Visions for Community: Bringing an African Mindset on to the Global Stage
Colin Asare-Appiah shares his journey to winning the Visionary Award at the 2024 Tales of the Cocktail.
Read the article
Freepour experts are sharing valuable articles on the latest trends in bartending
Articles
73 articlesDownload the app to see more
Discover the Guía de México
An Insider's Guide to Mexico’s Culinary and Cocktail Culture.
Read the article
A Visit to La Casa del Maiz
Preserving the Legacy of Mexican Heritage Corn.
Read the article
Dressed for Success
A stylish, practical, and memorable uniform offers many benefits. Bar operators Remy Savage, Jeff Berry, and Christine Wiseman share their insights with Jim Meehan.
Read the article
Attributing Technique
Jim Meehan explores the challenge of claiming ownership of techniques in the industry with thoughts from Toby Maloney, Jeffrey Morgenthaler and Iain McPherson.
Read the article
Exploring Hacienda PATRÓN
A Behind-the-Scenes Look at Tequila Craftsmanship.
Read the article
Exploring the Spirit of Mexico
A Journey Through PATRÓN tequila and ILLEGAL mezcal with the UK Team.
Read the article
Introducing: Mixología De México
PATRÓN® and Freepour presents Mixología de México! —an extraordinary journey that brings together the rich traditions of Mexico with the innovative spirit of the global bar community.
Read the article
The Guest Bar Shift Industry
Jim Meehan explores the guest bar shift industry with insight from Kate Gerwin, Tash Conte and Nico de Soto.
Read the article
BCB State of Mind – Freepour Editor’s Edition
Let’s hear it for New York! Each year bar and beverage professionals gather for Bar Covenant Brooklyn (BCB) to network with peers and learn about new trends, techniques and products.
Read the article
Ajabu!
Ajabu, Africa’s wondrous new cocktail and spirits festival, had its maiden rendition in March 2024. Watch the recap and discover what we can expect going forward.
Read the article
Drinks and a Show
Jim Meehan discusses the art of showmanship with Daniele Dalla Pola, GN Chan and Masahiro Urushido, who each combine world class mixology with laugh out loud entertainment at their bars.
Read the article
Age of Influence
Jim Meehan interviews three experienced bartenders to explore how bartenders today can leverage social media to cultivate authentic relationships online.
Read the article
No. 19 Set to Become Number 1!
Ghana leans into African pride with the launch of a high-end restaurant and bar that showcases the bounty of continent.
Read the article
The Trailhead
Jim Meehan interviews Claire Warner, Giuseppe Gallo and Lauren Mote to discuss different career paths in the trade and share advice for others.
Read the article
Africa’s 2023 Showreel
Leah van Deventer tallies the continent’s year-on-year wins in the global context.
Read the article
Africa's Got Talent
Six young slingers to keep your eyes on. Let’s get to know some of the rising stars in African bar industry.
Read the article
Awards for (South) Africa
Taking a look at the importance of bar awards in the African context, and how South Africa is celebrating its own.
Read the article
What's Cutting in Zim?
Way off the beaten track of most of the continent’s cocktail bars, Zimbabwe has a colourful and enthusiastic drinking culture, with drinking even being called the national pastime. So, if fancy mixed libations are not the average Zimbo’s cup of tea, what exactly are they drinking, and where?
Read the article
Reinventing the Aperitivo
Whether it’s Quattro Teste in Lisbon, Viva Madrid in… Madrid or Bar Olimpic in Barcelona, new-ish bars are giving the Aperitivo a facelift.
Read the article
The Rise of African Bartender Guilds
Around the world, bartender associations cater to the education, upliftment, organisation and fellowship of bar-industry professionals, where members work together for their mutual benefit. Let’s take a look at what’s happening in Africa.
Read the article
How Hero is Leading Bar Takeovers in Africa
When Hero quietly opened its doors in September 2019, in the leafy, out-of-the-way Gigiri suburb of Nairobi, it did so without fanfare. Fast forward three years – much of which was obliterated by the pandemic – and the underdog is now punching well above its weight.
Read the article
Spain's Smalltown Bartenders
A great cocktail scene is measured by the number of excellent bars outside the main cities. By that yardstick, Spain is really doing well.
