Feature

TOTC reveals 2018 Spirited Awards longlist

18 June 2018 By Nicola Carruthers

Tales of the Cocktail has revealed its longlist for the 12^th annual Spirited Awards, which recognises the year’s best bars, bartenders, cocktail experts and writers.

The winners from each category will be revealed at the 2018 Spirited Awards on 21 July

Following an assessment of more than 1,000 entries, a panel of judges has selected the top 10 nominees for each of the 25 categories in the 2018 Spirited Awards, which have been divided into American, International, Writing, and Global sections.

The Spirits Business is delighted to be listed in the Best Cocktail & Spirits Publication category, and extend our congratulations to the other contenders.

Charlotte Voisey, chairperson of the Spirited Awards, said: “Congratulations go to all of the nominees this year, it truly is exciting to see the growth of the industry generating more and more bars, bartenders, products and media every year.

“I am delighted for everyone capture in these top ten lists and look forward to sharing the finalists and winners soon.”

Neal Bodenheimer, board member of Tales of the Cocktail Foundation, added: “The Spirited Awards are the equivalent of the Oscars for the bar world and we are thrilled for our nominees who represent many of the best and brightest in our business.”

“We are excited to shine a light on the hard working and talented people who have made a meaningful impact on their peers and communities this year.”

The top four finalists for each category will be announced on 22 June 2018.

The World’s Best Bar title will be awarded to one of the bar category winners: Best American and International Cocktail Bar, Best American and International Restaurant Bar, Best American and International Hotel Bar and Best American and International High Volume Bar.

The recipient of the 2018 Lifetime Achievement Award will also be announced soon.

The 2018 Spirited Awards will take place on 21 July at 7pm (CT) at the Orpheum Theatre in New Orleans.

Click through the following pages to discover the top 10 nominees in each category of the 2018 Spirited Awards.

American categories

American Bartender of the Year presented by Bacardi USA

Tyson Buehler (Death & Co Denver)

Kevin Diedrich (Pacific Cocktail Haven )

Marcovaldo Dionysos (ABV)

Abigail Gullo (Compère Lapin at The Old No. 77 Hotel & Chandlery)

Franky Marshall (Le Boudoir Micah Melton, The Alinea Group )

Ezra Star (Drink )

Kellie Thorn (Empire State South )

Yael Vengroff (Spare Room )

Jillian Vose (The Dead Rabbit) 

Christine Wiseman (Broken Shaker Los Angeles)

Best American Brand Ambassador

Kiowa Bryan (Spiribam)

Tim Cooper (86 Co. )

Gardner Dunn (Suntory Whiskies)

Erin Hayes (House Spirits )

Vance Henderson (Monkey Shoulder)

Lynn House (Heaven Hill )

Anne Louise Marquis (Campari)

Jessamine McLellan (Pernod Ricard)

Robin Nance (Beam Suntory )

Trevor Schneider (Reyka)

Best American Bar Team presented by William Grant & Sons

Clover Club (Brooklyn, NY )

Columbia Room (Washington DC)

Dante (New York City, NY)

Drink (Boston, MA )

Herbs & Rye (Las Vegas, NV)

Leyenda (Brooklyn, NY)

Pacific Cocktail Haven (San Francisco, CA)

Sportsman’s Club (Chicago, IL )

Sweet Liberty (Miami, FL )

Williams & Graham (Denver, CO)

Best American Cocktail Bar presented by Pernod Ricard

ABV (San Francisco, CA )

Amor Y Amargo (New York City, NY )

Anvil (Houston, TX)

Bar Goto (New York City, NY )

BarMini by Jose Andres (Washington, DC)

Lost Lake (Chicago, IL )

Pacific Cocktail Haven (San Francisco, CA)

PDT (New York City, NY)

Pouring Ribbons (New York City, NY)

NY Trick Dog (San Francisco, CA)

Best American High Volume Cocktail Bar presented by William Grant & Sons

Bitter & Twisted Cocktail Parlour (Phoenix, AZ)

Drink (Boston, MA )

Harvard and Stone (Los Angeles, CA)

Occidental (Denver, CO)

Pagan Idol (San Francisco, CA)

Polite Provisions (San Diego, CA)

Roosevelt Room (Austin, TX)

Sportsman’s Club (Chicago, IL)

The Anderson (Miami, FL)

The NoMad Bar (New York City, NY)

Best American Hotel Bar presented by Bacardi USA

Brother’s and Sister’s at The Line Hotel (Washington DC)

Charmaine’s at The Proper Hotel (San Francisco, CA )

Compère Lapin at The Old No. 77 Hotel & Chandlery (New Orleans, LA)

Covina (New York City, NY )

Libertine Social (Las Vegas, NV )

Midnight Rambler (Dallas, TX )

Sable Kitchen & Bar in Chicago (Chicago, IL )

