In honor of International Women’s Day (IWD) a worldwide celebration held on March 8th, 2012 to recognize the economic, political and social achievements of women past, present and future. Award-winning boutique Scotch whiskymaker, Compass Box Whisky Co. (www.compassboxwhisky.com), renowned for its fresh and innovative approach to this once staid category, along with Starfish Wine & Seafood Bar, the Beijing Chapter of 85 Broads, VIVA Beijing, announce their 1st annual “Whisky & Women Unite” cocktail party to benefit EGRC (www.egrc.ca).  EGRC a charity that has already helped almost 300 young women from the poor rural areas of Gansu attend schools and universities.

Thursday, March 8th, 2012.
PRESS PREVIEW:  5 pm to 6 pm.
OPEN TO PUBLIC:  6pm – 8pm.
At Starfish, 22-1 Dongzhimenwai Da Jie, Chaoyang, Beijing (opposite the Canadian Embassy) tel: 6416-5499

A cocktail party open to the public will be held at the Starfish Wine & Seafood Bar.  With delicious canapes from the Starfish team, oysters from Oregon Oyster Farms, Compass Box cocktails by Stephanie Rocard of Mao Mao Chong (www.maomaochongbeijing.com), music by the lovely Jess Meider (http://www.jessmeider.com/) and a selection of very special prizes to be won in the raffle. This is the Women’s Day event you cannot miss!

Raffle prizes include:

• Hat by Elisabeth Koch Millinery
• Voucher from ERIC Paris salon
• Treatment at Kocoon Spa & Lounge
• Cupcakes by CC Sweets
• …And many more to be confirmed!

A suggested minimum donation of ¥100 gives you one Compass Box Cocktail, 3 Oregon Oysters and a raffle ticket. Guests can purchase additional cocktails at ¥50 each and raffle tickets at ¥20 for 1, ¥50 for 3 or ¥100 for 8.  All proceeds from the door and ¥15 of each additional cocktail will benefit EGRC.

Compass Box will also host International Women’s Day events on March 8th in San Francisco, London and Beijing.

MEDIA AVAILABITY:  Alisha Bailey, Starfish; Harold Broese, Compass Box; Dannan Hodge, IWD; Shanti Christensen, 85 Broads; Emily Roblin, VIVA Beijing; Stephanie Rocard, Mao Mao Chong will be available for interviews.  Cocktail recipes/photos available.

ABOUT OUR SPONSORS:

This event would not be possible without the kind support of the following companies:

Starfish Wine & Seafood Bar — Beijing’s first oyster bar offers a casual yet inviting environment to experience the best in quality and widest selection of live oysters and other seafood delicacies.  Strong relationships with seafood suppliers overseas and local enable the utmost in transparency and traceability.  The simple yet delicious menu changes with the seasons and is complemented by an eclectic selection of New and Old World wines, served by the glass and bottle.  A retail counter will soon allow customers to take home much of the seafood used on the menu to prepare in the style they choose.

Compass Box is a small, progressive company, started out of passion and a desire to make ever greater Scotch whiskies.

Our approach to whisky making is to question, explore, apply and learn, with the ultimate goal to build delicious flavours into what we make.

We choose the best distillates from the best distilleries, aged in the highest quality oak casks. With these building blocks, we create whiskies with richness, balance and purity of flavour. We consider our methods “artisanal” and this approach has yielded over 60 awards for quality and innovation.

Above all, we believe that enjoying great whisky is one of life’s great pleasures. Join us!

Oregon Oyster Farms located on Yaquina Bay in Newport, Oregon, USA has been producing premium oysters since 1907. Liu Xin and his family, originally from Qingdao, have owned and operated the farm since 1995. The rich, clear water of Yaquina Bay provide an abundant supply of Pacific, Kumamoto and Olympia oysters. These succulent oysters are pollutant-free, rich in nutrition, fresh in taste, and firm in texture. Clean water and environmentally sound sustainable farming practices help to produce the finest quality oysters in the world.

Kocoon Spa & Lounge — Founded in Beijing in 2008, Kocoon is a boutique day spa for men and women created from the shared passion of mother and daughter.

With us, you can enjoy facials, massages, nail care, waxing service and therapies for wellness and healing such as Yoga, Meditation and Traditional Chinese Medicine treatments. We also offer opportunities for learning and self-development through workshops by experts that we personally know and trust.

We design each treatment the way we would wish to receive it: with love, with attention to detail and given in a peaceful, friendly and clean environment.

We continue to try and hand-select every product we offer you. Expect only premium products that are fruit, plant or marine-based. No petroleum or mineral-derived ingredients!

Kocoon is located in the Sanlitun Opposite House Hotel.

Elisabeth Koch Millinery — Elisabeth Koch was born in Atlanta, Georgia of 3/4 Dutch and 1/4 Welsh parents. To date, she has lived in the USA, Berlin, Luxembourg, Bombay, London, Amsterdam, Brussels and currently resides in Beijing. These cities continue to inspire and contribute to her millinery success.

Koch has a keen eye for colour, design and fashion. She has been sewing, painting, drawing, moulding and generally involved in various creative projects since she was a child.

Always having been a head-wear fanatic, Koch attended the renowned Wombourne School of Millinery in the UK. After graduation, she set up Elisabeth Koch Millinery in order to realise the hats in her sketchbooks.

Every hat is a work of art and no two are alike. Her hats and hair pieces have been worn by royalty, movie stars and have gone to Royal Ascot, the Melbourne Cup and weddings world-wide. Koch designs exclusively for herself and accommodates a custom-made fit for clients. Please contact Elisabeth to have a hat made-to-measure or make an appointment to view her showroom.

CCSweets is the labor of love for Carol Chow.  “CC” can stand for CupCakes, Cake and Cookies, Chocolate and Caramel, ice Cream, Candy or Custom Created sweets.  Carol’s family had a famous bakery in Singapore so the love of baking is passed through the generations.  She grew up with stories from my mom of freshly baked breads, desserts and hand roasted coffees.  She has traveled and tasted desserts from around the world, France, Italy, Austria, Mexico, England, Spain, Australia and my home for 20 years New York.

ERIC Paris Salon is known for continual innovation and consistent quality in hair, beauty and nails, as well as friendly service minded staff, great decor and funky music. ERIC often partners with Schwarzkopf performing many shows in China to crowds of up to 1000 people, and does the hair and makeup for runway shows like Chanel, Bvlgari, LV and Mushi.

XIX Spirit is a boutique import and distribution company based in Beijing that specialises in fine whisk(e)ys and other premium spirits. We were founded with the sole purpose of bringing top quality spirit to the Chinese market, and we strive to provide value beyond just stocking top quality products.