Vocktail hour: Innovative virtual reality bar coming to UK

A virtual reality (VR) bar serving up 'vocktails' - that's virtual cocktails - is coming to London next month in a world first.

Scientists from the National University of Singapore have dreamt up the VR bar concept, which will be showcased at the Future Tech Now and Virtual Reality Show from Thursday April 5th to Saturday April 7th.

Innovative technology has been used to create the vocktails that visitors to the event will be able to sample. In reality, they are simply water, but different scents and electrical pulses will be omitted into drinkers' faces to change their perception of what they are consuming, tricking their senses into thinking it's alcohol.

There'll also be a smartphone app linked to the vocktail glasses, which will allow visitors to the bar to create their own custom drink to appear in their glass from their phone.

Speaking to the Mirror, Nimesha Ranasinghe, lead researcher on the project, said that his invention was all about the 'wow factor'.

"I wanted to introduce taste and smell into virtual reality," he explained.

"You can use real alcohol and augment the flavours, or just use water and totally change the perception of what you are drinking."