Entries for international bartending competition Diageo World Class are now open.
Now in its tenth year, Diageo World Class is calling on Australian bartenders to compete in a series of innovative cocktail challenges to win a once in a lifetime opportunity to represent Australia on the world stage.
The national winner will fly to Berlin to represent Australia at the Global Finals in October where the world’s best bartender for 2018 will be crowned.
This year’s opening round theme is Wanderlust, challenging competitors to create a cocktail that transports people on a nomadic journey around Australia and the world.
The challenge is made up of two categories and bartenders can opt to submit an entry in one or both. The first category is Home, creating a cocktail inspired by a place in Australia, and the second is Away, a drink inspired by an overseas destination.
To support Australian hopefuls throughout the program, Diageo has assembled the best in the business to guide competitors through its first Diageo World Class Studios Tour, a training program that will tour the country.
A mentoring team of Diageo Brand Ambassadors, including newly appointed Krystal Hart, will help competitors take their bartending skills to the next level and nurture rising talent.
An award-winning bartender herself, Krystal was one of the national top 10 finalists for Diageo’s World Class competition in 2012 and 2013 and has also led venues to win industry accolades.
“I’m excited to mentor Australia’s rising bartenders on their world class journey,” says Hart. “It’s not just a competition — it’s a chance to take their career to the next level and to be challenged creatively and professionally.”
In addition to a place at the prestigious Global Finals, the winner will also embark on a cocktail tour of Europe. Commencing in Berlin at the end of the Global Finals, they will travel across the continent taking in the best that Europe has to offer, visiting world famous bars and iconic distilleries.
Applications for Diageo World Class are open from Monday 8 January to Thursday 12 February. Enter here.