New Orleans is still recovering from the devastation of Hurricane Katrina in 2005. Tales founder, Ann Tuennerman, who started the festival as a cocktail tour in 2003, aimed to breathe life back into the ailing city by holding the convention during New Orleans’ lowest season for tourism. Add 20,000 bar professionals from around the world in the sweltering New Orleans’ heat, thousands of gallons of booze, seven days of parties, intensive learning sessions, tastings, dinners and bar crawls, and Tales causes quite a stir.
Atlanta represents
Credit: Beth McKibben
Credit: Beth McKibben
Tastings and parties
Purchasing a conference wristband and learning sessions are givens for bartenders, but for those simply seeking to sip and party their way through the week, purchasing a general admission wristband means you have an all-access pass to tasting rooms and parties around the French Quarter. While this writer advises purchasing at least three sessions to get your spirits education on, the wristband affords you access to events like the Rutte Distillery house party to sip gin and tonics and dance to old-school hip hop by Cam'ron, drinking down a few bourbons to Houndmouth at the Bulleit tasting, jamming to Gary Clark Jr. at the Jameson soiree or witnessing the glory that is the Wu-Tang Clan bringing down the house at 86 Co.'s after-hours party. Then there are special tasting rooms like Rutte Distillery opening a 70-year old genever (Dutch gin,) sipping Pierre Ferrand rare cognacs or sucking down tiki drinks made with Plantation Rum's new overproof, old fashioned traditional dark (OFTD) BEFORE it hits shelves in September.
Public events
Credit: Beth McKibben
Credit: Beth McKibben
Tales is what you make of it
On a personal note, my highlights included a five-hour gin history class and chilling with my new-found friends of the Mother’s Ruin Reform Society, members-only cocktail clubs with David Wondrich and the storied history of the many writers (and their cocktails) like Hemingway, Capote and Eudora Welty who have stayed at the Hotel Monteleone (while we sipped on sazeracs and Vieux Carres at 10 a.m.) All this plus a few brand-sponsored parties and Dynamic Duo happy hours made for a darn good Tales.
Your next visit
Credit: Beth McKibben
Credit: Beth McKibben
Venture outside the Quarter by riding the Saint Charles streetcar into the Garden District or the Canal streetcar into Mid-City. Take an Uber into the Bywater. Walk along the paths of the grand Victorian City Park near Lake Pontchartrain. New Orleans is much more than booze and debauchery. It’s a city full of wonderful people, rich history and diversity which are what make its culinary and cocktail scenes equally rich and diverse and Tales of the Cocktail a must-attend event for thrill-seeking imbibers.
New Orleans cocktailian musts
- New Orleans Pharmacy Museum
- The Museum of the American Cocktail
- Napoleon House (historic bar, Pimm's Cup)
- Arnaud's French 75 (iconic, barman Chris Hannah, French 75s)
- Broussard's (iconic, barman Paul Gustings, punch, cognac, classics)
- Erin Rose (dive bar, frozen Irish coffee)
- Cane & Table (historic cocktails, rum-centric)
- Bar Tonique (off-the-beaten path in the Quarter, great cocktail list)
- Latitude 29 (tiki drinks)
- Compere Lapin (cocktails and French-inspired cuisine)
- Catahoula Hotel (pisco cocktails)
- Lucky's (cheap beer, pool, laundromat)
- Revel Bar (casual, great cocktails, cheese steak, barman Chris McMillian)
- Cavan (historic Garden District home, two bars, wine, cocktails)
- Clancy's (wine, cocktails, classic Creole cuisine)
- Cure (cocktails, cocktails, cocktails)
- Cafe Henri (casual, neighborhood cafe, frozen negroni)
- Bacchanal (wine, cocktails, live music)
5 presidential drinks to sip in Atlanta during the conventions
Your handy guide to shooting the ‘hooch
Read more stories like this by liking Atlanta Restaurant Scene on Facebook , following @ATLDiningNews on Twitter.
About the Author
