As one of the spirits industry’s most well-known and liked pioneers and trendsetters, Colin Asare-Appiah, MC/LGBTQ+ Advocacy Trade Director, and winner of the coveted 2016 Tales of the Cocktail Spirited Award for “Best American Brand Ambassador”, and 2024 Tales Visionary Award, has been making waves and setting industry standards since he first got his start in the industry over three decades ago. Born in Ghana and raised in the UK, Colin began on this path as the original cocktail guide for BBC’S “The Good Food Show” with Anthony Worrel Thompson and started consulting on a myriad of spirit brands, truly immersing himself in all things spirit and cocktail right at cusp of the craft cocktail revolution.

From there, at the age 22, Colin co-founded the bar school, London Academy of Bartending along with industry professionals Douglas Ankrah, Richard Hargroves, Alex Turner and Andrew Chan-sing with the goal of teaching everything they had learned to rising bartenders, colleagues in the industry and beverage companies. Due to its immense success, the business morphed into a bar and was globally recognized as LAB, has become a renowned and benchmark establishment in the industry.

Since then, Colin has worked with numerous spirit brands, chefs, cocktail bars, and industry experts across the globe. He managed the bar at Jamie Oliver’s Fifteen Babington House and starred in his own show “The Cocktail Kings” on the DISCOVERY Channel where he and a co-presenter travelled around the world creating bespoke cocktails to reflect their destinations. The show is still being aired in Asia and South America.

Colin moved to the US in 2004 as a partner of a premium vodka brand and was responsible for all aspects of the business, from working with the TTB and customs to inspiring the distributors and sales teams across the country with innovative programming and inspiring and mentoring a new generation of bartenders.

In his current role, Colin is responsible for fostering brand advocacy for the Bacardi USA Brand Portfolio, building brand loyalty, and elevating the bartending community through brand focused educational programming, events, and seminars. His expertise and spirits knowledge has been featured in Imbibe, Complex, WSJ, TIME, and Cocktail Lovers Magazine to name a few. Colin currently resides in Brooklyn, NY with his wife and sons.