New York Distilling Company is launching a virtual cocktail competition for New York State bartenders as a way to help support the community.
The competition is based on an original cocktail featuring Ragtime Rye New York Straight Whiskey. If you don’t have Ragtime, use another whiskey. If you can’t find or don’t have any ingredients, you can still enter by sending a video with the story and recipe of your cocktail. Ingredients should be readily available at any regular grocery store. Your original cocktail may contain up to 5 ingredients plus a garnish, if you choose.
To show their support for the hospitality industry, the Brooklyn-based distillery and bar are working with bar owner Julie Reiner (Clover Club, Leyanda), author Robert Simonson (The Martini Cocktail), and Drinks historian and author Dave Wondrich (Imbibe!) who will judge each cocktail submission alongside New York Distilling Company’s founders Allen Katz and Tom Potter.
Each of the five finalists will each receive a $200 gift card. The winner of the competition will select their own private Single Barrel of Ragtime Rye from which six (6) cases will be bottled with a Personalized Label of their choosing and at a proof of their choosing based on Cask Strength 112, Bottled In Bond 100, or 90.4.
To enter, bartenders will need to post a video to Instagram with the hashtag #TogetherWithRye and tag @nydistilling (BTW, make sure your profile is public). You can also send a video entry (5 minutes or less) to Allen Katz at allen@nydistilng.com by April 13.
Katz will batch the submissions of the five finalists and deliver them to Reiner, Simonson and Wondrich in 200ml glass containers. They will judge the finalists based on taste, originality of name and concept, creativity of concept and presentation.
Winners will be announced in May.
