“Texas has always had the talent, the stories, and the spirit—literally and figuratively. With Texas Cocktail Week, we’re giving our bartenders, distillers, and cocktail lovers the spotlight they deserve,” co-founder Rachel Boyd told Houston Public Media. (AP Photo/Charles Krupa)
Forget about wine, beer, and ciders—it’s time to sip on some elaborate cocktails for a discounted price with the start of Texas Cocktail Week, taking place in Houston.
From Sept. 14-21, Houstonians can indulge in discounted cocktails, masterclasses, seminars, and tastings. For $20, participants can purchase a cocktail passport which grants access to events and exclusive $5 cocktails at participating venues. Tickets will go on sale Sept. 1.
Participating bars include Reserve 101, Two Headed Dog, Bandista, Bayou & Bottle, Doris Metropolitan, Johnny’s Gold Brick, Julep, Eight Row Flint East End, Nickel City, Camaraderie, Eight Row Flint Heights, EZ’s Liquor Lounge, Bar Bludorn, and Navy Blue, with more to be announced.
“Texas has always had the talent, the stories, and the spirit—literally and figuratively. With Texas Cocktail Week, we’re giving our bartenders, distillers, and cocktail lovers the spotlight they deserve,” co-founder Rachel Boyd told Houston Public Media.
In recent years, cocktails have shown to be getting more and more expensive for a number of reasons. According to data from F&B Insights, trendy cocktails like espresso martinis and Aperol spritzes have seen a 4% to 6% price increase since 2023. While these price increases can be attributed to how popular these certain drinks are, even the price of alcohol has jumped up since the pandemic.
Per The Washington Post, the Consumer Price Index for alcohol experienced the largest increase in 40 years between 2020 and 2022.
“It can be a vicious cycle, because in order to pay your bills, you raise your menu prices, then your traffic, the number of people coming into your restaurant, is going to decrease,” Brett Thorn, senior food editor at Nation’s Restaurant News, told delish. “And so you might harm yourself even more by raising prices more than your guests are willing to accept.”
The recent tariffs put in place by President Donald Trump has also made an impact on the spirit industry, with liquors like Johnnie Walker and Campari going up in price.
“The tariffs will make every sip of wine more expensive,”Kyle Davidson, wine and beverage director of Day Off Group told Wine Enthusiast. “If importers have to pay more, they will charge more. If demand increases for domestic supply, that will increase prices as well.”
