British bartender Ned Ratcliffe stormed to victory in The Bartenders Society Cocktail Competition global final.
Ratcliffe, bar manager at the Rhum Tavern bar in London, represented the UK in the global final, which took place in Paris last week, on 19 November. The final was held at L’Aquarium de Paris.
The winning prize included a cheque for €2,000 (US$2,100) and a trip for two people to Martinique to visit the Saint James rum distillery, owned by La Martiniquaise-Bardinet.
A total of 16 bartenders from 14 countries – France, the UK, Germany, Denmark, Martinique, Canada, Poland, Spain, Portugal, the US, Greece, Switzerland, Italy and Belgium – went head to head during the global final.
Each competitor was challenged to create two cocktails: one regular alcoholic serve and one no/low cocktail. Each entry was assigned an element at random, which had to be incorporated into their drinks (earth, air, fire or water). The drinks had to include Saint James rum, Marie Brizard liqueur, and Caraïbos mixer.
The judges then whittled the contestants down to the top four – Benoit Guerin from France, Filipe Manuel Assis Sustelo from Portugal, Justin Levaughn from the US, and Ratcliffe from the UK. The four finalists had to recreate their cocktails to be judged by 250 guests that evening, who would also cast their votes to determine the ‘public’s choice’.
“As a bartender, I’d say the hardest thing about today was waking up at 6.30am,” Ratcliffe quipped when speaking to The Spirits Business after his win. “But in all seriousness, competing today was incredible. Looking at all the different approaches that people had to the same produce was exceptional. It’s been a wild ride and amazing to see what everyone can do. And it feels great to be bringing this back for the UK.
“I’ve never been to Martinique and I’ve got a lot of love for agricole rum, so to be able to go and actually see how it’s produced in those areas will be amazing.”
Winning serves
Ratcliffe’s alcoholic cocktail was called Beloved, and comprised: Saint James Impérial Blanc, Marie Brizard Anisette, Marie Brizard Coconut Syrup, Caraïbos Mango Juice, and Bitter Bittermans Burlesque.
His low-alcohol serve, Ember, combined: Caraïbos apple juice infused with burnt appletree wood, infused Marie Brizard White Chocolate, Caraïbos apple juice, and saffron-infused almond milk.
Five cocktail experts formed this year’s judging panel: Matthias Giroud, co-founder of the Alchimiste Group; Paul Sauter, director of award-winning bar The Aviary in Chicago, US; Vasilis Kyritsis, co-manager of the Clumsies bar in Athens, Greece; Daniele Dalla Pola, director of the Kanoa Room bar in Miami, US; and Boris Blanc, founder of Caribbean BartenderZ, Martinique, who was the 2023 winner of the International Bartenders Society competition.
Blanc told The Spirits Business after the results announcement: “It was a very nostalgic experience for me to be on the jury, but also amazing and very cool.
“The standard was very high, but a lot of the cocktails could have been closer to the ‘elements’ theme. However, when I tasted Ned’s non-alcoholic cocktail, I thought ‘yes, he’s mastered the theme’.”
Ratcliffe had been assigned the element ‘fire’.
Second and third place winners
Second place was awarded to Benoit Guerin from France, who was drew the element ‘air’. His alcoholic cocktail, Walk in the Forest, combined Saint James VSOP infused with Muira Puama, with white penja pepper syrup, Bittermens Scarborough, and pine hydrosole. His low-alcohol serve, Walk in the Orchard, mixed Caraïbos apple juice infused with burnt appletree wood with Marie Brizard Ginger Syrup, centrifuged carrot water, carrot tops and ginger oil.
His alcoholic cocktail, The Three, included: Saint James Impérial Blanc, Marie Brizard Aperitivo, Marie Brizard Strawberry, red bell pepper syrup, fake lemon, and almond milk. His non-alcoholic serve, The Two, mixed Caraïbos Aloe Si, cucumber water, orange blossom water, citric solution of milk, Saint James sugar syrup, and Boston Bitters.
Guerin was also voted the ‘public’s choice’ after the guests sampled each contestant’s serves.
Blanc continued: “Ned’s non-alcoholic cocktail in particular was amazing. He really created something complex and delicious for a non-alcoholic option, he understood the theme, it was just really, really well made.”
Marc Sassier, master blender of Saint James rum, flew to Paris from Martinique for the grand final.
He said: “It was bartenders who put us on the international map. For a long time there was the ‘American-style bar’, with classic cocktail recipes and today’s we’re more into the ‘French-style bar’ with more elaborate creations and cocktails.
“We’ve contributed to this evolution by offering a rum that’s different from traditional rum, which has forced [bartenders] to rethink traditional cocktails.
“The Bartenders Society has really helped to highlight St James’ place in the cocktail scene, and the bartenders have returned the favour by coming up with ever more daring, gourmet, original and delicious creations.”
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