Cocktail Competition winner is Thyme to Get Ugly
The annual battle of the bars reigned supreme last night as Chester’s bartenders mixed and blended with the best. Chester Food and Drink Festival’s organisers teamed up with sponsors Smirnoff Black, Shaker UK and MFM 103.4 to present the biggest and best Cocktail Competition since the Festival started five years ago. The cocktail ‘shake-off’ took place at the Festival’s Marquee on the Crown Courts Car Park and over 80 people attended to see Chester’s best bartenders mix, blend and flair their way into a national bartender competition.
First up was Sammy from the Living Room. Then Dave Hayto from the Farndon Arms Hotel & Restaurant with a cocktail called ‘Ginesis’.
Third up was Owen Williams from the Living Room; ‘Owen the Wizard’ nicknamed ‘Damian’ for the evening, on a rather sinister note.
Fourth up was Bar Lounge with Rick Warrier who was third in last year’s competition and who charged in with his history lesson for Tanquary Gin, his cocktail base. Gin was originally used for medicinal purposes where the distilled spirit was generally flavoured with juniper berries. The resulting beverage was known as junever, the Dutch word for “juniper.” The French changed the name to genievre, which the English changed to “geneva” and then modified to “gin”. The Dutch army much enjoyed the beverage hence the origins of ‘Dutch courage’.
Rick’s words of wisdom; “You can’t give a drink out without tasting it.” His Tanquary and thyme creation was flavoured with chilli sugar syrup, ugly fruit, lemon juice and egg white (for foam factor and binding capability) hence the name “Thyme to get Ugly”.
Fifth up was veteran, and last year’s winner, Cino Garcia-Hernandez from Bar lounge/Upstairs at the Grill. His words of wisdom; “Mixology is an art form. Experts spend long hours creating fab drinks for fab people.”
Last up were ‘Daffy’ and ‘Goose’, now freelance bar tenders formerly from Politik and Bar Lounge respectively. The ‘Ant and Dec’ of the cocktail world, they were eminently qualified to joke about bird flu, which they did. Their Johnny Walker black label whisky based cocktail involved a herb and balsamic vinegar infusion after which the judges needed to retire.
The verdict? Third – Cino, Second – Owen Williams and First – Rick Warrier. TV appearances follow. Next year could be Chester v. Liverpool or Manchester.
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Caption: High standards on show for the Best Cocktail Bartender of the Year 2006 award at this year’s Chester Food and Drink Festival. The competition was won by Rick Warrier from Bar Lounge. PHOTOS (300dpi plus), PRESS OFFICE & EVENT REPORTS at http://www.marketingprojects.co.uk/clientpo/news.asp?id=49
The judging panel was headed by Adam Freeth from Shaker UK who runs the famous Shaker BarSchoolTM, Izzy Grey of In/Out magazine, an exclusive guide to eating and drinking in and around Chester, Amy Clowes and Chris Oakley from MFM 103.4.
Judging was based on the entrants’ technique, originality, presentation and taste, mixology and flair was also taken into consideration. With the apt venue packed out, the competition proved to be very lively and entertaining.
Last year’s winner Cino received immediate entry into Flavour magazine’s North-West Regional Heats in Sept/Oct 05, and an engraved Boston shaker and a days advanced course in flaring, courtesy of Shaker UK. (www.shaker-uk.com).
“Shaker UK is delighted to be involved with this competition,” said Adam Freeth. “The UK now has a growing number of career bartenders who are setting new standards in terms of their knowledge and cocktail-making skill. Competitions like this serve to inspire them further. I’m extremely impressed by the support for the event and the high standards of the competitors. A great evening.”
Chester’s Food and Drink Festival is organised on behalf of Chester City Council with support from the Northwest Regional Development Agency (NWDA), Visit Chester & Cheshire; the tourism board for Cheshire and Warrington, Cheshire County Council, Made in Cheshire and North West Fine Foods.
For more information about other events happening over the Chester Food & Drink Festival please visit www.chesterfoodanddrink.com.
Owned by Diageo, the industry leader in promoting responsible drinking, Smirnoff traces its heritage back to 19th century Russia, and was introduced in the United States in 1934. Smirnoff, described by Eric Asimov of The New York Times as containing ‘smooth neutrality and pleasing texture,’ was also recognized with a gold medal in the 2003 San Francisco World Spirits Competition.
Smirnoff has always been known for premium quality vodka. Today, Smirnoff is the world’s leading premium distilled spirit and vodka brand, with distribution in 130 countries and a number of innovative products, including Smirnoff Ice, the world’s leading flavored malt beverage, Smirnoff Ice Triple Black flavored malt beverage and Smirnoff Twist flavored vodkas. For more information about the Smirnoff brand, visit www.smirnoff.com For more info on responsible drinking, please visit www.drinkaware.co.uk
Shaker BarSchool operates in Birmingham and London and provides inspirational and educational training programs for the bartenders of tomorrow. They provide a cocktail of services supporting the needs of the ever-evolving hospitality industry. Adam Freeth, Managing Director created Shaker UK as part of a BA and MSc in Business Management coupled with his bartending exploits throughout Europe. With almost a decade of experience in the bar industry Freeth has developed Shaker into being one of the UK authorities on training and bartending. Having tended bar for the rich and famous, he has also appeared on ITV as an authority on drinks and appeared in national and trade press.
The Shaker Bartending academies are an exclusive state of the art BarSchool dedicated to providing bartending; cocktail and flair related training courses. The Shaker BarSchool is a fully stocked working cocktail bar in a stylish lounge bar environment, devoted entirely for training, research and development. Shaker BarSchool provides individuals and managers with some of the most comprehensive training programs available in the UK. Their vocational bartending courses offer the opportunity to train in all disciplines of cocktail bartending from customer service to bar etiquette, sales and presentation, product knowledge to mixology and much more. The Shaker BarSchool offers contemporary courses and practical hands-on and theoretical training, leading to industry-recognised qualifications. For more information, please go to www.shaker-uk.com
Chester’s Food and Drink Fringe Festival takes place around the City from April 12 to 22 2006 involving special offers for accommodation and eating out to excite the whole family. The prestigious gala dinner and awards ceremony takes place on Tuesday 18th April.
Festival brochures are available across the city. Phone 01244 351609 for more details.
Press Contacts: Jane Harrad-Roberts Mob: 07785 395705 Phil Brotherhood Mob: 0788 44 93370 MARKETING PROJECTS : Tel: 01244 330000 Email: drinknothanks@marketingprojects.co.uk
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