We’ve got travel on our brains this week as we’ve just returned from Barcelona where we celebrated the 10-year-anniversary of Paradiso, our featured bar and book in this episode, while our interview takes us to Buenos Aires, the next stop on our itinerary, where we’ll be joining in the fun with the team at Tres Monos for the fourth Gran Corso de los Monos. We’re joined by co-founder Charly Aguinsky who tells us about the bar, its work in the community and what they have in store for Latin America’s carnival weekend.

Our featured products take us on journeys of a different kind – taste. We have two very special gins, one shaped entirely by the Golden Ratio and produced just once a year, the ultra premium Aureus Vita, the other is Seatrus Gin, which promises flavours of the Mediterranean sea. 

What we're drinking:

Between The Sheets

25ml cognac

25ml light rum

25ml triple sec

10ml freshly squeezed lemon juice

Orange peel to garnish

Method:

Chill Martini glasses in freezer. Shake all ingredients over ice. Pour into the chilled cocktail glass and garnish with an orange twist.

Aureus Vita Fibonacci Gin

Paradiso 10 Year Anniversary Book

Paradiso Barcelona

Seatrus Gin

Tres Monos Bar

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After our last few themed episodes we’re now back to our regular format – talking two bottles, a book, a bar and a very special guest…

Our first product is Jin Jin – an enzymatic cordial. Chivas Regal Crystalgold. Equally intriguing, in a very different way is Chivas Regal Crystalgold, the first clear spirit from Chivas Regal… With a nod to Dry January our book tells you everything you could want to know about lighter drinking. It’s Low Alcohol Cocktails – New Frontiers in Mixology by Diego Ferrari. And to warm up on a cold winter’s evening we headed to The Winter Chalet at Rosewood London.

Finally, our guest is Katie Rouse, co-owner of Couch in Birmingham, who joins us to talk about the bar’s Couch Surf programme.

Horse's Neck With A Kick

40ml cognac

120ml ginger ale

5 dashes of Angostura bitters

long strip of lemon peel

Method:

Chill glasses and fill with ice. Add the cognac then top with ginger ale, add Angostura bitters. Stir gently to combine. Garnish with a long strip of lemon wound in and over the top of the glass.

Couch Stirchley

Chivas Regal Crystalgold

Low Alcohol Cocktails – New Frontiers in Mixology – by Diego Ferrari

Jin Jin

The Chalet at Rosewood London

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Our first trip of the year took us to Milan for the launch of Coqtail magazine’s winter edition (grazie mille for the invite Penelope and Chiara). Which gave us just enough time to soak up the atmosphere and revel in that famous Italian hospitality in four very distinct bars.

First up, Camparino in Galleria, not only a symbol of the aperitivo but also the history of art and culture in Milan; then we headed to 1930, once a speakeasy, now open to discerning drinkers with an appetite for creative culinary cocktails; on the hotel bar front, we were thrilled to experience the magic of the Maestro Salvatore Calabrese at his latest collaboration with the Rocco Forte group at The Carlton hotel and lastly, we headed to Moebius Milano to find out why, not only was it the highest climber in this year’s 50 Best Bars list at No. 7, but also the proud owner of a coveted Pin from The Pinnacle Guide as well as Michelin Star.

But as well as visiting the bars, we talk to the people behind them, so this is a longer episode than usual but with inspiring chat from Salvatore Calabrese, Benjamin Cavagna, Lorenzo Querci & Tommaso Cecca, we hope you won't mind.

Negroni Sbagliato

30ml Campari

30ml sweet vermouth

60ml dry prosecco

Method:

Chill glasses and fill with ice. Add the Campari and sweet vermouth then top with prosecco. Stir gently to combine. Garnish with an orange slice nestled in the side of the glass..

1930

Camparino

The Carlton Bar at The Carlton Hotel

Moebius Milano

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It’s the first episode of the New Year so before we jump fully into 2026 we want to take a moment to look back and celebrate 2025.

During the year we were once again fortunate enough, both here in the UK and further afield, to have enjoyed an array of incredible cocktail experiences, visited some wonderful bars and best of all, meet some of the fantastic people in the drinks world. So here, in no particular order, are some of our most memorable moments from the last year.

Chin Chin

created by Tony Conigliaro at Isola, Knightsbridge, 2002 (from Difford's Guide)

Half a barspoon of honey

15ml apple juice

30ml blended Scotch whisky

Champagne to top

Method:

Chill your flute glasses. Stir the honey and whisky in the base of your shaker to dissolve honey. Add apple juice then shake ingredients over ice. Fine strain into your chilled flute. Top with chilled sparkling wine or Champagne.

