The fourth edition of the event, conceived and directed by Paola Mencarelli under the patronage of the City of Venice and with the support of Vela, will take place from Wednesday, October 22 to Sunday, October 26, 2025, across 28 cocktail bars in Venice selected for the occasion.
“Once again, Venice Cocktail Week shines a spotlight on the lagoon’s excellence,” says Paola Mencarelli. “Created to promote a culture of high-quality, mindful, and responsible drinking, the event aims above all to highlight the professional figures of the city’s bar scene, strengthening their network within the community. It also provides an opportunity for novices, enthusiasts, and professionals to meet and discuss current and future trends in the field of mixology. A one-of-a-kind project that brings the city together through a new and immersive way of enjoying drinks”.
“Since its inception, The Bar has had the privilege of playing a leading role in Venice Cocktail Week, sharing in its spirit and vision,” adds Licinio Garavaglia, General Manager of Aman Venice. “Hosting this event always means opening Aman Venice to a dialogue between different worlds and sensibilities, united by a desire to explore drinking as a conscious, shared, and innovative act”.
“Venice Cocktail Week has become a fixture on the city’s calendar,” states Simone Venturini, Venice’s Councillor for Tourism. “With each edition, the event strengthens its bond with the city and brings value, attracting an international, aware, and respectful audience. This aligns perfectly with the Administration’s goals: through top-tier mixology, we enliven venues, create experiences, and highlight our social and urban heritage, involving industry professionals and expanding the city’s cultural offerings. This October, we will write a new chapter in a story that has already linked fine dining with local creative and production scenes. A widespread, city-wide experience that includes hotels and venues in the historic centre and is once again set to enrich all who take part. Sincere thanks to Paola Mencarelli and her team for continuing to believe in Venice and in the many professionals who work here with passion and dedication every day”.
“This event continues to be one of the most anticipated events on Venice’s calendar,” concludes Fabrizio D’Oria, COO of Vela S.p.A. “Thanks to the participation and warm welcome from the city’s hospitality professionals, Venice Cocktail Week offers a unique itinerary between tradition and innovation in a sector increasingly focused on quality”.
Venice Cocktail Week 2025 follows the format of previous years and its sister events: Florence Cocktail Week, Amalfi Coast Cocktail Week, and Cortina Cocktail Weekend.
FIVE DAYS OF EVENTS AND AN EXCLUSIVE DRINK LIST
One of the major new features of Venice Cocktail Week 2025 is its duration. This year, Paola Mencarelli has reduced the event from 7 to 5 days—an effort to streamline the schedule and make the festival more focused and enjoyable not only for participants and partner brands but also for the wider public coming to the Lagoon to fully experience it.
The five days will be packed with content for enthusiasts, experts, and professionals: curated cocktail lists, masterclasses, brunches, aperitifs, ICW pop-up bars, and guest shifts featuring local, national, and international talents. The program will also include cultural initiatives, recreational activities, and experiences designed for newcomers, aiming to introduce the broader public to thoughtful, quality mixology.
The fourth edition will involve the best cocktail bars in Venice, divided into Hotel Bars and Cocktail Bars, along with their bartenders, who will showcase their creativity and skills through a tailor-made VCW25 cocktail list.
COCKTAIL LIST VCW25
Each of the 28 participating bars will present 2 exclusive cocktails made using products from Main Sponsors and Sponsors:
- SIGNATURE COCKTAIL: a creative, original drink that represents the identity of the bar.
- MIDDAY APERITIF: a light, fresh drink perfect for the classic Venetian midday aperitif and suitable at any time of day.
VCW25 EVENTS
As with other Italian Cocktail Weeks, Venice Cocktail Week is all about exploring the city through a curated itinerary across the participating hotel and cocktail bars, discovering the drinks created for the event. For five days, Venice Cocktail Week will spotlight local venues, giving everyone a chance to get to know these establishments and the expertise of their bartenders, who promote responsible drinking and meaningful interaction between guests and professionals through their creations.
Resident bartenders will also be honoured through the expressive and impactful portraits by renowned portrait photographer Veronica Gaido, one of Italy’s most appreciated contemporary artists.
As in past editions, special focus will also be placed on the Signature Cocktails of each participating bar, captured in stunning photos by Michele Tamasco, a well-known food & drink photographer and videomaker.
ICW POP-UP BARS
Following the success of the ICW Pop-Up Bars at the 2024 Amalfi Coast Cocktail Week and Florence Cocktail Week 2025, Paola Mencarelli is bringing this format to Venice. The VCW25 bars and hotel bars, along with partner event venues, will host Pop-Up Bars from other major Italian Cocktail Weeks.
