Charleston's Top Cocktail

March 2015

PHOTOGRAPHER:

Toasting the city’s most fashion-forward drinks and their makers

From left: Charleston editorial assistant Jessica Greensmith, Burwell’s bartender and 2014 Herradura winner Jonathan Calo, and Brown Forman and Remy business manager Jeff Fletcher

The Contest
Twenty-two local bartenders were invited to take on Ben Arnold Beverage Company’s CFW challenge: create a drink based on either Grey Goose vodka or Herradura tequila to complement the five nights of fashion in Marion Square. After an online vote at charlestonfashionweek.com last winter, eight contenders moved on to the main event, a live competition at Republic Garden and Lounge. There, thirsty party-goers sipped Grey Goose and Herradura cocktails, while our panel of judges sampled the competitors’ entries, scoring them according to originality, taste, and presentation. Meet our winning mixologists in the Style Lounge, and try the 2015 Top Cocktails for yourself.

Taste the Winning Results!
Charleston’s Top Cocktail winners will be pouring their drinks during the Style Lounge pre-parties on:
Wednesday, March 18, 6-7:30 p.m.
Michael Fitzgerald’s “The Devil Wears Nada”
Thursday, March 19, 6-7:30 p.m.
Ian Farley’s “Double-Breasted”

Double-Breasted

Ian Farley, Prohibition A riff on a classic stirred martini, “Double-Breasted” tastes smooth and silky, but leaves the oaky complexity of the barrel-soaked Reposado unobscured. “It’s a posh way to take a shot,” says Prohibition’s Ian Farley. Cut with Scrappy’s lime and chocolate bitters—small batches special-ordered from Seattle—and sweetened with raw agave, the concoction is “accessible for someone who doesn’t usually like tequila,” he explains.

The Devil Wears Nada

Michael Fitzgerald, Crave Armed with a bottle of Grey Goose Le Melon, Crave’s chief mixologist set out to make a “cool cantaloupe drink that has some character to it.” Habañero syrup provides a steady kick to a nectarous trio of tangerine juice, peach liqueur, and the melon-infused vodka, bound with almond milk and emulsified egg whites.