Consider this weekend one big cocktail party for the Aspen community and all of its guests as the seventh annual Apr\u00e8s Ski Cocktail Classic kicks off.<\/p>\n
It\u2019s a four-day mostly free festival that runs from Thursday, March 14, to Sunday, March 17, and features back-to-back events<\/a> that could have participants drinking from morning till night.<\/p>\n There are apr\u00e8s ski parties, seminars, fireside chats, on-mountain activities and finally, the Great Apr\u00e8s Ski Pub Crawl.<\/p>\n The crawl, which is one of the few events that requires a paid ticket, is a competition among local bartenders who will be tasked with creating a cocktail with a spirit they\u2019ve been given.<\/p>\n \u201cSunday Funday\u201d will take on a life of its own as pub crawlers go to 13 venues to sample Aspen\u2019s mixologists have concocted. It also happens to be St. Patrick\u2019s Day.<\/p>\n Joe Lang, who founded the cocktail classic, said he could have gotten more bars to participate but 13 seemed appropriate.<\/p>\n \u201cI call it the drinker\u2019s dozen at 13,\u201d Lang joked. \u201cIt\u2019s wonderful for folks \u2026 tourists and locals alike to go to these venues all over town, giving local businesses a place to shine.\u201d<\/p>\n This year\u2019s cocktail classic is the second year that most events are free, including the seminars, grand tastings and parties.<\/p>\n \u201cWe made the move last year after we were at the Little Nell,\u201d Lang said, adding that was the central location for ticketed events and VIP venues. \u201cThen we said, \u2018Let\u2019s just make our grand tastings and seminars free.<\/p>\n \u201cIt turned into an ah-ha moment that we should make it a community event and make it a local celebration.\u201d<\/p>\n This year\u2019s \u201cTaste of Apr\u00e8s Experience\u201d brings free samplings, seminars and access to brand ambassadors of the world\u2019s most popular spirits.<\/p>\n Lang said there are around 40 brands being represented this year.<\/p>\n \u201cThe brand ambassadors that come in here for this are phenomenal,\u201d he said. \u201cThey make it a party.\u201d<\/p>\n And the party will happen at multiple venues around town and on top of Aspen Mountain, including the \u201cTop of the World Popup\u201d on Friday, Saturday and Sunday mornings and the sunset skiing and Sundeck party from 3 p.m. to 8 p.m. Friday.<\/p>\n In town, venues include the Hao House where the opening party will be held on Thursday night with the David Higgins Band, along with the St. Regis, Hooch Craft Cocktail Bar, the Cooking School of Aspen and its associated property in the courtyard being dubbed the \u201cCocktail Cottage.\u201d<\/p>\n That\u2019s where seminars will be held. One not to miss, said Lang, is the \u201cHow to House Party: Cocktail Entertaining with the Party Boys!\u201d<\/p>\n Two of those party boys are Anthony Bohlinger<\/a>, ambassador for Sailor Jerry Spiced Rum, and Trevor Schneider,<\/a> ambassador for Reyka vodka.<\/p>\n Bohlinger, a former bartender at the St. Regis\u2019 Chef\u2019s Club, said he\u2019s been involved since the first cocktail classic held in Aspen.<\/p>\n \u201cNow I\u2019m coming back on a different plane,\u201d he said, adding he is excited to participate in the house party seminar. \u201cWe are going to show people how to throw a proper house party where you don\u2019t want your guests to do any work, or you, so you learn how to properly prepare.\u201d<\/p>\n Schneider said the seminar will be geared toward the consumer learning tips and tricks to be a host with the most.<\/p>\n He said he\u2019s not sure what he\u2019ll be preparing for the seminar but \u201cI\u2019m always good for an espresso martini or a cosmopolitan.\u201d<\/p>\n Both ambassadors, along with their counterparts, also will be on top of the mountain, and at the grand tastings and other events.<\/p>\n \u201cI will be all over the place,\u201d Schneider said. \u201cAnd to have the backdrop of Aspen \u2026 it\u2019s such a magical place.\u201d<\/p>\n Bohlinger agreed, and said Aspen is the perfect place to celebrate the apr\u00e8s scene.<\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s about friends, family and community,\u201d he said of what apr\u00e8s means to him. \u201cIt\u2019s bringing people together to enjoy each other over drinks.\u201d<\/p>\n Beyond the dozens of free events, there are also a few ticketed ones such as the Apr\u00e8s After Dark in which guest bartenders will get behind the bar at Hooch, or the cocktail paired dinner at the Velvet Buck at the St. Regis featuring Don Julio.<\/p>\n Lang said while most events are free, people do need to register for a ticket to gain access for capacity reasons. That can be done by going to the Cocktail Classic website.<\/a><\/p>\n \u201cWe have room for everybody,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n He promised a weekend full of fun, especially since the cocktail classic was moved back a week from years past.<\/p>\n This weekend, it coincides with other free events, like the Aspen\/Snowmass Bud Light Hi-Fi concert series.<\/a> On Friday, March 15, electro funk band Chromeo will play onstage in downtown Aspen at the corner of Cooper Avenue and Galena Street.<\/p>\n \u201cWhere else in Aspen can you have another free event?\u201d Lang said about the timing of the classic. \u201cThe idea is to get people moving to multiple venues around the core.\u201d<\/p>\n csackariason@aspentimes.com<\/p>\n