The regional heats of the Australia and New Zealand Patrón Perfectionists Cocktail Competition have taken place and the top five bartenders who will battle for the ANZ crown have been revealed.
The first regional heat took place at Electra House in Adelaide, before the tequila express headed up to Sydney and descended on Bar Patrón in Sydney.
The top five are:
- Rohan Massie – Rude Boy in Lauderdale, Tasmania – ‘Summertime Queen’
- Oisin Conneely – Black Pearl in Melbourne, Victoria – ‘The In-Laws’
- Anneliese Grazioli – Hot Tamale in Darwin, Northern Territory – ‘Over & Above’
- Jamie Fleming – Alba Bar & Deli in Brisbane, Queensland – ‘My Hands’
- Jordan Davies – Los Banditos in Wellington, New Zealand – ‘Conquistador’
Massie, who was last night named as the winner of the Angostura Cocktail Competition, was delighted to be named as one of the winners in Adelaide.
“I’m speechless,” he said, before adding, “It’s been such an amazing experience from the entry process up until now. It’s the most beautiful thing to be able to display all this local produce from Hobart too.”
Conneely said that his cocktail was inspired by his first Christmas on a beach in Queensland, saying: “My cocktail is a perfect representation of that day, gathering whatever was around me at that time from strawberries, watermelon and cucumber and it worked almost too well with the flavour profile of Patrón Tequila, creating the perfect light aperitif.”
Having worked in the agave industry for seven years, Grazioli said: “I am totally inspired by what the industry is today from the bars, the people and brands. This is one competition that focuses on just tequila so I am thrilled to be going to finals.”
Fleming added: “My highlight was seeing the other competitors and how they interpret the same spirit and put their own spin on it.”
All five bartenders will travel to Melbourne on Tuesday, 15 October to compete at the Australian and New Zealand National final of the Patrón Perfectionists Cocktail Competition with expert judging panel including special guest and creator of the Tommy’s Margarita, Julio Bermejo, Director of International Marketing at Patrón Tequila, Matthew Sykes and Editor in Chief of Executive Style, Michael Harry.
