Recently my sister and I were invited to a blogger and media event at The Cosy Club Norwich where we could take part in a socially distanced cocktail masterclass. It goes without saying that I eagerly replied yes please to the invitation as soon as it landed in my inbox!
I had never tried making my own cocktails before (to be honest I don’t really drink much apart from the occasional can of Pink G+T or a fruity cocktail) so I was excited to give it a go. Plus they had offered to feed us too with a selection of free tapas…..there was definitely no chance me or my sister would miss this! We were lucky enough to attend the opening press night of The Cosy Club back in February 2019 and we’d had some tapas back then and they were so delicious! You can read that review here >> www.mymummyreviews.com/2019/02/the-cosy-club-in-norwich-is-now-open-and-the-venue-is-breathtaking/
The cocktail masterclass took place on Thursday 27th August at 6pm in ‘The Vault’ at the Cosy Club in the middle of Norwich city centre and 12 of us attended. The Vault is their private dining room on the basement level of their beautiful venue. The Cosy Club building used to be a bank and The Vault really was a bank vault. It even has the big grill door!
The venue is so impressive to look at and the pictures you can take there really are so instagram-worthy! Especially the domed ceiling which is in the main restaurant (see the photo below). The furnishings, the decor, the lighting, the staff’s vintage style uniform, the food presentation…..it’s so obvious that The Cosy Club have paid a lot of attention to detail when planning everything to do with their brand. I love this!
For the purposes of this review our attendance at this Cocktail Masterclass event was #gifted however if you’d like to attend a Cocktail Masterclass in the very same place (The Vault in The Cosy Club Norwich) then you’re able to book a private masterclass for a minimum of 6 people. The price you pay per guest varies depending on whether you only learn how to make the cocktails and drink them or whether you have food too .
There’s a choice between cocktail making but with no food (£30pp), cocktail making with tapas (£40pp), cocktail making with a 2 course meal (£45pp) or cocktail making with a 3 course meal (£50pp). The Cocktail Masterclass is also available to book at the following Cosy Club venues: Birmingham, Bournemouth, Guildford, Hereford, Ipswich (Cosy Club Ipswich does not have a private room), Leicester, Nottingham, Stamford, Taunton and York.
So I shall now let you know about our evening….in short, it was amazing fun and so lovely to have a night out with my little sister. We are both mums and don’t get to spend much time alone just relaxing together so thanks Cosy Club for giving us that opportunity. However, I don’t do short bits of concise text…instead I write lots as I am a chatterbox both online and in person….so here goes!……….
On the evening of the cocktail event we were running a bit late and because of that I phoned the venue to let them know and the friendly staff member who answered the phone said they would let the host know. Sadly we are still living through the Covid-19 pandemic so things were going to be a bit different to the ‘old normal’ at the event but as you know all we can do is try to stay safe for ourselves and to protect each other. For that reason my sister and I both had our face masks on when we arrived at the venue and we kept them on all the way down to The Vault.
The Cosy Club had assured me before attending the event, that the evening would be socially distanced and Covid-19 secure and they were true to their word! Even though us guests didn’t wear masks (because we would be eating and drinking), the hosts and all staff that came into the room had theirs on at all times. It made us feel safe because we knew we were protected from them and it was good to know that they were protected from us too.
It pains me to talk about masks and Covid-19 because I hate the fact we are having to live through these uncertain times where everyone’s beautiful smiling faces are covered but needs must and The Cosy Club did their utmost to make us feel secure in our evening out. The tables were all laid out with a big gap between them so we could all socially distance but sit in our own ‘bubble’, we were each supplied with gloves so we could put them on when taking part in the cocktail masterclass, the tables were cleaned all the time and the staff politely asked if it was okay for them to do so (even though we knew they had to…but the fact they actually asked us was a lovely touch which was appreciated) but other than that it was just like any other normal evening out.
