Birmingham’s biggest cocktail celebration is back this October, bringing four days of signature serves, mocktails, food pairings and exclusive experiences to bars across the city.
If there’s one thing Birmingham knows how to do well, it’s a night out. Add some of the city’s best bartenders, specially created cocktails and an entire long weekend to explore them, and things suddenly become considerably more interesting.
Birmingham Cocktail Weekend – Winter Edition returns from Thursday 22nd to Sunday 25th October, turning bars across Birmingham into one enormous cocktail trail.
Now in its 12th year, Birmingham Cocktail Weekend has grown into the city’s largest dedicated cocktail festival, and following the successful introduction of its Winter Edition in 2024, there are once again two editions in 2026. The summer party may be over, but October brings another four days to discover what Birmingham’s bar scene can do.
And this isn’t simply a case of sitting in one bar all evening.
The idea is to explore Birmingham one cocktail at a time.
How Birmingham Cocktail Weekend works
Your first job is to get yourself a festival ticket.
When the weekend arrives, take your e-ticket to The Hub at The Mailbox, where it can be exchanged for a Birmingham Cocktail Weekend wristband and guidebook.
That wristband is essentially your passport to the festival.
It gives you access to a specially created £6 signature cocktail at each of more than 30 participating venues, along with £5 alcohol-free alternatives. With cocktails at many of the participating bars ordinarily costing upwards of £10, it doesn’t take many stops before the wristband begins to earn its keep.
The really nice part is that you’re not tied to a particular route.
Pick up the guide, study the map and create your own cocktail crawl around Birmingham. You could carefully plan every stop beforehand – or simply start at The Mailbox and see where the evening takes you.
Your wristband remains valid throughout all four days, so there’s absolutely no requirement to squeeze everything into one heroic Saturday night.
More than just cocktails
One reason Birmingham Cocktail Weekend has endured is that it has developed into something much bigger than a collection of discounted drinks.
For the Winter Edition, selected venues will be offering a £9 signature cocktail and snack pairing, while the wristband also unlocks special food offers around the city.
Then there are the experiences.
Previous Birmingham Cocktail Weekends have included tastings, masterclasses, games, competitions and other special events, some free to wristband holders and others bookable separately.
The full Winter Edition 2026 events programme is being revealed closer to the festival, so we’d recommend keeping an eye on the official site rather than assuming the cocktails are the whole story.
Explore Birmingham Cocktail Weekend events and experiences
Discover somewhere new
Perhaps the best thing about the weekend is its ability to get people through the doors of bars they might normally walk straight past.
Birmingham’s drinking scene has changed enormously over the years. From stylish hotel bars and intimate cocktail hideaways to lively late-night venues, there’s a remarkable amount to discover within walking distance of the city centre.
And Birmingham Cocktail Weekend actively encourages you to explore.
In fact, organisers point out that venues further away from The Hub can sometimes be quieter – which sounds like the perfect excuse to leave your usual haunts behind and find a new favourite.
There’s an element of surprise too. The printed guidebook won’t necessarily reveal every detail of every signature drink in advance. Clues and cocktail reveals are shared through the festival’s social channels, meaning part of the fun is simply arriving and discovering what’s waiting behind the bar.
Don’t drink? You’re still invited
One particularly welcome element of BCW is that alcohol-free options aren’t treated as an afterthought.
Every participating venue is set to offer a £5 no-alcohol alternative to its signature cocktail, allowing non-drinkers, designated drivers and anyone simply pacing themselves to take part in the same city-wide experience.
That makes this much more of a social weekend than an old-fashioned booze crawl.
Make a weekend of it
If you’re coming into Birmingham from further afield, there’s even an excuse to stay over.
Malmaison Birmingham is the Winter Edition’s lead hotel, with festivalgoers offered a 10% discount on direct bookings for stays between 22 and 25 October using the code supplied with their e-ticket. You’ll need to show your festival wristband when checking in.
That opens up another possibility: Friday cocktails, Saturday shopping and dinner, followed by another gentle wander through the festival on Sunday.
Much more civilised.
THE BIRMINGHAM EDIT VERDICT
Birmingham Cocktail Weekend works because it celebrates something the city does exceptionally well – hospitality.
Rather than putting everything inside a conventional festival venue, BCW turns Birmingham itself into the venue.
You choose the bars. You choose the route. You choose whether your weekend consists of two cocktails after work or four days of discovering new places, food, experiences and flavours.
And with more than 30 participating venues, £6 signature cocktails, £5 mocktails and those £9 winter cocktail-and-snack pairings, there should be plenty to discover.
So gather a few friends, charge the phone, collect the wristband and prepare to shake up your October.
We’ll see you at the bar.
Birmingham Cocktail Weekend – Winter Edition 2026
Dates: Thursday 22 – Sunday 25 October 2026
Location: Participating venues across Birmingham
Starting point: The Hub at The Mailbox, Royal Mail Street, Birmingham B1 1RS
Age: 18+
Signature cocktails: £6
Alcohol-free signature drinks: £5
Selected cocktail & snack pairings: £9
Festival ticket: currently £13 + booking fee; the ticketing page currently displays £14.30 including its listed fee, with Last Chance tickets rising to £15 + booking fee after 18 October.
Individual bars operate their own opening hours, so there isn’t one universal daily start and finish time for all participating venues. The ticket listing describes the overall event window as 10am–11.55pm, but check your guide and individual venues before setting out.
Birmingham Cocktail Weekend – Winter Edition guide
Buy Birmingham Cocktail Weekend tickets
