Coopers Christ­mas Party 2016

The whole Coopers team came together in the Basel Office last Friday and were really looking forward to this year’s Christmas party. After a lovely apéro we went down to the Christmas market and toasted with mulled wine served in the traditional boot-shaped mugs. The festive atmosphere at big Christmas pyramid was beautiful. Afterwards we walked up the hill to the restaurant Teufelhof, one of the most well-known restaurants in Basel. There we learnt a bit about the history of cocktail mixing and were trained in how to mix a drink correctly. Did you know that cocktails should only be shaken for no more than 15 seconds otherwise there would be too much ice water in the drink? Did you also know that usually only drinks that contain fruit juices are shaken? After we digested all the information we formed groups of two and started mixing according to the prepared recipes and ingredients. There was a large choice ranging from Margarita, Dry Martini, Negroni, White Russian and many more! The creamy White Russian proved to be particularly popular. Finally, it was time for us to mix our own personal creation – a task that sounds easy but it very difficult as cocktails are usually too bitter or too sweet. It is an art to find the perfect mix. We dipped our straws into all the glasses to decide which one we liked best. Kitti’s cocktail called “Free Joy” won the most votes (even though it didn’t contain alcohol!). By chance we bumped into the Teufelhof’s master brewer, who spontaneously invited us to look at his newest brewery equipment. Since a couple of months, he has set up a new brewery called “Stadtmauer Brauerei” in the cellar of the Building. Full of enthusiasm he explained how all the different tanks worked. After this we went upstairs to the restaurant where we enjoyed an exquisite meal. Then it was time for a Christmas tradition which is called “Wichteln” in German. Before the Christmas party we all received the name of one of colleagues by random selection, we then organised a present for this person and gave it to them at the Christmas party. Everyone spent a lot of time and effort choosing their gift – it was great fun!