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by David Klemt David Klemt No Comments

Cheers to the Spirited Awards Winners!

Cheers to the 2023 Spirited Awards Winners!

by David Klemt

Bartender presenting cocktail

A toast to the nominees and winners!

Cheers to each of the winning bars, teams, and individuals taking home awards from the 17th annual Spirited Awards at Tales of the Cocktail 2023 in New Orleans!

Spirits educator, advocate, and bartender’s bartender Tiffanie Barriere earned the well-deserved Tales Visionary Award. Master Distiller Desmond Payne, MBE, took home the Helen David Lifetime Achievement Award.

Compellingly, a number of so-called secondary and tertiary markets are taking awards back to their home cities. These include Albuquerque, Phoenix, and Portland. Nothing against primary markets like New York City and Los Angeles, but it’s wonderful to see other cities grab the spotlight and shine, make their marks, and let everyone know, “We’ve arrived—don’t sleep on us!”

Unfortunately, Canada didn’t take home any international awards from Tales this year, nor did Las Vegas. Next year, hopefully.

Barcelona, however, can boast that it’s the home of the Spirited Award winner for the World’s Best Bar.

As far as our little experiment with artificial intelligence attempting to predict Spirited Awards winners, the chatbot we selected didn’t do very well. That said, it did accurately guess six out of the 24 awards we presented to the bot for a 25-percent success rate: Best US Brand Ambassador; International Bartender of the Year; Best International Bar Mentor; Best International Restaurant Bar; Best Broadcast, Podcast, or Online Video Series; and Best Cocktail & Spirits Writing.

Raise a glass and toast this year’s Spirited Awards winners. Cheers!

US Categories

US Bartender of the Year presented by Pernod Ricard USA

Christine Wiseman, Marygold’s Brasserie / Broken Shaker (Miami, Florida)

Best US Bar Mentor presented BarSmarts

Chris Patino

Best US Brand Ambassador presented Libbey

Vance Henderson (Hendrick’s Gin)*

Best US Bar Team presented by William Grant & Sons

Happy Accidents (Albuquerque, New Mexico)

Best US Cocktail Bar presented by Absolut Vodka

Century Grand (Phoenix, Arizona)

Best US Hotel Bar presented by Grey Goose

Hey Love at The Jupiter (Portland, Oregon)

Best US Restaurant Bar presented by Amaro Montenegro and Select Aperitivo

Café La Trova (Miami, Florida)

Best New US Cocktail Bar presented by Diageo Bar Academy

Martiny’s (New York, New York)

Timeless US Award

Tiki-Ti (Los Angeles, California)

International Categories

International Bartender of the Year presented by The Busker

Giorgio Bargiani, Connaught Bar (London, England, United Kingdom)*

Best International Bar Mentor presented by Tales of the Cocktail Foundation

Agostino Perrone*

Best International Brand Ambassador presented by Tales of the Cocktail Foundation

Nicola Riske (The Macallan)

Best International Bar Team presented by Angostura Caribbean Rum

ALQUÍMICO (Cartagena, Colombia)

Best International Cocktail Bar presented by Patr​​ón Tequila

SIPS (Barcelona, Spain)

Best International Hotel Bar presented by Perrier

Jigger & Pony at the Amara Hotel (Singapore)

Best International Restaurant Bar presented by Tales of the Cocktail Foundation

Analogue Initiative (Singapore)*

Best New International Cocktail Bar presented by Diageo Bar Academy

Line Athens (Athens, Greece)

Timeless International Award

Long Bar at the Raffles Hotel (Singapore)

Global Categories

Tales Visionary Award

Tiffanie Barriere

Helen David Lifetime Achievement Award

Desmond Payne, MBE

World’s Best Bar

SIPS (Barcelona, Spain)

Best New Spirit or Cocktail Ingredient presented by Lyre’s Non-Alcoholic

Martini & Rossi Floreale Non Alcoholic Aperitivo

World’s Best Cocktail Menu presented by Diageo Bar Academy

Double Chicken Please (New York, New York)

World’s Best Spirits Selection presented by Tales of the Cocktail Foundation

Raised by Wolves (San Diego, California)

Writing & Media Categories

Best Cocktail & Spirits Publication presented by Tales of the Cocktail Foundation

Punch

Best Broadcast, Podcast, or Online Video Series presented by Tales of the Cocktail Foundation

The Speakeasy Podcast*

Best Cocktail & Spirits Writing presented by Tales of the Cocktail Foundation

The Great Mezcal Heist” by Emma Janzen, for Eater*

Best New Cocktail or Bartending Book presented by Tales of the Cocktail Foundation

The Bartender’s Manifesto by Toby Maloney with Emma Janzen

Best New Book on Drinks Culture, History, or Spirits presented by Tales of the Cocktail Foundation

Modern Caribbean Rum: A Contemporary Reference to the Region’s Essential Spirit by Matt Pietrek and Carrie Smith

Congratulations to each of the venues, teams, and individual winners! Cheers!

Bar Hacks Guests

The following Spirited Awards presenters, winners, and TOTC team have appeared on the Bar Hacks podcast. Give these episodes a listen to learn more about these amazing people!

Vance Henderson (episode 20)

Episode 48, Episode 65, and the Hurricane Ida Emergency Episode with Eileen Wayner

Lynn House (episode 52)

Kellie Thorn and Lola Thomas (episode 72)

Roberta Mariani (episode 84)

* Denotes an accurate prediction by DeepAI‘s AI Chat chatbot.

Image: Christian Fridell on Pexels

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by David Klemt David Klemt No Comments

8 Glendalough Cocktail Recipes for St. Patrick’s Day and Beyond

Offer your guests something different for your St. Patrick’s Day promotion with Glendalough Distillery cocktail recipes.

