Florence Cocktail Week turns 10 and celebrates by celebrating Italian Talent.
From April 16 to 22, 2026, Florence Cocktail Week,the festival of quality mixed drinks organized and directed by Paola Mencarelli, will be enriched with new insights and convivial moments.
Paola Mencarelli is the creator of the first Italian Cocktail Week the Florence Cocktail Week, joined in 2019 by Tuscany Cocktail Week, Venice Cocktail Week in 2021 , Cortina Cocktail Weekend in 2022, Amalfi Coast Cocktail Week in 2024.
Florence Paola Mencarelli has it in her heart given her Tuscan origins, and Florence is about to give her all the satisfaction she deserves after immense work on quality mixology.
- Florence Cocktail Week the Italian Bartenders
A week of widespread events spotlights the Florentine blending scene and the dialogue between tradition, hospitality and contemporaneity.
Starring the city’s best Cocktail Bars and Hotel Bars with the Italian bartending community, in Italy and abroad.
What started in 2016 as a bet with only 13 cocktail bars has now become an established and prestigious reality. Florence Cocktail Week 2026 celebrates its tenth anniversary boasting extraordinary numbers: 55 Selected Bars and numerous Event Partners.
Paola Mencarelli tells:
“For 2026 edition, focus returns to origins and Italy, celebrating the people who first believed in this vision. We’ve built an ecosystem where talent is valued and the bartending community can finally feel like a protagonist.”
- SEVEN DAYS OF EVENTS AND AN EXCLUSIVE DRINK LIST
Florence Cocktail Week 2026 will be a week full of content for enthusiasts, professionals and novices: dedicated Cocktail Lists, Guest Shifts, Masterclasses, Brunches, Aperitifs, Pop-Up Bars, cultural initiatives and experiences spread among cocktail bars, hotel bars and partner locations.
Each of the 55 Selected Cocktail Bars will offer an FCW26 Drink List consisting of 3 exclusive cocktails:
- 1 Signature Cocktail FCW26, freely created
- 1 Wellness Cocktail FCW26, Low ABV or Alcohol Free
- 1 Classic Cocktail FCW26
The inclusion of the Classic Cocktail in the FCW26 Cocktail List is a cultural act. In an era dominated by molecular techniques and hyper-complex drinks, a return to the basics to honor the past and cherish timeless elegance.
- A CELEBRATION OF ITALIAN TALENT. TEN YEARS OF ITALIAN BARTENDERS, IN ITALY AND AROUND THE WORLD
all guests involved in the events will be exclusively Italian bartenders or Italian bartenders working outside the country’s borders.
A symbolic and powerful choice intended to celebrate FCW’s 10th anniversary with Italian professionals who have taken their expertise beyond the borders.
“This year I wanted to put people and their professional paths at the center of Florence Cocktail Week, telling visions born in different contexts, but united by a common cultural matrix: the identity of Italian mixology capable of dialoguing with the world“ explains Paola Mencarelli herself“With Florence Cocktail Week 2026 we want to put the Italian bartender community at the center, in a unique city like Florence, which has always represented a bridge between cultures.”
- SCHEDULED EVENTS
The FCW26 Events Calendar will be available online from April on the official website of the event.
Back to the
Tour of Historic Cafes, a way to discover the history of Florence’s bars, in collaboration with Ricomincio da Firenze ending at Caffè Gilli 1733 with a Negroni Cocktail tasting.
But also many new appointments not to be missed:
Martini will take part in the next edition of Florence Cocktail Week with its MARTINI Social Club program in a special guest shift at Locale Firenze on Thursday, April 16 at 7:30 pm.
For the occasion, six of Italy’s most influential bartenders, Flavio Angiolillo, Patrick Pistolesi, Benjamin Cavagna, Riccardo Rossi, Alexander Frezza, and Abi El Attaoui, will present a selection of classic cocktails and contemporary twists designed to enhance the versatility of MARTINI products, with a special focus on the Spritz and Italian aperitivo culture.
During the week at Gucci Giardino Martina Bonci and her team will kick off a series of brunches with strictly Italian guests. Kicking things off is Polot 1882‘s signature brunch, scheduled for Thursday 16 from 12:30 to 3 p.m. with Moebius Milano curating the cocktail list dedicated to the event.