The instagrammers, bloggers and press that attended were all lovely happy people who were there to have a nice evening – just like me and my sister. It was really nice to go to this event and get to meet new people…even though we were at a distance and not mingling like old times! The lovely, cheerful Instagrammer ‘MissHollyP’ was at the event and she was so friendly to everyone and she made the suggestion to the host of having an ‘icebreaker’ so we all stood up and said a little bit about ourselves. That really helped us all feel at ease and got everyone into a chatty mood. Thanks Holly! 🙂
We were given cocktails on arrival (a ‘Blow a Raspberry at Collin’ cocktail and also a shot of Rhubarb and Elderflower Spritz), we watched the bartender show us how to make some different cocktails (English Garden, Cherry Bakewell and Vanilla Espresso Martini), we each had a go at making one ourselves and then drank them! (I made a Cherry Bakewell and my sister made a Vanilla Espresso Martini….plus we ‘claimed’ the English Garden sample that the bartender had made so we could try it for ourselves) and to perfectly complete what was already a wonderful night…. we got to order a selection of tapas each from the menu. My sister and I shared a whole baked Camembert with fresh bread, some halloumi sticks and the pulled beef brisket with blue cheese and ciabatta. The food was so delicious – just as we had remembered from last time. Luckily for me my sister isn’t a blue cheese fan so I got to eat the whole beef brisket tapas myself…..it was so tasty!
Cocktail and Tapas Menu Descriptions can be seen below >>
Cherry Bakewell Cocktail: Take cherry juice & Amaretto almond liqueur, gently mix with Mount Gay rum, add a drop of caramel syrup to sweeten & bake (or rather shake) then garnish with a cherry.
English Garden: A delightful mix of all things British; Hendrick’s gin, pressed apple juice & elderflower over ice, finished with cucumber. Just the ticket.
Vanilla Espresso Martini: Our own cold brew coffee syrup shaken with Smirnoff vanilla vodka, a hint of Tia Maria and a dash of chocolate bitters. Guaranteed to put the spring back in your step.
Rhubarb & Elderflower Spritz: A shimmery goddess of a drink with Warner’s rhubarb gin, elderflower, fizz and a touch of sparkle. Created by Sally Latham from Cosy Club Cheltenham.
Blow a Raspberry at Collin: Pucker up for our Chase GB gin, raspberry shrub, fresh lemon juice and soda beauty, sealed with a kiss.
Halloumi Sticks: with chipotle chilli jam.
Pulled Beef Brisket: with blue cheese and ciabatta
Whole Baked Camembert: with garlic & rosemary, toasted ciabatta and tomato chutney.
You can view the full Cosy Club Menu on this link >> cosyclub.co.uk/menus/
The Cocktail Masterclass was the first time I had ever attempted to make my own ‘proper’ cocktail and I really enjoyed it. The only thing that worried me was the thought I might drop the big expensive bottles of alcohol when I poured the spirits into the ‘jigger’ before tipping them into the ‘Boston Shaker’ (look at me sounding all fancy!). However, I can happily report that no breakages occurred and I thoroughly enjoyed the excitement of the ‘shakey shakey’ bit that mixed up my alcoholic concoction! I was very impressed when I finished making the Cherry Bakewell cocktail because when I poured it into the ‘Hurricane Cocktail’ glass it became apparent that I had measured it so precisely that the drink fitted perfectly into the glass. Yay!
When the masterclass had finished, my sister and I decided to head upstairs to the main restaurant to order some desserts to try. We opted for the Apple Tart with Caramel Sauce and Warm Chocolate Brownie plus we also bought a Pink Lemonade mocktail (Lemonade, pomegranate, lemon juice and ginger ale over a strawberry muddle) to try. The desserts were delicious and the drink was really refreshing. A wonderful end to a superb evening!
My sister and I had a great evening together – so much so that I even shared on Instagram a photo of the two of us enjoying the cocktails we made! I’m rather shy when it comes to sharing my picture online and after 10 years of blogging I only shared my first selfie online a few weeks ago so it was really nice to have an opportunity to carry on with my new found bravery and share another snap!
If you are interested in booking a private cocktail masterclass at The Cosy Club Norwich you can do so by getting in touch with them on 01603 358640 or by emailing norwichbookings@cosyclub.co.uk. The restaurant is located at 45-51 London Street, Norwich, NR2 1HX…..so really close to the city centre.
Thanks so much Cosy Club for #gifting us both places on your Cocktail Masterclass – we had a fantastic time!
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