Read the article
Hot Takes on Africa from Visiting Bartenders
To gain some perspective on Africa – and in particular its five cocktail hotspots - we chatted to three visiting global players to get their take on what’s shaking.
Read the article
Chasing Waterfalls: Discussing Employee Drinking
Jim Meehan discusses of of the most thorny issues in hospitality - employee drinking.
Read the article
Cause and Effect - Growing Your Brand Into a Franchise
Cause Effect co-owner, Kurt Schlechter details the reasons for and rewards of turning one bar into four.
Read the article
Dream Catcher: Teamwork Makes the Dream Work
Despite an industry focused on individual competitions and social media celebrity, hospitality work is accomplished collaboratively. Monica Berg , Jackson Cannon and Julio Cabrera tell Jim Meehan what teamwork means to them.
Read the article
How to Keep Slinging Drinks After a Decade
To find out how to go the distance, and have a chance at reaching your dreams, we chatted to five bartenders from around the continent who’ve been at it for ten years or more, and asked them three key questions.
Read the article
Social Networks - Nicolas Munoz Bisou
Les réseaux sociaux ont envahi nos vies personnelles et professionnelles. Mais quels usages en font les bartenders en 2023 ? Pour cela, FreePour a interviewé trois bartenders français, aux points de vue différents, pour comprendre et dérober leurs secrets. Nous commençons aujourd’hui par Nicolas Munoz, vainqueur France de la Bacardi Legacy 2017, et propriétaire des bars Bisou. et Divine à Paris.
Read the article
Over the Hill
Jim Meehan asks three friends and role models of what they do to remain vital after all these years in the business.
Read the article
Cocktail Competitions are Back
The Debate Continues. Bartenders went head to head in the Central Coast region of NSW, Australia as they showcased their skills in the Central Coast Cocktail Competition. Get inspired by the insights of industry legends, and the strategies of competition winner Alan Cameron.
Read the article
How Flip Lounge is Flipping the Script in Lagos
A milestone moment for African cocktail culture.
Read the article
Why is The Pornstar Martini Cocktail So Popular?
Using data points to discover the story behind Pornstar Martini cocktail Trend.
Read the article
Where is the Next Maria Dolores Boadas?
5 years after her death, Boadas remains in all minds. However, we need to also pay attention to other Spanish women in the bar industry.
Read the article
The Importance of Mouthfeel
Welcome to the seventh and final piece in this series on taste, flavour, and their importance to cocktail creation. So far, we’ve primarily focused on the understanding of our taste elements (sweet, sour, and bitter in particular) and how they interact with each other, but for this article, our attention will be on all thing textural, looking at the importance of the mouthfeel of our cocktails and how paying close attention to it can add the ultimate finishing touch.
Read the article
How Spain Fell in Love With Vermouth
Spain is now one of the world’s leading vermouth markets and probably the only country where it’s drunk straight rather than mixed. So how exactly did Spain fall in love with vermouth?
Read the article
9 Fascinating African Drinks
Exploring the continent through its traditional brews.
Read the article
Free Data at Your Fingertips
When you are running a business, using finite resources like time and money means making decisions about marketing budgets and campaigns becomes a roll of the dice. Unless that is, you become data-literate.
Read the article
Bitter - The Flavour Lengthener
Welcome to my sixth article on taste, flavour, and their importance to cocktail creation. In this penultimate piece of the series, we’re going to focus on the most peculiar of all the taste elements, bitterness.
Read the article
Africa Rising
Recapping some highlights from the African continent in 2022 and what to look forward to and work towards in 2023.
Read the article
Data Driven Trends for 2023
What Does Data Tell Us About The Year Ahead?
Read the article
Spain's First Cocktail
The vermouth-loving country's early breakout cocktail unsurprisingly involved a hefty dose of aromatised wine.
Read the article
Everything, Very Quickly
Jim Meehan speaks to three of his role models to glean tips on how a hospitality newcomer might navigate their aspirations to move up through the industry swiftly.
Read the article
Womandla: A War of Serves
African women share their battles behind the bar.
Read the article
Acid: The Flavour Balancer
Welcome to the fifth in my series of articles on taste, flavour, and their importance in the art of cocktail creation. In this issue, we’re going to get into the nitty gritty of acidity, looking at what this wonderful taste element is, what it does for our cocktails, and what the best sources of sourness are.
