12 free bartending training courses to check out
In today’s world, bartenders are now expected to excel at many things to stay ahead of the game. Beyond just serving drinks, they also need to be skilled in mixing cocktails, giving exceptional customer service, and communicating with their patrons. To meet these high expectations, it is essential for them to undergo proper bartender training.
Bartender training refers to the process of equipping new and seasoned bartenders with the necessary knowledge and skills to level up their bartending careers. The topics covered in bartender training usually include different types of alcoholic beverages, cocktail recipes, and techniques, responsible alcohol service, and more.
So, why is bartender training so important? It makes sure that bartenders can deliver top-notch service and maintain a safe and enjoyable atmosphere for customers. Through training, they acquire the expertise to mix a wide range of cocktails with precision, creativity, and flair. Additionally, they learn the art of engaging with customers and building rapport with them, elevating their overall drinking experience.
How do I start learning to bartend?
You might be wondering how your aspiring bartenders can start learning how to bartend. While it’s important to recognize the value of in-person workshops in this field, online courses now offer a flexible way to train bartenders and begin learning the basics of bartending.
Right now, there are hundreds of free bartender classes available online that can help fast-track their knowledge, making them pros in no time.
When exploring online learning options, it can feel a bit overwhelming because the choices are endless. To get you started on the right track, here is a list of the top ten free bartending courses for you to access and deploy to effectively train your bartenders of all levels. These courses offer a wide range of knowledge, much like the diverse selection of drinks that golfers enjoy at the clubhouse after a round of golf.
1. The Bar World of Tomorrow Training Online Course (SC Training (formerly EdApp))
SC Training (formerly EdApp), an innovative microlearning platform designed to train your teams large and small, collaborated with Pernod Ricard, Trash Tiki, and the Sustainable Restaurant Association to develop The Bar World of Tomorrow. It's one of the best bartending classes online and it includes interactive, beautiful, and effective modules, online bartending quizzes, and assignments to suit your whole team. Since elements of gamification are peppered throughout the lessons, it doesn’t even feel like you’re learning which means your teams will actually enjoy completing the courseware and walk away with a deeper understanding of the material at hand compared to other eLearning platforms.
Since COVID-19, a lot has changed in the hospitality industry, and adjusting to the new norm will be the key to success. This course steps your team through the following topics that are top-of-mind going forward:
- Financial and environmental sustainability
- Ethical sourcing and production
- Responsible service and creating a culture of well-being
- Reopening the right way
This bartender course is timely as it addresses the current challenges that each bar faces due to the knock-on effects of COVID-19. In addition to the timely and unique content, SC Training (formerly EdApp)’s user-friendly platform makes learning engaging through interactive courses and easy-to-understand information.
Other beneficial SC Training (formerly EdApp) courses include Teamwork in the Hospitality Industry and Learn About Alcohol and Responsible Drinking. These courses (along with hundreds of others) are available in SC Training (formerly EdApp)’s completely free course library.
What’s great about SC Training (formerly EdApp)’s editable library is you are free to pick and choose the course you want to use from their ready-made selection. The bonus is that the majority of these courses are fully editable. This means you tailor, rebrand, and personalize each course to meet your specific requirements.
SC Training (formerly EdApp) is also a mobile-first platform, meaning your bartenders can easily access learning content straight from their smartphones. This is extremely beneficial since bar staff (and typically all hospitality staff) are bound by shift work, making it nearly impossible to gather every team member in one location to complete training. Since the award-winning platform also delivers microlessons, this means that your teams can easily complete lessons in as little as 5 minutes at a time, providing ultimate flexibility to fit around your teams’ varying schedules.
Duration: 5 – 10 minute microlearning modules
Number of modules: 12 sections
Inclusions: Final exam available
Check out SC Training (formerly EdApp)’s The Bar World of Tomorrow
2. Free Bartender Training – Bartending for Beginners (Typsy)
Typsy strives to make every hospitality moment exceptional by empowering learners to access and learn insider tips and knowledge. Typsy is great for managers because it provides an array of bite-sized eLearnings across a variety of hospitality roles including, bartenders, food handlers, and front office clerks.
A great way to expand your employees’ bartending knowledge is to get them to complete Typsy’s Bartending for Beginners online training course. This course addresses the resurgence in the art of cocktail-making through a series of video clips. Topics covered in this eLearning include:
- Essential bartending tools and how to use them, such as using a cocktail shaker
- Various cocktail formulas and drink recipes
- How to keep the behind-the-bar area clean
The benefits of learning with Typsy are you have access to 30 free bite-sized video clips from your desktop, mobile, or tablet. The disadvantage of this free service is the advertisements in each video which tend to disrupt the overall learning experience.
Duration: 30 minutes
Number of modules: 11 video clips (ranging from one to seven minutes in duration)
Inclusions: Digital and printable course certificates available
Click here to access Typsy’s Bartending for Beginners
3. Champagne Essential (Typsy)
It is essential for your bartending team to have an excellent working knowledge of all the alcohol products you stock. Typsy has many eLearning modules for alcohol products such as rum, gin, sake, and German beers.
