Epic Advisory Panel Supports The Golden State of Cocktails, CA's First Annual Cocktail Celebration

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Last night, at the top of the Los Angeles Times building downtown, three dozen cocktail fans, makers and shakers gathered to celebrate the announcement of The Golden State of Cocktails, a new three-day conference and celebration of California's cocktail culture. In what used to be the Chandler family apartment, complete with a glassed-in atrium, plenty of mahogany and brass and some great views of downtown LA, The Golden State of Cocktails advisory board gave attendees a sneak peak of what was to come at the first conference, to be held next January 26-28, 2014.

Set to compete and complement New Orleans' Tales of the Cocktail and New York's Manhattan Cocktail Classic, The Golden State of Cocktails honors not only LA's contribution to the cocktail world, but will include and celebrate that of the whole state, including San Diego and San Francisco.

An educational component will be prominent at the event, with Alex Day and Dave Kaplan from Proprietors LLC overseeing demonstrations and classes. The hands-on tradeshow and festival is made possible with the clout and effort of an epic 17-person advisory panel:

Dave Bernahl, Co-Founder of Coastal Luxury Management (Pebble Beach Food & Wine)
Jeffrey Best, Best Events, Sporting Life
Erick Castro, Bourbon & Branch, Rickhouse (San Francisco), Polite Provisions (San Diego)
Bill Chait, Sprout Restaurant Group
Aiden Demarest, Neat, Liquid Assets Consulting
Daniel Djang, Thirsty in LA
H. Joseph Ehrmann, Elixer, President of Cocktail Ambassadors, Executive Director of San Francisco Cocktail Week
Simon Ford, Co-founder or The 86 Company
Mark Houston & Jonnie Houston, Piano Bar, Harvard & Stone, La Descarga, Pour Vous
Heidi Linnebach, Los Angeles Times, TASTE, Sprits of the Times
Jared Meisler, Owner of Bar Lubitsch, The Roger Room, The Pikey
Cedd Moses, 213 Ventures (The Varnish, Seven Grand, Cana Rum Bar, Las Perlas)
David Nepove, USBG National President, Director of Mixology Southern Wine & Spirits
David Othenin-Girard, K&L Wine Merchant's Spirits
Nathan Stanton, Consortium Holdings
Stacey Sun, Dine LA Director

Additional details to be released throughout the year. Cocktail enthusiasts, stay tuned. [EaterWire]