City bartenders create one-off drinks and invite you to explore the city’s hot spots together.
Ten days. Twenty-seven bars. One very Aberdeen way to catch up with friends and try something made here. Aberdeen Cocktail Week is back from 9 to 19 October, linking places you already like with spots you might have missed.
This year, every cocktail on the trail is created for the festival by the bartenders who work in these rooms day to day. You get one-off drinks, not menu repeats, and the opportunity to chat with the people crafting them. Think of it as a city walk with better lighting and glassware.
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New names join the list
Now in year five, the line-up adds Six by Nico and Wild Goose. Both are pouring festival exclusives. There is also a welcome return for Vovem, back on the circuit after the 2024 fire and reopening earlier this year. That comeback says a lot about how closely bars and their regulars keep hold of each other in this city.
Across the ten days you can move between very different spaces. A late-night haunt in the centre. A small wine bar. A cool spot on a back street. You can make a loop of it or drop in once. Either way, you will cover more of Aberdeen than you might on a usual night out.
The story behind the line-up
Organiser Charlie Bain puts it: “Every venue has the opportunity to bring their own unique style to their exclusive offering, and that’s what makes Cocktail Week such a special celebration of the city.” The list ranges from All Bar One and Bartenders Lounge to Under the Hammer, The Tippling House and The Spiritualist, with Six by Nico and Wild Goose joining for the first time.
The mix matters more than the numbers. The festival nudges you into places you have not tried, lets you see familiar bars doing something different, and turns the whole thing into a low-key map of the centre.
Five years on
Launched in 2022, Aberdeen Cocktail Week has grown into a regular date on the city calendar without losing its focus on local skill. The idea is simple and still works: bartenders show what they can do, and you choose your own route.
It runs from 9 to 19 October. Go for one drink with a pal or take a longer wander. Either way, you end up with a small story about a bar, a bartender and a city that likes good conversation as much as a good cocktail.
