Brian Blum
May 24, 2018, Updated May 31, 2018

Want to pick your own herbs to add to a specially mixed gin and tonic? How about sipping a Jack Daniels-based cocktail while getting a shave and haircut? Or maybe grab a cocktail-flavored ice cream treat from a pop-up gelateria crafted by a genuine Tel Aviv mixologist?

Those are some of the offerings that will be on hand when Tel Aviv hosts its first-ever Cocktail Week, May 27 to June 2, 2018.

Cocktail Weeks have taken place in cities including London, Paris, Amsterdam and New York. Now it’s Tel Aviv’s turn and the bubbly is set to flow big time.

Most of the city’s top cocktail bars will be participating: Imperial, Double Standard, Jasper Johns, Norman Library Bar, Spicehaus, La Otra, 223, Garnish and Aria, each of which will serve its own specially selected cocktail at a discount price of ₪25 for patrons sporting a ₪50 Cocktail Week wristband.

The wristbands will also grant wearers access to attractions and events.

Mixologist Greg Almeida, head bartender at Scarfe’s in London, will be mixing the bar’s signature drinks at Tel Aviv’s Norman Hotel, accompanied by live music.

A “farm to cocktail” bar themed around Bombay Sapphire Gin will be set up at the Double Standard bar. You can pick your own herbs for your gin and tonic or take a guided tour around Tel Aviv searching for the best gin-based drinks.

Makina Lynn, who mixes drinks at Proof YYC in Calgary, is flying in from Canada to hold court at the Voodoo and Aria bars. Her Tiki-inspired cocktails will feature Patron Tequila.

From Germany, bartender Dirk Guldner from the Le Lion Hamburg bar will host a pop-up bar on Dizengoff Street in cooperation with the Israeli fashion boutique Story. In Jaffa, he’ll mix eight drinks to complement eight signature dishes cooked up by local celebrity chef Or Ginsberg at Selas restaurant.

Beersheva’s Zalame bar is bringing its cocktail menu from the desert to the big city. Its temporary home for the week will be the Jasper bar.

Jamili’s Barber Shop on Ben Yehuda Street has a combined ticket for a shave and a Jack Daniels.

Hine Cognac will crown the city’s best bartender in a Cocktail Competition at the Ultra Hotel bar. The winner receives ₪4,000 worth of … cognac. (What, did you expect more Jack Daniels?)

Tel Aviv Cocktail Week is being produced by Omer Gazit-Shalev and Alejandro Safdie, owners of Free Pour Ltd.

“In recent years, in correlation with the culinary scene in the city, the mixology and nightlife scenes have undergone a dramatic leap in quality and variety, and Tel Aviv is now seen as a leading hub of drinking culture and nightlife,” the two explained. “We are witnessing a substantial increase in the number of cocktail bars in the city, and demand sparks endless creativity.”

Haifa’s Cocktail Week and Drinks Festival comes next, June 3-7.

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