Read the article
Are You Ready for AI?
Moore's Law states that roughly every two years, advancement in technology doubles. Some estimate it's more like one year than two. So like it or not, there are some changes afoot, and new technologies can be disruptive to the industry. Just look at how downloads changed the music business or GPS changed cartography. So what's around the corner in hospitality?
Read the article
Sugar: The Flavour Carrier
Sweet – the most important taste element Welcome to the fourth in my series of articles on taste, flavour and their importance in the art of cocktail creation.
Read the article
Sustainable Spain
Bars are looking at sustainability in a myriad of ways: there’s no one size fits all if you want to do better by your planet or your workers.
Read the article
Visualising Data
A man walks into a bar…and leaves a data trail, ba-dom-cha. Not the answer you expected, but maybe the answer you need? Whenever a customer uses your product, they leave a data trail. If you want to capture and analyse these points of sale, you need a data ecosystem.
Read the article
The Other Barcelona
François Monti takes us on a journey through Barcelona's traditional bar scene.
Read the article
Balance: Taste, Trigeminal Sensations and the Myth of Precision
Welcome to the third in my series of articles on taste, flavour and their importance in the art of cocktail creation. In this piece, we’re going to explore balance. Balance is arguably the most important factor in high-quality mixed drinks and the part bartenders most commonly fail to achieve. Mastering balance is not easy. It takes expertise, experience and a well-trained palate. But, with a bit of practice, and a proper understanding of the science behind the principles, it is a skill that will take your mixology to the next level.
Read the article
The Scoop on Today’s Bar Tools
Jim Meehan talks with 3 icons in the industry about developing bar tools for today's bartender.
Read the article
3 Wonderfully Weird African Plants and How to Use Them
Move past garden-variety mint and expand your world of flavour.
Read the article
Major Decisions
Jim Meehan speaks with 3 pioneering operators across 3 continents for tips on standing out today.
Read the article
A Sensory Exploration of Taste, Aroma and Flavour
In Joey's second article, he dives deeper into the difference between 'Taste & Flavour'
Read the article
Using Data for Profit
An overview of how basic data can help balance the books and more.
Read the article
A New Approach to Cocktail Creation
Thinking about cocktail training differently.
Read the article
Library Card
Jim Meehan discusses if bar literature still matters in our industry today.
Read the article
What's Shaking in Africa?
Uncovering 5 of the continent's cocktail hotspots.
Read the article
Role Call
Jim Meehan discovers how some of the industry's leaders achieve excellence throughout their roster.
Read the article
7 South African (Inspired) Libations You Should Be Mixing
Taking a look at some interesting recipes and the stories behind them.
Read the article
Help Wanted
Some of the industry’s most respected leaders discuss how they’re approaching recruitment after a tenuous time.
Read the article
Emerging Cocktail Markets in Africa
Africa has some noteworthy cocktail hotspots that are already starring on the world’s stage, but what else is shaking on the continent? We chat to Cameron Hawkins, an advocacy manager who oversees the Sub-Saharan region, to find out.
Read the article
African Bartenders Abroad: The Pros and Cons of Leaving the Continent
The highs and lows of expat life from African bartenders who left the motherland and also Europeans who moved there.
Read the article
The Sober Drinks: 11 Local Drinks You Must Try in India
Here's a list of 11 non-alcoholic local drinks in India that everyone needs to try.
Read the article
Making Cocktails with Indian Flavours
Over the last decade, the Indian mixology scene has risen to establish the perfect balance between contemporary cocktail trends coming up globally and our local taste and palate.
Read the article
Indian Mixing Techniques
Many cocktail techniques and trends that are in vogue can find their parallels in many age-old Indian culinary practices.
Read the article
Spices: A Rendezvous with India
Spices, a now rather mundane and overlooked part of our lives, played an integral role in shaping India’s history.
Read the article
Meet 15 Movers and Shakers in the African Cocktail Scene
15 key bartenders, bar owners, educators and industry players across Africa.
Read the article
The Birth and Boom of Cocktail Culture in South Africa
How South Africa became one of the most significant cocktail destinations in Africa.
Read the article