Typsy’s Champagne Essentials course is an excellent way to get your team familiar with champagne. In this eLearning module, learners are taught by champagne connoisseurs. Topics covered in this eLearning include:
- The history and styles of Champagne
- A guide to key brands (e.g., Moet, Veuve Clicquot, and Pommery)
- Instructions on the correct way to open a Champagne bottle
Completing this course will help your bar staff sound like pros when talking about champagne with your clients. Knowledgeable bartenders or mixologists have the ability to upsell and cross-sell products, making you more money.
Duration: 53 minutes
Number of modules: 14 video clips
Inclusions: Digital and printable course certificates available
Click here to access Typsy’s Champagne Essentials
4. Bar Service Skills (Ananas Academy)
Ananas Academy is an online hospitality training platform that gives your team access to various free hospitality training modules. This is a particularly useful learning platform for bar owners and managers to leverage when onboarding new starters, thus streamlining the experience.
Ananas’ Bar Services Skills eLearning course equips your bartender staff with the necessary knowledge they require to work in licensed hospitality venues. This eLearning course includes a range of videos, infographics, and readings to teach beginners about:
- Key bartending terminology
- The basics of bar preparation, the bar station, and cellar management
- Service of wine, beer, whiskey, vodka, and classic cocktails like mojito, gin and tonic, and martini
Asana’s Academy beginners’ courses and bartender classes are comprehensive and allow your employees to test their knowledge upon course completion.
One of the disadvantages of this Ananas is that the user experience can be a little tedious when navigating through learning materials. It is best to get your team to complete their courses on a desktop as this will give them the best blended learning experience. In addition to this, there are intermediate to advanced courses available, but these are at an additional cost.
Duration: Varies per individual
Number of modules: 13 sections
Inclusions: Test that has a set time limit. All course results remain on the employee’s profile page. As a manager, you will be able to access this.
Click here to access Ananas’ Bar Services Skills
5. Cocktails Professional (Ananas Academy)
Don't know how to get professional bartending certificate? Ananas Academy has the solution for you. Another top-rated free course available on Ananas Academy is the Cocktail Professional eLearning course. This online course provides your team with a guide to cocktail making that will help them advance their career. Topics covered in this eLearning include information about:
- Cocktails for the professional bartender
- Back of the house basics
- Cocktail techniques and history
Cocktail sales equate to higher profit margins. The more knowledgeable your staff are in this space, the more likely they are to confidently sell these products. This will delight your customers and contribute to helping you to achieve financial success.
Duration: Varies per individual
Number of modules: 12 sections
Inclusions: Test that has a set time limit. All course results remain on the employee’s profile page. As a manager, you will be able to access this.
Click here to access Asanas’ Cocktail Service
6. Cocktail Mastery: Mojito, Margarita, Martini Recipe & More (Udemy)
Udemy has over 130,000+ free and paid courses available for learners. Your staff can download the Udemy App onto their iOS or Android devices and learn on the go. This way, the process of becoming a bartender becomes much easier.
Learn to master basic cocktail recipes with Udemy’s Cocktail Mastery: Mojito, Margarita, Martini Recipe & More course. It includes video clips explaining:
- The Martini recipe, variations, and history
- The Margarita recipe, variations, and history
- The Mojito recipe, muddling technique, cocktail history
One of the downsides of taking this free Udemy course is that without paying for the additional costs, your team won’t be able to receive a certificate of completion or test their knowledge retention.
Duration: 30 minutes
Number of modules: 5 sections, 9 lectures
Inclusions: Online video content only. A certificate of completion is an additional cost.
Click here to access Udemy’s Cocktail Mastery course
7. Bartending 101 – Seven Simple and Delicious Drinks (Udemy)
Another popular free course available on the bartending online school, Udemy, is Bartending 101: Seven Simple and Delicious Drinks. This course has had 20,000+ students and is rated four-stars. Instead of having to search for specific face-to-face training locations like bartender school NJ or bartender school in San Diego, you can opt to take this highly informational and convenient online course.
Award-winning bartender Michael Rego teaches this course. Learning from an industry expert is a great way to attain basic bartender knowledge and through this course, aspiring bartenders will learn how to get a bartending job with no experience. In this course, Michael steps you through making seven different cocktails by demonstrating how to make each cocktail and how to use bar key for bartenders in quick video clips. This is a short eLearning and useful to helping your team start exploring other new and exciting cocktail options. The downside? The standardized drinks recipes aren’t necessarily universal and if your teams want a completion certificate, they’ll have to pay extra for it.
Duration: 16 minutes
Number of modules: 1 section, 9 lectures
Inclusions: Online video content only. A certificate of completion is an additional cost.
