Shrewsbury Cocktail Week will take place from Monday September 13 to Sunday September 19 and tickets are on sale now. 

The event is being organised by Shrewsbury BID (Business Improvement District) and is designed to showcase the array of fantastic venues in the town centre. 

James Hitchin, Shrewsbury BID director and owner of The Alb, came up with the idea and said he was excited with how it was coming together. 

He said: “Shrewsbury Cocktail Week is an opportunity to bridge the gap between the craft of making drinks and the guest... a peek behind the scenes into how we ply our trade! 

“It gives people a chance to broaden the venues they usually frequent and highlights the fantastic scene we have here in Shrewsbury.” 

Darren Tomkins, also a Shrewsbury BID director and owner of Gindifferent bar, said bars were going all-out to create new and innovative cocktail offerings for the festival. 

“The cocktail week is a fantastic opportunity to show the world the quality of our bars and bartenders, as well as showcasing what a fantastic and unique place Shrewsbury is,” he added. 

“We have some amazing talent and businesses here which we want to share far and wide and this is the perfect way to do that." 

Events during the week will include cocktail classes, tasting menus, parties and special offers for those who buy a Cocktail Week Pack. 

A pack will cost £8, or £5 for NHS or NUS card carriers, and will include a wristband, a programme booklet of all participating bars and recipe cards. Festival-goers will then get discounted alcoholic and non-alcoholic cocktails at participating bars across the town centre. 

People can buy packs on the Shrewsbury Cocktail Week website at www.shrewsburycocktailweek.com or collect the pack and wristbands from any participating venue. 

Vanessa Fairfax-Wood of Shropshire Trading, who has been helping with the organisation of the event, said: “It’s been great getting involved with Shrewsbury Cocktail Week. 

“Getting the venues on board and running the Instagram account has let me give something back to the community in such a fun-filled way. Making people’s day on Instagram with the ticket giveaways has been such a joy. 

“I can’t wait to see the town bustling with cocktail goers dressed up and having a fantastic time. We have such a strong selection of independent cocktail venues it’s great to give them the opportunity to show off.” 

Seb Slater, executive director of Shrewsbury BID, said: “We are thrilled to announce this exciting new venture for Shrewsbury and hope that it will show off our much-loved cocktail bars and creators to a much wider audience. 

“I think we have all earned a cocktail or two, given the year we’ve had. We’re ready to celebrate, but are asking people to do it in style, enjoying the skill of the mixologists – it’s quality, not quantity that counts! 

“We would like to say a big thank you to everyone involved, particularly James, Darren, Vanessa and Emma who have put a lot of time and commitment into making this inaugural Shrewsbury Cocktail Week happen.” 

For more information, visit www.shrewsburycocktailweek.com