Husk Distillers officially launched their inaugural Ti Punch Masters this week.
The competition will match up the best bar tenders between Byron Bay and Brisbane to vie for the title of 2017 Ti Punch Master.
‘In the French islands of the Caribbean, we drink rum in a very different way,’ says Husk distiller, Quentin Brival, who hails from Martinique.
‘We don’t mix our rum with sugary soft drinks – instead we go for refreshing simplicity, a pinch of raw sugar, a squeeze of lime, 60ml of quality agricole blanc, Ti Punch!’
Challenging the way Australian’s perceive and drink rum, Husk Distillers put out the call to bartenders to come up with an original Australian twist on this French Caribbean classic.
‘For logistics reasons, we had to keep this first series simple and restrict entries to the NSW North Coast and SE Queensland, but we’re hoping to roll out the competition further afield next year,/ says Husk ambassador Mauricio Gamba.
Husk Distillers is Australia’s only agricole rum distillery. The concept was conceived on a trip to the Caribbean, where Founder/Distiller Paul Messenger fell in love with the diverse and vibrant rum culture of the islands.
Brival says ‘Drinking rum in Martinique is a shared experience. When you meet with friends, at the centre of the table is a bottle of quality white agricole, a bowl of limes and a small sugar pot. Lazy afternoons are spent around the table, slowly sipping & topping up your Ti Punch into the evening.’
If Messenger, Brival and Gamba have their way, this rum culture will spread down the east coast of Australia and across to the west, and the Ti Punch Masters could be the driver.
Every semi finalist will win a case of Pure Cane for their venue, and the person crowned the 2017 Ti Punch Master will win the ultimate rum experience for themselves & 3 friends – joining the Husk Distillers team over 2 days to participate in the 2017 harvest, crush, ferment & distillation at Tumbulgum. The winner will walk away with a 9L cask of fresh new make Husk Rum, vintage 2017.
Ti Punch Masters – Key Dates
15th September: Online Entries Close
20th September: Semi Finalists announced
2nd October: North Coast Semi Final at The Bolt Hole, Byron Bay
9th October: Gold Coast Semi Final at The Collective, Palm Beach
16th October: Brisbane Semi Final at Empire Hotel, Fortitude Valley
30th October: GRAND FINAL at Savile Row, Brisbane
For further details https://huskdistillers.com/tipunchmasters/
