Jameson seems to have a thing about the number “three”. Its whiskeys are renowned for many things, not least their all-important triple distillation. As for where that distillation takes place, it’s the Midleton Distillery, which came into being in the 1960s when three major Irish distillers, including John Jameson & Son, joined forces.
So it’s hardly surprising that the Jameson Hosts Global Summit takes place over three days. Bringing together over 100 leading agency figure for seminars, networking, tastings and much more, not to mention a whole lot of good times too. As for the special guests, these were 26 very talented bartenders who joined from all over the world, having earned their coveted places as regional winners of the Jameson Black Barrel Bartender Series Competition. And as a further nod to the magic number the summit also crowned three of these bartenders as Global Champions.
We joined the three packed days catching up with Tony O’Brien, Jameson Global Advocacy Manager, talking with three of the fantastic presenters and hearing from those three competition winners.
And, as we rather like the magic number ourselves, we asked all of interviewees to sum up a particular aspect of the summit with, of course, three words. Starting with Tony O’Brien.
Tony O’Brien: connect, learn, grow
Tony O’Brien, Jameson Global Advocacy Manager, and the driving force behind the Jameson Hosts Global Summit told us about its story.
First up Tony, tell us about the significance of the number “three” to Jameson?
Three is significant to Jameson because Irish pot still distillation historically uses three pot stills, providing an additional layer of smoothness compared to the double distillation common in other countries. As we say at Jameson, triple distilled, twice as smooth.
And now it’s also a three day summit, but going back to the beginning what was the original idea behind the Jameson Hosts Global Summit?
In 2019, we asked the global on-trade community what they wanted most from Jameson. The answer was clear, they wanted a platform to connect, share ideas, and inspire one another. This lead to us launching Jameson Hosts in 2020. The platform brings the global bar community together to connect, learn, and grow around the topics that matter most to them. As a brand, our role is to facilitate those connections—both digitally and in person through the annual Jameson Hosts Global Summit.
How do you think it has evolved over the years?
The summit evolves each year through attendee feedback and ongoing engagement with the wider bar community, helping us understand what matters most to them. This insight shapes a program built around relevant themes such as operational excellence, sustainability, and health and wellness. Our goal is to deliver inspiring, practical content that reflects the diverse interests of today’s bartenders. In partnership with co-curator Remy Savage, the programme is refreshed annually with new speakers and formats, including a greater focus on workshops and behind-the-scenes Jameson education in response to guest feedback. We also continue to create more opportunities for downtime and connection — something attendees consistently value and appreciate.
There were a lot of bartenders attending from lots of different regions – what did you want them to take away from the experience?
This year, we welcomed 100 bartenders from around the world, including 75 international guests and 25 from Ireland. Our primary goal was to create meaningful opportunities for connection, helping attendees build lasting friendships and a global professional network. We also wanted every participant to leave with fresh insights and practical learnings from each session that they could apply in their own bars and share with their teams. Above all, we hoped to inspire them — to spark curiosity, encourage continuous learning and motivate them to keep pushing themselves and their craft forward.
And, of course, three of those bartenders were crowned Jameson Black Barrel Bartender Series Competition Global champions. What do you envisage for them?
For the three winners, we have designed a tailored development programme built around their individual projects and ambitions. Guided by their mentors—Danil Nevsky on social media and strategy, Remy Savage on bar concept and design, and Gina Barbachano on creative menu development—they will receive ongoing support, insight and coaching to help elevate their ideas and accelerate their growth. Alongside this mentorship, they will also gain access to the US-based BarSmarts digital programme, providing advanced education to further strengthen their professional skill set.
There’s plenty to choose from but could you pick out a few personal highlights from this year?
A significant part of my role is dedicated to shaping and delivering the Jameson House Global Summit, with involvement in every detail from concept to execution. I particularly enjoy collaborating with Remy to curate the programme, identify inspiring speakers, and help refine each presentation to ensure it is engaging, visually compelling, and rooted in authentic storytelling. However, the highlight for me is when all 100 guests arrive. Being able to host them, create a welcoming and inclusive atmosphere, and build genuine connections is incredibly rewarding. Over the years, we’ve grown a truly special global community, and nothing gives me greater satisfaction than welcoming new people into that family.
