Ahead of The 2024 edition The World’s Best Bars, which takes place in Madrid this October, head of content Emma Sleight talks to Sam Bygrave about how the World's 50 Best Bars list actually works and dispels a few rumours along the way, and shares some insight into what is one of the drinks world’s unique jobs — there really is nothing like it.

I’ve got a little bonus episode for you this week, I’n talking Sean baxter and George Georgiadis of the little Australian producer that got started in 2016, Never Never Distilling Co — and I’m talking to them because on May 1st the news broke that they had been acquired by Asahi Beverages here in Australia. It’s huge news and represents a big investment in the brand, it’s one that bartenders I think have been big supporters of since they got started, I’ve interviewed Sean before — he’s always great chat — but I wanted to talk to them to talk through what a deal like this involves, and I asked them a couple times to share the price of the deal — you can hear how effective that was or wasn’t for yourself. A quick disclaimer too, Never Never is the sponsor of the Best Bar award for the Boothby Best Bars events in Queensland, NSW, and Victoria this year, and they’re a sponsor of the Bartenders Weekender up in Brisbane which, yes, is kicking off on Sunday — Sean talks a bit about that as well.

Today’s episode is an interesting panel discussion that I hosted at Paramount Liquor’s Future Proof event in Adelaide back at the start of April, with writer, YouTuber, bartender and now co-owner of Melbourne bar, Goodwater, Cara Devine — and with Sean Baxter, the co-founder of Never Never Distilling Co., a brand based in McLaren Vale and one that has been in the news recently — more on that in a moment. It’s a discussion all about how they built their brands, and there are lessons in there whether you’re wanting to develop a booze brand, open a bar, or indeed boost your career and work on — for want of a better term — your personal brand.

Never Never was in the news last week, The Shout reported that the small gin-focused distillery, a favourite among bartenders, had been wholly acquired by Asahi Beverages here. That news came through after this panel chat, obviously, so we don’t get into that in this discussion, but I guess it just highlights that Sean and the folks at never Never have done a good job of building their brand.

https://www.bartendersweekender.com/

https://www.boothby.com.au/

Jamie Fleming discusses the five-year anniversary of Alba Bar & Deli and the key pillars that have shaped its identity: Sherry, jamon, and hip hop. He emphasizes the importance of creating a unique and memorable experience for guests, going against the grain, and standing out in a competitive industry. Fleming also highlights the challenges faced during the Covid pandemic and the opportunities that arose from adapting to the circumstances. He credits the longevity of Alba to taking advantage of opportunities, being part of the conversation, and building strong industry connections. The conversation covers topics such as the reception of the bar in the Brisbane scene, the evolution of the menu and offerings, the focus on Sherry, and the key elements of a great bar. The conversation ends with a discussion about the upcoming fifth anniversary celebration of the bar.

Bartenders' Weekender — early bird tickets to the better Bars Summit are now live at bartendersweekender.com.

I’m talking to Jordan Bushell, the global brand ambassador for Hennessy — perhaps you’ve heard of this plucky, young upstart cognac brand that has only been around for — oh, 259 years?

Hennessy of course is a well-known brand, one that for many people is synonymous with cognac, and for some people that’s all they know of the spirit. Obviously I think I know a fair bit more about cognac than that, but in talking to Jordan, I got to understand that there is so, so much more to learn about cognac than I realised. I really enjoyed this chat.

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A quick note too: this episode is sponsored by Hennessy, because they want to let you know about Jordan’s upcoming visit to New Zealand and Australia this month in support of the Hennessy MyWay 2024 Challenge. It’s the fourth year for this global competition, and the’re launching in Australia and New Zealand for the first time. 

Jordan will join the Australian and New Zealand Hennessy ambassador Alex Zanarini for five masterclasses starting from Monday 15th April in Auckland, in Brisbane on Tuesday 16th, Melbourne on Wednesday April 17th, over in Perth on Friday the 19th, before finishing in Sydney on Monday April 22nd. 

Bartenders are invited to come along to an event and participate in Hennessy MyWay, a quest to discover the most innovative and sustainable cocktail creations paired with spectacular serving rituals. On offer are cash prizes of €1000 for top 50 finalists with the top 10 invited to Paris and Cognac to compete in the live final in October.

To enter the competition visit myway.hennessy.com, and RSVP to Jordan’s events at https://www.eventcreate.com/e/hennessymyway/

Gin Palace owner Ben Luzz talks about the recent renovations of the bar, the wear and tear that comes with running a bar for almost 30 years. Ben also talks about becoming the custodian custodian of Gin Palace after the passing of Vernon Chalker, and how he keeps a balance between preserving the bar’s legacy and embracing the future. Ben also talks about adding Bijou and Black Kite Commune to his portfolio, the challenges of managing multiple bars on the same street. He also shares his thoughts on the business climate for hospitality in Melbourne, and what makes a great bar.

In this episode I’m talking to the three owners of Ramblin’ Rascal Tavern — Sebastian Cosmo Soto, Charlie Lehmann, and Dardan Shervashidze. When they opened the bar in 2014, they’d come from the best training school for new bar owners at that time: The Baxter Inn. They opened the bar with around $350,000 cobbled together between the three of them and an investor, which they talk about in this episode. And they steered away from the Americana that was a big trend in bars at the time, focusing more on a homegrown culture — but that Swillhouse emphasis on quality was front and centre. “People ask us what kind of bar we are,” Charlie Lehmann told me back in 2014. He said, “Well, we’re an everyman’s bar, we do everything. We do good cocktails, we do good wine, we do good beer — we do shit beer. And lots of shots of cognac.” 

We are living in some interesting times for hospitality, with what seems like a conflicting narrative out there at the moment. On the one hand, it seems like every week there’s a notable venue closing. On the other hand, there's been a bar opening boom in the last few months.

The Rooster Rojo Rumble is looking for six bartenders to fly to Sydney — and one to Greece.

Abbie Weir is a memorable, compelling human. The agave specialist for Amber Beverages Australia is a big personality in an industry where there that’s a prerequisite.

“This industry is all about personality,” Abbie says in this week’s episode of Drinks At Work. “A bartender can make or break your experience.”

I’m talking to Abbie this week because she’s also the ambassador for Rooster Rojo, and together we’re hosting The Rooster Rojo Rumble — entries open Friday 1 March.

The Rooster Rojo Rumble is a cocktail competition that does things a little differently: yes, it’s about the drink, but it’s also about your personality and your storytelling.

Forget ‘signature serves’, forget about brand calls and ‘rituals’ — great drinks travel the world because of the people who love them.

I’ve got a different episode of Drinks At Work this week — I’m calling it Drinks At Work — The List.

It’s about how Jay Gray’s Singapore bar, Sago House, got onto the World’s 50 Best Bars list in 2023. It’s a bit of a different format for Drinks At Work, one I’m hoping to roll out from time to time; it’s more of a narrative piece than the conversational episodes that I usually make on Drinks At Work.

It’s all to answer this big question: what does it take to get a bar onto a globally recognised list of the best, like The World’s 50 Best Bars list?