Norfolk


<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img decoding="async" loading="lazy" width="714" height="1000" src="https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/norfolk/wp-content/uploads/sites/12/2024/01/tipsyjar-cocktails-norwich-laura-watling4-714x1000.jpg" alt="Laura Watling, owner of TipsyJar cocktail bar in Norwich" class="wp-image-47519" srcset="https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/norfolk/wp-content/uploads/sites/12/2024/01/tipsyjar-cocktails-norwich-laura-watling4-714x1000.jpg 714w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/norfolk/wp-content/uploads/sites/12/2024/01/tipsyjar-cocktails-norwich-laura-watling4-571x800.jpg 571w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/norfolk/wp-content/uploads/sites/12/2024/01/tipsyjar-cocktails-norwich-laura-watling4-768x1075.jpg 768w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/norfolk/wp-content/uploads/sites/12/2024/01/tipsyjar-cocktails-norwich-laura-watling4.jpg 1000w" sizes="(max-width: 714px) 100vw, 714px" /></figure>



<p>Cocktail wizards <a href="https://norfolk.muddystilettos.co.uk/little-black-book/directory/tipsy-jar-norwich/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Tipsyjar</a> are certainly shaking up the mixology scene in Norfolk with their quirky city bar, innovative cocktail delivery service and fun &#8216;shake it yourself&#8217; bar hire for private events. Usually found with a sketchbook on-hand to doodle her latest drink designs, co-owner Laura is known for her discerning palate and head for business. </p>



<p>Tipsyjar was born in 2020, delivering freshly made, bartender-worthy cocktails to the door at a time when no one was going out. The polished pours went down a storm and a year later Tipsyjar opened its central Norwich bar serving its delicious concoctions in shake-your-own lidded jars, with homemade garnishes on the side. It&#8217;s no surprise Tipsyjar was crowned Best Bar in the Muddy Awards soon after.</p>



<p>Tastebuds tingling? Dive into our new quick-fire feature where drinks producers reveal where and what they love to drink, top tips and weird moments. </p>



<p>Ready Laura? Annnd, go!</p>



<figure class="wp-block-image size-full"><img decoding="async" loading="lazy" width="1000" height="1000" src="https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/norfolk/wp-content/uploads/sites/12/2024/01/tipsyjar-cocktails-norwich-laura-watling1-2.jpg" alt="Cocktails designs in sketchbook " class="wp-image-47509" srcset="https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/norfolk/wp-content/uploads/sites/12/2024/01/tipsyjar-cocktails-norwich-laura-watling1-2.jpg 1000w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/norfolk/wp-content/uploads/sites/12/2024/01/tipsyjar-cocktails-norwich-laura-watling1-2-800x800.jpg 800w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/norfolk/wp-content/uploads/sites/12/2024/01/tipsyjar-cocktails-norwich-laura-watling1-2-400x400.jpg 400w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/norfolk/wp-content/uploads/sites/12/2024/01/tipsyjar-cocktails-norwich-laura-watling1-2-768x768.jpg 768w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/norfolk/wp-content/uploads/sites/12/2024/01/tipsyjar-cocktails-norwich-laura-watling1-2-500x500.jpg 500w" sizes="(max-width: 1000px) 100vw, 1000px" /></figure>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-your-first-job-in-the-drinks-biz">Your first job in the drinks biz?</h2>



<p>I was 13 working external weddings and events for a hotel in the South of France. My first shift was 16 hours and my mother was terrified I’d been kidnapped. I got dropped off fast asleep at 2am in a stranger&#8217;s car. I loved it and haven’t left the industry since.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading">Your biggest career highlight?</h2>



<p>Opening my own bar would be the obvious one, but in all honesty being able to navigate it in a way that I can work with my wife is a genuine career highlight. Anyone who works hospitality knows it&#8217;s a lifestyle choice. For the first time in our seven year relationship, we can finally enjoy time off together.</p>



<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img decoding="async" loading="lazy" width="833" height="1000" src="https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/norfolk/wp-content/uploads/sites/12/2024/01/tipsyjar-cocktails-norwich-laura-watling4-2-833x1000.jpg" alt="Crushed freeze-dried raspberries garnish sprinkled onto a Bramble Twist pink cocktail at TipsyJar cocktail bar in Norwich" class="wp-image-47518" srcset="https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/norfolk/wp-content/uploads/sites/12/2024/01/tipsyjar-cocktails-norwich-laura-watling4-2-833x1000.jpg 833w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/norfolk/wp-content/uploads/sites/12/2024/01/tipsyjar-cocktails-norwich-laura-watling4-2-667x800.jpg 667w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/norfolk/wp-content/uploads/sites/12/2024/01/tipsyjar-cocktails-norwich-laura-watling4-2-768x922.jpg 768w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/norfolk/wp-content/uploads/sites/12/2024/01/tipsyjar-cocktails-norwich-laura-watling4-2.jpg 1000w" sizes="(max-width: 833px) 100vw, 833px" /></figure>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading">How would you sum up your drinks philosophy?</h2>