While we await the full official program (to be released in mid-October on all Venice Cocktail Week channels), two major events have already been confirmed:
- Opening Party – Wednesday, October 22 at Aman Venice: a unique, invite-only event and now a must-attend highlight, curated by Antonio Ferrara, Bar Manager at The Bar at Aman Venice.
- Closing Party – Sunday, October 26 at Arts Bar, The St. Regis Venice: a major new addition for VCW25. This invitation-only event will be open to the bartender community and marks the finale of the festival at one of Venice’s iconic hotels.
Events will also be hosted by selected Event Partners – hotel bars and cocktail bars that do not present a VCW25 Cocktail List but will host cultural and recreational events, alongside other exclusive locations.
All VCW events are open to the public. Educational events are free but require reservation, while events inside participating venues are either ticketed or invite-only. The Cocktail Lists and Event Calendar, will be available on the official website: www.venicecocktailweek.it
DESIGN
Design has always been a key element of VCW, starting with the branding. The Venice Cocktail Week logo was designed by Piero Lissoni with Lissoni&Partners, who offered a minimalist, clean, and elegant interpretation that connects cocktails with the city of Venice—featuring a Martini glass transformed into a gondola, originally drawn by Marino Lucchetti, Bar Manager at LPV Bar, Londra Palace Venezia.
PARTICIPATING COCKTAIL BARS
HOTEL BARS
- Alchemia Bar, Ca’ di Dio
- Arts Bar, The St.Regis Venice
- Bar Biblioteca, Nolinski Venezia
- Experimental Cocktail Club, Il Palazzo Experimental
- Il Caravellino, Hotel Saturnia & International
- *Il Piccolo Bar, Violino d’Oro
- *Il Porto Lounge Bar, Palazzo Veneziano
- *Lord Byron, Palazzo Keller
- Orientalbar & Bistrot, Hotel Metropole Venezia
- Santa Cocktail Club Venezia, Hotel L’Orologio Venezia
- Skyline Rooftop Bar, Hilton Molino Stucky Venice
- The Bar at Aman Venice, Aman Venice
- *The “G” Lounge & Garden Bar, Hotel Nani Mocenigo Palace
- *Venixino Lounge & Garden, Donà Palace
COCKTAIL BARS
- Blue Drop Venice
- Caffè Florian
- Caffè Lavena
- Grancaffè Quadri
- Il Mercante
- La Barrique Wine Bar
- Marciano
- *Mirai
- *Moro Venice
- *Rétro
- *Rivoire
- Tarnowska’s American Bar
- Terrazza Aperol
- Time Social Bar
EVENT PARTNERS (TBD)
- All’Angelo Art Cafè
- Aurora Beach Bar
- Bar Colombina, Hotel Colombina
- Hard Rock Café
- Heureka Bar, Hotel Heureka
- San Giorgio Cafè
- *Tappa Bistrot
- Venissa
* New entry 2025
MAIN SPONSORS
Altamura Distilleries, Frantoio di Sant’Agata d’Oneglia, Nonino, Polot 1882, Select, Sospiri Botaniche Veneziane, Velier
SPONSORS
Baldoria Vermouth, Cachaca Blu, Campari Group, Ferro Beverage&co, Legend Kombucha, Lucano 1894, No.3 London Dry Gin, Yerbito
PAOLA MENCARELLI
Born and raised in Tuscany’s Crete Senesi, Paola has always been immersed in the region’s food and wine culture. With a degree in French literature and a master’s in journalism, communication, and food criticism, she successfully blended her passions with professional writing, becoming a journalist and contributing to Gambero Rosso’s guides. Her event organization experience and growing passion for mixology led her to create Italy’s first cocktail week. In 2016, she founded and became the artistic director of Florence Cocktail Week, followed by Tuscany Cocktail Week in 2019. In 2021, she was invited to Venice, where she launched Venice Cocktail Week, followed by Cortina Cocktail Weekend in 2022, debuting the first-ever “Mixology’s Cup” on skis. In 2024, she launched Amalfi Coast Cocktail Week, a unique cocktail week dedicated to the finest bars on the Amalfi Coast and across Campania.
In late 2023, she decided to unite all her events under “Italian Cocktail Weeks by Paola Mencarelli”, and in 2025 introduced the ICW Reunion format.
With Giunti Editore, she published the book “I Signature Cocktail di Florence Cocktail Week, 5 anni in 143 drink” in 2021. She is a judge for several major Italian and international rankings and was awarded the Order of Merit as a Console of Italian Hospitality in 2022.
Venice Cocktail Week is an event under the patronage of the City of Venice, supported by Vela S.p.A.