Bartending Weekly Brief: June 10–16, 2025
The bartending community witnessed several significant announcements and developments this week, reflecting the industry’s ongoing growth and creativity across the United States.
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Tales of the Cocktail Spirited Awards Announce Top Four Finalists
The Tales of the Cocktail Foundation has unveiled the highly anticipated top four finalists for its 19th annual Spirited Awards, a pinnacle of recognition within the global spirits and cocktail industry. This announcement, made on June 11, 2025, highlights leading professionals and establishments across various U.S. categories. Esteemed individuals such as Christine Kim from Service Bar in Washington, D.C., McLain Hedges of Yacht Club in Denver, CO, and Takuma Watanabe representing Martiny’s/L’Americana/Midnight Blue in New York, NY, are among those vying for the prestigious U.S. Bartender of the Year award. Other key U.S. categories include Best U.S. Cocktail Bar, Best New U.S. Cocktail Bar, and Best U.S. Restaurant Bar. The selection of these finalists underscores the highest standards of professional achievement and innovation within the American bartending scene. Their recognition provides aspirational figures for the community and spotlights the venues and trends that are currently defining excellence, influencing aspiring bartenders and shaping consumer expectations for quality and creativity in hospitality.
Published: June 11, 2025
Top four Spirited Awards finalists revealed - The Spirits Business -
USBG Crowns 2025 World Class Challenge Winners
The United States Bartenders’ Guild (USBG) has proudly announced the 2025 World Class Challenge Winners, celebrating exceptional talent and diverse skill sets within the bartending community. Dalton Bedard earned the title of World Class Tastemaker, recognized for his exemplary food pairing abilities, particularly his “Shinhidaka” cocktail paired with brown buttered corn on the cob, which judges lauded as a “masterclass in challenge alignment”. SC Baker was honored as World Class Storyteller, excelling in creating inspired tequila-based cocktails featuring Don Julio 70 Cristalino, captivating judges with her originality and compelling narratives, such as her cocktail “LoterĂa”. Kai Lucus was named World Class Round Builder, demonstrating impressive speed and technical skill in developing a World Class menu for a pop-up bar, including a no-ABV cocktail, with his round described as a “great concept, really well put together”. The specific categories of these awards—Tastemaker, Storyteller, and Round Builder—underscore a significant evolution in the bartending profession, moving beyond mere technical proficiency. They highlight that modern bartending increasingly values creativity, narrative development, conceptual thinking, and efficient execution under pressure. This shift suggests that contemporary training and development programs should focus on cultivating these holistic skills to prepare bartenders for future success and recognition in a multifaceted industry.
Published: June 10, 2025
2025 USBG Presents World Class Sponsored By DIAGEO 2025 Challenge Winners | United States Bartenders' Guild -
Fresh Sips: New Spirits Hit the U.S. Market
The week of June 9-13, 2025, brought an exciting array of new spirits to the U.S. market, providing fresh options for bartenders and consumers alike. Sazerac Co. expanded its premium whiskey portfolio with the introduction of the 12-year-old Eagle Rare bourbon, an American whiskey produced at the Buffalo Trace Distillery in Kentucky. This release is available in both on- and off-premise markets across the U.S.. Catering to the burgeoning ready-to-drink (RTD) category, La Martiniquaise-Bardinet debuted The Cutty Sark & Ginger Ale Highball, a convenient blended scotch whisky pre-mix. For tequila enthusiasts, Santo Spirits launched a limited-edition Santo Tequila Extra Añejo, an online-exclusive offering with only 240 units available. Additionally, Luxco introduced Cortada Smoked Tequila, distinguishing itself with a unique production process that involves smoking cooked agave with mesquite and Mexican oak for both its blanco and reposado iterations. The variety of these new releases—from traditional aged bourbon to convenient RTDs and specialty, uniquely flavored tequilas—indicates a multifaceted growth in the spirits market. This trend suggests that consumer demand is diversifying, encompassing both a desire for premium, authentic products and a preference for accessible, convenient formats. Bartenders are encouraged to stay abreast of these launches to update their menus, cater to diverse palates, and potentially discover new signature ingredients that can elevate their cocktail programs.
