Inventory for April 12th, 2015
In this week’s bar news the Sling awards are trying to save the tiger, Bacardi furthers its Scotch Whisky investment, the Spirit Awards are open for nomination, Suntory wins accolades with its 3d printed ice cube ads, and California-based Lost Spirits booze company has figured out a way to speed up the barrel-aging process.
If you happen to find yourself in Frankfurt this week, namely on the 15th – 18th of April, don’t miss out on the Prolight & Sound fair. Its common knowledge how much light and sound affects us on a daily basis (just think of how supermarkets are constantly rearranging those two factors to encourage consumers to buy more) and the Frankfurt-based fair will preview newest products, operating systems, installations, and more. Important in gastronomy, important in life.
1) Bacardi Ltd. Invests in Whisky
Shanken News Daily reports that drinks giant Bacardi Ltd. confirmed its investment into whisky, securing a minority stake in the London-based Compass Box Whisky Company seven months ago. Compass Box’s portfolio includes the Great King Street label, as well as specialty whiskies such as Asyla, Oak Cross, Spice Tree, and Hedonism. This isn’t Bacardi’s first foray into Scotch whisky, it already owns Dewar’s, Aberfeldy, Craigellachie, and Royal Brackla.
2) Spirit Awards Nominations Open
It’s that time of year again! July looms in the near future and Tales of the Cocktail is waiting for its nominees. If you feel so inclined, the Spirited Awards awaits your opinion. From April 1st until April 30th any person, establishment, book, or product is open to be nominated via this form. May the odds be ever in your favor.
3) 3D printed Ice Cubes
Heyoooo – Suntory just won an award for frozen water. In a marketing move that most definitely paid off, Suntory hired design agency TBWA\Hakuhodo for its “3D on the rocks” campaign. The cubes are produced using a sort of reverse 3-D printing which takes digital models and feeds them into a machine that automatically chisels out incredibly intricate shapes.
Shapes features include the Statue of Liberty, Batman, a Sphinx, Godzilla, an astronaut and the Jaws shark. Suntory won gold for design in Adweek’s Project Isaac Awards last year and, most recently, a Lotus trophy in Thailand’s Asia Pacific Advertising Festival. Head over to the drinks business to see a slideshow of the exquisitely detailed frozen water.
4) Scientist speeds up Barrel Aging Process
California-based spirits company Lost Spirits has built a device which speeds up the barrel aging process. So much so, that a spirit aged in the ‘Model 1’ for six days is almost identical to a 20-year-old aged product. Bryan Davis spent five years perfecting his device and, as Liquor.com reports, Lost Spirits is known a distillery and engingeering company known for its alcohol experimentation. The device will be distributed to five distillery over the summer for testing. If the machine truly keeps its promise the industry could see a rapid fall in prices.
5) The Sling Awards Charity Celebration
The Singapore Sling Award is celebrating its 100th birthday this year and in May (which is the month of the Sling) they’re honoring it with a charity promotion aptly named ‘Here’s to the Tiger’. Raffles Hotel isn’t just birthplace of the Singapore Sling, but also the sight where Singapore’s last wild tiger was killed and thus extinct in the early 20th century.
This year’s award aims to raise money to save the global tiger population in cooperation with the Wildlife Reserves Singapore. Nine of the awarded bartenders will win a trip to Singapore where they’ll get a chance to meet tigers.
