Editor Hamish Smith introduces the latest magazine. Access the digital magazine here. Not subscribed? Bartenders can sign up for a digital or hard copy here.
It’s clear that we are now at the dawn of a new cocktail era – that fascinating half space where we witness one zeitgeist style of cocktail overlapping another.
There have been countless accounts in recent editions of Class that cocktail minimalism – the clarified, ungarnished, block ice serve – is now in retreat after a decade of dominance.
Bartenders are looking to make their drinks more visually expressive again and so we’re at the onset of a new trend – what’s been coined cocktail maximalism.
That moniker is not to be taken too literally. This is not a return to the baroque masterpieces of Marian Beke in his Nightjar heyday.
It’s more so a signal of intentions – no longer is perfection sought by the removal of superfluous elements. Addition is the new subtraction.
The overuse of rotovap-spawned clear drinks was the inspiration behind Iain McPherson’s new densing technique which brings texture back to cocktails – something he demonstrates in this summer magazine.
Drinks writer Ellen Manning is also investigating a more layered approach to cocktail presentation – ‘plating’ isn’t just for restaurants, it brings order to maximalist liquid creations, she says.
Our cover star, Angelos Bafas of Cato, meanwhile, says it was the industry’s cocktail homogeneity – and increasingly narrow spectrum of flavours – over the past five years that helped to define his style.
We hear all about how he has found flavour beyond the obvious. Texture is also the topic of Millie Milliken’s latest piece as she assesses what bartenders want from vodka. Her reference is the Class Report, which for 2026 is featured inside this summer edition. If you’re new to the report, it’s an analysis of the products prized most at the UK’s Best Bars.
It’s the height of summer so there’s a seasonal leaning to this edition. Once again Anistatia Miller and Jared Brown sift through the earth to find the best of summer’s ingredients, while Clinton Cawood comes with the best seasonal drinks in bars right now.
Our pieces on bars see an emotional return for Monica Berg, who writes about the temporary closing of her Tayer + Elementary, while Satan’s Whiskers’ Kevin Armstrong writes about the importance of execution in drinks making.
Andy Loudon of Scarfes Bar makes his debut arguing why knowledge is not storytelling. And of course, there’s plenty more.
The magazine will be back in autumn, but alas without my right hand, Donna ‘the Donnanator’ Callaghan, who is off to pastures new after the best part of a decade. As commercial director of Class, she helped build a strong brand and, ultimately, made this slightly eccentric profession of drinks writing viable. Class won’t be the same without her.