Dante x Maybourne with Linden Pride – interview

Hawksmoor Martini Bar – review

Lorenzo Antinori – interview

New York Special – interviews/reviews

The SG Shochu – review

Town – review

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There’s exactly one week to go until Christmas and If you’re still stuck for ideas for what to get the cocktail lover in your life, we’re here to help.

We’ve trawled through the stores, physically and virtually, sifting through the duds so you don’t have to. Our mission? To select our pick of gifts that will ensure you score more brownie points than the fat bearded bloke in red ever could. You're welcome!

What we're mixing

Classic Champagne Cocktail

Brown sugar cube

7-8 dashes aromatic bitters

25ml chilled cognac

Champagne to top

Garnish with fresh orange peel

Method:

Chill glassware and ingredients. Soak sugar cube with aromatic bitters then add to the bottom of your Champagne flute. Top with Champagne and garnish with orange peel.

Aperol Spritzwear Gloves, £30

Aureus Vita Fibonacci Dry Gin, £169

Claridges Mixology Edition Gift Set, £225

Classic Whisky Pairing Chocolates, £42.95

Cocktail Panama Notebook, £70

Dram5 Gift Box, £95

Fords Gin Negroni Sessions Bundle, $24.99

Hawksmoor Martini Bar Experience, £100

I Am Bartender Jewellery, from £35

Martini Lovers Jewellery Dish, £32.99

MOTH Festive Snacking Selection Box, £59

Rimowa x Robbe & Berking Cocktail Case, £4.310

Scarfes Bar x Hibiki Limited-Edition Cocktail Box, £140

Seventy One Gin Night Readings, £188

SirDavis Gift Bag, £79

Tayer + Elementary Xmas Essentials 2.0 Christmas Cocktail Gift Set, £35

The Connaught Bar – A Year of Cocktails, £5,000

The Connaught Bar Gin Hamper, £395

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Whether we’re talking bottles, books or bars, why is it that some may enjoy just a brief moment in the spotlight, while others continue to shine for years, decades or even centuries? In this episode we’re celebrating creations that have done exactly that.

Starting with spirits that continue to hit all the right notes with us. Of which we're highlighting three: an expression from Chivas Regal – the whisky founded over 100 years ago; followed by Tanqueray No. TEN gin, which has been around close on 25 years and Fords Gin, which may feel like a relative newcomer but has been making its mark since 2012.

Our book is Harry’s ABC of Mixing Cocktails, from the legendary bartender, Harry MacElhone, first published back in 1919. And for our bar, we visited The Martini Bar at Hawksmoor, St. Pancras. Yes, it’s only been open a few weeks, but it is the latest offering from the Hawksmoor group which started life in Spitalfields back in 2006, and has been growing brilliantly ever since.

This week's guests know a thing or two about longevity when it comes to bars. Roisin Stimpson and Edmund Weil founded the multi award-winning Nightjar, currently celebrating its 15th year, and, Swift about to mark 10 years in Soho. We chat with the husband-and-wife team about how they met, how they created their dream bar and how you need as much luck as intuition when starting a business.

What we're drinking:

Martini

60ml Tanqueray No. TEN or Fords Gin

20ml Dolin vermouth

1 dash Australian Bitters Orange Bitters

Lemon twist to garnish

Method:

Chill Martini glasses in freezer. Stir all ingredients over ice. Pour into the chilled cocktail glass and garnish with a lemon twist.

Chivas Regal 18

Fords Gin

Harry's ABC of mixing cocktails by Harry McElhone

Hawksmoor Martini Bar

Nightjar

Tanqueray No. TEN Gin

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To warm us into the new season, we’ve got a bit of a whisky thing going on product-wise with two new bottles for your drinking pleasure. One, The Stanhope has a Scottish connection but is made in the US, the other comes from one of our favourite family brands, it’s Rosemaund from the Chase family and it's proudly English. 

Award-winning writer Noah Rothbaum shares all the intel on the subject in The Whisky Bible – A complete guide to the world’s greatest spirit and there are whiskies aplenty in our bar pick which is the recently opened Eagle Bar perched atop the glam Chancery Rosewood in London.

For the first conversation of the season, we’re thrilled to welcome Lorenzo Antinori, talking openly and honestly about settling in a different country, embracing simplicity, his latest opening in Shanghai and Bar Leone Hong Kong being crowned Best Bar in the World.

