At the Four Seasons Hotel in Sydney this evening , Norwegian bartender, Adrián Michalčík was crowned Diageo World Class Global Bartender of the Year and São Paulo was announced as the host city for 2023 for the World Class Cocktail Festival.
The event was cancelled these past two years but finally this year, 300 world leading bartenders, distillers and Diageo executives from 50 countries descended upon Sydney for the ten day festival. World Class Festival headliners included Ago Perrone, Monica Berg and Ryan Chetiyawardana who all made guest appearances in some of city’s top bars and restaurants as part of the cocktail celebration.
Organisers said that the festival has been a huge success, including sell-out events. One of the highlights was the Shell House event with chef, Danielle Alvarez collaborating with Asia’s best bartender, Bannie Kang, for a night of The Singleton cocktails and five-course dinner crafted by Alvarez and an extraordinary line-up of female chefs.
At the World Class Global Bartender final on Thursday, around 600 industry guests watched on - and celebrated - as ten finalists took part in the final rounds.
The ten finalists were announced in Sydney on Monday evening. They were:
- Massimo Zitti, Canada
- Manol Lazarov, Bulgaria
- Jessi Pollak, USA
- Daniel Seehuusen, Sweden
- Alicja Bączyk, Poland
- Jaime Morales Lopez, Mexico
- Mathias Klausen Borksø, Denmark
- Adrián Michalčík, Norway
- Nick Tesar, Australia
- Vitĕzslav Cirok, Czech Republic
From designing a unique cordial using surplus fresh produce to make a highball with Johnnie Walker; to stirring the ‘perfect’ Tanqueray No Ten Martini (see Adrián Michalčík above), finalists were encouraged to push the boundaries of their craft and champion drinking better not more.
Michalčík said: “I can’t believe I’ve just won the biggest bartender competition in the world! The last few years have been incredibly tough for me and for our industry. Just to get the chance to compete here, in real life, against some truly amazing bartenders, feels like the start of a new chapter. There were moments I wasn’t sure I’d make the next round let alone win the title!”
Michalčík is the Head Bartender at Pier 42, the cocktail bar at Amerikalinjen Hotel in Oslo. The bar derives its name from Pier 42 in Manhattan, where thousands of Norwegians first set foot on the American continent.
Marissa Johnston, Global Head of Diageo World Class said: "This year’s competition has truly blown me away. Our finalists have taken their craft to the next level and Adrián stood out as a giant among giants.”
The festival also featured a series of events and collaborations at restaurants and bars around the world-famous Sydney Opera House. Including the godfather of food trucks, Roy Choi, hosting the sell-out Don Julio Food Truck Fiesta, and award-winning bartender and entrepreneur, Monica Berg, bringing a fresh perspective on Single Malts with The Singleton to one of Sydney’s favourite venues, Shell House.
The festival continues this weekend in Sydney.
For the opportunity to sample a beverage from the world’s best bartender on Friday afternoon, Adrián will be serving up his favourite cocktails from 5.30pm onwards at Hickson House Distilling Co today.
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