February 24-27, 2005; Bandra Kurla Complex, Mumbai

Stirring Up A Challenge

STIR 2005 Features Bartending Competitions, Professional And Amateur Workshops

After providing bartenders in Chennai with the opportunity to showcase their skills during the bartending competition held there in June 2004, bartenders from across India can look forward to flaunting their skills and proving their mettle at STIR 2005 - The Official Meet For Bartenders. Organised by Creative Consultants and 'Hospitality World - The India International Hospitality Forum' in association with Monin Bar Syrups, Real Nature Fresh fruit juice from Dabur and Bacardi, the two-day official meet for bartenders will be held during Hospitality World at Bandra-Kurla Complex, Mumbai. Express Hotelier & Caterer will be the official publication for the said event.

STIR 2005 will include competitions, professional and amateur workshops on various aspects of bartending besides wine and whiskey tasting sessions, and sessions on understanding what differentiates various whiskeys. Five bartending competitions viz 'The STIR PRObartender 2005 Trophy', 'The Monin Challenge Trophy', 'The Real Cranberry Challenge Trophy', 'The Express Hotelier & Caterer Intelligence Challenge Trophy' and 'The STIR Extreme Bartending Challenge Trophy' will be held on February 24 and 25, 2005 at Bandra-Kurla Complex.

Speaking about the workshops, Shatbhi Basu of Creative Consultants and promoter of STIR Academy of Bartending, said, "We will be holding three professional workshops and three amateur workshops for those in the bartending business besides the bartending aspirants. The professional workshops include 'Performance Bartending - basic and advanced', 'Tulleeho STIR Whisky Experience - understanding the difference' and ‘Tulleeho STIR Wine Experience with label reading, vertical and horizontal wine tastings’."

The amateur workshops include a discussion on bartending and cocktails besides two other sessions christened ‘Tulleeho STIR Whiskey Experience - taste the difference’ and ‘Tulleeho STIR Wine Experience’ which talks about grapes and wines and various quality barometers for the same.

Elucidating the competition rules, Basu informs, "There is no age limit for participants and the competition is open to bartenders from hotels, restaurants, pubs or bars across India. Bartenders interested in taking part will have to send an original recipe using Real Cranberry Nectar as key ingredient for The Real Cranberry Challenge Trophy. For The Classic Challenge, participants will have to choose a classic recipe and adapt it to contemporary tastes. As the last date for registering is February 15, 2005, we have organised for online registrations on the official www.tulleeho.com. Participants can also access the site for further details and clarifications on the competition rules."