Bars awards 2018 which took place at Roundhouse in London, UK.

Legendary writer and journalist Nicholas Faith has died aged 84.

The 2018 World’s 50 Best Bars 51-100 list has been released and involves 28 cities across 19 different countries and 19 new entries.

London officially has the highest number of bars than any other city in the world followed by Tokyo and then New York.

The 10th edition of The World’s 50 Best Bars awards will take place on Wednesday 3 October 2018 at the Roundhouse in London, UK.

The Wine and Spirit Trade Association (WSTA) has appointed Jeremy Shepherd from Brown-Forman and Mark Riley from Edrington-Beam Suntory UK to its board.

The American Bar at the Savoy has appointed Maxim Schulte as its 11^th head bartender, a role considered by many to be the biggest job in bartending.

HMRC has confirmed that 326 soft drinks manufacturers have been hit by the sugar tax according to data held by national accountancy group UHY Hacker Young, while alcoholic spirits remain safe from such legislations.

Dead Rabbit co-founder Sean Muldoon has vowed that the bar will “bounce back” after it was closed indefinitely following a fire in the early hours of Sunday, 1 July.

Arron Grendon from Tropic City in Bangkok has been crowned the 2018 Chivas Masters Global Champion.

Former Diageo Reserve World Class GB champion Jamie Jones has backed this year’s winner, Daniel Warren to flourish in the global final in Berlin later this year.

Dutch bartender Eric van Beek of bar TwentySeven in Amsterdam believes winning the Bacardí Legacy Cocktail Competition last month will be “life changing”.

Bartending icon and bar owner John Lermayer, was found dead in his apartment on Miami Beach on the evening of June 6, aged 45.

The Wine and Spirit Trade Association has announced that one of the longest serving members of staff, Carlo Gibbs, director of UK Policy and Social Responsibility, is leaving to take up a new role in the UK Government’s Department for Business Energy and Industrial Strategy.

Diageo Reserve has announced this year’s 10 World Class GB finalists, following the semi-final heats in London on May 16.

The UKBG has been turned on its head by the appointment of an all-star team that includes bartending legend Peter Dorelli, Declan McGurk of the American Bar and Mia Johansson of Swift.

In the wake of Scotland’s new minimum unit pricing policy, alcoholic drink manufacturers and retailers are being warned that they could risk breaching competition rules.

Cocktail mixer brand, Funkin has launched its Innovation Lab in partnership with London’s Crucible, opening with workshops in Bristol and Manchester in May.

Vinexpo has announced its chief executive, Guillaume Deglise will leave the company after the Hong Kong exhibition, which closes on May 31.

AB InBev and Beam Suntory have announced a marketing collaboration between their Budweiser and Jim Beam brands.

Erik Lorincz will leave his position as the head bartender of the American Bar at the Savoy – the World’s Best Bar 2017 - to open his own bar in London.

A graduate programme known as The Pernod Ricard Winemakers has opened for this year’s applications.

Champagne has recorded a turnover of €4.9bn, an increase of +6.6% due to improved export performances.

Pernod Ricard has confirmed the death of an employee at its Midleton Distillery in Cork, who has been named locally as Dominic Knowles.

The Scotch Whisky Association (SWA) has renewed its collective trademarks ‘Scotch Whisky’ and its translation ‘苏格兰威士忌’ in China until November 2028. So, Scotch Whisky is officially protected from locally produced copies for a further 10 years.

The Wine & Spirits Education Trust awards took place last night (January 22) at The Guildhall in the City of London.

The Benevolent launched a new mental health awareness campaign #NotAlone at the Vintners’ Company Annual Wine Trade Lunch on 12 January at Vintners’ Hall.