Cocktail Classes in Sydney CBD & Surrounds

Getting Cocktail Classes Right in Sydney CBD & Surrounds

Gin you blend yourself, a drink shaken behind a working bar, or four rounds mixed for you by jumpsuited inmates: classes around the inner city split along those lines, spread between Darlinghurst, Surry Hills and Chippendale.

Four ways a group can spend an afternoon or evening with a shaker or a still:

Bondi Liquor Co, 65A McLachlan Avenue, Darlinghurst: a 90-minute gin making class inside the distillery, with three recipe trials and a 200ml bottle of your final blend, from $140 per person.
Li'l Darlin Surry Hills, 420 Elizabeth Street: after a bartender demonstration, each guest takes a turn behind the bar with a drink from the Legend Cocktails list, from $99 per person with pizza and shoestring fries.
Tippled Cocktail Classes, Commonwealth Street: four cocktails built on native Australian ingredients while host Chris covers the history of spirits, from $97 per person.
Alcotraz, 12-16 Chippen Street: a 1 hour 45 minute mock-penitentiary show in orange jumpsuits, where actors drive the plot and four drinks arrive in your cell, from $65 per person.
Group sizes: Tippled's private sessions cap at 10, Bondi Liquor Co's private classes run from 4 to 30, and Alcotraz packages reach 60.

Alcotraz is strictly 18 and over with valid ID, and Tippled notes that you drink what you make, so both are for adults. Bondi Liquor Co needs no gin knowledge, and light nibbles come out during the class.

Hens: Tippled's private session gives up to 10 the host to themselves, and hens groups are its particular focus
A big birthday or hens of 30-plus: Alcotraz packages let you book the guest of honour in as the Janitor character
Team events: Bondi Liquor Co runs private classes for 4 to 30, and Alcotraz offers team bonding packages with two or four hours of venue hire
A daytime celebration: Li'l Darlin runs classes Tuesday to Saturday with 12pm, 1pm, 2pm and 3pm starts

What you walk away with

A labelled 200ml bottle of your own gin from the Darlinghurst stills
A turn behind a real bar and a cocktail you chose yourself at Li'l Darlin, with food in every package
Shaking technique and a few good stories about spirits from Tippled's host
At Alcotraz, a character and backstory for the night, whether you side with a gang, snitch to the Warden or just watch from your cell

Answers to Common Cocktail Class Questions

Which inner-city class has you making your own gin?

Bondi Liquor Co in Darlinghurst. The class starts with a behind-the-scenes look at the distillery, then guests smell and taste the botanicals, work through three recipe trials and bottle and label a 200ml blend to take home.

Can guests who don't drink alcohol take part?

Yes at two of them. Li'l Darlin lets a non-drinker mix a mocktail for the same price, and the Innocent ticket at Alcotraz brings four mocktails in place of cocktails.

How long do the city cocktail classes run?

The Alcotraz show lasts 1 hour 45 minutes and the Bondi Liquor Co gin class an hour and a half. At Li'l Darlin the class itself usually takes half an hour to an hour for eight to fifteen people.

Is there somewhere to keep drinking after the class?

Bondi Liquor Co's tasting room and bar takes private functions: pick five dishes to share from the chef's list, then either set a budget for the tab or let guests buy their own. Li'l Darlin is itself a cocktail bar and restaurant.

Cocktail Classes in Sydney CBD & Surrounds

Find the Right Cocktail Class in Sydney CBD & Surrounds