With just over a month to go, Edinburgh Cocktail Week has revealed all the cocktails that festivalgoers can enjoy for £4 each at over 70 bars, plus a week-long programme of unique events and experiences taking place across the capital, Monday 14th – Sunday 20th October.
Over 70 of Edinburgh’s top bars are taking part in this year’s Edinburgh Cocktail Week, each creating a bespoke signature cocktail, which wristband holders can enjoy exclusively for £4 each with an ECW wristband – £6 for a weekday band (valid Monday to Friday) and £8 for a weekend band (valid Saturday and Sunday). New bars taking part this year include Cold Town House, Cask Smugglers, Smoke & Mirrors, The Barologist, Camera, Damm 27 and The Garden, as well as returning favourites The Refinery, Harvey Nichols, Tigerlily, Tonic, Copper Blossom, The Voodoo Rooms and Brewhemia. This year also sees the introduction of non-alcoholic cocktails to the festival in partnership with Seedlip.
Read our guide to the best cocktail bars in Edinburgh
Between visiting bars and pop-up spaces, wristband holders can also hop between a week-long programme of unique events and experiences happening across the city including a Classic Movie & Cocktails Night at the Scotsman Picturehouse (screening La La Land), bespoke tours of the newly opened Holyrood Distillery, Morning Yoga with Seedlip overlooking Edinburgh Castle, an evening of cocktails aboard the stunning Fingal in Leith docks, an Edinburgh Gin Brunch Extravagaaaaanza, Cocktail Afternoon Tea at The Waldorf Astoria, masterclasses with Beefeater and Eden Mill, and a Highland Park Rooftop Winter Terrace at Cold Town House.
Read our guide to the best champagne bars in Edinburgh
Following its popular introduction to the festival last year, the Cocktail Village returns to Festival Square, expanding in size and experience with a new Forest themed extension – a dark enchanted space featuring a wigwam, pop-up bars, forest floor & canopy, giant toadstools and a twinkling night sky – inviting festivalgoers to escape the city and go ‘camping with cocktails’.
The Cocktail Village will again act as the social epicentre of the week-long festival, filled with 19 pop-up bars, masterclasses, live music and entertainment. It is beautifully decorated in the style of an autumn garden with grass flooring, a clear rooftop, swings, picnic tables and floral installations by Dobbies Garden Centres, making guests feel like they are at an outdoor festival while being in the comfort of an enclosed marquee. Entry to both the Cocktail Village and Forest is free with an ECW wristband and all cocktails inside are just £4 each. Pop-up bars this year include Edinburgh Gin, Belvedere Vodka, Patron Tequila, Johnnie Walker, William Kerr’s Gin, Poco Prosecco, Highland Park, Eden Mill, Pilot Beer, Lindores Abbey, Absolut Vodka, Cask Smugglers, Pickering’s Gin, Smokehead, the Herringbone Horsebox, Darnley’s Gin, Grey Goose Vodka and a special ‘Temple of Rum’ bar from The Pop Up Geeks and Don Q rum. There will also be a new outdoor street food area with heaters and a stretch tent to create a cosy hangout space to relax and enjoy food from Norelli, The Garden Hatch, The Butcher Boy and Mac Man.
Another exciting addition to this year’s festival are the Cocktail Domes on the rooftop garden of The Glasshouse Hotel (next to the Omni Centre). This is the first time these fully transparent domes will appear in Edinburgh, offering festivalgoers a unique opportunity to enjoy views of the city’s iconic skyline while snapping Instagram-worthy pictures and sipping on a menu of £4 cocktails from Tanqueray No. Ten Gin,Johnnie Walker Whisky, Ketel One Vodka, Casamigos Tequila and Belsazar Vermouth. Each dome comfortably seats 8 people and will be styled with sofas, cushions, blankets and fairy lights to create a super-cute and cosy setting for guests to relax and socialise in. Entry to the rooftop garden is free with an ECW wristband but reservations are essential to guarantee exclusive use of a Cocktail Dome (£25 per dome for two hours). There will also be a number of free-to-enter domes available for walk-ins offered on a first-come basis. Cocktails can be enjoyed in the garden area and hotel bar if visitors wish to wait for seats in domes to become available.
Wristbands are on sale now at www.edinburghcocktailweek.co.uk priced at £6 for a weekday wristband (valid Monday – Friday), £8 for a weekend wristband (valid Saturday & Sunday) and £13.50 for a week-long wristband.
