Need to Know
10 : 08 : 23

UK – Brown’s Hotel's Donovan Bar in Mayfair, London, has introduced an innovative cocktail menu crafted to evoke a journey into, through and beyond emotions. Curated by industry icon Salvatore Calabrese and director of mixology Federico Pavan, the menu presents pairs of cocktails designed to provoke a range of responses.

The menu’s first pair is Red and Adrenaline. Red is created using Patrón reposado, Amaro Santoni, ancho reyes, red bell pepper, Montelobos mezcal and bubbles, and Adrenaline features Old Tom gin, Lucano Anniversario, liquorice, Grand Marnier and balsamic vinegar.

Another duo is Wonder and (In)decision, with wonder using ingredients including Patrón silver tequila, coconut and raspberry – ‘a moment to impress’, while, (In)decision reflects ‘which one to go for?’ and is made with pisco, Campari, Theorie Cuoir Lontain, rose and soda water.

The bar's Vintage Menu lists ‘treasured rarities’, elite cocktails priced from £120 ($154, €140) to £5,500 ($7,070, €4,311).

As explored in our Hotel Bar Market report, hotel venues are turning into destinations in their own right. By betting on unique experiential hospitality, the Donovan Bar aims to attract a non-resident clientele expecting a festival of flavours in a luxurious space. For the hotel, this 'placemaking' appeals to overnight guests.

Global – Some 200m Americans, accounting for 60% of the US population, have been under heat advisories or flood warnings since Thursday 27 July 2023, according to the National Weather Service. The ongoing heatwave, affecting regions from the Midwest to the Northeast and mid-Atlantic, has prompted excessive heat alerts due to expected higher-than-average night temperatures. This extreme weather scenario coincides with the prediction of severe thunderstorms in various areas, resulting in flash flood warnings for Great Lakes, Ohio Valley and parts of the Missouri Valley.

The World Meteorological Organisation and the EU’s Copernicus Climate Change Service have declared July 2023 as the hottest month on record. Heat experts emphasised the inequitable impacts of heatwaves which disproportionally affect marginalised communities such as homeless individuals, low-income residents and people of colour.

As explored in our Global Drivers 2030 and our Sustainability series, extreme heat will become a new normal for swathes of territories and disrupt all sectors. The era of global boiling has already started, according to the UN secretary general António Guterres – meaning businesses must adapt now to survive tomorrow.