*Press Release*
St Lucia Distillers, as a member of a Commonwealth Country, has organised a cocktail competition with a difference in Scotland. In conjunction with their UK distributors, Emporia Brands Ltd, they have invited a number of leading bartenders from Edinburgh, Glasgow and Aberdeen to take part, competing for a chance to go to the 100m finals session at Hampden Park on Monday 28th July.
The bartenders have been asked to come up with an original Chairman’s Reserve cocktail, using any of the four expressions available, which have all been posted on the Chairman’s Reserve UK Facebook site.
The challenge is for these bartenders to market their drinks through their bars and social networks for a week & ‘Sprint to the Finish’. The cocktail creation that has manages to attract the largest number of likes at the end of a week, on Thursday 24th July, will be the winner and we will accompanied to the Blue Ribbon event (men’s 100m finals) by the Chairman of Emporia Brands, James Rackham to enjoy prime seats for the event in a corporate box at Hampden Park.
The runners and bartenders in this race to the Games include:
Danny Whelan – Kelvingrove Cafe (Glasgow)
Alex – Amicus Apple (Aberdeen)
Mike McGinty – Treacle (Edinburgh)
Matthew Ronald – Blue Dog (Glasgow)
Jon Hughes – Bramble Bar (Edinburgh)
Adrian Gomes – The Tippling House (Aberdeen)
James Grant – Bond 9 (Edinburgh)
Lewis Thomson – Clouds & Soil (Edinburgh)
Rosie Paterson – The Voodoo Rooms (Edinburgh)
The only requirement regarding the drinks they have been asked to make, is that the base spirit must be one of the four Chairman’s Reserve expressions (Chairman’s Reserve Finest, Chairman’s Reserve White Label, Chairman’s Reserve Spiced or Chairman’s Reserve ‘Forgotten Casks’). The nature and style of their creations was left entirely to the participants and as a part of their marketing exercise, to decide whether to appeal to bartenders, consumers, St. Lucians or lovers of the Commonwealth Games.
The Bartenders and their Drinks:
Danny Whelan – Kelvingrove Cafe (Glasgow):
Comerette Cooler – named after the white-sand St Lucia beach Anse Comerette
45ml Chairman’s Reserve Spiced Rum
25ml Orange Sherbet
20ml Coconut Syrup
Dash Chocolate Bitters
Topped with a float of Root Beer
Add all ingredients except Root Beer to a mixing tin, shake and pour into a highball glass over cracked ice. Float root beer over the top. Garnish with an Orange Twist, with Vanilla ice cream and Coconut Chocolate on the side. Enjoy while picturing yourself on its namesake beach!
Alex Muir – Amicus Apple (Aberdeen)
Mai Tai XX
45ml Chairman’s Reserve
30ml Chairman’s Blanco
30ml Chairman’s Spiced
30ml Fresh Lime Juice
15ml Pierre Ferrand Dry Curacao
10ml Orgeat
10ml Falernum
Hard Shake // Strain // Tiki Glass // Pineapple crisp and Maraschino Cherry
Designed to pay tribute to both the Chairman’s range and the Games by twisting one of the most popular rum cocktails ever created. The spice of the falernum compliments the spiced rum while the orgeat and Pierre Ferrand work to perfectly balance and dry out the drink, leaving you looking forward to more! Finally the big flavours of the rums appropriately lead to a strong and memorable finish
Mike McGinty – Treacle (Edinburgh)
Chairman’s Re-Served
50ml Chairman’s Reserve
20ml Homemade Falernum
5 Dashes of Angostura Bitters
2 Dash Chocolate Bitters
All put into a metal cup, with a lime cut into a square, covered in Demerara sugar, coffee, chocolate and cinnamon. A light on fire which caramelises the lime and it drips into the drink. Then extinguish the flame with 60ml water. It is a twist on the perfect – rum serve of coffee, lime and sugar, hence the name
Matthew Ronald – Blue Dog (Glasgow)
Bolt from the Blue
25ml Chairman’s spiced
12.5ml Domaine de Canton ginger liqueur
12.5ml GB blueberry
Fresh blueberries
25ml Lemon juice
Lemon syrup
37.5 ml apple juice
Jon Hughes – Bramble Bar (Edinburgh)
DeWitt Cocktail
45ml Chairman’s Reserve Forgotten Casks
15ml Byrrh Grand Quinquina
15ml raspberry syrup
15ml lemon juice
Shake all ingredients with ice and fine-strain into a chilled coupe or small cocktail glass. Garnish with a twist of orange zest and a cherry
Adrian Gomes – The Tippling House (Aberdeen)
Bodega & the Smoking Gun
30ml Chairman’s Reserve White Label
15ml Gabriel Boudier Triple Sec Curaçao
15ml Fino Sherry
House-made Grapefruit Zest Tincture
Stir all ingredients and strain into a chilled coupette. Spray flaming tincture over drink surface
James Grant – Bond 9 (Edinburgh)
Chairman’s Hook
40ml Chairman’s Spiced
20ml Cherry Heering
50ml Colloseo PX sherry
5ml Gomme
Dash Angostura bitters
2 orange wedges,
4 pineapple wedges
3 blackberries
Muddle fruit, add all ingredients, shake. Serve in a red wine balloon with crushed ice. Garnish with orange & pineapple wedge & blackberry
Lewis Thomson – Clouds & Soil (Edinburgh)
The St Lucian Sprint
37.5ml Chairman’s Spiced
12.5ml Nardini Rabarbaro
12.5ml Bee pollen Syrup
12.5ml Agave syrup
20ml lime
2 Dashes Rhubarb bitters
10 mint leaves
Serve in a julep tin with crushed ice, garnish with mint sprig and bee pollen
Rosie Paterson – The Voodoo Rooms (Edinburgh)
Party Thyme!
50ml Chairman’s Spiced rum
12.5ml triple sec
12.5ml lime juice
10ml gomme
2 dash angostura 2 dash orange bitters
Thyme
Egg white
Serve in a Coupe with a thyme sprig garnish
Again, all of these drinks sound awesome……..keep your eyes peeled on the Chairman’s Reserve Facebook page for proceedings….
© Steven James and Rum Diaries Blog 2014. Unauthorized use and/or duplication of this material, both written and photographic without the express and written permission from this blog/sites author and owner is strictly prohibited. Excerpts and links may be used, provided that full and clear credit is given to Steven James and Rum Diaries Blog with appropriate and specific direction to the original content.
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