Awaken the Senses: Ava Launches New Ingredient-Led Cocktail Menu at Four Seasons Astir Palace Hotel Athens

This June, Avra Bar at Four Seasons Astir Palace Hotel Athens unveils an immersive new menu promising a journey through aroma, taste and imagination across four distinct chapters. Guided by guest preferences, drinks are rooted in Mediterranean flavours, shaped by the natural elements and developed in the Avra mixology lab. Central to the new menu is the opening chapter: SENSES, a portal to sensory perception through four ingredient-led, seasonal cocktails.  

Located on a sun-drenched curve of the Athens Riviera within Four Seasons Astir Palace Hotel Athens – recognized as one of The World’s 50 Best Hotels – Avra is a beacon of modern Mediterranean cool. The in-the-know hotspot transitions seamlessly from light-dappled afternoons to chic, DJ-powered evenings, evolving like its Aegean views to suit every occasion and season. Creative cocktails begin life in the Avra Lab. Led by award-winning Bar Manager Nikos Tachmazis, this playground of experimentation has been key to the development of the new menu.  

“For us, it’s always about refinement without overcomplicating things,” says Avra Bar Manager Nikos Tachmazis. “In the Avra Lab, we pay attention to every detail like temperature, dilution and balance, so the drink feels effortless when it reaches the guest. With the new menu, we explore seasonal Greek ingredients we love in the Lab, from citrus and olive oil to herbs and mastiha, and express them in a way that feels modern and playful.”

Chapter One: SENSES

Opening the new menu, the four SENSES cocktails embody the spirit of spring, summer, autumn and winter in Greece through a local hero ingredient: grass, berries, peppermint and charcoal. Cutting-edge Avra Lab techniques bring the ingredients to the fore in each exploratory sip. Each of the ingredients also has a corresponding hand-drawn illustration in the menu with a playful “scratch & smell” element to deepen the sensory experience.  

Spring’s sunlit gardens after rain come alive in GRASS – a crisp, Old Fashioned-inspired serve with vodka, cucumber, distilled fresh grass and mezcal. BERRY captures summer in a glass – bright, sweet and inspired by textured mastiha ice cream playful twist on a classic Clover Club. PEPPERMINT evokes autumn evenings with a refreshing, easy-going blend of mint distillation, cola reduction and bitters in a style between a mojito and a Cuba Libre. Smoky and striking, CHARCOAL reflects winter’s smouldering fires through a martini-style merging of agave spirits smoked bitters, raspberry and burnt rosewood. All four cocktails are also available as non-alcoholic drinks. 

Chapter Two: Avra Aperitivos

The rest of the menu unfolds across thoughtfully reimagined sections, showcasing drinks infused with Greek flavours for every time of day. In Avra Aperitivos, Italian-style classics receive a creative Avra Lab twist in sociable sips like THE SPRITZ – a lively combination of Aperol with fermented rhubarb solution. Perfect before or after dinner, CAMPARI OLD FASHIONED is a bitter yet fresh raspberry fusion while SGROPPINO refreshes with lemon and vodka served icy cold.   

Chapter Three: Avra Favourites 

A homage to the drinks that put Avra on the map, Avra Favourites is a flavourful journey through five of the hotel bar’s most-loved cocktails with an added Tachmazis touch. Shaped by local produce and crafted through careful experimentation, they include longtime bestseller PAPER PLANE, made with fragrant Greek mountain tea–infused bourbon. Equally iconic, DIRTY MARTINI wows with Assyrtiko wine and Greek olive oil-infused vodka – finished with an aromatic local olive.   

Chapter Four: Avra Highballs  

Local Greek bounty shines in Avra Highballs: five inventive and evocative fruit and herb-infused drinks with a light, refreshing fizz. New for 2026, BLOSSOM is a delicate sip blending juicy fresh peach with a bloom of fragrant alyssum blossom for balmy Avra evenings. MINT uplifts with mint-infused aged rum, aromatic bitters, and a bright dash of champagne. 

The ripples of the Lab’s innovation extend beyond Avra. Guided by Nikos Tachmazis, leading Lab mixologists Christos Kalogeropoulos and Petros Patitis are responsible for over 70 drink recipes across all hotel outlets and banqueting. Guests can even get in on the mixology magic with a hands-on cocktail class, Garden to Bottle. After harvesting seasonal ingredients from the on-site garden, budding bartenders can craft their own bottled cocktail using cutting-edge Lab techniques.   

Avra’s new menu joins a range of inspired experiences at the Athens Riviera hangout, from industry-leading takeover nights set against glittering sea views to indulgent brunches shared with friends. Evolved food offerings include the new Avra Smash Beef Burger with all the trimmings, alongside refined mains, a caviar selection, salads and lively bar bites. The new experimental sensory elements reflect the vision of a bar that continues to refine the city’s cocktail culture, blending Mediterranean soul with boundary-pushing creativity.  

To awaken your senses with Avra’s new cocktail menu, call +30 21 0890 1000 or visit the website.