Following rounds of intense competition and exceptional creativity from all competitors Jamie Jones from Fumo in Manchester has been crowned as a WORLD CLASS semi-final winner. Having risen above 45 other regional finalists in yesterday’s heats, they will now go on to compete in the UK final of one of the industry’s biggest and most prestigious bartending competitions.
Jamie Jones from Fumo is the top bartender in Manchester and part of the first five bartenders through to the final. Mixing and shaking their way alongside him will be Luca Corradini from the American Bar at The Savoy, Tim Laferla from Red Bar at Bam-Bou, Kyle Wilkinson from The Blind Pig and Jon Hughes from Bramble Bar, as all five proceed to the next stage of the competition. This highly anticipated UK final will take place at Drummuir Castle in Scotland in June, and comprise of an additional five semi-finalists who are to be announced in April.
Here is Jamie Jones winning semi-finalist cocktail:
The Bulleivardier
40ml Bulleit Rye
20ml Campari
20ml Cinnamon, orange and coffee adam infused sweet vermouth
5ml Pedro Ximinez sherry
METHOD: All stirred with ice, poured into a high ball glass and garnished orange twist
(3 UNITS)
Daniel Dove, DIAGEO RESERVE WORLD CLASS™ Brand Ambassador commented: “WORLD CLASS is a celebration of the world’s best bartenders, the world’s best drinks and the world’s best spirits. The competition itself aims to inspire the world to drink better, and to care about what, where and how they drink in the same way they do about food. Our new semi-finalists have the skill, creativity and ambition to do just that.
“This year we have put competing bartenders through the paces more than ever, with rigorous challenges designed to test their sensory, accuracy, hosting and mixology skills. The standard has been higher than ever and we can’t wait to see our finalists compete for a place in the global final, taking place in South Africa this September.”
As well as taking the esteemed title of the UK World Class Bartender of the Year and representing his or her country in the global final in South Africa, the winner will travel the world educating and inspiring new talent. Further advancing their career, they will become a World Class judge and mentor, feature on the World Class TV show, and have the opportunity to create their own cocktail collection book to be released globally. The bar they work in will not only benefit from the prestige of working with the UK World Class Bartender of the Year, but will also be awarded a one-off £10,000 marketing fund to create their own, exclusive World Class ritual serve.
Each year WORLD CLASS™ discovers the next generation of bartending talent who set the latest mixology trends and bring these to the best bars worldwide. The bartenders are encouraged to innovate and experiment using some of the finest spirits in the world.
The competition can be followed on the World Class website http://www.theworldclassclub.com , on Facebook at http://www.facebook.com/WorldClass, on Twitter at http://www.twitter.com/WorldClass or on http://www.youtube.com/WorldClassGlobal.
DRINKS ENTHUSIAST 