It’s early days but can you share anything as to what’s in the pipeline for the future?
Watch this space!
How would you sum up the Jameson Hosts Global Summit in three words?
Connect, learn, and grow.
Three big days
Day one was all about arrivals and introductions. And in true Jameson style welcoming everyone into the family with some great whiskey. It was also the final of the Jameson Black Barrel Bartender Series Competition – more about that later…
But as Tony explained a key part of the Jameson Hosts Global summit is a day of inspiring presentations from leading industry figures. And this was what second day was all about.
Amongst the presentations we heard from Gina Barbachano, Hanky Panky, Mexico, who shared insights into menu creation. While Oisin Wolfe and Alex Earle shared the high and lows of opening their bar Cold Cuts. And Bannie Kang, Sidedoor, Singapore, shared the story of how her and her partner created a unique cocktail and food pairing experience. The most moving presentation, though, came from Jean Trinh and Melany Marcati, Alquimico, Columbia, who shared the experience of not only building an award-winning bar but creating a farm, inspiring young people and building a powerful community.
There were powerful presentations, too, from Iain McPherson, Millie Tang and Remy Savage who told us about their take on the summit and what they brought to it.
Videos of the presentations will be available soon, follow Instagram @JamesonHOSTS for updates. In the meantime let’s hear from three of these iconic people.
First up the multi award-winning owner of Panda & Sons, Edinburgh, Iain McPherson.
Ian McPherson: humble, communicate, compassion
So Iain what do you think makes the Jameson Hosts Global Summit so important?
It’s very social, more than an online or digital platform. More than ever we’re realising that connection in real life is really important, which I don’t think people get today. And you look how many countries are at the summit and you know that these bartenders wouldn’t have the chance to visit so many countries to gain experience. So for them to hear from so many industry people in a single place is very special.
It’s my first time at the summit and to see so many people from different cultures is incredible. It gets everyone out of their city or town bubble and gives them the chance to see there’s so much more of the world that they can experience, I think that’s great.
I also loved that the bartenders’ competition was at the beginning. So afterwards they could actually enjoy themselves. Other competitions build up to the end. But this one’s really like, let’s just finish and celebrate people at the beginning, now we can also enjoy each other’s time in the following days.
You gave an incredible presentation, could you tell us about your thinking behind it, and what you wanted people to take away?
I used to be a lot more emotional and let things affect me a lot more negatively than they do now. So you have to train yourself and your reactions. I wanted to share some ideas and techniques for this, things you can start doing now.
If people are having serious mental issues they should definitely seek professional help. I’m not a professional in that sense, but I wanted to explain there’s a lot of things you can do to overcome negative thoughts and think more positively. Because it’s hard now as everyone’s brains are overstimulated by the speed and demand for everything to be done, or when you’re communicating on Instagram, WhatsApp, email, in person. We’re not naturally meant to be able to deal with that much stuff. So having these techniques I talked about for looking after your brain, how you train it, this can help a lot more. And it’s not hard to do these things.
Can you sum up your advice in three words?
Humble, communicate, compassion.
Millie Tang: honesty, transparency, ambition
Social media plays an ever-growing role in our professional landscape. And who better to talk about how to use it to your advantage than renowned global hospitality figure and professional photographer Millie Tang.
Millie could you first tell us what you think is the importance of the Jameson Hosts Global Summit?
This is actually my second year with the Jameson Hosts Global Summit. I was lucky enough to be here last year as a competition judge. And I think something that really makes this event very special is the commitment that Jameson has made to bring in such a large community of the industry to have such a wonderful few days.
It feels perfectly paced. It feels like you’re getting a lot of education, but also a lot of entertainment. You really have that community feel where everyone gets to get to know each other as well.
