Bar Chef Finals – Winter 2011

Have you wished you could jump behind a bar with hundreds of ingredients, tastes, and ideas and be able to create the cocktail of your dreams?

On April 4th, 2011 the BartenderOne Bar Chef Finals took place at Empire Lounge in Toronto in Yorkville. As students, the mixologists had completed tasting over five hundred different spirits, bitters, liqueurs, sweeteners, types of citrus, infused foams and spirits, along with homemade syrups.

As mixologists, the students were asked to create an original cocktail from each of the 5 spirit categories. The cocktails could have been made with anything that the mixologists could think of; but were required to hold dear the traditional balanced cocktail theory. While they did have guidelines for balance, there were none for flavour profiles or presentation. Mixologists could incorporate elements that were taught in class such as: infusion, fatwashing, bruleeing, molecular mixology, spherification, custom foams, misting and much more.

As the student mixologists watched tentatively, their cocktails were tasted by three of Toronto’s top mixologists; Rob Montgomery, Gavin MacMillan and Scott McMaster. The students were were delighted to see that their hard work and development had paid off. The judges were impressed by all of the thought and effort that was incorporated into the final cocktails. The mixologists showed that they weren’t scared to test some boundaries in coming up with their very own recipes, and here are the top cocktails entered:

VODKA COCKTAILS

Strawbarb Bullets by Krissy Calkins

STRAWBARB BULLETS – By Mixologist Krissy Calkins

2/3 oz Strawberry reduction (no sugar added)
1/3 oz Rhubarb reduction (no sugar added)
1 oz Vodka
Shaken on Ice
Strain into Chocolate Cups
Float – Vanilla bean infused simple syrup on top
Served on a bed of Gram Crackers

Rainbow 1943 By Elizabeth Saad

RAINBOW 1943 – By Mixologist Elizabeth Saad
1.5 oz Passion
1 oz Alize Blue
1 oz Sour Apple
0.5 oz Vodka
Rim glass with sugar
Blend passion with ice and add all the other items.

Lime/Peppercorn Caesar

LIME/PEPPERCORN CAESAR – By Mixologist Jeremy Browes
1.5 oz Lime/Peppercorn Vodka
2 drops of Tobasco & Worcestershire
4oz Clamato
Ms. Vickies rim
Rim glass with Ms.Vickies
Spice the ice and add Vodka
Clamato to fill

KAKUTURA (MISO HORNEY) – By Mixologist David Jennings
1.5 oz vodka
1 oz miso soup
.5 oz lemon
.5 oz simple syrup
rimmed with wasabi and soya dipped in muddled black sesame seed

GIN COCKTAILS

PHIL COLLINS FLOAT – By Mixologist Krissy Calkins
Juice ½ a Fresh Lemon
Soda – 1oz
Lemon Zested over top
Top with: 2 Scoops of Home Churned – Lime Basil Ice Cream
(1l table cream, cup sugar, 8 eggs, 10 limes zested, 6 leaves basil)

SCALLOP INFUSION JUNIPER – By Mixologist Elizabeth Saad
2 oz Gin
3 oz Tomatoes Juice Mix
2 or 3 pieces of Scallops
Orange Juice
3 dashes “Worcestershire Sauce”
Pour Gin over ice and 3 Dashes “Worcestershire Sauce”
Blend Tomato Juice with Scallop and pour over ice
Top off Orange Juice
Garnish : 1 long orange Twist in glass and one half tomato and Scallop beside the glass

SPASOUR – By Mixologist Jeremy Browes
1.5 oz Gin
.75 oz pear/cucumber syrup
.5 oz Lemon Juice
1 egg white
Add gin, syrup, lemon juice, and egg white
shake it like it owes you money
strain over ice

CARA COLLINS – By Mixologist David Jennings
2 oz lemon juice
2 oz simple syrup (caraway seed infused)
1.5 oz gin
rimmed with muddled caramelized caraway seed

WHISK(E)Y COCKTAILS

CHEWY BEAVERS – By Mixologist Krissy Calkins
Dried Cranberries Rehydrated (2days) with Crown Royal
Wrapped in homemade maple butter toffee
Served on a sheet of Brittle maple toffee with craziness

WISE MAN JOLT – My Mixologist Elizabeth Saad
1 oz whiskey
1 oz Kalhua
Red Bull
Build over ice
Scoop Vanilla or Coconut Ice Cream on top

POPCROWN – By Mixologist Jeremy Browes
3oz Caramel/popcorn Crown Royal
Jones Rootbeer caviar
Pour over 3 cubes of ice

CARNAGIE DELI MANHATTAN – By Mixologist David Jennings
1.5 oz corned beef rye
.5 oz sweet vermouth
2 dash bitters
serve with spicy deli mustard and pickle spear

TEQUILA COCKTAILS

HELL-O – By Mixologist Krissy Calkins
Tequila jello
1 cup Orange Infused Tequila
1cup Water
Pack of gelatin
2 Oranges Zested
Cut in Squares
Drizzled with:
Pomegranate Reduction
Tequila Simple syrup (50% tequila 50% vanilla infused simple syrup)

MR.MORRIS – By Mixologist Elizabeth Saad
2 oz Tequila
1 oz orange juice
1 oz simple syrup
1 white egg
Bitter angostura
Rim chill glass with orange peel.

Blend all the ingredients with ice for 10 seconds

Double strain in a glass and serve with a dash of bitters or sprinkle of cinnamon.
Garnish with 2 small orange wheels and grapes beside the Glass and cheese on the side

MANGRITA – By Mixologist Jeremy Browes
1oz Tequila

SANGRITA:
Tomato Juice
Lime Juice
Orange Juice
Boyo Hot Sauce
Tobasco
Peppper/Salt

SANGRITA SYRUP:
Jalapeno/Avocado Syrup
Shake and strain into ISO

TRUFA ROMERO MARGARITA – By Mixologist David Jennings
2 oz lime juice
1.5 oz rosemary simple syrup
.5 oz tequila
rimmed with truffle salt

RUM COCKTAILS

MATERRRRUM – By Mixologist Krissy Calkins
4 oz Fresh Watermelon Juice
1 Lime Juiced
1 oz White Rum
Shaken on Mint Ice (leaves sat in water overnight)
Strained out onto fresh ice
Toped with melon Liqueur Caviar

HAVING A RUM TIME
2 oz Rum Coconut Parrot Bay
1.5 oz Lychee Juice
0.5 oz Blue Curacao “Cocktail Caviar”
0.25 Triple Sec
Shake Rum, Lychee and Triple Sec and pour in Martini glass and Make the “Cocktail Blue Curacao Caviar” (Molecular Magic) with Alginate Solution and Calcium Chloride and add in glass
Garnish with 2 dark Blue Flowers…. in glass and beside the Martini Glass
Add blue grapes next to the glass for better presentation

PEANUT BUZZERCUP – By Mixologist Jeremy Browes
2 oz Peanut Butter/Chocolate rum
2 oz Milk
Crushed peanut garnish
Shake and strain into ISO

BLOODY DAIQUIRI – By Mixologist David Jennings
Muddle blood orange in a glass
2 oz rum
1 oz lime juice
.5 oz blood orange
2 oz simple syrup. orange, brown sugar and honey

The next Bar Chef IBC starts on April 25th. Limited seating is available. Click here to register.