Tequila Aha Toro and the Fairmont Pacific Rim will be hosting the first annual tequila cocktail competition from 2 – 5 pm on Tuesday, September 14 in the Lobby Lounge. The winner will be guests of Aha Toro on an all-expense trip to Mexico where they will meet the master distiller, have a private guided tour, and enjoy the local area. Second place will receive a luxury two-night stay at the Fairmont Pacific Rim and dinner in ORU.
As one of the event co-ordinator’s Jacob Sweetapple, an engaging Aussie and mixologist at Fairmont Pacific Rim’s Lobby Lounge, will be on the other side of the bar for this competition. The public is welcome to attend the contest to watch talented bartenders compete from some of Vancouver’s best cocktail bars and restaurants, while sampling a tequila cocktail specially crafted by Sweetapple.
“We are delighted to be partners with Aha Toro,” Sweetapple explains. “They are a top-of-the-line boutique distillery, and have just received distribution rights in Canada so this is a great debut. I am a huge fan of great tequila and our hope is to showcase this complex spirit in a variety of creative cocktails.”
Aha Toro is an artisanal tequila, handmade for over a century, and distilled entirely from blue agave at the “El Olvido” hacienda in the tiny village of Jesus Maria. Located in the highlands of Jalisco, the altitude and sandy soil provide ideal growing conditions for the agave tequila, most commonly referred to as the blue agave.
The tequila is produced by removing the heart of the plant when it is between six to 10 years old, with a weight that ranges between 35 and 90 kilograms. The sap is removed, fermented, distilled, and presented in a hand blown glass bottle. The bottles are also works of art – a one-of-a-kind created by Mexican artists with different colours of glass to represent the age of the tequila.
For those who are new to cocktail competitions, here are the Contest Rules:
> Each contestant must present two identical cocktails with no more than five liquid ingredients in each.
> Each drink will be judged on a 40-point scale: 10 points each for taste, originality and use of Aha Toro Tequila as the featured ingredient; and five points each for presentation and tidiness.
> There is a five minute time limit on building and presenting drinks.
> Aha Toro Tequila will be provided for the drinks and contestants are to provide the other ingredients.
> A list of ingredients and preparation instructions must be provided ot the judges by each contestant prior to making the drink.
> The winner will be announced following the presentation of all the contestant’s cocktails.