NEW YORK, October 10, 2018 – Held during International Sherry Week, the Sherry Cocktail Competition finals took place on October 8th at Clover Club in Brooklyn, NY, and Jarred Weigand of Death & Co. in New York City won the top prize of Best Sherry Cocktail with his cocktail, Strange Encounters!
Weigand competed against some of the top bartenders in America, from 6 states, during a live demonstration and presentation in front of a distinguished panel of judges, which Julie Reiner, proprietor of Flatiron Lounge and Clover Club; Andy Seymour of Liquid Productions, Inc., partner of Beverage Alcohol Resource® (BAR); Jacques Bezuidenhout, winner of the first Sherry Cocktail Competition in 2005 and partner of Forgery and Wildhawk; Steven Olson, aka maguey geek, and founding partner of BAR®; and special guest judge the Director of the Consejo Regulador of the DO Jerez-Xérès-Sherry y Manzanilla de Sanlúcar de Barrameda, César Saldaña.
All contestants made it through a grueling and highly competitive preliminary judging round that preceded the final competition and each deserve recognition by virtue of being selected as finalists in this competition.
The winners were announced immediately following the competition:
- Best Sherry Cocktail — "Strange Encounters" by Jarred Weigand, Death & Co., New York, NY
- First Runner Up — "Daiquiri Bacchanal" by Andrew Larsen, Columbia Room in Washington, DC
- Second Runner Up — "Banana Dance" by Adam George Fournier, NoMad Bar in Los Angeles
As the champion, Jarred Weigand has earned a spot on the highly coveted annual sommelier/chef/bartender journey through Jerez, Spain, and a full scholarship to Beverage Alcohol Resource® (BAR) 5 Day Advanced Program in New York City. As the first and second runner-ups, Andrew Larsen and Adam George Fournier both earned partial scholarships to the Beverage Alcohol Resource® 5 Day Advanced Program in New York City.
The other finalists were:
- Claire Boyle, Taberna de Haro in Brookline, MA - "La Capataza" (Oloroso, Manzanilla)
- Brian Callahan, Tiger Mama in Boston, MA - "Tuk Tuk" (Fino, Amontillado)
- Topher Hartfield, Nocturne Jazz & Supper Club in Denver, CO - "The Árbol Fresco" (Oloroso, Manzanilla)
- Caleb Kimbley, Forgery in San Francisco, CA - "Curador" (Fino, Manzanilla)
- Melissa Markert, Dead Rabbit in New York, NY - "Comfort Zone" (Fino)
- Emily Mitchell, Bar Margot in Four Seasons in Atlanta, GA - "Albero Highball" (Amontillado)
- Jack Schramm, Existing Conditions in New YOrk, NY - "The Old Ward" (Oloroso, Manzanilla, Pedro Ximénez)
Additional photos of the competition and cocktails are available upon request.
For more information, contact Cathy Remmert of Liquid Productions, Inc., the talented team who presented the competition.
