World Bartender Day is a very recent addition to calendars, having started only a few years ago. In reality, February 24th was first formally referred to as World Bartender Day in 2018. World Bartender Day, which differs from National Bartender Day, an American holiday observed on December 3rd, was established following the success of The Perfect Blend, a cocktail competition sponsored by the Australian and New Zealand hospitality industries. The occasion developed as a result of their planning efforts to gather bartender-mixologists from both areas to compete in their creative and artistic profession.Understandably, such a strong network gave rise to the idea of establishing an official worldwide day to honor bartenders all around the world.

So, what is World Bartender Day?

World Bartender Day is a day of remembrance created to honor and celebrate the ongoing heritage of this noble profession as well as to support and promote your favourite bartenders where they work.

How old is the profession of bartending?

Bartending as a notion is fundamentally timeless. Drinks were ultimately served by someone, regardless of when or where the term originated, as soon as humanity discovered fermentation and, subsequently, distillation.We haven’t got specific documents about the origins of fermented beverages or when they started being served locally around the world, but we know that the beginning of controlled fermentation is dating back a few centuries. In fact, the emergence of spirits around the globe developed thanks to advanced technology adopted from Arabic science’s art of distillation into the late 1600’s.The beginnings of the bartending profession are more closely related to the growth of spirits' popularity in the 1800’s, when hotel and bar owners began to provide more options than just beers, wines, and punches. Jerry Thomas, often regarded as the world's first bartender or the “Father of Bartending”, rose to prominence in the early to mid-1800s and finally wrote history's first bartending guide, "How to Mix Drinks: a Bon-Vivant’s Companion” in 1862.Hence, for the purpose of current jargon, the term bartending became popularized in America with the emergence of these new sorts of bartenders who added more professionalism to the job and produced more sophisticated mixed beverages such as cocktails.Even though the prohibition brought an end to the profession at the beginning of the 20th century, the appeal for cocktails made the popularity of bartending hit the roof in the 1950’s and has never died since. It would indeed be hard to imagine nowadays any serious establishment without its barman/barmaid and its unique signature cocktail.

The roots and beginnings of World Bartender Day

World Bartender Day may be described as a viral response to an extremely successful cocktail competition called The Perfect Blend which took place in Australia and New Zealand for the first time in 2018.Cocktail contests are more and more popular and are a fantastic method for the community to interact with peers and mentors as well as to learn more about their art. They're also a lot of fun, and some of them have recently added the option for home bartenders to participate too!

Why is World Bartender Day held on the 24th of February?

Cocktail contests always have a climax, and this one is no exception. Recipes must be submitted within a certain time range, generally a few weeks. As the days pass, the number of finalists is reduced, and the winner or winners is/are usually proclaimed on the last day.So, when was the first World Bartender Day celebrated? On February 24th, 2018, The Perfect Blend revealed its inaugural champion, and the day has since become known as World Bartender Day.

Finally, how can you celebrate the day?

Here are some simple ways to celebrate the day:

Pay a visit to your favourite bar and let the barman/barmaid surprise you with his/her latest creation and introduce you to new flavours.

Ask the bartender if you can try something new or something they're enthusiastic about.

Get the word out. Post something on social media using the hashtag #WorldBartenderDay so you can thank your favourite bartender or bar.

Or why not invite a few friends around and follow our Cocktail Bible to cocktail-making in the comfort of your own house?

Here are some of our favourite and easy cocktail recipes:

1) La Vie en Rose

Ingredients:

50ml of Bloom London Dry

30ml of lime juice

30ml of Elderflower Liqueur

Rosé Champagne

Method:

In a cocktail shaker, combine the Bloom Gin, the Elderflower Liqueur, and the lime juice

Add ice and shake for 10 seconds

Strain into a glass and top with Rosé Champagne

And to make things easier, you can even use our Bloom Cocktail Making Set to mix and shake in style!

2) Chocolate Orange Espresso Gin Martini

Ingredients:

50ml of Greenall's London Dry Gin Paper Bottle

25ml of orange liqueur

35ml of chocolate Irish cream liqueur

1 shot of freshly brewed espresso

Chocolate spread/caramel sauce

Crushed biscuits

Method:

Put a Martini glass in the freezer to chill

Add ice and liquid ingredients to a cocktail shaker and shake thoroughly

Take the Martini glass from the freezer after 10 minutes and dip the rim in melted chocolate spread (microwave to melt) + biscuit crumbs

Strain into the chilled glass and top with coffee beans

3) Opihr Spiced Daiquiri

Ingredients:

45ml of Opihr Black Lemon Gin

20ml of rose syrup

20ml of lemon juice

A dehydrated lemon slice

3 dashes of Teapot Bitters

Method:

Build in Collins glass with ice

Season with salt, pepper and garnish

4) Whiskey Java Juice

Ingredients:

50ml of Dubliner Honeycomb Irish Whiskey Liqueur

30ml of espresso

5ml of simple sugar syrup

A small pinch of sea salt

Method:

Shake all the ingredients with ice in a cocktail shaker until chilled

Fine strain into a stemmed cocktail glass and enjoy

5) Lady Marmalade

Ingredients:

50ml of Bloom Passionfruit & Vanilla Blossom

1 teaspoon of orange marmalade

20ml of lime juice

25ml of Elderflower Cordial

30ml of pressed apple juice

20ml egg whites

15ml of passionfruit pulp

Half a passionfruit

1 lime wedge

Method:

Add the first 7 ingredients into a cocktail shaker, add ice, and shake

Strain into a highball glass with ice

Garnish with half a passionfruit and a lime wedge

And if you can't be bothered, just grab one of our ready-to-drink cocktails, open up the bottle or can, and enjoy!

Whatever your choice of cocktails, enjoy the day in good company, have some fun, and don’t forget to thank the bartender who will help you discover your next favourite drink!

Happy World Bartender Day!