It is one of the greatest industry trips going and it’s back for 2022.
When BarLifeUK was a young pup one of the first cocktail comps we worked on was the El Dorado Swizzle competition. The heats were some of the most fun we’ve had judging cocktail competitions and we were sad to see it end. Now it’s back and we can’t wait to return to that swizzle train.
We were lucky enough to go on one of the winner’s trips to Guyana and it is right up there with the best brand trips we have been on. Guyana is not somewhere you are likely to go to on your hols but with the El Dorado team acting as your guides you will have one of the greatest experiences you could wish for.
The distillery is amazing, the rum you get to try is stunning, the city is crazy fun, the interior countryside is breath taking, it is a memory that’ll never leave you. Here is a link to our write-up of the trip if inspiration is needed.
When Cask Liquid Marketing, who now look after El Dorado in the UK, told us they were planning on bring the El Dorado Swizzle Comp back were over the moon. Not only do we get to travel the country trying delicious El Dorado cocktails but someone reading this article will get to go to Guyana and experience what we did.
Okay enough bigging it up, let’s get into the details. To enter this competition you will need to come up with a drink, and here are the rules your drink must:
- Contain a minimum of 30ml of El Dorado 3 or 5 year old
- Be swizzled
Aside from those two rules, the world’s your oyster…
From there it is up to you. Be inspired by the rum, the country, the swizzle, whatever floats your boat but remember this is a rum competition, we want to be entertained. We will then paper judge your creations before putting you in local heats (these will be decided based on where the entries come from), the top two from each heat will head to the UK Final before one wins the trip.
Back in the day the El Dorado Brand Ambassador Stef Holt wrote a couple of articles for us to help people entering the competition which are still exceptionally useful and relevant. The first was on the History of the Swizzle, to give you an understanding of the background of this often overlooked style of cocktail, and secondly, with the help of the 2012 Champion Alex Proudfoot, a dive into What Makes a Great Swizzle. Read away if you want inspiration and advice.
This time round you will be judged on the following criteria:
Taste – 40 points
Aroma/visual appeal – 10 points
Drink name – 10 points
Presentation/chat – 30 points
Bar Skills/Time Keeping – 10 points
The entry deadline is midnight on 15th July so get thinking, get swizzling and we look forward to seeing you in the regional heats and who knows maybe even on that plane to Guyana….