W SYDNEY · AUSTRALIA
Distinct drinking identities across W Sydney.
W Hotels · Sydney, Australia · Luxury Hotel · Bar Consultancy · Multi-venue Concept Development · Beverage Program Development · Creative R&D · Pre-Opening
CLIENT
W Hotels
location
Sydney, Australia
PROJECT
W Sydney
scope
Concept Development · Bar Consultancy · Beverage Program Development · Strategic R&D · Craftsmanship Training
THE PROGRAM
One hotel. Multiple drinking identities.
W Sydney brought together a collection of very different hospitality concepts under one roof. Working from the wider direction established for each venue, Cocktail Professor developed the beverage identities and operational framework across the hotel, translating each space into its own drinking experience while retaining the energy and character of the W brand.
The program moved from contemporary Asian drinking in Living Room and native Australian ingredients at Level 3 to bold poolside cocktails at WET, contrasting rooftop bar experiences across Levels 29 and 30, and progressive cocktails developed around the dessert experience at 2AM. Each required its own flavor direction, presentation and service approach, supported by a shared operational foundation behind the scenes.
MULTI-VENUE CONCEPT DEVELOPMENT
A different point of view for every venue.
Each venue called for a different interpretation of the wider W Sydney beverage direction. The W Hotels brand has a very distinctive style and tone of voice, which we like to represent in the cocktails as well, so the drinks are recognizable W. But we also wanted to give every venue it’s own story, own identity and own point of view.
This started by distinctive bar concepts per venue, and was uitgewerkt door keuze in type glaswerk and presentation, door toespitsen van bepaalde flavour profiles die pasten bij de cuisine of drinking moments of the venue, en natuurlijk door de presentatie, storytelling en serving rituals. The result was not a single cocktail language repeated throughout the hotel, but a collection of beverage identities shaped around where, when and how guests would drink.
THE VENUES
ONE BRAND. DIFFERENT STORIES TO TELL
LIVING ROOM: CONTEMPORARY ASIA
Contemporary Asian cocktails influenced by modern Asian design and style. Drinks that are light on the palate, letting the quality and purity of ingredients shine through and with the use of a curated selection of funky sake’s and soju’s. Futuristic artistic glassware and playing with abstract shapes and colors. Think about a fresh mangosteen juice Saketini with ginger flower foam, fresh curry leaf and pineapple milk punch, sakura & rice gimlet or our boba cocktail.
29/30 · UPPER LEVEL — LEGENDS, FORGOTTEN CLASSICS & VINTAGE SPIRITS
Vintage spirits & amaro’s, forgotten classic recipes and the finest ingredients shaped the more sophisticated upper-level of the rooftop experience. Classic cocktail from the menu or something bespoke created for them. The menu itself honored Australians who achieved extraordinary recognition, including Sir Howard Florey, Don Bradman, Nellie Melba, Eddie Mabo and Barry Humphries.
level 3 - btwn: native australian
A hyper-local direction rooted in New South Wales and Australian produce, with native ingredients and local craft producers at the heart of the drinks. The program moved beyond familiar native flavors to lesser-known ingredients, with an adventurous, raw-natural character that brought the stories of lcraftspeople into the experience. No conventional cocktail menu. Instead, guests discovered the drinks through a collection of aromas, each created from a single native ingredient. Choosing an aroma is the way to choose a cocktail.
29/30 · loweR LEVEL — refined tropical drinking
The lower level took a more vibrant approach to rooftop drinking, blending fresh-pressed Australian produce with some more exotic ingredients from around the equator. An exotic signature cocktail menu that creates a candlelit shrine to tropical drinking. A new sophisticated way of serving you your summer cocktail. Refined, but still that super-refreshing pleasure. Think about grilled pineapple with agave nectar, roasted watermelon seeds infusion, or fat washing with peanut oil.
wet : bold + colorfulL drinking
WET took a more expressive approach to poolside drinking, drawing on the bold character and visual world of Frida Kahlo. Tropical fruits, florals, color and playful presentation gave the drinks their energy, while more mature flavor profiles kept the program balanced and distinctive. Cocktails with fearless characteristics decorated with loads of flowers.