The Broken Shaker Miami (Miami, FL)

The Living Room at The Dewberry Hotel (Charleston, SC)

The Roof at Park South (New York City, NY )

The Spare Room (Los Angeles, CA)

Best American Restaurant Bar presented by Woodford Reserve

Bad Hunter – Chicago, IL Bar Agricole (San Francisco, CA)

Cherry Circle Room (Chicago, IL )

Clyde Common (Portland, OR)

Gramercy Tavern (New York City, NY)

Kimball House (Decatur, GA )

LihoLiho Yacht Club (San Francisco, CA)

No. 9 Park (Boston, MA )

Nopa (San Francisco, CA)

Silver Dollar (Louisville, KY)

Best New American Cocktail Bar presented by Maison Ferrand USA

Attaboy Nashville (Nashville, TN )

Broken Shaker LA (Los Angeles, CA)

Death or Glory (Delray Beach, FL)

Diamond Reef (Brooklyn, NY )

Navy Strength (Seattle, WA )

Nickel City (Austin, TX)

NoMad LA Giannini Bar (Los Angeles, CA)

Prairie School (Chicago, IL )

The Aviary NYC (New York City, NY )

The Pool Lounge (New York)

International categories

International Bartender of the Year presented by Bacardi USA

Sullivan Doh (La Commune)
Marcis Dzelzainis (Sager and Wilde, London)
Roman Foltan (Atlas, Singapore)
Chris Hysted-Adams (Black Pearl, AU)
Chris Moore (Coupette, London)
Tess Posthumus (Flying Dutchmen Cocktails, Amsterdam)
Remy Savage (Artesian, London)
Joe Schofield (Tippling Club, Singapore)
Kaitlyn Stewart, Royal Dinette, Vancouver, CA)
Luke Whearty (Operation Dagger)

Best International Brand Ambassador presented by G.H. Mumm

Georgie Bell (Malts, Bacardi)
Ian Burrell (Global rum ambassador)

Dickie Cullimore (Bacardi)
Gareth Evans (Absolut Elyx)
Daniyel Jones (Angostura)
Roberta Mariani (Martini)
Joe McCanta Grey Goose)
Raj Nagra (Bombay Sapphire)
George Nemec (Becherovka)
Nicola Riske (Macallan & Edrington Malts)

Meimi Sanchez (Havana Club International)

Best International Bar Team presented by The House of Angostura

Baxters Inn (Sydney, AU)
Black Pearl – Melbourne Licoreria Limantour (Mexico City)

Lost & Found Drinkery (Cyprus)

Manhattan Bar (Singapore)

Swift (London, UK)
The American Bar, The Savoy (London, UK)

The Clumsies (Athens, Greece)
The Connaught Bar (London, UK)
Tippling Club (Singapore)

Best International Cocktail Bar presented by Pernod Ricard

Atlas (Singapore)
Bulletin Place (Sydney, AU)

Happiness Forgets (London, UK)
Le Syndicat (Paris, France)
Licoreria Limantour (Mexico City)

Lost and Found Drinkery (Cyprus)

Native (Singapore)
Operation Dagger (Singapore)

Speak Low (Shanghai)
The Gibson (London, UK)
Three Sheets (London, UK)

Best International High Volume Cocktail Bar

Baba Au Rum (Athens, Greece)

Baxters Inn (Sydney, AU)

Callooh Callay (London, UK)

Central Station (Beirut, Lebanon)
Dirty Dick (Paris, France)
Eau-de-Vie (Melbourne, AU)

Himkok (Oslo, Norway)
La Factoria (San Juan)

Oriole (London, UK)
Panda and Sons (Edinburgh, UK)

Super Lyan) London, UK)

The Barber Shop (Sydney, AU)

The Clumsies (Athens, Greece)

Best International Hotel Bar presented by Japan Shochu and Sake Maker Association

Bamboo Bar (Bangkok, Thailand)
Charles H (Seoul, South Korea)
Dukes (London, UK)
Fifty Mils (Mexico City)
Lobster Bar (Hong Kong)
Manhattan Bar (Singapore)
Punch Room at London Edition (London, UK)
Scarfes Bar, Rosewood (London, UK)
The American Bar, The Savoy (London, UK)

The Lobby Bar at The London Edition (London, UK)

Best International Restaurant Bar

Blind Pig (London, UK)
Cub (London, UK)
Danico (Paris, France)
Hawksmoor Spitalfields (London, UK)

Maybe Frank (Sydney, AU)

Sager & Wilde (London, UK)

Sexy Fish (London, UK)
Sober Company (Shanghai)

The Clove Club (London, UK)

Tjoget/Linje Tio (Stockholm, Sweden)

Zuma Dubai (Dubai)

Best New International Cocktail Bar presented by Maison Ferrand USA

Botanist (Vancouver, CA)
Coupette (London, UK)
Flying Dutchmen Cocktails (Amsterdam)

