By Sacha Delfosse
666 Pure Tasmanian Vodka recently held the finals for its ‘Cocktails for the Devil’ competition, which raised over $5000 for the Save the Tasmanian Devil Appeal.
First place went to Black Pearl’s Chris Hysted (centre) who received $1000, second place went to Sam Cameron (left) from Spice Market who took home $500, and Chris Amon (right) from 1806 came third, receiving a $250 cash prize.
In addition, the bars they represent received 24, 12 and 6 bottles of 666 vodka respectively.
The grand final event was preceded by a casino night that allowed the 70 bartenders that entered the fund-raising initiative to earn extra points through gambling, with some bartenders doing well and others casing out quickly, 666 Pure Tasmanian Vodka brand ambassador, Sebastian Reaburn, explained.
After the good natured gambling was done, and any bonus points earned taken into account, the top ten were announced, who were then invited out for a day of clay shooting, which again gave them a chance to earn a few more points.
“After that we worked out the top six bartenders and put all the scores back to zero and took the top six to Melbourne for the finals, where they had to make their signature cocktail for the four judges,” Reaburn said.
“We also sprung a food matching challenge on them. We presented them with a canapé, which was a mozzarella, olive and chilli Aranchini ball, and told them to be back in three hours for the finals to make their signature cocktail, as well as come up with a cocktail to match the dish.”
The four judges were Shane Delia from St Katherine’s Restaurant and Maha Bar & Grill, Jason Chan from The Westwinds Gin, 666 Pure Tasmanian Vodka owner Dean Lucas and special guest Ashley Roberts from the Pussycat Dolls.
Roberts was brought down by the company to promote and participate in the Dance for the Devil competition, another arm of the Tasmanian Devil fund-raising appeal which is directed more at nightclubs.
“We brought Ashley down to do some events at clubs in Melbourne and Adelaide, as well as judging. She really enjoyed the variety of presentations she saw for the drinks,” Reaburn said.