The last challenge leg of Diageo Reserve World Class 2016 ended on a flavorful note last May 12 at Solaire Resort and Casino.
Diageo Reserve World Class is the cocktail industry’s most renowned and respected mixology training programme and competition worldwide. This 2016, the world’s best bartenders will pit their skills, impeccable techniques, and knowledge against each other in front of experts in the global bartending industry.
The third and biggest challenge round for the prestigious Diageo World Class Bartender of the Year 2016 followed the theme “Cuisine Meat Cocktails”- a feast of savory flavors and the world’s finest Scotch whiskies. The challenge ushered in #LoveScotch – a global movement that promotes Scotch whisky’s unique style, substance, and flavor.
Competing bartenders made use of Diageo Reserve’s portfolio of Scotch whisky: Johnnie Walker Gold Label Reserve, Johnnie Walker Platinum Label, Johnnie Walker Blue Label, Singleton of Glen Ord, Glenkinchie, Cragganmore, Talisker, Lagavulin, and Caol Ila in their cocktails.
20 of Manila’s top mixologists served scrumptious creations that surprised the senses with unthinkable ingredients by balancing savory tastes to the diverse flavor profiles of Scotch whisky. The “Cuisine Meat Cocktails” challenge was a test of integrating food elements while putting together exceptional cocktails.
“This batch was truly exceptional. The bartenders did a great job this year,” said Marie Ona, Diageo Reserve Philippines Luxury Manager. “All three winners demonstrated unique talents and the promise to make a difference in Miami later on this year, taking advantage of food trends to create their winning cocktails.”
Offering their discerning palates to the competition were judges Will Thompson, Global Ambassador for Don Julio Tequila; Hannah Waters, presenter and bartender for Tales of the Cocktails; and Ray Reyes, food and travel blogger of lynne-enroute.com. Diageo Reserve Brand Ambassador Rian Asiddao hosted the competition.
The top 4 bartenders will represent the Philippines at the regional finals in Bali, Indonesia in late May. They will also receive premium prizes from Diageo and BevTools. The winners of the regional finals will then go on to compete in the Global Finals in Miami, Florida, where they will have the opportunity to learn from the industry’s most renowned figures and gain access to exclusive World Class tools and workshops.
Every year, Diageo Reserve World Class continues to grow, with more and more countries adapting the training program and joining the World Class Bartender of the Year Competition. Now on its eighth year globally, World Class continues to elevate the craft, innovation, and creativity within the cocktail industry. This is the fourth year the Philippines is participating with the biggest batch thus far with contenders hailing from Manila’s finest bars.
ABOUT DIAGEO
Diageo is a global leader in beverage alcohol with an outstanding collection of brands including Johnnie Walker, Crown Royal, JεB, Buchanan’s and Windsor whiskies, Smirnoff, Cîroc and Ketel One vodkas, Captain Morgan, Baileys, Don Julio, Tanqueray and Guinness.
Diageo is listed on both the London Stock Exchange (DGE) and the New York Stock Exchange (DEO) and our products are sold in more than 180 countries around the world. For more information about Diageo, our people, our brands, and performance, visit us at www.diageo.com. Visit Diageo’s global responsible drinking resource, www.DRINKiQ.com, for information, initiatives, and ways to share best practice.
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ABOUT DIAGEO RESERVE WORLD CLASS
Diageo Reserve WORLD CLASS is transforming fine drinking experiences and cocktail culture around the world and in the home. The industry’s largest, most credible investment in the luxury on trade, it discovers the next generation of bartending talent who set the latest mixology trends and brings these to the best bars worldwide.
At the core of World Class is an expansive global training program that invests in the skill of the bartender and provides an international platform to discover and showcase the best talent from preeminent bartenders all over the world, culminating in an annual luxury landmark week where the Diageo Reserve WORLD CLASS Bartender of the Year is announced. Launched in 2009, over 15,000 bartenders have been inspired and educated in the craft of mixology using the finest spirits in the Diageo Reserve collection. A partnership and collaboration with gurus, media, partners, and owners, Diageo Reserve WORLD CLASS is widely recognized as a mark of sophistication and distinction of international fine drinking culture by bartenders and customers alike.
As an extension of the Diageo Reserve WORLD CLASS training programme, in 2011, Diageo launched the Diageo Bar Academy in Asia Pacific, the region’s largest bartending course accredited by the Wine and Spirit Education Trust (WSET), which has trained 10,000 bartenders to date.