Without a doubt, you should have plenty of the expected Irish whiskeys on hand. However, Glendalough Distillery Double Barrel, Pot Still, Wild Gin, and Rose Gin are extraordinary Irish whiskeys and gins.

Each spirit the distillery crafts honors the art of Irish distillation, a craft that stretches back centuries. What’s more, each whiskey Glendalough crafts is single malt—there are no light-bodied blends in their lineup.

To learn more, check out episode 71 of the Bar Hacks podcast with Glendalough Distillery co-founder and national brand ambassador Donal O’Gallachoir.

by David Klemt

Glendalough Distillery Wild Gin Irish gin

8 Amazing Irish Whiskey and Gin Cocktails

Below, eight refreshing and sophisticated drink recipes made with Glendalough whiskeys and gins. Sláinte!

Glendalough Distillery Double Barrel Single Malt Irish Whiskey

The Lough Inn

This highball is made with Glendalough Double Barrel, a single-grain Irish whiskey aged in ex-bourbon barrels before being finished in Oloroso sherry casks.

  • 2 oz. Glendalough Double Barrel Single Grain Irish Whiskey
  • 1 oz. Spiced honey syrup (see note)
  • 1 oz. Fresh lemon juice
  • Soda to top
  • Lemon wheel or slice to garnish
  • Mint leaf to garnish
  • 1 cup Honey for spiced honey syrup
  • 0.5 cup Water for spiced honey syrup
  • 4 Cinnamon sticks for spiced honey syrup
  • 1 pod Star anise for spiced honey syrup

Add ice to a highball glass, then add first three ingredients. Top with soda water. Garnish with lemon wheel or slice and freshly torn mint leaf.

For spiced honey syrup: Add honey, water, cinnamon sticks, and star anise to pot. Bring to a boil, then stir. Strain into container.

Glendalough Distillery Pot Still single malt Irish whiskey

Pot Still Highball

Deceptively simple to build, this cocktail highlights the terroir of the land surrounding Glendalough Distillery.

  • 1.5 oz. Glendalough Pot Still
  • Soda to top
  • Grapefruit peel to garnish
  • Mint leaf to garnish (freshly torn and slapped, of course)

Prepare a highball glass with an ice shard, spear or cylinder. Pour in Glendalough Pot Still whiskey, then top with soda. Glendalough Distillery recommends a 1:2 ratio, Pot Still to soda. Garnish with mint leaf.

Glendalough Distillery Wild Gin Negroni cocktail

Glendalough Negroni

The foraged botanicals in Glendalough Wild Gin add even more complexity and depth to the classic Negroni. In fact, the flavors work so well this recipe maintains the Negroni’s crucial 1:1:1 ratio.

Prepare an Old Fashioned with ice. Add first three ingredients to glass in the above order. Add more ice if necessary. Stir, express orange peel, and place as garnish.

Glendalough Distillery Wild Gin Irish gin

Glendalough Wicklow 75

Bubbles make everything better and everyone happier.

Add all ingredients to shaker. Add ice and shake until well chilled. Strain into Champagne flute, top with Prosecco, and garnish with lemon twist.

Glendalough Distillery Rose Gin Irish gin and cocktails

Glendalough Rose G&T

This simple classic receives a huge visual and aromatic boost from Glendalough Rose Gin.

  • 2 oz. Glendalough Rose Gin
  • Tonic to top (the higher the quality, the better)
  • Lime slice
  • Mint leaves

Add ice to glass, then add Rose Gin. Top with tonic, and garnish with lime slice and mint leaves.

Glendalough Distillery Rose Gin Fizz

Glendalough Rose Gin Fizz

One way to elevate the highball is to use a striking pink-hued Irish gin.

  • 1.5 oz. Glendalough Rose Gin
  • 0.5 oz. Elderflower liqueur
  • Raspberry & Lime sparkling water to top
  • Lime wheel to garnish

Add ice (spear, shard or cylinder for impact), Rose Gin, and liqueur to highball glass. Stir, then add sparkling water to top. Garnish with lime wheel.

 

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Glendalough Rose Collins

Boost the classic Collins with Glendalough’s striking rose-petal gin.

  • 1.5 oz. of Glendalough Rose Gin
  • 1 oz. of Lemon juice (freshly squeezed)
  • 0.5 oz. of Sugar syrup (1:1 ratio, hot water to sugar)
  • Soda to top
  • Lemon peel to garnish
  • Cherry to garnish

Combine first three ingredients in a shaker with a cup of ice. Place an ice shard, spear or cylinder to a highball glass. Shake until well chilled, then strain into glass. Top with soda, and garnish with lemon peel and cherry.

Glendalough Distillery Rose Gin Hibiscus Rose

Glendalough Hibiscus Rose

Refreshing and flavorful, the hibiscus tea syrup plays incredibly well with Glendalough Rose Gin.

  • 1.5 oz. Glendalough Rose Gin
  • 0.5 oz. Hibiscus tea syrup (see note)
  • 0.5 oz. Lemon juice (fresh squeezed)
  • Prosecco to top
  • Dehydrated lemon wheel to garnish
  • Rose petals to garnish
  • 33 oz. Water for hibiscus tea syrup
  • 16 oz. Sugar for hibiscus tea syrup

Add first three ingredients and ice to a shaker. Shake until well chilled and double strain into a coupe.  Top with Prosecco, and garnish with dehydrated lemon wheel and rose petals.

For the hibiscus tea syrup: Steep seven hibiscus tea bags in 33 ounces of water for 15 minutes. Add 16 ounces of sugar.

Images & Recipes: Glendalough Distillery

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