What we're drinking:

Perfect Manhattan

60ml bourbon

15ml sweet vermouth

15ml dry vermouth

Cherry/lemon or orange twist to garnish

Method:

Stir all ingredients over ice. Pour into a chilled cocktail glass and garnish with a cocktail cherryk.

Bar Leone Hong Kong

Bar Leone Shanghai

Eagle Bar at Chancery Rosewood

Rosemaund Single Malt English Whisky

The Stanhope Kentucky Straight Bourbon

The Whisky Bible – A complete guide to the world’s greatest spirit by Noah Rothbaum

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Every advocacy programme in the drinks world has its usp, something that inextricably links it to the DNA of the brand. In our humble opinion, few, if any do it better than The House of Suntory.

Now in its fifth year, The House of Suntory DOJO programme has become synonymous with excellence in the bartending world, thanks to its focus on learning from dedicated Masters in the arts of Japanese craftsmanship. 

Those who are fortunate enough to take part receive hands-on experience and skill-enhancing insights in the arts of flower arranging, sushi making, mindfulness, blending flavours and other revered disciplines, then apply them in their hospitality and bartending practices – all while immersing themselves in the core pillars of the brand and its origins.

In this special episode we’re joined by The House of Suntory UK Ambassador Raffaele Di Monaco to tell us about how this year’s programme was put together; Gabriel St John Tucker, the overall winner on his learnings from taking part and Dave Broom, whiskey expert, one of the four experts who spoke at the final about how Japanese culture influences the way they work. 

Tokio Night

2 parts Toki Black

1/2 part coffee liqueur

2 dashes orange bitters

Method:

Add all ingredients to a mixing glass and add ice. Stir for 20 seconds. Strain into a hilled cocktail glass or coupette.

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It's the last episode of season ninet. So to take us out we’ve got some very special and, perhaps surprising, stories to share with you.

Take our two products. The first is a very special limited edition rum in the shape of El Dorado High Ester Blend PM / DHE, while the other is, rather surprisingly, a wine and a lighter abv one at that, it's 6 Percent Sauvignon Blanc.

Another surprise is our book, as it comes not from a bartender but a renowned film director. It’s 'Cocktail Time: The Ultimate Guide to Grown-Up Fun! Great advice, embarrassing stories and 125 classic and original drinks', by Paul FeigG

For our bar we headed over to Himkok in Oslo Always a very special experience and, on this particular occasion, one which was even more special as we discovered the clever and surprising relationship between cocktails and product design in the shape of bar’s brand new menu – Designed by Sipping.

As for our guest, joining us from Canada, is Keegan McGregor, last year’s winner of the Diageo World Class Global Bartender of the Year competition, who, with this year’s final just over week away, shares his own very special story.

What we're drinking:

Maple Leaf Cocktail

60ml bourbon

15ml maple syrup

15ml freshly squeezed lemon juice

Cinnamon stick to garnish

Method:

Shake all ingredients over ice. Pour into a chilled cocktail glass and garnish with e cinnamon stick.

6 Percent Wine

Cocktail Time! The Ultimate Guide to Grown Up Fun, by Paul Fei

El Dorado High Ester Blend PM/DHE

Highwayman Restaurant & Bar

Himkok

Studio Sløyd

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It’s beginning to look a lot like Autumn here in London but there’s still plenty of reasons to keep our spirits lifted on the cocktail front. Starting with the bases for our drinks… We’re keeping things juniper-charged in this episode, with two very different gins: one from Atlas in Singapore, the other, a cask-aged gin from the team at Renais.

As for our book, we're clinging on to summer with this week’s pick, it's 'Tropical Standard – Cocktail Techniques and Reinvented Recipes' by Garret Richard and Ben Schaffer, and our bar might be in East London but there’s definitely a hint of Spain or even Portugal on the menu – it’s Cav in Bethnal Green.

And last but by no means least, we hear from Linden Pride, co-founder of award-winning Caffe Dante who tells us how he’s sharing its very signature Mediterranean vibes across New York, Beverley Hills, the French Riviera and joy, oh, joy, right here in London at Claridge's.

What we're drinking:

Saketini

60ml vodka

30ml sake

15ml triple sec

Method:

Shake all ingredients over ice. Pour into a chilled cocktail glass and serve.

abcd at The Maybourne Riviera

Atlas London Dry Gin

Cav

Dante Beverly Hills

Dante x Claridge's

Dante NYC

Renais Cask-Aged Gin

'Tropical Standard – Cocktail Techniques and Reinvented Recipes' by Garret Richard and Ben Schaffer,

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