Tales of the Cocktail on Tour

by Geoffrey Kleinman

Tales of the Cocktail is the cocktail equivalent of the Super Bowl. The biggest and brightest luminaries of the cocktail world all converge in New Orleans each year to share, learn, drink, and party. 2012 is the 10th anniversary of this amazing festival (which runs July 25-29, 2012) and it has become a not-to-be-missed event. Realizing that not everyone can make it to New Orleans in July, Tales of the Cocktail has taken the show on the road with Tales of the Cocktail on Tour in Vancouver, BC.

Tales of the Cocktail on Tour is a sort of 'best of' sampler that brings together some of the more popular seminars and session from the previous year’s New Orleans event, along with a sneak peek at what things are in store for this year in New Orleans. Tales Vancouver also celebrates the often overlooked Canadian bartending scene which is amazingly vibrant.

Some of the sessions for Tales Vancouver include such luminaries as Audrey Saunders, Paul Pacult , Charlotte Voisey, Jacob Briars, Wayne Curtis, Harold McGee, Dushan Zaric, and Sean Ludford. One of the highlight sessions is "Meet the Maker" which brings together many up and coming micro distillers, including Few Spirits from Chicago, Skip Rock Distilleries from Washington, and Victoria Spirits from British Columbia, giving attendees an opportunity to taste their spirits and learn first hand from the distillers.

As with Tales of the Cocktail New Orleans, Tales Vancouver also features a spirited dinner series that pairs top bartenders with notable local chefs for cocktail pairing dinners that are simply amazing.

One of the things I'm most looking forward to is an event celebrating Havana Club Rum. Since the US has an embargo on all products from Cuba, Havana Club Rum isn't available for sale here. This isn't the case in Canada, where the rum is widely sold. Havana Club Rum is one of my favorite rums, and so I'm looking forward to being able to drink it.

Tales of the Cocktail on Tour Vancouver runs February 12-15, 2012 at the Fairmont Pacific Rim Hotel. More information and tickets can be found at TalesoftheCocktail.com.

For a look at last year's Tales of the Cocktail, be sure to check out my Best New Spirits Introduced at Tales of the Cocktail Best New Spirits Introduced at Tales of the Cocktail article.