Vince Curmi, Joseph Farrugia from the Maltese Bartenders Guild, Petra Altenberger – Brand Executive for Havana Club, Pierre Stafrace – General Manager FBIC Ltd, and Malta’s representative at the Havana Club International Cocktail Grand Prix in Havana, Adrian Caruana.

The 1st edition of the Havana Club Cocktail competition was hosted by Farsons Beverage Imports Company (FBIC) Limited, the official representatives of the brand in Malta, at the Westin Dragonara Resort on the 20th March 2012 in collaboration with the Maltese Bartenders Guild.

26 bartenders took to the stage to show their creations and to capture both the judges and the audience with their skills.

Mr Pierre Stafrace, General Manager of FBIC Ltd said: “We are thrilled with the number of bartenders who participated in this competition, which makes it the biggest cocktail competition that Malta has seen for a number of years. We believe that the art of cocktail making is still in its early stages in Malta and that there is a lot of work to be done. But this event shows that there is a lot of talent out there which is just waiting for an opportunity like this to shine.”

The focus of the competition was on the competitors’ overall image, communication skills, knowledge, mixing techniques as well as the quality of their drinks.  Four judging panels evaluated the participants in a bid to choose the best candidate.

During the semi final, competitors were given 10 minutes to create 2 original cocktails – the first using Havana Club Añejo 3 Years in a modern interpretation of a classic Cuban rum cocktail; the second using Havana Club Añejo 7 Years. The 3 finalists were then given 7 minutes to complete the final challenge – to create a cocktail from a mystery box with any product from the Havana Club range as a base.

Adrian Caruana, from Hugo's Lounge, emerged a winner with his nicely balanced and flavourful cocktail creation. He will be representing Malta in the international finals being held in June in the Cocktail Capital of the World – Havana, Cuba.

Havana Club Brand Executive, Ms Petra Altenberger, added: “The Havana Club International Cocktail Grand Prix in Havana is a chance for the finest bartenders in the world to share their passion, enjoy one of the finest cities in the world and one of its greatest rums. A truly once in a lifetime experience and we are happy for Adrian to be part of it.”

Havana Club is imported, marketed and distributed by FBIC Limited and is available at Farsonsdirect, Mdina Road Mriehel or online http://www.farsonsdirect.com/.