Click here to access Udemy’s Bartending 101: Seven Simple and Delicious Drinks
8. Wine Tasting – Sensory Techniques for Wine Analysis (Coursera)
As a manger, if you are looking to advance one of your team member’s career in bartending, you may require they possess a more well-rounded knowledge of all beverages. Wine is a complex product, and the more that an experienced, long-term bar staff member can learn about it, the more confident they will sound. In addition to this, they will likely knowledge share with other team members.
The University of California, Davis, has partnered with Coursera to deliver a free, comprehensive online course to give people a deeper understanding of the physiological process of wine tasting. Since this course has more advanced learning content, it may be more suitable for your experienced bartenders who are looking to build on their careers. The topics covered in the Wine Tasting: Sensory Techniques for Wine Analysis include:
- Wine styles and flavor profiles
- Wine and food pairing
- Pouring wine
- How to recognize and determine common wine faults
Coursera eLearnings and bar courses are available on desktops, tablets, and mobile devices. Since the course is comprehensive it may be easier for your employee to learn via a desktop. One of the disadvantages of this course is that it requires the employee to commit to a longer learning experience. If you as a manager are unprepared to pay for them to study, they may find this option unappealing.
Duration: 13 hours (over five weeks)
Number of modules: 5 sections, 66 videos, 4 readings
Inclusions: Access to online content only. Certificate of completion is an additional cost.
Click here to access Coursera’s Wine Tasting: Sensory Techniques for Wine Analysis
9. Diageo Bar Academy Essentials (Diageo Bar Academy)
Diageo Bar Academy is founded and curated by one of the world’s largest spirit companies. The objective of this foundation is to improve the overall quality of bar staff.
The Diageo has trained tens of thousands of bar staff globally. The trainers are all industry leaders and the great thing about this academy is that it creates a community where people can network with like-minded people. The basic mixology course online provided is extremely comprehensive and your team would benefit from such a learning environment.
The topics covered in the Diageo Bar Academy Essentials eLearning course include:
- Spirits explained (e.g., Gin, Tequila, Liqueurs)
- Selling spirits and mixed drinks
- How to mix and serve Spirits
Diageo’s Bar Academy eLearning modules are highly interactive and easier to complete on a desktop or tablet device. Since a spirit company has established this platform, it is important to be mindful that there will be an element of product bias in all eLearning materials. If you stock their products, this is advantageous, but if you don’t it may not be very beneficial training option.
Duration: 75 minutes
Number of modules: 3 sections each with an end of section test and summary
Inclusions: Final exam available
Click here to access Diageo Bar Academy Essentials
10. Responsible Serving (Diageo Bar Academy)
The Diageo Academy’s Responsible Serving eLearning course is important because it addresses the risks associated with bartending irresponsibly with your staff. Here, you'll learn how old to get a bartending license and the age restrictions to watch out for when serving alcohol to customers. The topics covered in the Responsible Serving eLearning course include:
- Responsible serving and the responsible bar professional
- Knowing standard drink/units of alcohol
- Alcohol guidelines and the effects of alcohol
Duration: 15 minutes
Number of modules: 1 section, 7 sub-sections
Inclusions: Final exam available.
Click here to access Diageo’s Responsible Serving
11. An Introductory Course on Alcoholic Spirits (Alison)
An Introductory Course on Alcoholic Spirits by Alison is a free online course in spirits and distillation. In this online bar tending class, you will learn the definition of spirits, their unique manufacturing process, the raw materials required toproduce various types, and their aging process. Also covered in the course are industry-specific terms used in the hospitality industry, specialist bartending gear, and liquor-related equipment. Lastly, you will learn about various blends of classic and other cocktails. You'll also find out how to get bartender certified through this course.
Duration: 1.5-3 hours
Number of modules: 5 modules
Inclusions: Certificate
Click here to access Alison's Introductory Course on Alcoholic Spirits
12. Bar Maintenance (SC Training (formerly EdApp))
Bar Maintenance is another essential bartending training course that goes beyond just learning how to make drinks. It gets into the details that you need in order to keep a bar in great shape. It covers everything you need to know for before service, during service, and after service, while also teaching about how to work with kegs.
By taking this course on SC Training (formerly EdApp), you can take advantage of the types of gamification examples that the platform offers. For example, you can play a game that helps you identify the various parts and accessories of a keg. This type of engaging activity helps learners retain the information they’ve learned.
Duration: 5 – 10 minute microlearning modules
Number of modules: 5 lessons
Inclusions: Certificate
Check out SC Training's Bar Maintenance
The verdict
Most of your staff are on the go and don’t have time to complete desktop training. When looking for courses, try and enroll in an eLearning course that’s easy to access and complete from your mobile device – iOS and Android.
After assessing the top ten courses, it is best to complete SC Training (formerly EdApp)’s The Bar World of Tomorrow micro-learnings. This eLearning delivers timely training that addresses the challenges that 2020 has brought our global bartending community. The bonus is that it is completely free and editable and is accessible in SC Training (formerly EdApp)’s ever-growing course library on desktop, tablet, and mobile devices.
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