Les Grands Verres (Paris, France)
Mootee, (Johannesburg, SA)
Scout (London, UK)
The Mint Gun Club (London, UK)
The Old Man (Hong Kong)
The Strangers Club (Panamá)
Two Schmucks (Barcelona, Spain)
Waeska Bar at the Mandrake (London, UK)

Writing categories

Best Cocktail & Spirits Publication

1806 Magazine
Difford’s Guide
Fine Drinking Magazine
Liquor.com
Neat Pour
Rumporter Magazine
The Daily Beast Half Full Section

The Spirits Business
VinePair
Whisky Advocate

Best Cocktail and Spirits Writer presented by Fairmont Hotels & Resorts

M. Carrie Allan, The Washington Post, The Humane Society of the United States, and more

Simon Difford, Difford’s Guide
Aaron Goldfarb, Punch
Pableaux Johnson, New York Times, Imbibe, and more

Matt Pietrek, Cocktail Wonk
Clay Risen, New York Times

Noah Rothbaum, The Daily Beast

Robert Simonson, The New York Times
Hamish Smith, Class Magazine, Drinks International

Max Watman, The Daily Beast

Best New Cocktail or Bartending Book presented by Gra’it Grappa

Cocktail Chameleon by Mark Addison
Fever-Tree The Art of Mixing Simple Long Drinks & Cocktails From The World’s Leading Bars by Charles Rolls and Tim Warrillow
Gin Tonica by David T. Smith
L’Heure du Cocktail / The Cocktail Hour by Marcel Requien & Lucien Farnoux-Reynaud

One-Bottle Cocktail by Maggie Hoffman
Meehan’s Bartender Manual by Jim Meehan
The Imbible by Micah LeMon
3 Ingredient Cocktails by Robert Simonson
The Cocktail Competition Handbook by Andy Ives
The Cocktail Guy by Rich Woods

Best New Book on Drinks Culture, History or Spirits

Barrel Strength Bourbon: The Explosive Growth of America’s Whiskey by Carla Harris Carlton

Beachbum Berry’s Sippin Safari by Jeff Berry
By the Smoke and the Smell by Thad Vogler
Distillery Cats by Brad Thomas Parsons

Masters of Craft: Old Jobs in the New Urban Economy by Richard E. Ocejo
Mezcal by Emma Janzen
Rum Curious: The Indispensable Tasting Guide to the World’s Spirit by Fred Minnick

Straight Up The insiders’ guide to the world’s most interesting bars and drinking experiences by Joel Harrison & Neil Ridley
The Curious Bartender’s Rum Revolution by Joel Harrison
The Way of Whisky: A Journey Around Japanese Whisky by Dave Broom, Photography by Kohei Take

Best Broadcast, Podcast or Online Video Series

Bar None Podcast BarChick Media Ltd.

Bartender At Large

Cocktails For You

Difford’s Guide

Gin Foundry
Life Behind Bars
Liquor.com
Shift Drink podcast with Ed Rudisell and Arthur Black The Speakeasy
WhiskyCast

Global categories

Best Bar Mentor presented by Barsmarts

Tony Abou-Ganim, The Modern Mixologist

Bridget Albert, Southern Wine and Spirits

Ryan Chetiyawardana, Mr Lyan
Alex Kratena, Pour
Francesco Lafranconi, Bar consultant

Christopher Lowder, Proof & Company, China

Dre Masso, Mentor

Nectaly Mendoza, Herbs & Rye
Mike Ryan, Kimpton Hotels
Andy Seymour, Liquid Productions, INC

Best New Spirit or Cocktail Ingredient

Creme de Banane, Tempus Fugit Spirits
Del Maguey Single Village Mezcal Jabali
J. Rieger & Co. Monogram Whiskey 2018 Sherry Bota

Laird’s Straight Applejack 86
Martini Riserva Speciale Bitter
Old Duff Single Malt Genever
Paranubes Oaxacan Rum
Privateer Rum Pot Stilled Overproof Rum- Tres Aromatique

Tequila Siembra Valles Blanco Ancestral
The Bitter Truth Bogart’s Bitters

World’s Best Cocktail Menu presented by Peroni

American Bar, The Savoy – Every Moment Tells a Story (London, UK)

Bitter & Twisted Cocktail Parlour (Phoenix, AZ)
BlackTail (New York City, NY)
Canon (Seattle, WA)

Charles H, Four Seasons Hotel (Seoul)

Dandelyan (London, UK)
Dante (New York City, NY)
Mace bar (New York City, NY)

The Aviary (Chicago, IL)

Tippling Club (Singapore)

World’s Best Spirits Selection

Amor y Amargo (New York, NY)

Atlas (Singapore)
Mabel (Paris, France)
Old Crow (Zürich, Switzerland)

Rumba (Seattle, WA)