Inventory for July 10th, 2016

Count ‘em bottles! Headed to Norway and not sure where to go? Not to worry, we’ve got the complete list of winners of the Nordic Awards at this year’s Oslo Bar Show. That’ll get you started. In more news this week: Distill Ventures invests in Seedlip, Bacardi Legacy unveils a new format to its competition, and the rock band The Flaming Lip launches a new rye whiskey. Cheers!

In July all things turn to beer. If you’re in Berlin between July 22nd and 30th, you’re in luck – that’s just in time for Berlin Beer Week and Berlin Craft Fest. Find the complete line-up of participating venues, tastings, panel discussions, pop ups, and dinners here. See you there!

Nordic Awards at the Oslo Bar Show: The Winners

The Oslo Bar Show is a annual “gathering for the hospitality industry and bar enthusiasts with focus on developing the cocktail scene and drinking culture in Norway”. The two-day event is a combination of panels, spirit tastings, bar awards and pop up bars. “This is an event for everyone to meet new friends, educate yourselves in the world of bartending and experience Oslo at its finest”. Headed to Oslo soon and unsure of where to go? Maybe the complete list of winners will help get you on the right path:

Best New Opening – Pigalle

Best High Volume Bar – HIMKOK

Best Bartender – Moe Aljaff

Best Cocktail Proogram – HIMKOK

Best Bar – Raus

Nordic Bartender of the Year – Moe Aljaff

Nordic Bar of the Year – Linie Tio / Tjoget

Distill Ventures Invests in booze free Seedlip

Seedlip bills itself as “the world’s first distilled non-alcoholic spirit”, it first launched in October 2015 and now, it’s seeking to expand. The Spirits Business reports that “Diageo now holds a minority stake in the Seedlip business, while founder Ben Branson remains majority shareholder” and will continue to act as the decision maker regarding marketing, sales, and new product development. This is the first time that Distill Ventures has backed a non-alcoholic product.

The goal is to expand Seedlip into more markets, particularly in the US as Western Europe. Shilen Patel, co-founder of Distill Ventures, said investing in Seedlip made sense because it follows the a business model close to that of an alcoholic spirits brand: “We first met Ben two years ago, and as his ideas on Seedlip developed, it seemed increasingly obvious to us that this would be a great addition to the portfolio and we’re delighted that Ben felt the same way about joining the programme”. Non alcoholic products have seen a continuous growth in the last year, more and more people are choosing not to drink on occasion.

Bacardi Legacy Unveils new Competition Format

“For the first time, bartenders are free to use the brand’s eight-year-old expression Bacardi Ocho as well as the its flagship Bacardi Carta Blanca and Bacardi Carta Oro rums”. In time for the 9th edition of its competition, Bacardi as implemented some changes to the process. The first recruiting stage will take place in July and early August before entries close on September 8th. Regionals will be held in each country with three regional winners (five in the UK and Germany) selected to compete against each other at the Northern European finals on November 9th.

From that point onwards, one winner from each country will head to the global finals. Before those take place though, the competitors will embark on a five-month promotional campaign to promote their drink, before fighting it out in the final compeition in Berlin. Barcardi says: “We’re thrilled with the changes we’ve made to the competition for 2017 – having just one most promising from each country allows each brand ambassador to give their full support to their competitor in the run-up to the Grand Final, and given the personal and supportive nature of the competition, this is incredibly important to us.”

The Flaming Lips Launches Rye Whiskey

“Developed with Chicago-based Few Spirits, Brainville Rye Whiskey is made from a combination of rye, corn and malted barley grown within 150 miles of the distillery”. The Brainville Rye Whiskey is fermented using French wine yeast, which is said to give the “whiskey a stone fruit, apple, and pear flavor profile”. The American alt rock group is certainly not messing around. The psychedelic label is designed by Justin Helton, who’s “designed for some of the biggest musical acts, festival and entertainment brands, including The Black Keys and Austin City Limits”.

Few Spirits founder and master distiller Paul Hletko says “Music has always been an important part of my life, and when Justin Helton’s manager called me about a collaboration with The Flaming Lips and Warner Bros. Records to create a custom spirit, it was a no-brainer; they knew exactly which distillery they wanted to work with”. The Brainville Rye is bottled at 80 proof and a limited run of 5,000 bottles will roll out to retailers in key spirits markets in October this year. The suggest retail price lies US$124.99 for a 750ml bottle.