Gin With A Twist At The World Class Bartender Of The Year Competition

Gin With A Twist At The World Class Bartender Of The Year Competition
Angeliqua's winning cocktail presentation during the World Class finals

Yesterday’s Diageo Kenya World Class competition saw Angeliqua Rivera has been crowed Bartender of the year with her signature cocktail dubbed ‘Fallen heros’ in honour of her colleagues who lost their lives on the 15th of January during a terror attack on 14 Riverside.

Gin With A Twist At The World Class Bartender Of The Year CompetitionHers was quite the concoction, comprised of fruit rinds infused with castor sugar, grape fruits, lemon rinds, fresh grapefruit juice, lemon juice, lime juice, coconut water and obviously, Tanqueray No TEN Gin, she made a sweet, yet savoury drink that’s practical as well as very easy to make especially on a lazy Sunday afternoon. For those of us who don’t like too much sugar, honey infused overnight with the above ingredients also work as well ☺️

Now in its fifth year in Kenya, the World Class Bartender of the Year competition seeks to upskill bartenders and mixologists through a rigorous training regimen after which they compete for the right to represent Kenya in the international competition.

Angeliqua will represent Kenya in the international competition that will take place in Glasgow Scotland in September 2019. The competition, which started in May, saw 42 of Kenya’s bartending elite go through an educational masterclass dubbed ‘the World Class Studios 2019’.

World Class challenges bartenders across the nation to submit their cocktail creations using spirits from the Diageo’s reserve portfolio; Johnnie Walker, Cîroc, Ketel One Vodka, Tanqueray No. TEN, Zacapa, Bulleit Bourbon, Don Julio, and a fine collection of single malts. This year’s favourite seemed to be Tanqueray No. TEN as all bartenders made cocktails with the signature drink.

Gin With A Twist At The World Class Bartender Of The Year Competition
Angeliqua’s winning cocktail presentation during the World Class finals

“We have trained over 5,000 bartenders across the country over the last five years with 210 of them getting the opportunity to compete for the World Class Bartender of the year title. The competition is the ultimate opportunity to enhance skills and profile them on the global stage.” Said Diageo East Africa National Advocacy Manager Douglas Duncanson.

“Last year’s winner got an opportunity to be a lead bartender in a cruise ship and has continued to showcase an impressive degree of creativity and innovation in the industry,” he added.

Finalists were encouraged to exhibit innovation and expertise as they battled it out to become the nation’s best bartender and represent Kenya in the global finals.

“Angeliqua truly stood out as the best of the best, able to master the Diageo Reserve luxury portfolio to create ground-breaking results,” said Diageo East Africa Reserve Brand Ambassador Alex Kavita. 

“It has been tough for us having gone through what we went through but through hard work, determination and the support of my colleagues I was able to pull through this competition” said Angeliqua “I would encourage the youth especially girls not to shy away from bartending; it is a real career and reliable source of income, I would be willing to mentor any girl who wants to take up the art of bartending”

As one of the most prestigious bartending contests in the world, WORLD CLASS continues its mission to inspire people to drink better and create unforgettable experiences in the process.

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