Tune in for the Hong Kong Wine and Dine Festival 2021

The Hong Kong Wine and Dine Festival is a month-long gastronomic celebration running throughout November. Photo / Supplied; Hong Kong Tourism Board

Remember New Zealand's rebirth from Lockdown 1.0? Back in June 2020, when the country resurfaced following weeks of isolation? And the startling realisation that other people had spent that time "doing stuff". Worse, they'd been upskilling. It felt like everyone could suddenly knit quilts, cross-stitch themselves into the national championships and side hustle their candles on to Etsy.

Well, we won't be left behind in the realm of long naps and Netflix again. As New Zealand slowly but surely re-emerges from another lockdown, we'll be ready with a collection of new tricks up our sleeves. Such as flashy cocktail-making skills.

Cue the annual Hong Kong Wine and Dine Festival. A month-long gastronomic celebration running throughout November, and for those of us bound to NZ shores, featuring a series of online masterclasses to pore over.

Most sessions are presented in Cantonese so we suggest watching the playbacks of each live event via Hong Kong Tourism Board's YouTube channel (youtube.com/user/hongkong) or discoverhongkong.com within a week of broadcast. Click here for a full list of classes and a description of each: https://bit.ly/3pY21jO

Two real-time tutorials to be delivered in English include "East Meets West", an online cocktail masterclass run by Alex Ko: beverage development manager at Tasting Group (an award-winning ensemble of Hong Kong bars and restaurants) and acclaimed mixologist. Combing Langley's No. 8 gin with Xian Heng Huadiao, a traditional Chinese rice wine, Ko will spend 30 minutes divulging his best tips to blend the perfect east-meets-west concoction. Visit bit.ly/3EFtXgH prior to Sunday November 14 for a full list of ingredients and utensils, then jump online at liquorlegends.co.nz to source both your favourite gin and Chinese wine varietals.

Join Agung Prabowo from Hong Kong's Penicillin bar for an English-delivered lesson in sustainable cocktail making. Photo / Supplied; Hong Kong Tourism Board

If you find one too many of Ko's cocktails have you a little too squiffy to read subtitles, you can also join Agung Prabowo for an English-delivered lesson in sustainable cocktail making. The man behind Hong Kong's Penicillin bar, and the first bar in the city to take a sustainable approach to cocktailing, Prabowo will demonstrate how you can also turn at-home beverages into an eco-conscious drink. For extra fun, tune in with a bucketful of ice and two avocado stones, or for more clues, visit bit.ly/3jZgM2d beforehand.

By the end of November, when 25-person outdoor gatherings will be all the rage, you'll be in good stead to impress your friends with a wealth of bartending tricks. Watch and weep, bread bakers. Watch and weep.