“What if we did a dope ass event at one of the world’s best bars where people could day drink (all day), learn about spirits they don’t usually drink straight from the brands, and feel like they’ve gone down the cocktail rabbit hole?”
This is the thought that set three spirited amigos off on a quest to create Drink Miami HOSTEL, which for those who attended last year (thank you for your support!) know it didn’t exactly go off without a glitch. 400 people showed (as did the Fire Marshalls), and just like the first time you walk, we fell (and spilled lots of booze). But you know what they say: whatever doesn’t kill you only makes your tolerance get higher. Case in point, the second annual Drink Miami not only sold out once again but brought the best liquor brands in the world together to take over the hip Freehand and bring their spirits to life by way of fun activations and quenching potables.
An extra hour of festivities this time meant more time to booze and make your way through everything Drink Miami HOSTEL had to offer, which unlike last year, wasn’t just limited to the guest rooms. This year we forewent the upstairs floor (nobody likes stairs when they’re drunk) and instead took over all the downstairs rooms, The Broken Shaker, tucked away bungalows, outdoor courtyards and the upstairs of 27 Restaurant & Bar.
Bar pop-ups were a common theme, namely Illegal Mezcal’s Cafe No Se, straight from Guatemala (otherwise known as seductive room with red lighting), Employees Only black-out menage trois with Montelobos, Hendricks & Ancho, and Diplomatico’s Beaker & Gray tropical edition featuring Ben Potts in a tank top and the best looking ice cubes you’e ever seen courtesy of Mixology Ice).
With plenty to see and sip, from House of Rum by Bacardi and courtyard cocktailery with St. Germain, Banks Rum Punch, and Cazadores Tequila & Dewar’s #ScotchEggClub (complete with a chicken game [yes, a chicken game] for a chance to eat some scotch eggs by chef Jimmy of 27) to Leblon Cachaça’s indoor beach bungalow (equipped with lawn chairs for lay back shot-taking [naturally]) and even a Kombrewcha garden, barkeeps and brand ambassadors brought it.
Brown-Forman turned up the bourbon quotient with a plethora of boozy cocktails featuring four brands from their portfolio including—you guessed it— Old Forester, Cooper’s Craft, Woodford Reserve, and Herradura for some good tequila measure. Our personal favorite was Old Forester’s Monty Python because of its shisho leaves mixed with one of America’s oldest whiskeys. We also had a few too many of the Woodford Reserve’s French Manhattans, because a Woodford Reserve Manhattan is already worth imbibing. But one that has Chambord and maraschino cherries? Love at first sip indeed.
And, just in case your memory is a little foggy (#success), here’s a complete list of everything you drank Saturday with Drink Miami HOSTEL: Aberlour, Ancho Reyes, Aperol, Avíon, Absolut Elyx, Bacardi, Banks Rum, Brugal, Campari, Casa Noble, Cazadores, Coopers’ Craft, Cutty Sark, Dewar’s, Disaronno, Fords Gin, FOS Mastiha, Giffard Liqueurs, Havana Club, Hendricks Gin, Herradura Tequila, Highland Park, Ilegal Mezcal, Jägermeister, Laphroaig, Leblon, Lot No. 40, Mezcal Nuestra Soledad, Milagros, Montelobos, Old Forester, Partida Tequila, Peroni, Rum Diplomático, Santa Teresa, St-Germain, Tequila Cabeza, The Glenlivet, The Macallan, Widow Jane, Woodford Reserve and Zucca.
