NEW YORK, Nov. 5, 2024 — Hanna Lee Communications (HLC), an award-winning multimedia PR/marketing agency specializing in hospitality and luxury travel, today announces the kick-off of its first-ever New York Bartender Week, Nov. 18-24, 2024. To date, 180 bars including cocktail bars, hotel bars and restaurant bars across New York State have registered for this first of its kind festival, as have 56 local spirits brands.

Taking place in New York City and across New York State, New York Bartender Week is part consumer festival, part tourism initiative and part educational trade/media symposium that salutes bartenders, barbacks, bar/restaurant owners and hoteliers. The initiative also promotes New York State spirits to help drive economic development and encourages consumers to visit their local bars and distilleries.

New York State: A Travel & Tourism Powerhouse Continues to Grow

New York Bartender Week supports tourism throughout New York State. In 2023, the state attracted a record-breaking 306.3 million visitors, with tourism generating $88 billion in direct spending and $137 billion in total economic impact.

180 Bars and a Diversity of Cocktail Styles with Something for Everyone

180 bars in 39 cities, towns and villages have signed up for the inaugural festival, including cocktail bars, restaurant bars, hotel bars and sports bars. Their cocktail creations span riffs on classic cocktails, like the Negroni and the Manhattan, to tropical inspired libations, with drinks that appeal to every palate and preference.

Participating bars are located in cities that include: Bay Shore, Buffalo, Beacon, Ithaca, Kingston, New Paltz, New York City, Patchogue, Rochester, Saratoga Springs, Schenectady, Syracuse and more.

This year's participating bars include:

Cocktail Bars
● Katana Kitten (NYC)
● Mace (NYC)
● Shinji's (NYC)
● Bar Contra (NYC)
● Sweet Jane (Bay Shore, N.Y.)
● Shirt Factory (Medina, N.Y.)
● Lone Wolf (Kingston, N.Y.)

Hotel Bars
● The Portrait Bar at The Fifth Avenue Hotel (NYC)
● Lobby Bar at The Hotel Chelsea (NYC)
● José Andrés Group's Nubeluz at The Ritz-Carlton, NoMad (NYC)
● INNESS (Accord, N.Y.)
● Butterfield at Hasbrouck House (Stone Ridge, N.Y.)

Restaurant Bars
● Eleven Madison Park's Clemente Bar (NYC)
● Major Food Group's Dirty French and Lobster Club (NYC)
● ILIS (NYC)
● Micheline (Scarsdale, N.Y.)
● Emerald Cocktail Kitchen (Syracuse, N.Y.)

Sports Bars, Soccer Bars, Cheese Bars and Dance Bars
● Roebling Sporting Club (NYC)
● Murphy's (NYC)
● Més Que (Buffalo, N.Y.)
● Callee 1945 (Oneida, N.Y.)
● The Night Owl (Saratoga Springs, N.Y.)

A Week-Long Promotion Spotlighting New York State's Bars, Bartenders & Spirits

New York Bartender Week includes a week-long consumer promotion from November 18-24, 2024. Throughout the week, bars across New York City and New York State will engage in a week-long initiative celebrating the state's vibrant bar culture and locally produced spirits.

Consumers are encouraged to visit their favorite bars that are participating in New York Bartender Week to support their most preferred bartenders and enjoy a special New York State-themed cocktail that was created for the festival. A total of 39 cities, towns and villages in New York State have bars that are participating this year. There are no admission fees and each bar sets the price of its cocktail.

56 New York State Spirits Brands Registered as Direct-to-Consumer Shipping Begins

For New York Bartender Week, 56 New York State spirits brands from 38 cities, towns and villages have registered to participate. This is an opportunity for bartenders to learn more about the state's distilleries and will enable the state's distilleries to connect with a wider array of bars.

In addition, New York State Governor Kathy Hochul signed historic legislation this summer that gives the state's distilleries the right to ship directly to consumers. This highly beneficial law goes into effect on Nov. 16, 2024, just in time for New York Bartender Week. Please click here for Governor Hochul's announcement press release.

