Annnnnd, the results are in! The Top 50 bartenders going through to the Diageo World Class GB semi-finals can be found here https://www.instagram.com/worldclassgreatbritain/?hl=en.
Congratulations to all of those who made it through, including Oskar Wozniak from Be At One Newcastle, this year’s Be At One ‘Best In Glass winner’*. The standard of this year’s competitors has been really high. For those who have not made it through, please see this as a learning process, every one of you has individual feedback available and Diageo hope to see you for World Class GB 2024!
So now, the big question is: what’s next?
The date for your diaries is 17th April.
That’s when the Top 50 will be heading to the glorious Birch in Cheshunt, Hertfordshire, where as well as enjoying the facilities, delicious brunch, dinner and live music in the evening, they’ll get to show off their cocktail making and presentation skills in front of a panel of esteemed judges: Pippa Guy and Jo Last, World Class GB Brand Ambassadors; Cara Watson, Training Manager – The Cocktail Club; Erik Lorincz, World Class Global Winner 2010; Deano Moncrieffe, Founder of Equal Measures, and Bar Life UK.
Prior to their arrival, all of the semi-finalists will be assigned the challenge and spirit they will be tasked with hero-ing, which will be either Don Julio Tequila or Chase GB Gin.
The challenges
The Don Julio Challenge:
Geophyte Club
For this round the competitors will have to dig deep for inspiration, looking at the array of fascinating vegetation that hold water, energy and vital nutrients in their underground storage organs. Think along the likes of roots, tubers, rhizomes, stems, bulbs and corms. The bartender’s mission is to find or create a cocktail ingredient based on a geophyte and use it in a drink of their creation, featuring Don Julio.
The Chase Challenge
Chase – Modern Muse
Chase was created in 2008 in the picturesque Herefordshire countryside, therefore your Modern Muse must be something created in Great Britain after the year 2008, be that anything from a piece of music, a work of art, a building or a book.
In both challenges, bartenders must use a minimum of 30ml of either Don Julio or Chase GB Gin in their cocktail, and a maximum of five additional ingredients (excluding garnish). The choice of ice, glassware and garnish is up to the bartender, but should tie into the story of the drink and add to the overall aesthetic.
*Be At One ‘Best in Glass’
As part of its commitment to create learning and development opportunities within the bartending community, World Class GB has partnered with Be At One – Stonegate Group. Previously an in-house competition known as Be At One’s ‘Shake Off Showdown’, the contest has been renamed and evolved to take in one-to-one training with World Class ambassadors for all participating bartenders and managers to learn how to progress their creative cocktail making skills, as well as equipping them with in-depth spirits knowledge of the Diageo brands.
That’s the dedicated training side of things, the Be At One Best In Glass Competition which took place on 21st March, saw the competitors creating outstanding drinks featuring either Cîroc Vodka, Tanqueray Gin, Casamigos Tequila and Johnnie Walker Whisky. The prizes on offer took in a number of career changing opportunities, including Oskar having his cocktail featured in all Be At One bars from May and an automatic wild card place in the World Class GB semi final on 17th April. Second and third-place winners were awarded an all-expenses paid trip to World Class GB Finals in Edinburgh in June.
Once again, congratulations to Oskar Wozniak and the remaining 50 bright and quite frankly, brilliant bartenders who will be competing at the semi-finals on 17th April.
To follow all the action, see @worldclassgreatbritain
