Six of the best mixers and bartenders rocked things June 13 at the opening Dublin Classic Cocktail Gala at The Getaway Brewing Co. 108 N. High Street, in Historic Dublin.
The competition is expected to return next year at The Getaway Brewing Co. , according to Sarah Hulabo, the brewery’s director of marketing.
Hulabo, with Tommy Householder, Brand Ambassador for Watershed Distillery, and Scott Dring, President and CEO of Visit Dublin Ohio, organized the Dublin Classic Cocktail.
“Our idea was to do something to bring the Dublin[restaurant and bar]community that serves,” Hulabo said.
In a blind taste test, a panel of judges selected the original cocktail creations of six bartenders from Dublin’s restaurants and bars.
These six bartenders competed on June 13, making the brew as they explained it to a panel of three judges.
“They all bring excitement and are so talented,” said Rebecca Monday, beverage consultant at Ellis Adams Group, Inc.
Nick Ansara, senior director of beverage operations for Cameron Mitchell Restaurants, and Bert Chavez, assistant general manager of Chapman’s Eat Market, served as other judges.
The six bartenders who competed were Nate Powers, of VASO; Nick Benigno, from Kona Craft Kitchen; Mora Music, from Harvest Pizzeria; Jeremiah Maya, from Kitchen Social; Emma Copsey Pierce, from Coast House Wine; and Jessica George, from St.
Competitors were asked to work in a Dublin bar or restaurant and were tasked with creating an original travel-inspired cocktail, in keeping with The Getaway Brewing Co.’s décor.
The restaurant’s drinks menu is announced on a wall-mounted scrabble board that resembles the 1970s-era arrival and departure board at the airport terminal.
Those who have purchased tickets for the sold-out competition can sample each bartender’s creativity and vote on their favourites.
In between preparing their drinks and explaining them, one at a time to the jury, the bartenders set up their workstations and greet diners.
Every bartender was required to use alcohol from the watershed distillery but was creative with its use.
Benigno, 34, of Dublin, a Dublin Classic Cocktail Award winner, soaked bananas in a bourbon watershed and used banana-soaked bourbon as the base for his drink, “perfectual breeze.”
The drink includes pineapple, coconut, lemon, and Campari and tiki refreshments, and is inspired by Hawaii, the state from which Kona Craft Kitchen gets its coffee beans and the restaurant’s namesake Hawaiian island.
As the competition winner, a Pennino brew will be featured on the menu at The Getaway Brewing Co., Ltd.
“I wanted to make a balanced but complex bourbon cocktail,” Benigno said.
George, 28, from the German village created “Killing Me Softly” by using a watershed gin infused with coconut and drinking orange, pineapple, lemon juice, and bitter Angostura.
Using gin instead of rum and changing a few other ingredients, George said the drink she made was “more silky” than another drink called “Painkiller,” and led to its apt name, “Killing Me Softly,” compared to the more effective “painkiller.”
George’s concoction was a favorite of Worthington’s Kate Nogle.
“It was very interesting to hear all the stories from the bartenders,” Nogle said.
Lauren Schmidt, from Dublin, also enjoyed the classic Dublin cocktail, and her mother, Melanie Schmidt, from Powell.
“We love our cocktails and make our own at home. It’s a fun night out and even gave me some inspiration to try a few different things at home,” said Lauren Schmidt.
Copsey-Pierce, 28, of Bexley, created “Down Bay River,” using a catchment gin with four rinds filled with bush melon, adding cherry bark, bittersweet vanilla, and lemon juice.
“I wanted to take people to the English seashore,” said Copsey Pierce, named after a British song from the World War I era.
Bowers, 33, of Grove City, created My Dunn using a catchment guild gin infused with honey, jasmine, yuzu juice, and cardamom liqueur. While Maya, 21, of northern Columbus, showcased Kabuki Fizz, using a catchment gin with four hibiscus peels and adding Japanese plum wine.
The drink is named after kabuki dancers, a classic form of dramatic dance in Japanese culture.
Music, 29, of Bexley created “Be Yourself, All Else is Taken” inspired by her experiences on a family vacation and her mother’s advice.
Made with catchment gin gin filled with peas with blueberry syrup, tagine seasoning and Angostura refreshments, Music said, the drink was inspired by a particular family vacation in Mexico where he enjoyed blueberry pie.
“It was a huge and wonderful event that would not have happened without the support (which was received),” said Householder.
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