2AM DESSERT BAR BY JANICE WONG — desser cocktails
Developed to pair with the desserts of Janice Wong, the 2AM cocktails followed the same progressive approach to flavor, pushing the boundaries between sweet and savory. Cocktails became an extension of the dessert experience, with salted apple and rhubarb bowties, Davidson plum and pecan sugared rims, beeswax-infused brandy and chocolate honeycomb garnishes. Developed in close collaboration with the pastry team.
CREATIVE R&D
learning across disciplines.
One of the most inspiring parts of working in a creative field like ‘beverage design’ or ‘liquid art’ is collaborating with other creative minds from different disciplines, and learning how their techniques can be used in each other’s work. For 2AM, developing cocktails alongside the dessert world of Janice Wong opened up a different set of techniques, textures and possibilities. Pastry chefs are masters of precision and garnish development, and collaborating alongside them is always a pleasure across our projects.
Salted apple and rhubarb fruit-leather fans, designed to complement the flavors of the drink, could be developed in the pastry kitchen. But the collaboration also opened up possibilities for complex syrups, chocolate honeycomb garnishes and house-made Davidson plum and pecan powdered sugar. Bringing techniques and ideas from pastry directly into the drinking experience. Rather than treating these pastry kind of garnishes as decoration, these elements became part of the flavor, texture and experience of the drink.
Working with hyper-local Australian ingredients meant looking deeply into native produce, including lesser-known ingredients, and exploring how modern techniques could be used to work with them in different ways. Clarified 'bush tomato' and strawberry water, torched black Davidson plums, butter-washed Rhubi Mistelle, or dehydrated Quandong Fruit. Trying to highlight the unique characteristics of this native product in different types of expressions.
BAR LOGISTIC & PRE-OPENING SUPPORT
make complexity work in service.
Developing distinctive cocktails is one part of the process. But making sure they can be prepared consistently, efficiently and with speed is another part. For W Sydney, we developed a strong logistic and operational system supporting the beverage programs across the hotel, with attention to mise-en-place preparation, workflow and the practical demands of each venue.
Pre-batching played an important role, allowing more complex preparations ( including clarified ingredients, infusions and fat-washed spirits) to be able to include into a high-volume service without compromising on consistency or speed. But also the way we setup the bars, detailed opening and closing lists, and tailor-made standard operating procedures were developed to support the teams behind the bar, leaving more time for presentation, storytelling and interaction with guests.
PRESS & RECOGNITION
From opening to recognition.
FEATURED BY CONDÉ NAST TRAVELER
“Food and drink at W Sydney. As expected for a hotel this size, you’re spoiled for choice… At ‘Living Room’, the drinks menu has an Asian tilt with cocktails like coconut oil-washed shochu, Japanese blended whisky concoctions, and an extensive sake list… From 6 p.m., head to the rooftop bar and restaurant 29/30 for tropical spiked cocktails and casual bites… Upstairs, on the top floor, the bar serves vintage hard-to-get champagne and spirits by the glass.”
— Condé Nast Traveler
DMARGE
“The cocktails were divine.”
— DMARGE
NSW ACCOMMODATION AWARDS FOR EXCELLENCE
29/30 · BAR OF THE YEAR · 2026
Following the opening, W Sydney’s in-house team continued to develop and evolve the beverage program. In 2026, 29/30 was named Bar of the Year in the Deluxe–Luxury Hotels category at the NSW Accommodation Awards for Excellence.
OUR SCOPE
From research to opening.
Bar Consultancy · Creative R&D · Hotel-Wide Bar Consultancy · Multi-Venue Concept Development · Beverage Program Development · Menu Architecture · Conceptual Menu Development Craftsmanship Training · Opening Support
START A CONVERSATION
Developing a new bar or beverage program?
We work with hotels, resorts and hospitality groups on new openings and ambitious beverage programs around the world.