Patrón Tequila has named the top five bartenders who won the regional heats of the Patrón Perfectionists Cocktail Competition, held over the last week.
With bartenders from Tasmania, Victoria, Northern Territory and Queensland joining New Zealand’s winner there is a very national feel to the competition.
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’
Speaking after his win, Massie said: “I’m speechless. Its 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.”
Oisin Conneely won over judges with his cocktail, ‘The In Laws’, which was inspired by his first Christmas on the beach in Queensland, “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,” he said.
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.