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News
Austrian bartender declared Tahona Society Cocktail champion
Austrian bartender Heinz Kaiser has been named the winner of the third annual Tahona Society International Cocktail Competition.
The finalists from the third annual Tahona Society International Cocktail Competition
At the final in Arandas, Mexico, Kaiser, from Dino’s American Bar in Vienna, used Olmeca Tezon Reposado to create the winning cocktail, La Paloma Hegra – a Manhattan-style drink infused with cumin-scented smoke inspired by the late Mexican singer Chavela Vargas.
The panel of judges, which was chaired by Tahona Society co-founder Henry Besant, were impressed by Kaiser’s presentation.
“Heinz’s creativity, ingenuity and skill set his cocktail apart from the crowd,” said Besant. “His use of vintage silverware and modern techniques were perfectly integrated with the complex and delicious flavours within the drink. Congratulations Heinz!”
Kaiser wins a return trip to Mexico to learn from Olmeca’s Maestro Tequilero Jesus Hernandez at the Olmeca Distillery in Jalisco next year.
Second place went to Jason Xue Bin from China for his Shanghai Girl cocktail, while Sergey Nadson from St. Petersburg, Russia took third place with his Sexy Kristy cocktail.
The Tahona Society International Cocktail Competition aims to give bartenders a platform from which to gain global recognition. The society itself is a worldwide community of around 1,300 Tequila-passionate bartenders founded in 2009 by Besant and Dre Masso.