Hey people! It’s Paris Cocktail Week. It kicked off yesterday so I went out and got it all warmed up for you.
In addition to specials in 35 bars across the city, PCW’s programme includes other goodies like special tastings, master classes, food fun and even a couple of PopUps in The Chamber.
I started Saturday at the swanky Bristol for an inspired martini and Boutary Caviar presentation and pairing. Maxime and Charles guided us through history with a tasting that took us from modern day martinis and caviar to the 19th century. We learned about the parallels between the two including ebbs and flows in popularity, murky origins of their names, flavor profiles and rituals. While this was a one-day only event, you can still stop into the Bristol bar for their PCW special, the X-mas Carol.
Next stop: Copper Bay to test out their PCW special, the Lizzy Sour and catch up with the trio behind the bar (Elfi, Aurélie and Julien). I’ll be blogging up a proper post on this place shortly, so watch this space for more detail. Incidentally, Copper Bay’s menu includes The Beast, which is a fat-washed Bourbon made with grease from the newly opened BBQ joint of the same name. And it also my next stop…
I popped in to chat with the always-adorable owner, Thomas, taste test some George T. Stagg bourbon and fill my belly with a bit of beef. The Beast’s PCW special is running on Wednesday only when Julien of Copper Bay will be onsite making The Beast cocktail. My guess is this one will draw some crowds so get there early!
A short metro ride and I was at another new spot on the scene, A la Francaise, where I tested out their PCW special Eau Fraiche at the small, busy upstairs restaurant bar and then headed below to catch up with Stephan, the man behind this concept bar that focuses on French cocktails.
And this is about the time I caught up with Mr Boley, the man behind the Red House, and managed to stay out just a bit longer for some late night fun. We made a stop into the packed Lone Palm and then finished the night with a visit to Café Moderne for a chat with Mido. I’d say any of these places are a good stop to celebrate PCW.
And with that PCW is off to a good 
start! It’s free to sign up for it – so check out their programme and have some fun. Or come see us over in The Chamber where we are running to special PopUps in a posh private residence as part of PCW. Monday we’ll host a modern day Absinthe Den with Pernod and Tuesday we are terribly excited to have Joseph of Mabel in the house making us some Zacapa cocktails for our rum PopUp.
So, what are you going to do with your Paris Cocktail Week?
