THE FIRST Philippine Cocktail Week (PHCW) will be held from Feb. 5 to 8. Over 50 of the world’s best cocktail bars and the Philippines’ finest will be serving their drinks over four nights in four neighborhoods across Metro Manila. Each night will focus on one neighborhood, with local bars hosting international guest bartenders for one-night-only collaborations. No registrations and no tickets are required.
Many of the participating international bars are recognized by Asia’s 50 Best Bars and The World’s 50 Best Bars.
On Feb. 5, Philippine Cocktail Week will be celebrated at Bonifacio Global City in Taguig. The international bars teaming up with local bars there are:
1. The Golden Tooth (Jakarta, Indonesia) at Somewhere Quiet
2. Virtù (Tokyo, Japan) at The Attic
3. Reka:Bar (Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia) at Southbank Café + Lounge
4. Enigma Mansion (Ho Chi Minh, Vietnam) at The Back Room
5. WU (Nothingness) (Taipei, Taiwan) at No Entry Cocktail Club
6. Boilermaker (Goa, India) at LIT Manila
On Feb. 6, it moves to Legazpi and MCS (formerly Makati Cinema Square) in Makati.
1. Use Bar (Hanoi, Vietnam) at Big Fuzz
2. Bar Bon Funk (Singapore) at The Grasshopper Bar
3. Mostly Harmless (Hong Kong) at From Management Inc.
4. G.O.D. (Bangkok, Thailand) at The Curator
5. CMYK (Changsha, Hunan, China) at El Gato
6. The Cocktail Club (Jakarta, Indonesia) at Cattery
7. Penicillin (Hong Kong) at Fat Cat
On Feb. 7 it moves to Makati’s Poblacion and Jupiter neighborhoods, and The Peninsula Makati.
1. Artifact (Hong Kong) at The Spirits Library
2. Barc (Kathmandu, Nepal) at Banter and Jive
3. Origin (Singapore) at OTO
4. Hope & Sesame (Guangzhou, China) at Opal Bar
5. COA (Hong Kong) at Problem Child
6. Vesper (Bangkok, Thailand) at The Jury
7. Craftroom (Osaka, Japan) at The Bar at The Peninsula Manila
On Feb. 8, the event heads to the north of the metro, to Quezon City and San Juan. The final day runs in two parts: the Sunday Sessions and the regular bar takeovers.
Sunday Sessions takes place from 1-7 p.m. at Corner House in San Juan, bringing together a mix of some of the world’s best bars and the Philippines’ rising stars in a relaxed open-air setting. Unlike the nights, Sunday Sessions is a ticketed event. Check @PhilippineCocktailWeek for more details.
The collaborations are:
1. Southbank Café + Lounge (Alabang, Muntinlupa) x Opal (Poblacion, Makati)
2. Polilya (Ebro St., Makati) x Southside Parlor (Seoul, South Korea)
3. Afterhours (Diliman, Quezon City) x Maltail (Kaohsiung City, Taiwan)
4. Last Chance (Siargao) x Night N’ Day (Taipei, Taiwan)
5. Lost Unicorn (Cebu) x Merry Dessert (Taipei, Taiwan)
6. Hello Sailor (Boracay) x Not Bar (Taoyuan, Taiwan)
7. Bar Hometown (Subic) x Reka:Bar (Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia)
That night, the format returns to one-night-only takeovers across Quezon City and San Juan. The participating bars are:
1. Bar Us (Bangkok, Thailand) at Skybar at Solaire North
2. Mius (Hong Kong) at AKA
3. Epic (Shanghai, China) at After Hours
4. Alice (Seoul, South Korea) at Sa’min
5. Obsidian (Shenzhen, China) at Raion
6. Dry Wave Cocktail Studio (Bangkok, Thailand) at Malagihay
7. Zest (Soul, South Korea) at Gaea
8. Moonrock (Tainan City, Taiwan) at Three Dots
Since the event is presented by Maya Black, its cardholders will enjoy a 20% cashback (capped at P600 with a minimum spend of P2,500) and earn up to 10x Maya Miles at participating bars from Feb. 5-28. Maya Black cardholders can also join the Neighborhood Stamp Rally in which if they complete a whole neighborhood’s worth of bars in the month, they can receive PHCW merch.
Meanwhile, since it is a very bad idea to drink and drive, guests can use the code PHCOCKTAILWEEK to get 30% off GrabCar rides to and from participating bars.
Spotify is the event’s official music partner, bringing DJs to soundtrack the Sunday Sessions. It also put together the official Philippine Cocktail Week playlist, available on Spotify, alongside a collection of playlists from participating bars.