Published: June 13, 2025
https://drinks-intel.com/spirits/this-weeks-new-spirits-launches-9-13-june-2025/ -
Hot Spots Alert: New U.S. Bar Openings
Spring 2025 ushered in a vibrant wave of new bar openings across the U.S., each setting distinct trends in design and cocktail programs. In New Orleans, Junebug opened its doors on Camp Street, a site steeped in musical history, honoring its past with a focus on brandies and classic cocktails like the Sazerac and Frozen Ramos Gin Fizz. Los Angeles welcomed Bar Benjamin, an Art Deco-inspired venue located upstairs from The Benjamin Hollywood restaurant, offering a wraparound balcony with views of the Hollywood Hills and a cocktail menu devised by veteran bartenders Jason Lee and Chad Austin, inspired by their favorite foods. Meanwhile, New York City’s South Street Seaport now hosts Quick Eternity, a Moby Dick-themed bar that reimagines a classic watering hole, featuring a whale bone sculpture and narrative-driven cocktails such as the namesake Quick Eternity (a Corpse Reviver riff) and the Tequila-based Howling Infinite, served in a pewter drinking horn. These venues emphasize immersive experiences, unique concepts, and high-quality craftsmanship, collectively shaping the future of the American bar scene. The descriptions of these new establishments reveal a strong trend towards highly conceptual, immersive, and narrative-driven hospitality. Bars are increasingly becoming destinations that offer a complete experience, often drawing on local history, specific themes, or culinary inspiration. This development challenges bartenders to think beyond the glass, considering how their drinks integrate into a broader sensory and storytelling environment, and highlights that successful new ventures are differentiating themselves through strong, unique selling propositions.
Published: June 16, 2025
World’s hottest bar openings from spring 2025 - The Spirits Business
Tools & Tips
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Shaken Leaf – A Digital Hub for Sustainable Bartending
For bartenders committed to integrating eco-friendly practices into their operations, Shaken Leaf presents an invaluable new digital platform. Launched in January 2025 by the team behind Paris’s acclaimed The Cambridge Public House, this open-source website is designed to empower bartenders worldwide with accessible sustainable practices and resources. It provides practical tips, detailed case studies, and expert interviews covering crucial areas such as waste reduction, the use of environmentally friendly ingredients, and optimizing resource utilization. The platform even features a cocktail database with sustainability scores for each recipe, offering a tangible way to measure environmental impact. The emergence of platforms like “Shaken Leaf” highlights the increasing importance of sustainability within the hospitality industry. This movement is not merely a niche trend but is becoming a professional imperative, driven by both growing consumer demand for ethical practices and a heightened sense of environmental responsibility among industry leaders. For bartenders, this resource offers practical, shared knowledge, fostering a more collaborative and eco-conscious approach to their craft, which can also lead to operational cost savings and an enhanced brand reputation.
The Cambridge debuts sustainability website - The Spirits Business -
Game-Changing Bar Innovations for 2025 To remain at the forefront of the industry in 2025, bars are increasingly adopting innovations designed to enhance both operational efficiency and the overall customer experience. Smart Pouring Systems, for instance, are revolutionizing drink preparation by ensuring consistent quality and significantly reducing waste through precise liquor measurements. These systems help bartenders produce uniform cocktails, thereby improving the customer experience and optimizing inventory control. Another transformative innovation is Augmented Reality (AR) Menus. These digital menus, often accessed via smartphone QR code scans, offer an engaging and interactive way for customers to visualize cocktails with 3D visuals before ordering. This not only provides entertainment but also improves decision-making by giving guests a clearer idea of their drink choice. The focus on these technologies underscores a dual trend: achieving greater operational efficiency through technological advancements and elevating customer engagement through immersive experiences. This suggests that strategic investment in technology is becoming critical for bars to reduce costs, improve consistency, and differentiate their service. For bartenders, it implies a need to adapt to new tools and potentially new ways of interacting with customers, moving beyond traditional service models to embrace a more technologically integrated approach to hospitality.
Stay Ahead: 10 Game-Changing Bar Innovations for 2025 - San Diego Beer News®
Fun Fact
Did you know the origin of the word “cocktail” is quite a mystery, with several colorful theories adding to its intrigue? One popular theory suggests it comes from a practice where horse owners would insert ginger suppositories to make a horse “cock up its tail,” causing it to appear lively and healthy for potential buyers. The connection to mixed drinks, some believe, is that cocktails “perk people up” in a similar fashion! Another theory ties it to cock fighting, where roosters with “cock-tails” (shortened feathers) were supposedly used as garnishes on mixed alcoholic drinks. Regardless of its true origin, this peculiar etymology adds a fascinating layer of historical depth to our beloved mixed drinks, reminding professionals of the rich and often whimsical past of their craft.
We’d love to hear from you! Have you participated in any bartending events or utilized new bartending tools recently? Share your experiences or insights with us—we’re featuring selected community voices in next week’s edition.