New Zealand's carnival of the cocktail
02 Mar 2011
42BELOW Cocktail World Cup
14 - 19 March
2011
Roll up … roll up… the world’s most talented bartenders will be visiting New Zealand’s ultimate playground Queenstown, on 14 March for a week of extreme cocktail making, parties and adrenalin-charged activities.
Hosted by New Zealand’s award-winning 42BELOW vodka brand, mixologists from seven countries will take part in the event, which is now in its seventh year.
In 2011 the iconic cocktail competition will delve into the realm of the carnival, presenting a grand final based on this magical and mystical world.
The competition
The 42BELOW ‘Carnival of the Cocktail’ launches in spectacular style on 14 March in Queenstown with a bungee jump, barbecue and party.
Contestants will be judged on a range of skills - including the ability to shake a cocktail while bungee jumping and a four-course degustation meal with matching cocktails.
The competition will culminate in a ‘grand finale’ under a big-top marquee in Wellington, New Zealand’s capital city, where teams go head-to-head in a spectacular shake-off, in front of a crowd of thousands.
The winner receives a kauri log 'trophy' and a special gift from 42BELOW, but 42BELOW Marketing Director Dion Nash says it is the huge kudos in the industry globally, that the participants strive for.
"The 42BELOW Cocktail World Cup is our signature event and way of celebrating the superstars of the trade. We are working hard to make sure the seventh time around it will be more extreme and more outrageous than ever before," says Nash.
International mix
The event will see New Zealand’s best bartenders competing with teams from Australia, USA, UK, Europe, Italy and Ireland.
Each of the elimination events will be overseen by a team of highly qualified judges from the United States, England and New Zealand.
The ringmasters include the UK’s ‘maestro’ of cocktails Salvatore Calabrese, and writer and historian David Wondrich - described by the New York Times as a ‘living iPod of drink lore in recipes.’
Teams of three are currently being chosen to compete in the event, through a series of grueling regional competitions around the world.
Background: 42BELOW vodka
42BELOW is an award-winning vodka that is available internationally in some of the world’s top bars.
The vodka was created by Kiwi Geoff Ross who began making the alcohol in his home garage, in Wellington, New Zealand.
42BELOW is made from water that runs under an extinct volcano and gets the highest purity rating available.
The vodka is named after its New Zealand origins - the 42nd parallel runs through New Zealand, and the pure liquid also has 42% alcohol content.
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