For the last couple of months, The Absolut Company has sought with light and torch for the world’s best bar team, in the first edition of Absolut Invite – Team Edition. Only the very best teams have qualified for the four-day final that began on 11th of June in Åhus, the hometown of The Absolut Company.
The winning team will be announced during festivities in Stockholm on 14th of June.
From January to April 2016 The Absolut Company has hosted local heats in 15 countries around the world to find the world’s best bar team. In teams of two, bartenders have competed in creative mixing, knowledge, speed and skill.
The Absolut Company has celebrated the outstanding creativity and knowledge amongst the world’s top bartenders since 25 years back, however this year the competition has stepped away from the traditional formats of bar competitions, and instead surprised bar teams with unique challenges that are set to test their teamwork skills at a high pace with a race to the very finish.
Thirteen teams are qualified for the four-day final in Sweden. On the 11th of June teams from all over the world – Norway, Germany, Slovakia, Puerto Rico and Mexico, just to name a few – touch down in Åhus, the hometown of The Absolut Company and the place where every drop of Absolut Vodka is produced.
In Åhus the last qualifying round takes place and thereafter the tour continues to Stockholm where the winners are announced at midnight on the 14th of June. The winning team is crowned “the world’s best bar team” and receives a trip to Ibiza where they will experience three days of incredible Absolut Nights at some of the world’s most iconic nightclubs.
– It has been an amazing experience to follow the competition around the world and we have a fantastic line-up of finalists. Everyone at Absolut is very excited to see which team will stand as the winner on the 14th of June, says Georgia McDonnell Adams, Global Manager Experiences, The Absolut Company.
The jury members are:
- Scott Baird and Josh Harris from Bonvivants and owners of the Trick Dog in San Francisco.
- Anna Schreil, Head of Operations, The Absolut Company.
- Ben Reed, author and founder of Create Cocktails.
The different competition elements are:
- Creative Mixing: Creative Mixing is a fundamental part of Absolut Invite – Team Edition. The jury members evaluate each team’s specifically created cocktail and its presentation in regards to a specific theme. All cocktails must be based on Absolut Vodka.
- Bar teams choose: The teams can choose among the five different key categories of Absolut cocktails. The chosen cocktail should then be provided with the team’s personal touch. Extra points are given for show, music, presentation etc.
- Knowledge: Each team is tested for its knowledge within four categories: Absolut, Nights, Drinks and History.
- Sensory: The finalists taste buds are set to a test when they are given the task to identify the ingredients in ten different spirits.
- Multi-order: Ten different drinks completed as fast as possible! Every cocktail needs to contain exactly 50 ml of liquor. The teams compete separately and are all provided with printed drink tickets at the same time.
- Wild Card Team Work – The teams will also be challenged in various wild card tests along the way, every day has a new secret test, designed to push the bartenders to think like a team and act like a team to win.
For more information about Absolut Invite – Team Edition:
http://www.absolutinvite.com/