Baldoria Vermouth on April 16 at Djària – American Bar presents Baldoria Dinner – Between American Cuisine and Cocktail Culture. A pairing dinner dedicated to the American tradition, celebrating the character, botanicals and elegance of vermouth.
- THE RETURN OF THE HISTORICAL CONTEST
Among FCW26’s most anticipated events is the return of the Contest, Thursday, April 16 at 2:30 p.m. at Locale Firenze.
An initiative featuring bartenders, including Edoardo Sandri, assistant bar manager of Atrium Bar, Four Seasons Hotel Firenze. Great anticipation for the return of the jurors from the original 2016 contest: Patrick Pistolesi, Stefano Nincevich and Luca Pirola.
- EMPHASIS ON THE FIGURE OF THE BARTENDER WITH THE BARKEEPER INITIATIVE
On specific days and at specific times it will be possible to meet some of the protagonists of city mixology behind their counter, to discover the secrets of FCW26 creations and have a more intimate experience with the soul of the bar. In Florence Cocktail Week it will be possible to talk with the in-house bartender himself, who will be available for the occasion to tell about his project and working philosophy.
- COCKTAIL BAR
- BULLI&BALENE, Giacomo Fabiani
- Giubbe Rosse Coffee, Raffaele Morrone
- Cibrèo Restaurant & Cocktail Bar, Vieri Palanti
- Claris, Christian Pampo
- The Little Corner, Dusan Bozic
- NON-SAI cocktails and tapas, Pasquale Russo
- Rasputin, Daniele Cancellara
HOTEL BAR
- Binomial, Hotel Indigo Florence
- The Magnificent Cafe – The Tornabuoni Hotel
The importance to Florentine Bartender residents is also confirmed in terms of communication with the usual portraits by portrait photographer Veronica Gaido, one of the most highly regarded contemporary artists in the world of photography,
POP-UP BAR AND YOUNG GUEST BARTENDER
Plenty of space is also given to the Pop-Up Bars of all the Italian Cocktail Weeks – and thus to Tuscany Cocktail Week, Venice Cocktail Week, Cortina Cocktail Weekend and Amalfi Coast Cocktail Week – and to Italian guests and Italians working abroad, in a continuous dialogue between territories, experiences and styles of Made in Italy mixology. Among all of them, Fausto Bigongiali of Jeffer cocktails & friends in Pisa will be the protagonist of a full-week pop-up at Da’ Vinattieri, creating a sort of informal hub where to meet every afternoon.
Given the success of past editions, Young Guest Bartender, the initiative created in 2023 to give voice and value to the new generation of Bartenders coordinated by Antonia Lo Casto, bartender & school teacher, also returns. For the occasion, 31 Guest Bartenders under 25 will be featured every day behind the bar of seven FCW26 cocktail bars.
- OPENING OF TWO NEW FLORENTINE DISTILLERIES: FERMENTHINKS AND FLORENTIS
Saturday, April 18 from 12 noon to 6 p.m.
in Bagno A Ripoli will host the Inaugural Party for Fermenthinks’ new production facility. The distillery opens its new doors with an open day designed to introduce friends and customers to the new location. During it will be possible to taste the creations of cocktail bars Tuscany Cocktail Week and Florence Cocktail Week, such as Antica Velathri, L’Oca Bianca, Bolgheri Green and RAARO, which will bring a Signature Cocktail with Fermenthinks products. The event is in collaboration with Molini Fagioli , which will provide food through the involvement of three Florentine pizza chefs Giovanni Santarpia, Vincenzo Mansi and Mario Cipriano and Orsini Soda for soft drinks.
Special guest for the occasion is the team from Nazionale da Pagani, with their bartenders and products.
Sunday, April 19
the final day of theBoulevardto Florentis Competition, which reaches its final act on FCW weekend.
In the heart of Florence, at the location of the future Distillery that will only be revealed on the day of the competition, the curtain will open and the six finalists of the Florentis Cocktail Competition will be called to the stage to bring to life in front of the jury their new interpretation of the Florentis Boulevardier.
