Cheers and Congrats
USBG & Bombay Sapphire's Most Imaginative Bartender Competition Participants - Courtesy Image |
A few days ago, we attended the United States Bartenders' Guild's finals for the 10th Annual Most Imaginative Bartender Competition, sponsored by Bombay Sapphire Gin in Manhattan. Held at Pier A, the competition challenged 10 of the top bartenders from New York, Boston, Washington D.C. and Philadelphia to create cocktails that made memorable first impressions, not only in flavor, but also presentation.
There was a cocktail inspired by one contestant's recently-deceased Kung Fu master, which featured tea as a main ingredient and was presented in a beautiful mini garden. Another bartender created a cocktail to help "reduce the ethanol footprint of the alcohol," with raw honey and bee pollen among its ingredients. Then there was the cocktail that infused manzanilla sherry with seaweed. We think they were all amazing. However, the judges were apparently blown away by Schuyler Hunton's presentation, which was inspired by a classic English breakfast and featured toast and jam with his "Breakfast in Bombay" cocktail taking the place of the egg. Here's the cocktail and its recipe.
"Breakfast in Bombay" by Schuyler Hunton |
Breakfast in Bombay
2 oz Bombay Sapphire Gin
¾ oz Grapefruit Earl Grey Oleo Saccharum
½ oz Lemon Juice
½ oz Egg White
Tea Pot Bitter Spritz
Hunton will move on to the North American Finals in England, where he'll face off against 9 of the top bartenders across the U.S. and Canada. That batch of candidates will get visit the Layerstoke Mill Distillery— the brand home of Bombay Sapphire Gin, where they'll compete for the 2016 North American title. The grand prize winner will get a trip to Tuscany to learn about the special blend of botanicals that make up Bombay Sapphire's recipe and will also be featured on the cover of GQ Magazine's December issue.
We salute all the entrants and look forward to seeing who wins. Cheers!