There’s never been a better time to be a bartender, and there’s more information out there than ever that can help you on your quest to be a better bartender. And across the globe, there’s seminars and workshops aplenty at which you can go deeper into the craft — places like the Business of Bars Conference at Sydney Bar Week, the Tales of the Cocktail seminars, and Bar Convent Berlin’s talks and education (click here to check out some of the big bar shows around the world we think you’ll want to hit this year).
But if it’s big ideas you want, there’s few better places than the annual P(our) Symposium, back for its third year.
Held in Paris on June 3 this year, the P(our) Symposium this year will focus on the topic of perfection. “We have all felt the pressure of perfection, and although a great motivator, it’s time that we also recognise its more destructive side,” says co-founder Monica Berg. “The concept of perfection can often be an illusion, and we seek to demystify this through the upcoming symposium.”
They’ve announced four speakers (with more on the way) and, if you take a close look at them, you’ll notice they’re not all drawn from the drinks world. That’s because the P(our) Symposium wants to grab ideas and perspectives from other disciplines, in a big picture kind of way, ideas that attendees can then take away and make their own in new and interesting ways.
This year, the founding committee of P(our) — Berg, Alex Kratena, Ryan Chetiyawardana, Jim Meehan, Simone Caporale, Joerg Meyer and Xavier Padovani — have got some interesting speakers for those lucky enough to make it. They’ve got Professor Charles Spence, from the field of experimental psychology at Oxford University who will be talking about a gastrophysics approach to multi sensory cocktails (uh-huh, yep); the much-admired spirits writer Dave Broom on the joys of imperfection; Stacy Givens, who began the first ‘urban’ seed to plate catering company will be talking about the imperfection of plants and going from seed to glass; and ballerina Shelby Williams, who has created a satirical Instagram character that “reminds dancers that being imperfect isn’t worth getting upset over.”
We told you they pull speakers from a wide range of fields, right?
You can get tickets to the symposium and find out more now at pourdrink.org.