'Media & Drinks Industry Invitation-Only Kick-Off Event on Nov. 18, 2024

The week kicks off with a memorable festive event at the Kimpton Hotel Eventi, featuring top bars from New York City and New York State. This exclusive invitation-only gathering will include a press conference followed by a reception showcasing the best of the bartending world, including Dale “King Cocktail” DeGroff, Clover Club's Julie Reiner, MasterClass' Lynnette Marrero, 67 Orange Street's Karl Franz Williams, Sebastian Tollius of Eleven Madison Park's Clemente Bar, Lone Wolf's Anton Kinloch, The Hotel Chelsea's Brian Evans and others. Each bar star will serve cocktails celebrating New York State and its spirits.

The press conference will also announce Worldwide Bartender Week 2025 and introduce its partners across the U.S. and around the world who are traveling to New York City for the festival. They include the organizers of Kenya Bartender Week, India Bartender Week, Colombia Bartender Week, New Mexico Bartender Week, D.C. Bartender Week, Toronto Bartender Week, Wisconsin Bartender Week and others.

Hanna Lee, President & Founder, Hanna Lee Communications and Co-Founder, New York Bartender Week says, “We are so humbled by the enthusiasm, excitement and support of the bartending and spirits community for New York Bartender Week,” says Hanna Lee, “We are delighted that cocktail fans will have the opportunity to visit so many different kinds of bars and salute their favorite bartenders during the festive week. I moved to New York City 25 years ago from Korea and New York Bartender Week is my love letter to the city and state that I'm proud to call my home.”

Michael Anstendig, Editor in Chief, Hanna Lee Communications, Co-Founder, New York Bartender Week, and Co-Author, The Japanese Art of the Cocktail, says, “Through the cocktail recipe submissions, we are seeing the unlimited passion and creativity of the bartending community and its embrace of wonderful local spirits. Just like every spirit and bartender, every cocktail has a story to share, and we are very excited for consumers to have a fully immersive experience. As a born and raised New Yorker, I'm proud to see so many great organizations and people getting behind this initiative.”

Meaningful Partnerships and Collaborations with New York Bartender Week

The agency acknowledges the wonderful support and collaboration with Imbibe magazine, Kimpton Hotel Eventi, I LOVE NY, Taste New York, the New York State Distillers Guild and the New York City Hospitality Alliance.

Ross D. Levi, Executive Director, I LOVE NY says, "The New York Bartender Week festival provides a great opportunity for visitors and residents alike to explore the unique bars and restaurants throughout New York State, and meet the people who create the world-class cocktails and luscious libations that celebrate the state's craft beverage culture. I LOVE NY looks forward to promoting the week to travelers and showing cocktail connoisseurs how easy it is to love New York."

Brian Facquet, President, New York State Distillers Guild says, “New York Bartender Week is a tremendous opportunity to celebrate the incredible talents of our hospitality community, while showcasing the high quality and diversity of the beautiful spirits being produced by New York State craft distillers across the great State of New York. Every cocktail that is sipped during this week will make a direct impact on New York agriculture, New York manufacturing and hopefully will drive consumers to visit the participating distilleries, bars and restaurants across the state. We couldn't be more proud of the event.”

Paul Clarke, Editor in Chief, Imbibe says, “New York has been at the forefront of the cocktail revival and the craft distilling boom for many years, and New York Bartender Week promises to take this influence to the next level. Imbibe is thrilled to partner with this initiative as it supports bars and bartenders across New York, with a positive ripple effect throughout the entire drinks and hospitality community.”

Andrew Rigie, Executive Director, NYC Hospitality Alliance, says, “New York Bartender Week promises to be an exciting initiative, featuring promotions across the city and state at exceptional restaurants and bars. Beyond its positive economic impact and enjoyment, New York Bartender Week will showcase the deep knowledge and skills of bartenders, while highlighting New York's high-quality, locally grown and produced spirits. Cheers to the Hanna Lee Communications team for celebrating bar culture, craft, and community.”

