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Strawberry Mud Cocktail Wins The New York Cocktail Competition
New York, NY – Seventeen bartenders and mixologists from around the country battled it out in The New York Cocktail Competition, sponsored by the Bureau National Interprofessionnel du Cognac and the EU, at this year’s New York Bar & Wine Show (June 20-21). The competition was the show’s main attraction, challenging participants to create innovative new cocktails using Cognac. After a close battle, Christopher James of Ashes Cigar Club in Red Bank, NJ, took home First Place for his “Strawberry Mud” cocktail, combining Cognac with strawberry puree, chocolate liqueur, balsamic vinegar and lemon juice (see recipe below).
Each participant presented their creation in front of a live audience to a panel of judges including star mixologist Junior Merino (the liquid chef), Ethan Kelly (head spirit sommelier and the beverage director for NYC's Brandy Library) and Michael Waterhouse (founder of Drink Tank and mixologist at Dylan Prime). The Second Place prize was awarded to Victoria D’Amato-Moran, who owns a consulting and catering business, for her “French Slipper,” and Third Place went to Dimitrios Zahariadis of The Hills in Waterbury, CT for his “Curios George” (see recipes below). $2,000, $750 and $250 were awarded to the First, Second and Third Place winners, respectively.
During the show, the Bureau National Interprofessionnel du Cognac also sponsored an educational booth and lounge (which was awarded “Best Booth” of the show), where visitors could learn about Cognac as well as taste Cognac cocktails made by renowned mixologists such as Tim Cooper of Goldbar in NYC. Other Cognac events included the “Discovering Le Cognac” seminar—an exploration and tasting of Cognac led by “King of Cocktails” Dale Degroff, cocktail historian David Wondrich, and leading spirits journalists Steve Olson and F. Paul Pacult.
FIRST PLACE
Strawberry Mud
2 oz Cognac
½ oz strawberry puree
½ oz dark chocolate liqueur
¼ oz 22-year-old balsamic vinegar
1 lemon wedge, squeezed
Shake together all of the ingredients and strain into a chilled cocktail/martini glass. Garnish with a crystallized strawberry fan.
SECOND PLACE
French Slipper
1 organic egg white
1.5 oz Cognac
¾ oz Ruby Port
1 oz pineapple juice
½ oz lemon juice
1 oz strawberry syrup (made using ripe strawberries and organic sugar)
Dry shake the egg white, hard, for 50 shakes. Add the remaining ingredients along with ice, and shake
hard for 50 shakes. Strain into a prepared vintage cocktail coupe class. Garnish with small white or
light pine rose petal sprinkled with gold flakes.
THIRD PLACE
Curios George
1 ½ oz VSOP Cognac
¾ oz Benedictine
1 ½ oz Banana White Chocolate Cordial
Thin slices of banana
Brown sugar for dusting
Cocoa powder for dusting
Shake the together the Cognac, Benedictine and Banana White Chocolate Cordial. Strain into a coupe glass. Dust the banana slices with brown sugar and cocoa powder, and place them on the foam of the cocktail. Brulée the bananas using a kitchen torch.
Jean-Louis Carbonnier
Cognac USA / c/o Carbonnier Communications
Tel : 212-216-9671 / Email : cognac@carbonniercommunications.com
CAMPAIGN FINANCED WITH THE SUPPORT OF THE EUROPEAN UNION AND FRANCE