Embark on a spirited journey as demand soars for drinks trails

In a world where exploration and hospitality are so deeply intertwined, revellers around the country are driving demand for guided and self-guided drinks trails. Choosing your own adventure has never been easier with the variety of unique trail experiences inviting customers to stroll the streets as they discover the bar culture their city has to offer.

The rise of drinks trails gives customers the chance to discover a haven of indie craft breweries, or explore the country’s wine regions, from the comfort of their own neighbourhood. Event operators are curating drinks trails for customers to follow at their own pace, or taking them on a guided tasting experience without leaving the inner-city.

Sneakers & Jeans (S&J), a WA-based hospitality operator home to eight venues in Perth’s CBD, has always searched for unique ways to connect its venues and respective customers. S&J has a pre-pandemic history of hosting guided drinks trails across the city, and today holds three unique experiences across its venues, ranging from exclusive monthly events to some running as frequently as three times a week.

Launching its first guided drinks trail ‘America to Japan’ in March 2019, revellers travelled by rickshaw between S&J’s flagship venue and underground whiskey den Varnish on King, where they enjoyed American whiskey and eats, and its cousin venue Goody Two’s, a Japanese whisky and cocktail bar. Katie Osborne, Group Marketing and Brand Lead, explained how guided drinks trails have taken off in a city that’s ready to party.

“Tours have been a big part of our identity as a hospitality operator over the past four years, and have been integral to establishing, refining and immersing our brand into Perth’s hospitality scene.”

Hosting an array of successful tour experiences just weeks before the pandemic reached WA, S&J later rose from the ashes of the pandemic with a new offering on World Cocktail Day in May 2021.

“A guided group experience across four of our epic venues, the S&J Cocktail Trail saw revellers start at the Hadiqa rooftop bar and restaurant, where they would enjoy signature cocktails and eats, before making their way through three other destinations: The Flour Factory, Varnish on King, and finishing up at our cheeky Mexican cantina, Caballitos.”

With revellers developing an appetite for the S&J Cocktail Trail and its seasonal variations, the operator soon slid a brand-new tour into the market featuring its newly opened brewery, Pirate Life Perth.

“A collaboration between S&J’s newest and oldest venues (by a decade), Beers, Bacon & Bourbon saw revellers experience frothies and eats at Pirate Life Perth, before strolling underground to Varnish on King for whiskey flights and American eats – bourbon and bacon, it’s been a thing at Varnish since 2013.

“As we witness the ever-growing popularity and enthusiasm for tours and trails within the hospitality industry, it becomes evident that this trend is here to stay.

“We thrive on creating some of Perth’s most exciting and original venues – but also in crafting exceptional experiences and redefining the boundaries of Perth hospitality. We’re both a company and an industry founded on the art of socialising and connecting with others.

“We often joke that anyone 18+ is our target market – a result of having a rowdy tequila joint; three beautiful, refined restaurants, a cheeky whiskey den, several ‘grammable cocktail bars and a killer CBD brewery… When there’s an opportunity to cross-pollinate and migrate customers between venues we’re keen.”

As S&J takes Perth by storm, Neighbourhood Events Co has adopted a relaxed self-guided approach and rolled it out across the nation. Since 2016, Neighbourhood Events Co has brought local venues, producers and the public together for unforgettable hospitality experiences.

Urban Wine Walk sees revellers embark on a leisurely journey of wine tasting, designed for groups of friends to visit handpicked local bars within easy walking distance of each other and sample top regional wineries from across the country. Josh Starick, director of Neighbourhood Events Co, told Bars and Clubs that customers have responded incredibly to the events.

“With so many new and existing venues all over Australia and New Zealand we’re now in a position where it’s almost impossible to visit them all, no matter how hard you try.

“The Urban Wine Walk offers ticket holders the opportunity to visit multiple venues on one afternoon in a festival style format which is the obvious point of difference to a traditional pub or bar crawl. Throw in a line-up of the country’s best winemakers and you’ve got an epic afternoon waiting for you.”

Following the success of the Urban Wine Walk, Neighbourhood Events Co has expanded its series of events to hero other industries. Now with a range of experiences to suit everybody’s taste, the Urban Cocktail Trail, Urban Craft Beer Crawl and Good Spirits Stroll events are set to shake up some of the leading bars across six Australian states.

“We wanted to create a unique experience that features and supports existing venues,” added Josh. “We all love the festival and pop-up event scene but the reality is that these types of events pull people away from existing venues – our events do the opposite.

“Aside from the financial benefits, we’ve always seen our events as a platform to help venues promote what they do in real life. In a growing digital world, we understand that it’s easy to self-promote, however, we feel nothing beats the opportunity for customers to engage directly with a venue or brand, building a trusting relationship at the same time.”

In the winter series of Urban Wine Walk, Hotel Steyne was among the 10 participating venues in Manly. Licensee Adam Gainsford spoke about the venues involvement in the urban cellar door experience.

“It was a great opportunity to be part of a Manly community event and work with our wineries, Hungerford Hill and Sweetwater, and venues in surrounds to bring more people into Manly for the weekend. The Urban Wine Walk pushes participants to have lunch at their starting venue, allowing those who hadn’t eaten with us for a while to enjoy our food again thus showcasing our menus to Manly locals.

“The feedback we received was that it was nice to do something different, and customers enjoyed their local venues with a twist. Post-covid we find our customers are craving an experience and enjoy supporting local.”

In Melbourne, the Collingwood Beer Trail is a craft beer explorers dream. Made up of five of the city’s finest breweries with a selection of 15 beers to try, the self-guided beer trail celebrates the revival of Collingwood’s long lost brewing industry.

Beer lovers have the option to buy a Collingwood Beer Trail Pass from any of the participating breweries, earning them three tasters at each of the five breweries. Abbey Packer, Brand Manager at Stomping Ground Brewing Co, spoke about the brewery’s experience as a participating venue.

“The Collingwood Beer Trail has been hugely popular. Initially, the trail was ideated by Nic Sandery of Molly Rose, off the back of lockdown. Small businesses were having a hard time and hospitality in particular had taken a massive blow. There was a real sense of togetherness in the air, and the importance of supporting and celebrating your local community was more evident than ever. Today, even well out of lockdown, we believe that sentiment remains.

“We’re a tight knit group operating in a fairly small industry, so we share each other’s successes and challenges. We have such a variety of offerings, whether it be the vibe of the venue or the beers we brew, so between us, there is something for everyone.

“The cross promotion between our audiences is a really big win for us. There are so many craft beer lovers in the area or visiting and while they might frequent one or two of our venues, getting them to explore other options in the area is fantastic. We really want beer lovers to experience Collingwood craft beer in all its glory.”

As the popularity of drinks trails continues to soar, this trend is about more than the destination. Wine enthusiasts, cocktail connoisseurs and lovers of craft beer have the chance to discover new venues, drinks and a deep appreciation for their local hospitality scene.