Features

Features

Exploring....Batavia Arrack

Laura Foster follows the trade routes east to Indonesia, where she discovers the first luxury spirit: batavia arrack.

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10 November, 2022

Features

The simple yet delicious world of spirits and juice

With the right fruit juices, spirits can be elevated to new heights – and there’s no shortage of weird and wonderful combinations to try. By Liam O'Brien of Brass Monkey.

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02 November, 2022

Features

How does the speed of fermentation change flavour?

Slow fermentation can help in bringing a point of difference to a whisky’s flavour profile, and modern consumers are always looking for something new. Ellen Manning reports.

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25 October, 2022

Features

The opportunity of failure - how bars can be reinvented

John Ennis of Graffiti Spirits Group spotted signs that a number of his venues were failing. Reinvent to succeed, he says.

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25 October, 2022

Features

Declan McGurk on his two-decade journey with Class

Declan McGurk has featured in Class more than most. We hear from him about how his career ran parallel to Class over the last two decades.

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18 October, 2022

Features

Jake Burger on the impact of Class

One of the faces to have featured most in Class over the years is Jake Burger. We hear from him about how the magazine shaped – and was shaped by – his career.

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13 October, 2022

Features

Eating disorders - hospitality's last taboo?

Eating disorders in the drinks and hospitality industry are rife but rarely spoken about. Millie Milliken lifts the lid of what might be the ‘last taboo’ in our industry.

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07 October, 2022

Features

25 years of Class: Hamish Smith on the relaunch of Class in 2016

After Simon Difford's second spell as editor and publisher from 2009-2014, Class lay unpublished for two years - until Agile Media relaunched the title in the autumn of 2016. Present editor Hamish Smith completes the story.

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28 September, 2022

Features

25 Years of Class: Tom Sandham on his time as editor from 2007-2009

Tom Sandham took over the reins at Class from Paul Wooton in 2007, before making way for Simon Difford in his second spell as editor from 2009-2014. In celebration of 25 Years of Class, Sandham takes us on a trip down memory lane.

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28 September, 2022

Features

25 years of Class: Paul Wooton on his tenure as editor from 2001-2007

Following Simon Difford's first spell as editor from 1997-2000 and Bethan Ryder, also in 2000, Paul Wooton held the reins of Class. Here he takes us back to the movers and shakers of his time in charge and how the industry was developing into a world-leading cocktail scene.

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26 September, 2022

Features

25 Years of Class: Bethan Ryder on the bar industry in 2000

Following Simon Difford's founding of CLASS in 1997, Bethan Ryder was editor for a short spell in 2000. In celebration of the magazine's 25 year anniversary, she takes us back to the time of The Atlantic, Dick's Bar and Lab.

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26 September, 2022

Features

The bartenders’ guide to Bournemouth

Gemma Terry of Ojo Rojo takes us on a local’s tour of south coast town Bournemouth.

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21 July, 2022

Features

Exploring...Yuzushu

Laura Foster takes a deep dive into the delicious world of this Japanese fruit liqueur, which is creeping into cocktails across the UK.

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11 July, 2022

Features

Born to be mild: Pete Brown on craft beer's next trend

The big beer style of this year is one of the least likely Pete Brown could contemplate – nevertheless it’s one that he feels is actually worthy of revival.

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11 July, 2022

Features

Professor Charles Spence: why cocktails need headspace

Leaving headspace above wine allows the volatile aromas to circulate, giving the drinker orthonasal pleasure. Professor Charles Spence explains how this works and why there’s a case to be made for a similar approach in cocktails.

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04 July, 2022

Features

Single pot still or single malt - what is Irish whiskey's flagship style?

New distilleries are springing up and while single pot still remains key, many are also turning to easier-to-market single malts. Oli Dodd assesses the situation in Ireland.

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04 July, 2022

Features

Why wine is underused in cocktails

Joe Wadsack challenges bartenders to drop their preconceptions and be more experimental in their approach to using wine in cocktails.

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04 July, 2022

Features

Professor Charles Spence on the role of smell in taste

As well as aiding our sense of taste, smells can be incredibly evocative. Professor Charles Spence explains how we are led by our noses.

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31 May, 2022

Features

Professor Charles Spence on the role of touch in taste

Professor Charles Spence analyses how the sense of touch can be enhanced in the drinking experience.

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31 May, 2022

Features

Professor Charles Spence on the role of sound in taste

Continuing our series of articles on the psychology of taste, Oxford University professor and gastrophysicist Charles Spence asks everyone to listen up.

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20 May, 2022

Features

Professor Charles Spence on the role of sight in taste

In the first of a series of articles on the psychology of taste, Oxford University professor and gastrophysicist Charles Spence investigates sight.

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18 May, 2022

Features

Bengal rum and India's forgotten spirits history

Vikram Doctor explains how Indian rum is both an emerging category and has a storied history, dating back to the 18th century.

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28 April, 2022

Features

Pisco: why we must look beyond the sour

Oli Dodd pulls back the curtains on a spirit that has much more to offer than a sour.

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21 April, 2022

Features

Why we can't get enough of pineapple products

Not so long ago pineapple products were a rarity in bars – now they’re popping up in mixers, says Hamish Smith.

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21 April, 2022

Features

Charles Spence on why the tongue map is spurious science

Professor Charles Spence peers into matters of taste and explains why the tongue map is wrong

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04 April, 2022

Features

Smoke signals - how American whiskey is turning to peat

There are signs that peated American whiskey is about to catch fire, says Tristan Stephenson.

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04 April, 2022

Features

Exploring...Raicilla

Laura Foster takes a deep dive into one of the lesser-known cousins of the main agave spirits.

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04 April, 2022

Features

Is it time for ethical wine?

Joe Wadsack asks whether it’s time the making of wine doesn’t involve animal products.

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30 March, 2022

Features

Edmund Weil and Rosie Stimpson on their long-awaited Nightjar sequel

Husband and wife team Edmund Weil and Rosie Stimpson have finally opened a second iteration of their popular bar, and London’s West End will be better for it, reckons Hamish Smith.

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16 March, 2022

Features

Is there a cost to Instagramming in bars?

In the Instagram era how do you keep your guests engaged with each other and the experience rather than with their virtual sphere? Charles Spence has a few suggestions for prising mobile phones from customers' hands.

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01 March, 2022