The Global Final will be held at Sydney's iconic Town Hall during May, firmly setting the Australian bartending scene on the world stage. The winner of that Competition will be nurtured and championed by BACARDÍ to develop as a bar professional and spread their drink across the top cocktail lists around the world.
Gabriel's excitement was contagious: "What night and what an honour. I couldn't be more thrilled about taking out the National title for this year's BACARDÍ Legacy Global Cocktail Competition. The whole experience has been amazing. It's now on to the Global Final where I hope to stamp not only Australia, but Rockhampton, firmly at the forefront of the global bartending community where it belongs".
Gabriel presented the Bouteiller, her BACARDÍ Legacy drink to a panel of four judges on the night to claim her place in the International Final. She was scored on her technical ability, her drink's taste and aroma balance and the inspiration behind it. She was also judged on the success of her marketing campaign for the drink, which has included media relations, innovative social media work and strong support from both the Australian and international bartending community.
Aside from the drinks huge appeal, it had also had to satisfy judges that it could become a true BACARDÍ Legacy cocktail along with classics such as The Original Mojito, Original Daiquiri and Original Cuba Libre. Her award winning drink, The Bouteiller, was inspired by the relationship between Facundo Bacardi and Jose Leon Bouteiller, a French distiller and confectioner who helped pioneer BACARDÍ Rum. Throughout the competition, The Bouteiller has been lauded for its creativity, originality and potential to emulate BACARDI's legacy of great drinks.
Since July 2013, Australia's BACARDÍ Legacy Cocktail Competition has been one of the industry's most hotly contested and talked about cocktail competitions. The competition has attracted over 100 of Australia's finest bartenders, all vying for their cocktail creation to be heir to BACARDÍ's legacy of Original cocktails.
Over 150 years ago, Facundo Bacardi wanted to create a rum spirit that was so light and subtle it would enhance other flavours it was mixed with - rather than dominate or disappear. It took him 10 years to perfect his legacy; he passed this on to his family who still craft BACARDI with the same passion today. Thanks to this mixable spirit bartenders now have an infinite number of options with which to create their own legacy.
