On Tuesday night, the third Regional Final for The Perfect Blend competition was held in Perth at Si Paradiso, revealing the winners from the Apprentice and Professional category.
What an epic night it was!
12 finalists took to the stage in front of a live audience of over 150 industry folks.
Some competitors were no stranger to the competition stage, some had even returned to The Perfect Blend, whilst others were competing for the very first time.
No matter level of experience, what a show! A true demonstration of pure creativity and sheer talent! Presenting their signature cocktails which were interpretations of the brief provided upon entry:
- Minimum Waste, Maximum Taste OR
- That Moment In Time.
New sustainability ideas and methods were shared, that really raised the creativity levels, and made for such a tough competition. Each individual impressing the judges in their own unique ways making the decision an incredibly difficult one.
12 finalists competed for that trip of a lifetime for two bartenders to head to the home of bourbon, Kentucky USA visiting the Jim Beam and Maker’s Mark distilleries and then heading across to the Big Apple to the Brooklyn Bar Convent in New York.
In addition to scores allocated from their individual efforts of World Bartender Day (30%), competition day saw the finalists put through their paces to complete a blind tasting (10%), a product knowledge test (10%) and then the live performance (50%).
Winning the Apprentice Category — was Max Giudice from Tiny’s , and in the Professional Category was Lachlan Robinson from The Claremont. Max and Lachlan will now progress to the Grand Final later in the year to compete with the other lucky finalists from each regional final.
Be sure to RSVP to your upcoming regional final! RSVP at www.the-blend.com.au.
- SA/NT – Electra House – 25th March
- QLD – Lefty’s Music Hall – April 1st
- NSW – Oxford Art Factory – 9th April
Want to see all the finalists cocktail recipes? Head to www.worldbartenderday.com.
Bourbon, banter and bloody good times ahead!