background 1

background 2

background 3

background 4

background 5

background 6

background 7

background 8

Freepour experts are sharing valuable articles on the latest trends in bartending

Discover our articles

mobile content

Articles

38 articlesDownload the app to see more

The Importance of Mouthfeel.

The Importance of Mouthfeel.

Joey Medrington

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

How Spain Fell in Love With Vermouth

François Monti

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

9 Fascinating African Drinks

Leah van Deventer

Exploring the continent through its traditional brews.

Read the article

Free Data at Your Fingertips

Free Data at Your Fingertips

Emily Goodman

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

Bitter - The Flavour Lengthener

Joey Medrington

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

Africa Rising

Leah van Deventer

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

Data Driven Trends for 2023

Emily Goodman

What Does Data Tell Us About The Year Ahead?

Read the article

Spain's First Cocktail

Spain's First Cocktail

François Monti

The vermouth-loving country's early breakout cocktail unsurprisingly involved a hefty dose of aromatised wine.

Read the article

Everything, Very Quickly

Everything, Very Quickly

Jim Meehan

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

Womandla: A War of Serves

Leah van Deventer

African women share their battles behind the bar.

Read the article

Acid: The Flavour Balancer

Acid: The Flavour Balancer

Joey Medrington

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?

Are You Ready for AI?

Emily Goodman

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

Sugar: The Flavour Carrier

Joey Medrington

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

Emerging Cocktail Markets in Africa

Emerging Cocktail Markets in Africa

Leah van Deventer

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

Sustainable Spain

Sustainable Spain

François Monti

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

Visualising Data

Emily Goodman

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

The Other Barcelona

François Monti

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

Balance: Taste, Trigeminal Sensations and the Myth of Precision

Joey Medrington

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

The Scoop on Today’s Bar Tools

Jim Meehan

Jim Meehan talks with 3 icons in the industry about developing bar tools for today's bartender.

Read the article

Interpreting Data

Interpreting Data

Emily Goodman

How Can Data Help You Know Your Customers?

Read the article

3 Wonderfully Weird African Plants and How to Use Them

3 Wonderfully Weird African Plants and How to Use Them

Leah van Deventer

Move past garden-variety mint and expand your world of flavour.

Read the article

Major Decisions

Major Decisions

Jim Meehan

Jim Meehan speaks with 3 pioneering operators across 3 continents for tips on standing out today.

Read the article

Taking Stock

Taking Stock

Leah van Deventer

Getting your bar in order during the off-season.

Read the article

A Sensory Exploration of Taste, Aroma and Flavour

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

Using Data for Profit

Emily Goodman

An overview of how basic data can help balance the books and more.

Read the article

A New Approach to Cocktail Creation

A New Approach to Cocktail Creation

Joey Medrington

Thinking about cocktail training differently.

Read the article

Library Card

Library Card

Jim Meehan

Jim Meehan discusses if bar literature still matters in our industry today.

Read the article

What's Shaking in Africa?

What's Shaking in Africa?

Leah van Deventer

Uncovering 5 of the continent's cocktail hotspots.

Read the article

Role Call

Role Call

Jim Meehan

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

7 South African (Inspired) Libations You Should Be Mixing

Leah van Deventer

Taking a look at some interesting recipes and the stories behind them.

Read the article

Help Wanted

Help Wanted

Jim Meehan

Some of the industry’s most respected leaders discuss how they’re approaching recruitment after a tenuous time.

Read the article

African Bartenders Abroad: The Pros and Cons of Leaving the Continent

African Bartenders Abroad: The Pros and Cons of Leaving the Continent

Leah van Deventer

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

The Sober Drinks: 11 Local Drinks You Must Try in India

Priyanko Sarkar

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

Making Cocktails with Indian Flavours

Rahul Raghav

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

Indian Mixing Techniques

Vikram Achanta

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 Rendezvous with India

Nitin Tewari

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

Meet 15 Movers and Shakers in the African Cocktail Scene

Leah van Deventer

15 key bartenders, bar owners, educators and industry players across Africa.

Read the article

The Birth and Boom of Cocktail Culture in South Africa

The Birth and Boom of Cocktail Culture in South Africa

Leah van Deventer

How South Africa became one of the most significant cocktail destinations in Africa.

Read the article