Fortunella Sour Competition Entry Deadline: Midnight, March 31st, 2023
The 2023 cocktail competition season officially opens today, with the announcement that Fortunella Golden Orange Liqueur has launched a Sour competition, offering a top prize of £500 in cash.
Fortunella’s creator, Lukas Stafin, is challenging bartenders to create a classic Sour-style recipe that exemplifies the ‘simple yet complex’ approach that sits at the heart of both the Sour cocktail, and Fortunella Golden Orange Liqueur.
Bartenders are invited to submit their creations by Midnight on March 31st, with the top 10 then competing in person at the final on April 25th, which will be held at Opium in London’s Chinatown.
About Fortunella Golden Orange Liqueur
Fortunella is created in small batches at the Bimber distillery in London. A collaboration between Lukas Stafin, a 15-year bartending veteran, and master distiller Dariusz Plazewski, the liqueur is made from the highest-quality golden oranges, also known as kumquats.
Each batch uses 60kg of fresh, hand-peeled kumquats, with the skins being macerated and the fruit flesh going in to sugar. After seven days, the skins are removed from the spirit and distilled. After blending everything together, the liquid is left to rest for two weeks before being assessed for quality and bottled, sealed, and labelled by hand.
The resulting liqueur sits at 36% ABV, with a sugar content of 110 grams-per-litre. Lukas gives the following tasting notes:
Appearance: Clear, bright golden amber.
Aroma: Pungent and fragrant zesty kumquat with faint lemon and vanilla.
Taste: Unctuous kumquat fruit and zesty orange oil with creamy vanilla softness. Rich but not at all overly sweet with balancing black pepper spirituous spice.
Aftertaste: Kumquat fruit, zesty orange and mild peppery spice.
Competition Prizes and Rules
The ten bartenders invited to the final on April 25th will be competing for cash prizes. First place will be awarded £500, second place £250, and third place £100. The final will start at 2pm, finish by 6pm, and for those who are able to stick around, post-competition drinks hosted by a soon-to-be-announced guest shift bartender will commence at 8pm.
Fortunella Sour Competition Rules:
- One entry per person.
- The recipe must contain a maximum of 5 ingredients including Fortunella Golden Orange Liqueur.
- No hot ingredients or premixes of any kind
- Recipes must contain a minimum of 40ml of Fortunella Golden Orange Liqueur.
- Recipes must be the original creation of the bartender.
- The cocktail should have a creative name.
- Garnishes must be edible.
Enter the Fortunella Sour Competition
Once you have finalised your cocktail, submit it for paper judging before Midnight on March 31st, via the email link below. Please provide this information:
- Your recipe expressed with measurements, as well as garnish, glassware and overall presentation.
- Preparation and mixing instructions
- An image of your cocktail
- A description of your inspiration or method of inventing your cocktail
Submit your entry here: info@fortunellaliqueur.com
Visit the Fortunella Sour Competition website here