- WELLNESS AND NON-ALCOHOLIC DRINKS
The focus of 2026 continues to be WELLNESS in contemporary mixology.
- In addition to the confirmation of the Wellness Cocktail, throughout the FCW26 Cocktail List there is an indication of the alcohol content for greater awareness of one’s choice.
- Cocktail Event Partner will be the Mindfull Drink Week project, by Mattia Pastori event dedicated to the dissemination of a new drinking culture, based on quality, awareness and conviviality, where the value of the drink is not related to the alcoholic degree, but to the experience it creates, as a real platform that connects people, ideas and places
- The first book dedicated to the best non-alcoholic experiences (100 in all, from star pairing to the best cocktail bars) to be had in Italy, published by the Saudi publishing house Color of Riyadh, and edited by Federico S. Bellanca, will be presented at Caffè Concerto Paszkowski on Saturday, April 18.
Mattia Pastori .“This synergy was created with the aim of contributing to a shared vision: an invitation to the entire bartending world to recognize themselves in these values and to build together a more contemporary, inclusive and responsible drinking culture.”
- COCKTAILS IN FLORENCE. THE BOOK FOR 10 YEARS OF FLORENCE COCKTAIL WEEK.
“Cocktails in Florence” is the new guide dedicated to the city’s best cocktail bars, created by Florence Cocktail Week in collaboration with Florentine publishing house Gruppo Editoriale, to tell and highlight the excellence of Florentine mixology through a contemporary and international look.
The book offers a real journey to discover the best cocktail bars in Florence, revealing the most iconic drinks to taste and their recipes. 59 venues carefully selected by Paola Mencarelli herself, each presented with their own iconic cocktails, to offer an authentic and up-to-date snapshot of the city scene.
“This guide represents a unique reference point for those who wish to explore cocktail excellence in Florence, both for guests coming to the city and for Florentines themselves.” Says Matteo Parigi Bini, founder of Gruppo Editoriale, the Florentine publishing house. “Realized in two languages, Italian and English, it offers a journey through the city’s best cocktail bars-many of which have grown over the years thanks precisely to Florence Cocktail Week-and their most iconic drinks. It is a journey that highlights the quality and originality of the ingredients, and the alchemy that comes from the meeting of tradition, creativity and mastery of Florentine bartenders i“
Not a simple guide, but a choral narrative that weaves together impactful images, original texts and the direct testimonies of bartenders, interpreters of a drinking culture that in Florence in recent years has established itself as an identity language and style figure.
Four pages are dedicated to each venue, designed to tell its atmosphere, personality and mixology proposition, in a visual dialogue with unedited portraits of bartenders by portrait photographer Veronica Gaido and shots of cocktail bars and drinks by photographer Michele Tamasco.
- “DINING WITH THE SPIRITS,” “PIZZA WITH THE SPIRITS,” “PASTRY WITH THE SPIRITS,” AND “ICE CREAM WITH THE SPIRITS”
Confirmed also for Florence Cocktail Week 2026 are the initiatives that combine mixology and gastronomy:
Dining with the Spirits, Pizza with the Spirits, Pastry with the Spirits and Gelato with the Spirits, involve Florentine chefs, pizza makers, pastry chefs and gelato makers who will use spirits as ingredients in their creations, presented individually, included in menus or protagonists of dedicated evenings.
- ARTISTIC PHOTOS OF SIGNATURE COCKTAILS
For this tenth year FCW changed its face by changing the style of the official FCW26 Signature Cocktail photos, which for the occasion became artistic interpretations of the same Michele Tamasco.“The world of the night is made up of movement, conversations circulating, people dancing, chairs moving around tables to make room for a new guest. The Signature Cocktail FCW26 in all this becomes a still point in my imagination, around which as in an emotional timelapse everything moves, while only the cocktail remains still, a metaphor for aggregation and life that finds in the bar its own north of the compass.”. This is how Michele Tamasco himself introduces his work.
Behind the evolution of Florence Cocktail Week is a team that has been able to renew itself without ever losing its roots. An example of this is the historic collaboration with press office Beatrice Mencattini, a strategic partner since the beginning.