About New York Bartender Week
Conceptualized and produced by Hanna Lee Communications, an award-winning multimedia PR/marketing agency specializing in hospitality and luxury travel, New York Bartender Week's inaugural edition will take place November 18-24, 2024. It is a first-of-its-kind annual celebration of the bar community and bar professionals in New York City and across New York State. Its mission is to spur travel and economic development by spotlighting the Big Apple and the Empire State as world-class cocktail destinations and salute bartending as a noble career path. Celebrating storytelling as the common thread that unites the bar community, New York Bartender Week will expand across the U.S. and globally in 2025 as part of Worldwide Bartender Week. For more information, please visit New York Bartender Week on Instagram.

About Hanna Lee Communications (HLC)
Hanna Lee Communications (HLC) is an award-winning multimedia PR/marketing agency specializing in hospitality and luxury travel. The agency, now celebrating its 20th anniversary, only represents products and companies that it believes in and who have a vision of changing the world.

This outlook drives its well-acknowledged excellence that has been recognized with 350+ national and international awards and accolades. They include “Best Branding,” “PR Innovator of the Year,” “Best Travel & Marketing PR,” “Best Social Media Campaign,” “Best Media Relations,” “Best Press Release Writing,” “Marketer of the Year,” “Social Impact Pioneer” and more.

To take global brand building and storytelling to the next level, the agency launched the “HLC Innovation” series consisting of pioneering initiatives that include:

● “Hospitality Forward” Podcast - We Believe Everyone Has a Story to Share!
○ With listeners in more than 160 countries, the agency's Michael Anstendig and Hanna Lee interview top journalists around the world each week.
○ Our distinguished media guests share practical tips and insights on how listeners can get their attention and potentially be featured in their stories.
○ This giving back to the community initiative is designed to help those who do not have a PR agency but have important expertise to share as a news source.
○ Our mission is to help industry professionals get to know these acclaimed journalists and also create a platform to spotlight media members whom we greatly admire.

● “HLC Global Bartender Travel Scholarship” - We Believe Travel Opens Minds and Palates!
○ Our agency's self-funded scholarship helps bartenders attend the cocktail conference of their choice around the world.
○ To date, our scholars have traveled to Tales of the Cocktail in New Orleans, London Cocktail Week, Bar Convent Berlin, Singapore Cocktail Week and other spirited conventions worldwide.

● “HLC Book Media” - We Believe Everyone Has a Book in Them!
○ HLC Book Media is a groundbreaking division that leverages traditional book publishing to help our clients reach wider audiences and create lasting legacies.
○ Our agency's first book, The Japanese Art of the Cocktail, by Katana Kitten's Masahiro Urushido and Michael Anstendig, earned accolades and acclaim that include:
■ Winner of a Spirited Award at Tales of the Cocktail
■ Finalist for a James Beard Award and IACP Award
■ Amazon Editors' Pick
■ A Barnes & Noble Best Book of 2021 (Cookbooks)

● “HLC Meet the Authors” - We Believe in Long-Form Storytelling!
○ The agency's ongoing series of book signings and panel discussions spotlights top scribes we admire.
○ Our mission is to help introduce these worthy authors and their books to national and global media.
○ To date, the agency has supported more than 100 authors whose topics include food, drink, travel, biographies and business.

● “HLC Meet the Media” - We Believe in the Future of Journalism!
○ This series of panel discussions hosted at HLC 2.0 Studio spotlights journalism and is moderated by the agency's Michael Anstendig and Hanna Lee.
○ Topics include:
■ “The Future of Drinks Journalism”
■ “The Future of Food Journalism”
■ “The Future of Travel Journalism”
■ “The Future of Hotel Journalism”
■ “The Future of Print Journalism”
■ “The Future of Broadcast Journalism”
■ “The Future of Podcast Journalism”
■ “The Future of Storytelling”
■ And others

● “HLC Inspiring Leaders” - We Believe in Fearless Leadership!
○ This ongoing series celebrates 300+ intrepid female leaders in the hospitality industry and beyond.
○ Our agency's President & Founder Hanna Lee personally interviewed these noted trailblazers who inspired her personally and shared their business and life mottos.

For more information about our agency, please visit www.hannaleecommunications.com. Connect with us on Instagram, Facebook, LinkedIn, X and TikTok.

# # #