2014 news: And the world's 50 best bars are ...

Monday 13 October 2014

And the world's 50 best bars are ...

London's White Lyan is a bar for customers, not bartenders. Housed in two double-door refrigerators and three freezers are 500 bottles of pre-prepared cocktails.

Bulletin Place's world class bartender Tim Philips was part of the award-winning team at Black Pearl, Melbourne, and also did a stint at Milk & Honey in London and its sisters in New York and Chamonix.

New Yorkers usually cite PDT, which opened in 2007, as one of the earliest and finest examples of the modern speakeasy.

Hip Paris haunt Candelaria embraces tacos and South American-inspired cocktails. The venue is split between the taqueria, which has an open kitchen but is otherwise bleached in white, and the bar, which juxtaposes the light with darkness.

"The decor is not so much an homage to the tiki scene as an obsession with it," says Drinks Internati But where the bar really delivers is in the drinks.

Milan cocktail bar Nottingham Forest has a vast, varied and hugely inventive cocktail list of more than 1,000 drinks that celebrates molecular mixology and alcohol-based alchemy without pretension.

Decked-out in dark mahogany with lashings of leather, the decor in New York's Elephant Bar is as classic as its cocktail list, which changes seasonally yet consistently pays homage to the staple sips, says Drinks International.

The average cocktail at this Grant Achatz lounge is $20, but it's unlike any you've had. Every bartender at Chicago's Aviary is a trained chef, so flavor rules above all else.

A regular haunt for London liquor lovers, Happiness Forgets embraces the classics, twists them up, delivers newbies and gives the staff scope to stray from the path if the customer so desires.

London's Connaught Bar has it all: Ultra-stylish decor, impeccable service and some of the most killer cocktails ever shaken.

Oft credited for helping kickstart Singapore's booming cocktail scene, 28 Hongkong Street opened to let locals experience the kind of bar they had enjoyed on their travels to places like New York.

Run by Hidetsugu Ueno, Japan's most celebrated bartender, High Five doesn't offer menus. Instead, Ueno is able to create a tailored concoction on the spot after only a few taste-preference questions.

At 125 years old, the American Bar at the Savoy is the longest-surviving of London's American bars -- a style that proliferated with American travel in the late 19th and early 20th centuries.

If you can find this American-style drinking den, tucked away in a basement at the end of an uninviting alleyway, you'll be rewarded with perhaps the best selection of whiskey in Sydney. There are more than 600 bottles to choose from.

Much of the attraction at Canon is its 3,300 spirits bottles, from the old to the rare, all on display. This Seattle bar opened just three years ago but has the feel of a more rooted bar, says Drinks International.

New York's Employees Only is a bar that goes off nearly every night of the week thanks to its lively vibe, excellent service and quality drinks.

This New York bar is set in the former Milk & Honey. A brighter and more relaxed version of its predecessor, Attaboy offers quality classics and creative interpretations.

Nightjar's themes are Art Deco, swing, prohibition drinks and 1920s glamor -- but it's not ruled by them. This London bar has its own character, says Drinks International.

Named after an Irish-American gang from the mid-19th century, New York's Dead Rabbit Grocery and Grog's laidback ground floor features a taproom with beer, whisky and lunch. Upstairs, the Parlour showcases the team's drinks creativity and historical know-how.

London's Artesian is not just a bar, it's an ideas factory, says Drinks International of the 2014 world's best bars winner. Case in point: Its stunning Digi Diva cocktail.

Every year, Drinks International calls on experts to compile its world's 50 best bars list

This year's list includes bars from 27 cities in 14 countries with 14 new entries

London kept the top spot with Artesian named "World's Best Bar" for the third consecutive year

(CNN) -- Sure, it's a great feeling when you randomly stumble on a fantastic new bar while you're out exploring a city.

But when you're there for only a few days, you sometimes want a guarantee that you're going to be getting a well-made drink in a venue with character and style.

That's where this 2014 list of the world's 50 best bars comes in.

Announced by Drinks International magazine during a recent ceremony in London, the list is based on the votes of more than 330 international industry experts.

The 2014 winners include bars from 27 cities in 14 countries, with 14 new entries.

"Overall, Europe appears to be the international epicenter for good drinking as it led the regions' ranking with 21 of its bars included within the 50 best list," says Drinks International in a release.

For the third year in a row, London's Artesian has been named "world's best bar."

In fact, the UK capital has eight bars on the list, more than any other city. These include Nightjar and The American Bar at The Savoy, which join Artesian in the top 10.

Across the Atlantic, Drinks International says the United States saw the strongest growth, with 16 bars included on the final 2014 list.

Four of the top 10 listed bars are based in New York and Seattle.

Australia, meanwhile, has six bars included -- all based in Melbourne and Sydney.

Four Asia bars made the list -- with venues from Tokyo, Singapore and Hong Kong. The highest is Tokyo bar High Five, voted the ninth best bar in the world.

Finally, Latin America saw three make the list, with two Mexican bars -- Mexico City's La Capilla and newcomer Licoreria Limantour -- joining Floreira Atlantico in Buenos Aires.

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