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INSIDE CLASS
Hamish Smith introduces the latest edition of CLASS.
Our Summer 2024 issue - Best in the West – leads with Bristol’s Ben Alcock. The cover theme all sort of fell into place when his bar Filthy XIII won Best Bar in the West at the Class Bar Awards. West country of England that is, but their gear isn’t anywhere near as fancy. We speak to Alcock about his venues as we revisit the winners of the Class Bar Awards.
In this edition we also welcome Kate Nicholls to our team of writers – the chief executive of UK Hospitality has her binoculars on the political horizon for CLASS and she’s joined as a columnist by Iain McPherson from Panda & Sons, who makes the argument for innovation in spite of the challenging fiscal landscape. Giulia Cuccurullo of Artesian debuts with a piece about creating narrative around drinks.
Of our regular contributors, Monica Berg talks about the sources of her ambition, Edmund Weil asks whether your bar should adapt to its changing locale and Kevin Armstrong puts the case for making cocktails à la minute. Jake O’Brien Murphy, meanwhile, reels off his favourite books on drinks and why we should read them, while I comment on the well-meaning but unstoppable wave of guest shifts.
Sliding further into the glass, it’s tea time for Tyler Zielinksi in his latest piece on cocktail trends, while Bart Miedeksza and Valentino Girotto of Crossroads bring us their expert guide to carbonation. Stalwarts Anistatia Miller & Jared Brown are looking at liquid ends to their first harvest of tomatoes, while they pen a second piece on gin – the small matter of its history rewritten.
Also, on the menu are pieces on rhum agricole, amaro, non-abv cocktails and spritzes. And, of course, a whole lot more.
Happy reading!