Fernet Branca Amsterdam Bartenders Dinner

There's a running joke in the bar world that Fernet Branca tastes like Christmas morning mixed with gasoline and regret. And yet, every serious bartender has a relationship with it. Some love it immediately. Others spend years being skeptical before it clicks. All of them respect it. When Fernet Branca invited Amsterdam's bar community to a dedicated dinner, it wasn't about convincing anyone the spirit is delicious. It was about honoring the role this bottle plays in the culture - something far deeper than just being a popular digestif.

Fernet serves a role that no other spirit quite captures. It's the one bottle that belongs to the bartenders rather than to customers. It's the one they share with each other, not with guests. It's ceremonial, celebratory, commiseration. It's the drink you take when something meaningful just happened - whether that's the end of a perfect service, the resolution of a problem, or just the acknowledgment that you all made it through another night together.

What I captured photographically at this dinner was the texture of genuine professional community. Conversations where bartenders from different Amsterdam venues weren't competing but collaborating, sharing techniques, solving problems together. Toasts that actually meant something. The particular kind of laughter that happens when people who understand the same challenges laugh together. These are the images that tell the true story of an industry that, despite its glamorous reputation, is fundamentally about people caring deeply about doing good work together.

I'm Rachel Ross, a Rotterdam-based photographer specialising in HORECA, branding, and event photography across the Netherlands. I've spent years documenting bartender culture - from intimate industry dinners to large-scale competitions - capturing the craft, community, and small rituals that bind this industry together. Based in Rotterdam, shooting across Amsterdam, The Hague, and beyond.