Connaught bartender named 'UK’s Best'
John Torode and Gregg Wallace last night crowned Erik Lorincz of The Connaught in London the UK’s best bartender in the UK final of World Class 2010 – the Oscar’s of the bartending world.
Held at the exclusive Millbank Tower in London, Erik dazzled the judges by showcasing his exceptional mixology skills as he triumphed over competition from thirteen of the country’s top bartenders.
In a day-long trial, Erik and his fellow finalists were tested to the limits in a competition which saw them take part in rounds covering bartending knowledge, mixology and an innovation challenge where they had to prove their creativity using surprise ingredients. After 13 bartenders were whittled down to the final two, Erik went head-to-head with Stephen Martin from Ricks in Edinburgh, Scotland to battle it out for the grand prize where the two bartenders had to create their final bespoke cocktail and present it to the panel of judges. After a highly competitive and tense round, Erik was declared the winner with his impressive and delicious cocktail Rising to the Sky made with Tanqueray No. TEN gin (recipe below).
Alongside John Torode and Gregg Wallace, the well known television presenters, the competition was judged by some of the country’s foremost experts in taste, style and bartending, namely Andy Pearson, TV Mixologist; Andy Morris, Editor of GQ Online; Simon Difford, author of cocktail publication Diffordsguide and editor of Class Magazine (one of the bar industry’s leading magazines) and Barrie Wilson, Diageo Reserve’s Head of Brand Ambassadors.
John says “I’ve been totally blown away by the skill of the bartenders in this final. Their creations have truly shown that a great barperson needs to be as creative and skilful as a leading chef. Erik was phenomenal – not only with his drinks but also with his knowledge and personality behind the bar and fully deserved the title.”
Gregg adds “Using quality ingredients and combining complementing flavours is the key to a great dish and it’s the same when it comes to drinks. Mixologists have incredible skills when it comes to flavour profiling and Erik produced drinks that are undoubtedly masterpieces in their own right.”
Erik will now go on to compete in the prestigious World Class Global Final, taking place next month in Athens ,which will see him representing the UK against the finest bartenders from around the world including Australia, China, Singapore, Brazil and Greece.
“It’s unbelievable” says Erik, “this was far and away the most challenging and nerve-wracking competition that I’ve ever been in and I’m absolutely thrilled to have won. I was up against the best bartenders in the country – lots of whom I know and admire personally – and performing in front of judges of this calibre has been the highlight of my career so far. I’m hugely excited about the global final and I’m planning to show that cocktail-making in the UK can rival, if not better, anywhere else in the world – it’s an amazing opportunity”.
Diageo Reserve Brands launched its ‘World Class’ bartender programme to recognise the incredible skill sets of bartenders across Britain. The UK final of World Class was the culmination of a year long series of regional category finals – rum, gin and vodka – from which twelve winners were chosen to compete in the UK final alongside the winner of the 2009 World Class competition Ryan Chetiyawardana.
To find out more about Erik, the UK final, the World Class competition and details on how to enter next year’s competition log onto: weareworldclass.com
Erik’s winning recipe: Rising to the Sky
45ml Tanqueray No.TEN
10ml yuzu juice
20ml lemon juice
30ml fresh pineapple juice
10ml Fino Dry Sherry
15 mls sugar syrup
8 Coriander leaves
Botanical Steam - coriander, juniper, grapefruit peel macerated in hot water and poured over dry ice
Method – shake over large ice cubes and doubled strained and served straight up and accompanied with Botanical Steam on the side
2.1 units
