Bristol Cocktail Week - It's here!

On Tuesday evening last week I found myself not snuggled up in a slightly hibernation like state as I usually am on a work night. Instead I was in the mysterious and wonderful realm of The Milk Thistle*. Not only that, I was also surrounded by a group of supremely talented people....and some of the best cocktails I have ever had. Sounds pretty good right? 

The reason I found myself in this downright delightful and rather luxurious position all started with a lovely email from Tara of The Style Rawr (if you haven't checked it out before, get on it!). In her day job, she is currently working with Visit Bristol to promote the fabulous Bristol Cocktail Week and was arranging a blogger masterclass to get a sneak peek before the events all kicked off! Being a lover of all things cocktail, I absolutely jumped at the chance.

Before we even talk about the evening, we have to talk about The Milk Thistle because honestly it is an absolute wonder in itself. Hidden in plain sight, the realm of sophisticated imbibery is situated right in the center of Bristol behind a big black door. Marked with nothing more than a thistle, you will not find anything obvious to let you know you are in the right place until the door opens. But once inside, you will find a veritable dreamhouse of gorgeous artifacts, chesterfield sofas and a distinct air of opulence. Spread across four floors, each offering a slightly different feel, it is certainly the perfect place to relax and enjoy a seriously delicious tipple. If you are a Bristolian who hasn't been here already, consider it on your to do list. If you are a visitor to this fine land, insist to anyone that will listen that you must take a moment to investigate what lies behind the mysterious black door.

Now onto the evening itself! Despite being really excited, I will admit to being a nervous wreck. I almost nearly wimped out at the thought of coming face to face with some of the people who actually inspired me to be a blogger in the first place. But I talked myself into being a grown up and threw myself into the situation. Complete with nerves, probably at times inappropriate comments and my feel good lipstick, I threw myself into it and I survived! In fact, I had a truly marvellous evening...sounds rather Mary Poppins's esque but what the hell, it's true.

Upon arriving we were greeted by the wonderfully enthusiastic Danny Walker of Psychopomp Distillery with a raspberry and gin collins. He gave us a fabulous insight into the world of cocktails along with some fantastic tasting opportunities. I avidly wrote down notes throughout the session to make sure I could remember all of his hints and tips. Suffice to say when I am next stood in front of my parents' formidable liquor cupboard, I will know exactly what I'm doing (in theory anyway!).

I must admit, it completely changed my view of cocktails. Usually upon deciding cocktails are a great idea, I am that person who stands in front of the spirit aisle and looks for the cheapest thing going. Because after all, it's just going to be mixed in right? I can practically see Danny shaking his head in horror while writing this because that my friends is the biggest schoolboy error of cocktail making. Cocktails are a sum of their parts...or in other words, you cannot add burn the roof of your mouth off, paint stripping level vodka to that old carton of orange juice you found at the back of your fridge and expect magic. No no guys... In fact, one valuable lesson I took away from this session was that if you buy half of the juices / syrups you normally buy and instead invest in some really great base spirits, it makes a previously "average" cocktail into something truly spectacular.

The other common alcoholic faux pas lies in punch making. You know, that stuff where you grab the biggest container possible and pour in whatever happens to be at hand? The same stuff that often happens to get more and more like pure alcohol throughout the night as several party goers decide to add their own flavour to the mix...I thought that was just how punch is. Apart from my mum's punch (because obviously mums can do everything), I literally always saw it more as a means to an end than something one would truly enjoy drinking. But no longer will we have to suffer bad punch because Danny shared the secret to getting the balance just right:

1 part sour, 2 parts sweet, 3 parts strong, 4 parts weak – and some spice to make it nice!

Just to prove his point, he started throwing together a tequila punch. At which a number of people groaned..urgh not tequila...quite understandably really as it's not generally a spirit that one considers outside of stumbling, salt licking, lemon sucking experiences. And yet, what was created was nothing short of spectacular. Everyone praised it despite many comments of "I usually hate tequila" to which Danny quipped "everyone secretly likes tequila, you just have to find how".

It certainly encouraged me to think of cocktails more as a science than a haphazard culmination of odd ingredients and I definitely came away with a new found respect for the bartenders of Bristol. I suspect the next time I get a tad tipsy and decide it's the perfect time to make a new creation the words "but it's for Science!" will be uttered...so yeah...prepare yourselves my wonderful chums.

If you would like to get involved in some of the frivolity, the time is now! In it's 5th year, Bristol Cocktail Week isn't a new thing by any means, but this year is going to be bigger and better than ever. It's going to be an amazing culmination of boozey brilliance ran by a group of volunteers in order to showcase the very talented individuals behind the bar. Taking place from the 19th to the 25th October, it offers more than 20 scheduled events with everything from craft gin tasting experiences and cocktail safaris to a masked ball and an all out bar war! If you consider yourself to be a rather discerning drinker, Bristol is the place to be this week.

You can purchase a wristband here which will provide you with free entry for all non-ticketed events as well as a cheeky £10 off of ticketed sessions. Not bad at all! If you prefer roaming wild through the bars of Bristol, having a wristband will also allow you to get a discount on special Bristol Cocktail Week drinks in certain establishments throughout the city. So go on boys and girls, make the most of this week of glorious alcoholic adventure!...Because after all, diamonds may be a girl's best friend, but cocktails are EVERYONE'S best friend.

*This experience was a PR event and was therefore at no expense to myself. However it truly was jolly well good and I will be personally taking part in some of the events this week with pennies from my own pocket. 
** The images in this post are all my own except the third and fourth which are official images kindly provided by The Milk Thistle.