<p>Don’t underestimate the power of a good garnish, as long as you have the quality of the drink to back it up. I believe there are four key parts to serving the perfect drink! Drink (of course), glassware, garnish and service. A good-looking drink and passionate team can sell anything and encourage your customers to take change to step out of their comfort zone.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading">Most memorable moment at work?</h2>



<p>Tipsyjar’s opening night &#8211; for all the wrong reasons! Our beer lines didn’t get installed until two hours before the doors opened, the till system wasn’t working until an hour before first orders, and we didn’t expect to be half as busy as we were – it all went wrong. But what fun we had! Taking the leap without Ellie (wife), Bri, Panka, and the rest of the team honestly would never have been possible. These three have known me in this industry working for other venues for so long, I was incredibly lucky to have their trust, saying they’ll follow wherever I go (and have several times!). I never expected our next venture to be my own place, and the looks of “we’ve got this” when everything was going wrong will never go unappreciated &#8211; even though at the time I was slipping on ice serving the wrong drinks to wrong table and all I needed was a tequila.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading">You&#8217;re celebrating, what are you ordering?</h2>



<p>It’s an old-school one I’m afraid. P<em>o</em>usse Rapière and Champagne! It’s been the family drink for as long as I can remember &#8211; celebrations, wedding, funerals. It’s a drink that originated in Gascony region of France, which I was lucky enough to grown up in. We might not have gotten on with snails and duck gizzards but show us some booze and we were more than happy to get involved! P<em>o</em>usse Rapière is an Armagnac-based orange liqueur and makes a mean substitute for triple sec in a Mai Tia or Cosmopolitan.</p>



<figure class="wp-block-image size-full"><img decoding="async" loading="lazy" width="1000" height="1000" src="https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/norfolk/wp-content/uploads/sites/12/2024/01/tipsyjar-cocktails-norwich-laura-watling2-2.jpg" alt="&quot;Kinda&quot; Bueno cocktail at TipsyJar cocktail bar in Norwich" class="wp-image-47512" srcset="https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/norfolk/wp-content/uploads/sites/12/2024/01/tipsyjar-cocktails-norwich-laura-watling2-2.jpg 1000w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/norfolk/wp-content/uploads/sites/12/2024/01/tipsyjar-cocktails-norwich-laura-watling2-2-800x800.jpg 800w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/norfolk/wp-content/uploads/sites/12/2024/01/tipsyjar-cocktails-norwich-laura-watling2-2-400x400.jpg 400w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/norfolk/wp-content/uploads/sites/12/2024/01/tipsyjar-cocktails-norwich-laura-watling2-2-768x768.jpg 768w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/norfolk/wp-content/uploads/sites/12/2024/01/tipsyjar-cocktails-norwich-laura-watling2-2-500x500.jpg 500w" sizes="(max-width: 1000px) 100vw, 1000px" /><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">Tipsyjar&#8217;s &#8220;Kinda&#8221; Bueno</figcaption></figure>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading">Best bar you’ve ever visited?</h2>



<p>Ain&#8217;t Nothin&#8217; But Blues, Soho, for the atmosphere. It&#8217;s a buzzing tiny bar where you can experience amazing live house or open-mic musicians, playing great music to a crowd just enjoying the here and now all at the same time. The loos are full of forbidden love letters scratched into the cubicle walls. It&#8217;s hard not to soak it all in and forget everything else for a few hours.</p>



<p>And just for the drinks: Old Fashioned cocktail bar in Barcelona (make mine an old fashioned, obviously).</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading">What’s on your boozy bucket list?</h2>



<p>Design, shake and serve the first cocktail in space!</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading">What drink deserves more appreciation?</h2>



<p>The OG Mai Tai. Over the year it has been abused with various tropical flavours that people think is &#8216;the real deal&#8217;. Don’t get me wrong, we love a good twist, but when some orders one and asks &#8220;where’s the pineapple juice?&#8221;, a small part of me dies. Especially when the original is so good!</p>



<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img decoding="async" loading="lazy" width="714" height="1000" src="https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/norfolk/wp-content/uploads/sites/12/2024/01/tipsyjar-cocktails-norwich-laura-watling1-714x1000.jpg" alt="Laura Watling, owner of TipsyJar cocktail bar in Norwich, pouring cocktails" class="wp-image-47511" srcset="https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/norfolk/wp-content/uploads/sites/12/2024/01/tipsyjar-cocktails-norwich-laura-watling1-714x1000.jpg 714w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/norfolk/wp-content/uploads/sites/12/2024/01/tipsyjar-cocktails-norwich-laura-watling1-571x800.jpg 571w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/norfolk/wp-content/uploads/sites/12/2024/01/tipsyjar-cocktails-norwich-laura-watling1-768x1075.jpg 768w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/norfolk/wp-content/uploads/sites/12/2024/01/tipsyjar-cocktails-norwich-laura-watling1.jpg 1000w" sizes="(max-width: 714px) 100vw, 714px" /></figure>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-most-overrated-drink">Most overrated drink?</h2>



