Penelope Bourbon comes to Cocktails in the City, and I'm bringing 5 free passes

The July edition of London's biggest alfresco cocktail festival is sold out. Here's how to still get in, and what you'll find when you do.

Event Cocktails in the City

Dates 2–4 July 2026

Venue Bedford Square Gardens, WC1B 3DP

Nearest tube Tottenham Court Road

What is Cocktails in the City?

If you haven't been, Cocktails in the City is the closest thing London has to a proper cocktail village.

Every summer, Bedford Square Gardens in Bloomsbury, one of the largest private Georgian gardens in the city, gets taken over by 20 of London's best bars, each running a pop-up stand with a signature cocktail you'd normally have to travel across town to try.

Add live music, a silent disco, street food, workshops, and long summer evenings in one of the nicest private green spaces in the West End, and you understand why it sells out every year. It's the brainchild of Andrew Scutts, who has spent over a decade building CITC from a single London weekend into something the industry genuinely looks forward to every summer. I've known Andrew for years, and he is one of the most professional, genuinely passionate people in this business.

The kind of person who makes things happen quietly and properly, without the noise.

CITC goes to Rome — and it's a big deal

May 2026 · First international edition

Cocktails in the City Roma

Orto Botanico di Roma, Trastevere

This May, Andrew took CITC international for the first time, ten years in London, and now the first edition in continental Europe. The location could not have been more fitting: the Botanical Garden of Rome, right in the heart of Trastevere (that's where I grew up), one of the most beautiful neighbourhoods in the city.

The Rome edition was built in partnership with Andrea Fofi, another person I'm proud to call a friend and one of the most knowledgeable, well-connected professionals in the European bar scene. Andrea is the force behind Oro bar and Roma Bar Show, which has become one of the most important trade events in Italy, and his understanding of the Italian market and its bar culture is second to none. The combination of Andrew's model and Andrea's local expertise and network was always going to produce something special.

Andrew himself went over for the inaugural weekend and came back with glowing reports: the Botanical Gardens setting was stunning, the bartenders were engaged and creative, and, true to Italian drinking culture, nearly every bar ran its own line of branded merchandise, something Andrew noted he hadn't seen much of at the London editions. Sunday turned out to be the big night, the live music went down a storm, and there was, as Andrew put it, that classic Italian bitter note running through most of the drinks.

Watching two friends build something together that takes what was already brilliant and gives it a new home, in one of the greatest cities in the world, is exactly the kind of thing that makes this industry worth being in.

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What I'm doing at the London July edition

I'll be on the Gambit Bar stand with Massimo Golfetto and his team, showcasing Penelope Bourbon. For those who don't know Gambit, it's an underground speakeasy beneath The Newman hotel in Fitzrovia, and one of the most interesting bar openings in London this year. Warm amber light, copper tables, Vorticist-inspired cocktails, it feels like a secret even after it gets written up everywhere.

Massimo has built his career across some of London's most respected hotel bars, Edwardian Hotels, Maslow's, The Standard London, before taking the helm at The Newman. He's exactly the kind of bartender I want alongside me when introducing Penelope to new people, because he actually cares what ends up in the glass.

These aren't cocktails designed to impress Instagram followers. They're partners to the kind of conversations that evolve throughout the evening. — The Newman on Gambit Bar

What you'll find on the stand

We're pouring expressions of Penelope Bourbon that are not yet available in the UK market, including Penelope Valencia and Penelope Cigar, with free. samples, cocktails built around them, and a QR code offering a special discount on Penelope via Amazon UK.

@barrel_strength

Win a pass to Cocktails in the City

The July weekend is sold out to the public. But I have 5 complimentary passes, and I'm giving them to the best entries from this community.

Post a photo or video on Instagram of a Penelope cocktail, or a bottle in your home bar, or a moment from a Penelope whiskey tasting, whatever shows us your world. Then:

1. Tag @barrel_strength on Instagram

2. Use the hashtag #BarrelStrengthBack

3. Best 5 entries each win one pass

Competition closes Sunday 29 June at midnight.

Winners announced Monday 30 June.

No purchase necessary.

Open to UK residents aged 18 and over.

If you can't make it in July, the next CITC weekend is 6–8 August, I'll be back with a different brand partner and more details to come.

And if you want to visit Gambit Bar before or after the festival, find them at 49 Newman Street, Fitzrovia, Tuesday to Saturday from 5pm.