Your talk was incredible and we learned so much from it. It was also very personal to you, what was it you wanted the bartenders to take away from it?
I’ve done a couple of iterations of this presentation over the last few years. And I think over time, it’s become more apparent to me that it’s really important to share more with people. Not to talk about the negatives of it, but there is a downside to it that we have to be aware of. I think just like social media in itself, it’s geared towards showing all the best parts of it. People usually only tend to post the best parts of their life online.
When you’re wanting to build a personal brand, obviously, you need to show the best part because it’s a professional setting. You’re trying to look at your very best professionally as well. But being transparent or reaching a point where I feel comfortable enough to be able to be transparent about the challenges that I face, I think, can really help other people get a more realistic view of what it’s like to try and build a social media brand for themselves.
If you wanted to give advice to bartenders, indeed all of us, about building a profile, what would be the three words to sum it up?
Honesty, transparency, ambition
Remy Savage: listen to yourself
Remy Savage is yet another example of the quality of the speakers at the Jameson Hosts Global Summit. With endless accolades to his name he had plenty to share around his story.
Remy, you’ve actually been involved with the Jameson Hosts Global Summit since it began. Tell us about that.
Yes, five years ago was the first edition of the Jameson Hosts Global Summit, but I was originally involved just before COVID, so almost seven years ago. When we were talking then about a project dedicated towards education, I thought what would I like to see? You know, the things I love from bar shows is that you have people you admire in the work they do, but you’re always a little bit shy on the first day or you get just 45 minutes of that person’s life, and then you’re just left with a 150 questions!
So we didn’t want to trap us all together in the same room, but that was the kind of the intention. So people could feel comfortable with the people they looked up to and to show that they are actually just people exactly like you and share the same passion for our profession.
What’s your view in terms of what you want the summit to bring to bartenders, particularly young bartenders?
It’s the reality of access to knowledge. Where you can have diversity in terms of who you’re listening to. There’s going to be the people that you see every day online and that you really would look up to, but it’s a chance to get close to those people and share what they’re doing on a global stage.
So it was really to have diversity in within the hospitality industry. As well as people working in bars, but also people that operate bars, people that will focus on how to build your online presence or how to do a stock take. So it’s like a 360 degree view of the work that we do every day.
And, of course, cocktails are a huge part of it, but it ends up being the more and more you grow in your career, the less it becomes the focus and becomes one accessory to a great guest experience.
You’re also one of the mentors to the three winners and over the coming year you’ll be working with them. What’s your ambition for this and what do you want them to get from it?
I want them to consider us as accessories. In the same way you have a muddler to help making a cocktail, now you have Remy for a year. So what do you want to make out of it can be very different in talking to the three different winners this year.
They all have very different projects. And that’s fun. Because over the year, I feel like all three of us as the mentors have a variety of skills. So it’s not that one of us will focus on cocktails and the other one will focus on management and the other one will focus on something else. We’re accessible to help them achieve whatever is the overarching goal that they create for themselves.
So what would be your three words to sum up the idea of mentorship for these bartenders?
Listen to yourself
Behind the scenes
Day three saw everyone back at the Midleton distillery. This time for some insights into the iconic Irish whiskey itself. A day of tours learning about the very special history of Jameson and a glimpse into its past. It was back to school, too, learning about the fascinating science behind the whiskey. While the Master Cooper shared the history of his craft alongside a live demonstration of his unique skills. There was also a breath-taking tour of the cathedral-like warehouses, heavy with atmosphere and the perfect place for an exclusive tasting.
Three global champions
Okay, so the three days were packed with education, communication and celebration. All of the bartenders in attendance have plenty of learnings and memories to take home. But what of the three global champions in particular?
You can hear more about their stories on the latest episode of The Cocktail Lovers Podcast [link]
But first let’s discover just exactly how they made their journeys. This year the Jameson Black Barrel Bartender Series competition saw some 432 entries from 60 countries worldwide. We’re talking Taiwan, Singapore, Puerto Rico, Nepal, Moldova, Macao, Jamaica, Hong Kong, Honduras, Cuba, Bahrain and many more.