<p>Long Island – I honestly think you might as well just have a double rum and coke (or Cubra Libra if you really want to use a name for your drink).</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading">What country do you want to explore just for the drinks?</h2>



<p>Japan – the culture, the tradition are so different to ours. I’d be so excited to have an opportunity to work my way around the country learning their techniques and skills to further develop my palate. I’d be excited to see how my style might change after such a new experience.</p>



<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img decoding="async" loading="lazy" width="833" height="1000" src="https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/norfolk/wp-content/uploads/sites/12/2024/01/tipsyjar-cocktails-norwich-laura-watling2-3-833x1000.jpg" alt="Laura Watling, owner of TipsyJar cocktail bar in Norwich, shaking cocktails in lidded jar" class="wp-image-47513" srcset="https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/norfolk/wp-content/uploads/sites/12/2024/01/tipsyjar-cocktails-norwich-laura-watling2-3-833x1000.jpg 833w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/norfolk/wp-content/uploads/sites/12/2024/01/tipsyjar-cocktails-norwich-laura-watling2-3-667x800.jpg 667w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/norfolk/wp-content/uploads/sites/12/2024/01/tipsyjar-cocktails-norwich-laura-watling2-3-768x922.jpg 768w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/norfolk/wp-content/uploads/sites/12/2024/01/tipsyjar-cocktails-norwich-laura-watling2-3.jpg 1000w" sizes="(max-width: 833px) 100vw, 833px" /></figure>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading">Favourite holiday drink?</h2>



<p>Depends on the holiday &#8211; on the one hand I really enjoy trying the local wines and anything from the surrounding area, but If I’m lying on a beach, I’m a sucker for an Aperol Spritz.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading">Favourite bar gadget?</h2>



<p>I love an emulsifier for the precision and a smoother and more integrated texture in drinks. But a sous vide does so much for infusions, enhancing the flavour retention and with great consistency. The main one we use day to day though is a dehydrator, which we use a lot for our garnishes at the bar -especially after using the pineapple leaves, we will then cut up and dehydrate the rest of the pineapple so nothing goes to waste.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading">Favourite ingredient?</h2>



<p>Tiki Bitters – they take off the sweetness without the need for adding citrus or salt. They deliver a nice savoury note that&#8217;s not overpowering, which helps with introducing another dimension to tropical flavours.</p>



<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img decoding="async" loading="lazy" width="714" height="1000" src="https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/norfolk/wp-content/uploads/sites/12/2024/01/tipsyjar-cocktails-norwich-laura-watling3-714x1000.jpg" alt="Laura Watling, owner of TipsyJar cocktail bar in Norwich, shaking cocktail behind the bar" class="wp-image-47517" srcset="https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/norfolk/wp-content/uploads/sites/12/2024/01/tipsyjar-cocktails-norwich-laura-watling3-714x1000.jpg 714w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/norfolk/wp-content/uploads/sites/12/2024/01/tipsyjar-cocktails-norwich-laura-watling3-571x800.jpg 571w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/norfolk/wp-content/uploads/sites/12/2024/01/tipsyjar-cocktails-norwich-laura-watling3-768x1075.jpg 768w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/norfolk/wp-content/uploads/sites/12/2024/01/tipsyjar-cocktails-norwich-laura-watling3.jpg 1000w" sizes="(max-width: 714px) 100vw, 714px" /></figure>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading">Your one cocktail tip?</h2>



<p>Whether you&#8217;re making a drink for the first time, 50th time or even 1000th, taste every cocktail that you ever send out. Consistency is key. It doesn’t matter how good you are, the slightest tweak to an ingredient can throw the whole drink off. No drink should ever leave the bar unchecked.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading">Best hangover cure?</h2>



<p>Don’t drink over 25! But If you have gotten yourself slightly too caried away the night before, a green juice, a Subway and an ice-cold shower is my go-to cure.</p>



<p></p>



<p><strong>Visit <a href="https://tipsyjar.co.uk" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Tipsyjar</a> at 8 Redwell Street, Norwich, NR2 4SN, and order online for <a href="https://tipsyjar.co.uk/collections/norwich-tipsyjar-cocktail-menu" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">cocktail delivery</a> in Norwich (NR1-NR14).</strong></p>


Drinks on me: Laura Whatling, Tipsyjar

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