FCW26 COCKTAIL BAR LIST – FCW26_List Selected Bars / Event Partners
SELECTED BAR – COCKTAIL BAR
- Bitter Bar / FCW 2017
- BULLIES&BALENAS / NEW ENTRY
- Paszkowski Concert Café / FCW 2020
- Gilli Coffee 1733 / FCW 2017
- Cibrèo Restaurant & Cocktail Bar / FCW 2021
- Claris / NEWENTRY
- Cosimo / NEW ENTRY
- Craft Firm / FCW 2017
- Djària American Bar / FCW 2021
- Violet Wine Shop / NEW ENTRY
- Eye Cocktail Bar / FCW 2023
- Faith Cocktailab / FCW 2025
- Giacosa 1815 / FCW 2025
- Gucci Garden / FCW 2023
- Harry’s Bar Florence 1953 / NEW ENTRY 10 YEARS (2016 Harry’s Bar)
- La Ménagère / FCW 2016 10 YEARS.
- The Corner / FCW 2025
- La Petite / FCW 2021
- Local Florence / FCW 2016 10 YEARS
- MAD Souls & Spirits / FCW 2017
- Manufacturing / FCW 2018
- Move On / FCW 2021
- Next Door Guné / FCW 2025
- NON-SAI cocktails and tapas / NEW ENTRY
- PanicAle Cocktail Art Pub / FCW 2020
- RAARO / FCW 2025
- Rasputin / FCW 2017
- REX / FCW 2019
- Rifrullo Florence / FCW 2025
- Rivoire / FCW 2016 10 YEARS
- Santa Cocktail Club Florence / FCW 2021
- Saporium Lounge / FCW 2025
- Torrigiani Greenhouses / FCW 2023
- Sevi Florence / FCW 2025
- Strizzi / FCW 2020
SELECTED BAR – HOTEL BAR
- 701 Rooftop Bar – Gallery Hotel Art / FCW 2025
- 1564 Lounge Bar – The James Suite Hotel Florence / NEW ENTRY
- Aria Rooftop by Iside De Cesare – Tivoli Palazzo Gaddi / NEW ENTRY
- Atrium Bar – Four Seasons Hotel Florence / FCW 2016 10 YEARS
- Bar Artemisia – Hotel Savoy / FCW 2019
- Bar Berni – Four Seasons Hotel Florence / FCW 2025
- Bar Bertelli – College at the Oaks, Auberge Collection / FCW 2025
- Binomial – Hotel Indigo Florence / FCW 2025
- Caffè dell’Oro – Portrait Florence / NEW ENTRY
- Companion Bittersweet Bar – 25hours Hotel Piazza San Paolino / FCW 2023
- DISOPRA – Goldsmiths’ Hotel / FCW 2025
- Empireo American Bar & Rooftop – Plaza Hotel Lucchesi / FCW 2018
- The Magnificent Cafe – The Tornabuoni Hotel / FCW 2025
- The Terrace – Grand Hotel Minerva / FCW 2021
- Picteau Bistrot & Bar – Hotel Lungarno / FCW 2018
- Rooftop Bar – The Social Hub Florence Lavagnini / FCW 2019
- Santa Cocktail Club Villa Cora – Villa Cora / FCW 2016 10 YEARS (2016 Le Pool Bar)
- The Orientalist – House of Nine / FCW 2025
- Winter Garden Bar at The St. Regis Florence – The St.Regis Florence / FCW 2016 10 YEARS
- W Lounge, W Florence / NEW ENTRY
EVENT PARTNER – (more to come)
- Art Bar – Antico Caffé del Moro / NEW ENTRY
- B-Roof, Grand Hotel Baglioni / NEW ENTRY
- Coffee Giubbe Rosse / FCW 2025
- Basket / NEW ENTRY
- Da’ Vinattieri / NEW ENTRY
- Drinking Blues / FCW 2025
- Drinx – The Taste of Xinge / FCW 2023
- Alessi Wine & Cocktail Bar / FCW 2025
- Mario Listening Baretto / NEW ENTRY
- Fabbroni Oasis / NEW ENTRY
- Spirituum Spirits Club / NEW ENTRY
- Time Calenzano / NEW ENTRY
- Viktoria Lounge Bar / FCW 2016 10 YEARS
- Wild Buns Bakery / NEW ENTRY
