elit searches for Martini ‘visionaries’

SPI Group-owned ultra-premium vodka elit by Stolichnaya is calling for entries into its annual Art of Martini cocktail competition, which returns in an expanded format this year.

elit by Stolichnaya is calling for entries into its annual Art of Martini cocktail competition

According to the elit team the competition this year will feature more cities and “more demanding challenges than ever before” as the brand searches for a bartender who can create “the most avant-garde interpretation of the classic cocktail, the Martini”.

Judges are looking for “unerring exactitude”, and will select 60 city finalists ahead of a grand final in Ibiza, “the mecca of ultra-luxury lifestyle”.

“Reinventing such an iconic cocktail is no easy mission,” said Brent Lamberti, eli by Stolichnaya global brand ambassador. “To make it even more challenging, this year we’re pushing the boundaries of cocktail-making, daring bartenders to elevate their knowledge, skills and ingenuity to a level of pure artistry.”

To enter, bartenders must submit a recipe which demonstrates their own take on the Martini, with elit as the base spirit. In addition, the recipe must feature a local ingredient.

Cocktails will be scrutinised by panels of spirits industry experts in each city final, before the winner from each is whisked off to Ibiza.

Last year’s contest attracted over 500 entries from 30 cities. Recipes including a savoury martini from Dubai that contained squid ink and chili sauce, and one from Copenhagen described as a “thyme-infused concoction”.

2016’s London winner was Andrei Panitru, manager of Leicester Square Bar in London.