Making the shortlist to actually get to the summit was tough to start with. Every bartender’s entry was evaluated based, not surprisingly, on the cocktail that they created to bring together the individual characteristics of Black Barrel Whiskey itself with inspiration from their personal local surroundings. Moreover, they also had to create a video to bring their cocktail to life – showcasing their skills in creativity, execution and storytelling. The entries reflected bold, globally inspired ingredients such as soy sauce, tomato, coffee, cheese and tropical produce. While techniques ranged from the classic to the contemporary.
The judges certainly had their work cut out. But then look at the quality of those judges: Danil Nevsky, Indie Bartender, Bannie King, Sidecar in Singapore and Jean Trinh of Alquímico, Columbia.
After much evaluation 26 bartenders were chosen to join the summit. Of these ten names were also selected for the summit’s shortlist. And these were the bartenders who would get to make their cocktails once again for the judges and guests. Along with screenings of their videos (make that, blockbuster movies).
Celebrating the shortlist
Ellen Xu: China
Mariya Goncharova: Kazakhstan
Wayan Irawan: Indonesia
Luka Mihaljev: Serbia
Christos Paraskeva Cyprus
PJ Renaud New Zealand
Eray Hakan Evcil: Turkey
Lewis Kay: Spain
Darragh Connely: Ireland
Saluting the winners
There were truly great drinks and videos all round but there could only be three winners. Step forward PJ Renaud, Eray Hakan Evcil and Lewis Kay.
Hear what PJ, Eray and Lewis had to say about their experiences at the Jameson Hosts Global Summit and winning the Jameson Black Barrel Bartender Series Competition on the latest episode of The Cocktail Lovers Podcast.
But first let’s check out those winning drinks.
The winning cocktails
Eray Hakan Evcol
Hosaf (Cherry Compote, Jameson Black Barrel, Clarified Tomato Water, Sesame Syrup).
A simple but complex combination that made the Jameson Black Barrel sing.
Lewis Kay
La Bouqueria (Jameson Black Barrel, Wine, Ratafia, Strawberry Oleo, Strawberry Shrub, Mató Cheese, Lemon Juice).
A richly satisfying reimagined Old Fashioned.
PJ Renaud
Pavlovaboy (Jameson Black Barrel, Manuka Honey Vermouth, Nectarine Cordial, Lemon and Paeroa).
Who says a whiskey cocktail can’t be playful as well as tasty?
Titles, euros, mentorships
As for the reward for their creativity and hard work. Again it can be summed up in three words; titles, euros and mentorships.
Each of the three winners can now officially call themselves a Jameson Black Barrel Bartender Series Global Champion. They each also got to take home a rather impressive €5000. For our money, though, the most important prize is a year long mentorship programme.
The mentors themselves being the aforementioned award-winning bartender Remy Savage, Gina Barbachano, from Hanky Panky, Mexico City, and Danil Nevsky, Indie Bartender from Spain.
Each mentor will work with all of the winners on a particular topic. Remy will cover how to design a cohesive brand identity. Gina will be working on creative menu and drink design. While Danil will help them explore social media strategy and content creation.
The year long programme kicked off with face-to-face sessions during the summit. Next up, the mentors will design tailored presentations based on each mentees project goals, outlining how to they can add value and present back to them during online sessions with all the winners. From there, the winners will also have access to follow-up one-to-one sessions for additional guidance throughout the year as required.
We would say this is absolutely invaluable.
Just enter it!
Three, as far as we’re concerned, really is the magic number at the Jameson Hosts Global summit.
So how would we sum it up in three words for bartenders thinking about the Black Barrel Bartender Series Competition in the future?
Just enter it!
Keep up with the latest news from Jameson HOSTS Global summit, including links to the session videos, and the Jameson Black Barrel Bartender Series Competition on Instagram @JamesonHOSTS.
Meet the Jameson Black Barrel Bartender Series Competition Global champions on the latest episode of The Cocktail Lovers Podcast.
