Bartenders are invited to compete in a series of heats for the 12 places at the Grand Finale to be held in Amsterdam on Tuesday 15 May.
In the first heat all entrants submit a cocktail recipe designed to demonstrate their “mastery of flavour”, which is judged on harmony and balance. The 10 best entrants from each region then sit an online test on the theory of bartending and in heat three bartenders are challenged to create a short film to present their cocktail, displaying their “flair for technique, passion for bartending and style of service”.
Twelve finalists will be invited to compete at a three-day intensive final in Amsterdam, culminating in the Grand Finale. The line-up includes one member of the Young Talent Program, developed for bartenders aged 23 or younger with less than one year’s experience. The judges are: Hidetsugu Ueno, owner of bar High Five, Tokyo; Jeff Berry aka Beach Bum Berry, co-owner of Faux Tropical Bar School; Helmut Adam, co-owner of Mixology Magazine and Bar Convent, Berlin; Jared Brown & Anistatia Miller, directors of Mixellany and Rob Rademaker, Bols Bartending Academy’s global ambassador and head trainer.
The deadline for entires is March 15 and you can find out more at bols.com.
The prize for the 2012 World Champion is an eight day global bar tour visiting the "best cocktail bars" in four cocktail capitals of the winner’s choice as well as a Bols Platinum Ambassadorship, which comprises two trips to Amsterdam for intensive training and an all-expenses paid visit to a world-class bar show. The 11 finalists are awarded a one-year Bols Gold Ambassadorship, which includes a trip to Amsterdam for training and an honorary contract to represent Bols in their own country. All regional winners are celebrated on the competition website and receive a Bols Around the World National Champion Trophy and a limited edition Bols Barrel Aged Genever, signed by master distiller, Piet Leijenhorst.
