A new event of interest to professional beverage makers, bar owners and fans of alcoholic spirits will make its debut this month in San Antonio.

Local nonprofit group Culinaria will hold the inaugural Third Coast Cocktail Summit from Jan. 11-14.

While Drury Plaza Hotel San Antonio Riverwalk will host most cocktail summit activities, special happy hours, pop-up parties and dinners will take place at several bars and restaurants around downtown San Antonio.

According to organizers, the cocktail summit is designed as a fun and educational vehicle to showcase San Antonio’s cocktail scene and to promote talent within the local bar, restaurant and beverage-maker industry.

Daytime activities at Drury Plaza Hotel will involve a variety of industry seminars, panel discussions and other presentations where speakers and attendees will explore different spirits; bar and restaurant operations; resources and trends; and ongoing challenges resulting from the COVID-19 pandemic, inflation and labor shortages.

While anyone may attend the seminars, industry professionals who take all three days of seminar will be awarded a certificate, organizers said.

Attendees of daytime programming are welcome to enjoy drinks and other event activities at the Drury Plaza Hotel bar and patio, organizers said.

Nighttime during the cocktail summit will include what organizers call “spirited dinners” featuring specialized food and drink pairings or specific spirits. The dinners will be offered at restaurants such as Meadow, The Moon’s Daughters and Landrace.

Four of the five late afternoons and evenings of the Third Coast Cocktail Summit will also involve happy hours, guest bartenders and pop-up happenings at various bars, such as Bar 321, TBA, The Squeezebox, The Good Kind, Near Dark, and Besame Bar and Food Truck Park.

The last day of the cocktail summit, Jan. 14, will include a coffee brunch at Backyard on Broadway, free craft beer samplings at The Friendly Spot and a final evening cocktail party at the Witte Museum.

Organizers said attendees may buy an all-access pass to enter all cocktail summit activities or tickets or passes to specific programming.