Five creators of Bacardi rum cocktails from the cruise and ferry sector have been selected as finalists in the 2019 Bacardi Legacy Cruise Bartender of the Year competition.
Contestants were required to create their own cocktail featuring either Bacardi Superior, Bacardi Gold or Bacardi Ocho Años. Over 1,200 entries were received.
The finalists are Sanja Cvijetic of Carnival Cruise Line (cocktail name: Purple Sunset); Narciso ‘Archie’ Mariano Jr of Holland America Line (Velvet Fashionista); Marc MacArthur of Norwegian Cruise Line (Up, Up and Away); Siddhant Naik of P&O Cruises Australia (Bitter Blanca); and Mattias Nilsson of Tallink Silja Line (Bring Back the Summer).
All five finalists receive US$1,000 and an expenses-paid trip to the cruise and ferry finals in Puerto Rico. The winner will go on to compete in the Bacardi Legacy Cocktail grand final against 41 other competitors from different markets. It will be held in Amsterdam in May 2019, with US$4,000 prize money at stake.
Bacardi said that, in addition to the creation of the cocktails themselves, the finalist bartenders are expected to demonstrate their cocktail’s potential to become established in the drinks industry as a “true classic”. It added that this can be achieved by securing trials, consumer and trade awareness, and distribution.
Bacardi Global Travel Retail International Key Account Manager Cruise Zachary Sulkes explained: “Our five finalists are now busy promoting their recipe direct to guests and sharing it with fellow bartenders in their company so as to get it listed and served across the fleet.
“These are incredibly useful business skills that we help them to develop but are theirs to keep, enabling them to further develop commercial acumen.”
The Bacardi Legacy Cocktail competition is now in its 14thyear and is the longest running event of its kind. The cruise and ferry sector has had its own dedicated leg in the contest since 2016.
Classic cocktails that have previously emerged from the competition include the Mojito, Daiquirí and Old Cuban.
