BEN MCFARLAND is an award-winning beer expert and was voted Britain’s Beer Writer of the Year in both 2004 and 2006. Part of The Thinking Drinkers duo, with Tom Sandham, the pair are regular commentators on ale-related matters for many publications, including The Daily Telegraph, The Spectator, The Guardian and Metro. The Thinking Drinkers have performed sell-out shows at the Edinburgh Festival for the past five years. This year’s show ‘Around the World in 80 Drinks’ will have a 9-week run in London and surrounding areas in Autumn 2016, with an 80-date UK tour planned for 2017.
Tom Sandham is a highly-respected drinks writer in London who is at the forefront of cocktail culture. He writes a cocktail column for
The Times online and is former editor of
CLASS, the number one magazine in the world of cocktails. He has judged at the most prestigious cocktail competitions all over the world, landing in countries as diverse and distant as Lapland or Cuba on a weekly basis. As a judge, he has achieved a bond with the world’s most innovative and experienced bartenders and has his finger on the pulse of the significant trends in the creative drinks industry. Tom has been writing about all things drink for a number of years. As well as contributing to the leading industry titles, he is also the co-author of the
Good Beer Guide West Coast USA and has written for several newspapers and magazines including
The Times, Decanter and
Esquire. He is co-creator of the discerning drinks website http://www.dwink.com and currently edits the in-house magazine for the Soho House group that has exclusive members-only clubs in London, New York, Los Angeles, Miami and Berlin and is amongst the elite 99 people who can claim fingerprint recognition at the hidden 99 bar in Manchester.