In anticipation of Tales of the Cocktail’s upcoming 15th anniversary festival (July 19-23, 2017), our founders, Ann and Paul Tuennerman, share 15 of the festival’s key accomplishments that transformed the bartending community, the global drinks scene, and the way the world views the bartending profession.
They range from injecting $100 million into the local New Orleans’ economy to creating the Spirited Awards, the “Oscars” of cocktail awards shows that recognizes outstanding achievers. While we’re always looking forward to the future of our industry, we can’t help but take this milestone moment to look back at all we’ve accomplished together and reflect on our overall industry impact.
These 15 accomplishments reflect the Tuennerman’s vision, leadership, and stewardship of the festival, which has become a focal point and driver of today’s cocktail renaissance that continues to reverberate globally.
“While we tend to always look forward at Tales of the Cocktail, it is important, especially at this milestone moment, to reflect on the great strides we have made together,” says Ann Tuennerman. “This is truly the industry’s festival and Paul and I are excited to collaborate with our industry friends and colleagues to make it better and more relevant in future years. Truly, the best is yet to come.”
1. Cultivating Up-and-Coming Bartenders
Launched in 2008, the Cocktail Apprentice Program (CAP) has provided approximately 300 up-and-coming bartenders from across the U.S. and globally the chance to learn alongside industry veterans at Tales of the Cocktail.
2. Promoting a “Greener” Cocktail Industry
Tales of the Cocktail is promoting sustainability in the bar industry by introducing Sustainability Spirited Awards that recognize “green” practices and will host a day-long Sustainability Summit focused on this topic to showcase the latest thinking and best practices.
3. Celebrating the Women in the Bar Industry
In an industry that is traditionally male-dominated, Tales of the Cocktail broke new ground in 2012 with the Dame Hall of Fame that recognizes women who are making a mark today and serve as tomorrow’s role models. Inductees include Audrey Saunders, Lisa Laird Dunn, Ivy Mix, Lynnette Marrero, Charlotte Voisey, Julie Reiner, Bridget Albert, Lynn House, Pamela Wiznitzer, and Meaghan Dorman.
4. Celebrating the Stars of the Bar Business in Oscar Awards Style
Since 2007, the Spirited Awards have become the industry’s premier awards show, annually recognizing the best in the business from bars and bartenders to distillers, marketers, and writers. Winning a Spirited Award and the global visibility it confers has become universally recognized as a way to supercharge a career, business, or a product.
5. Establishing the Official Cocktail of New Orleans: The Sazerac
Louisiana Senate Bill No. 6 honors the history and significance of the Sazerac by naming it the Official Cocktail of New Orleans, the first city to have an official cocktail.
6. Focusing on Education, Industry Advocacy, and Financial Support
In 2006, the creation of The New Orleans Culinary & Cultural Preservation Society (NOCCPS) reset the goals and mission of Tales of the Cocktail to focus on educational programming, as well as industry advocacy and financial support.
7. Showcasing Top Echelon Insights into the “State of the Trade”
Through its “State of the Trade” program, Tales of the Cocktail has become a forum for the top echelons of the bar and spirits industry to share their insights on where the business is headed. It led off in 2016 with Bacardi’s Global CEO Mike Dolan. This coming year, Sazerac Company’s Global CEO Mark Brown will take center stage.
8. Embracing the Imperative of Diversity and Inclusion
This year, Tales of the Cocktail formed the Diversity Council to identify the issues of inclusion that the bar business faces, and developed actionable strategies to address them at all levels of the industry.
9. Relaunching TalesoftheCocktail.com as a Vibrant Editorial Website
In 2015, TalesoftheCocktail.com was relaunched as a vibrant editorial website brimming with original, independent content to bring ideas, insights, discussion, and debate to bartenders and spirits professionals all year long.
10. Transforming Tales of the Cocktail into a Year-Round Phenomenon
Tales 365 was created in 2014 to bring more year-round Tales of the Cocktail content to members around the globe, while also offering a scholarship program for members to underwrite seminars and education.
11. Taking Tales of the Cocktail on the Road, Globally
Beginning in 2011, Tales of the Cocktail took its proverbial show on the road, creating a satellite festival in cities around the world, with bi-annual stops in Vancouver, Buenos Aires, Mexico City, and Edinburgh. Tales on Tour has been a powerful means of bringing the festival directly to those in other countries and continents.
12. Channeling $100 Million Into the Local New Orleans Economy
Since 2008, Tales of the Cocktail has had a measured impact of close to $100 million on New Orleans and the surrounding region. The festival has become an economic driver for the local economy, from mom & pop shops to time-honored drinks and dining institutions.
13. Preventing Violence in the Bar Industry
This year, Tales of the Cocktail entered into a ground-breaking partnership with Green Dot, a violence prevention organization, to create a bystander training program and online resources specifically for the bar industry.
14. Rallying for Gender Equality in the Bar Industry
In 2016, Tales of the Cocktail released a white paper examining gender equality in the cocktail industry to accompany a seminar that dealt with relevant issues and offered suggestions for addressing them.
15. Spotlighting the Crème de la Crème of the Hospitality Industry
In 2015, Tales of the Cocktail started its Keynote Speaker series, welcoming business and thought leaders in hospitality, including Danny Meyer, Grant Achatz, and Albert Adrià to deliver an opening address.
