Staibano wins first GBS Cocktail Competition

Lemon cream liqueur brand Staibano has created the winning cocktail recipe in the inaugural Great British Summer Cocktail Competition, the final for which was held last night.

The Staibano Basil Sour has won the inaugural Great British Summer Cocktail Competition

The competition was launched as part of a collaboration between The Spirits Business and leading London bar and restaurant venue Mews of Mayfair in a bid to discover cocktails that encapsulate the “ultimate taste of summer”.

Around 130 people attended the grand final of the competition last night, held in the Mews of Mayfair’s basement Lounge bar, and sampled any three of 10 finalist cocktail recipes.

The 10 finalist cocktails, all submitted by spirits brands, were: ‘Village Mar-tea-ni’ by Koskenkorva Vodka, ‘South of the River’ by No.3 London Dry Gin, ‘Orchard Fizz’ by Joseph Cartron, ‘Gospel of Fallen Times’ by Six Saints Caribbean Rum, ‘Summer Treat’ by Bishop’s Gin, ‘Watermelon Batida’ by Capucana Cachaça, ‘Summer’ by Gin Mare, ‘The Sour King’ by Spice King Blended Malt, ‘The Revivalist’ by Hine Cognac, and the eventual winner of the competition, the ‘Staibano Basil Sour’ by Staibano.

The winning cocktail was decided by the highest number orders and will feature as Mews of Mayfair’s ‘Cocktail of the Month’.

The Staibano Basil Sour is created using a combination of Staibano liqueur, gin, fresh lemon juice, sugar syrup and egg white with a basil leaf garnish.

“Of the top 10 finalists, the Staibano Basil Sour was the stand out serve of the night,” said Charlotte Wise, events co-ordinator at The Spirits Business magazine.

“Refreshing, light and altogether dangerously easy-to-drink, Staibano is a relatively new brand to the UK scene and doing so well against such established, reputable brands in our competition just goes to show the quality of the liqueur. It’s definitely a brand to watch.”

The Great British Summer Cocktail Competition is the first consumer-focused event launched by The Spirits Business, which also runs the popular Swizzle Masters “virtual cocktail competition” for bartenders.

“The overwhelming response to our first consumer event was fantastic and just goes to show the increased interest in discovering new brands,” continued Wise.

“To have such a strong choice of top 10 cocktails from a range of spirits was brilliant, and of course the quality of drinks created by the bartenders at Mews of Mayfair was second to none.

“From watermelon to Cognac, blond beer to absinthe, nothing was off limits in our search for the ultimate Great British Summer Cocktail.”

For a full write-up of the competition, see the September 2016 issue of The Spirits Business magazine.