There are cocktail competitions and then there is the G’Vine Gin Connoisseur Program. Most cocktail / bartending competitions are relatively simple affairs that pit one cocktail against another with the winner having the best cocktail of the moment. Sometimes it’s as much luck as it is the whims of the judging panel. The G’Vine program is very different and the […]

After flying in from around the globe, a dozen bartenders plus assorted other participants have descended upon Cognac to duke it out for the title of ultimate gin bartender. G’Vine Gin has put significant emphasis on quality so some of the tests have turned out to be more difficult than some of the competitors suspected, but that’s a good thing. […]

Very interesting things happen when you take a group of bartenders, mix in some of the best spirits and cocktails in the world and then stick them in a hotel together. And I’m glad I waited until the morning to write this post because we’ve got some killer material. Whenever an Australian does a striptease to Waltzing Matilda, on a boat, […]

Last time, on Art of Drink…..Darcy had spent a night out with Rocky visiting some cool places in Seattle. The following day (Wednesday) was an easy morning followed by a ride with Rocky to Portland, for Portland Cocktail Week and the Distillers Festival. An already fun week was capped off with a top notch group of bartenders and industry people. […]

After Victoria, I headed down to Seattle for basically a day, but I made the best of it with the help of Rocky Yeh (NW Vivant). If anyone knows good food and good drinks it’s Rocky. A group of use took the ferry and then all disappeared for a good night of sleep. After a restful night of sleep I […]

This would be day two of Art of the Cocktail, and it was—not surprisingly—a busy and educational day. Three sessions were in the queue for me, one on Italian cocktails, another on working with oddball ingredients and finally a dash of tiki to finish the day. Of course, this was all followed by a night of drinking fine cocktails and […]

After an early morning flight to Victoria, I checked into the hotel and got set for the first day of Art of the Cocktail. This event is tiny compared to Tales of the Cocktail or the Manhattan Cocktail Classic, but that’s actually a good thing. There are a limited number of events each day with a much more relaxed pace. […]

Travel and drink 2010 continues, this time I’ll be hitting Victoria, British Columbia for Art of the Cocktail (October 16 and 17) then I’ll be heading to Seattle for 2 days followed by 3 in Portland for Drink.Write 2010 and Portland Cocktail Week. For Art of the Cocktail, I’ll be attending a few sessions, like the Oddballs by Ted "Dr. […]

Wow, what a week. This year was bigger and better than last year. In fact there were so many people I wanted to have a drink with that there just wasn’t enough time. But I did manage to drink my fair share and chat with a lot of people. This year I went as a presenter and not media. I […]