This year, the third edition of Graham's Blend Series competition took place! The Graham's Blend Series is a global cocktail battle organised by Graham's Port, bringing together professional bartenders and mixologists from all over. They are challenged to come up with creative cocktails that highlight the special flavours of Graham's Blend Nº5 White Port and Blend Nº12 Ruby Port. These port wines are specially designed to mix, adding a modern twist to classic port. The competition aims to highlight port's versatility as a cocktail promoter and appeal to a new generation of port fans.
Source cover photo: @Graham'sPort
The National Round of the Graham's Blend Series
The competition begins with national preliminary rounds in several countries, including the UK, Germany, Portugal, the Netherlands and Belgium. Participants in these preliminary rounds submit an original cocktail recipe and present it to a panel of experienced judges. The winners of each national round are invited to the world final, which takes place in Porto, Portugal. In Belgium, the national round of the Graham's Blend Series took place on Monday 25 March 2024 at Little Red Rooster in the heart of Ghent, where Stijn Deschacht won first prize with his cocktail, the Salsa Ruby.
Who is Stijn Deschacht?
Stijn Deschacht, originally from Ostend, started his career as a sound engineer and tour manager for major metal bands for 15 years. During his world travels, he became passionate about good food, which inspired him to pursue a career in the culinary world. After attending a chef training course at VDAB, he found his way to Bar Bulot, where he further developed his gastronomic talents.
In 2018, Stijn embarked on a new adventure with the launch of his podcast 'About Food', in which he shares his passion for food and has fascinating conversations with interesting figures from the culinary world. So in addition to his podcast and work in the kitchen, he has now achieved success in the cocktail world!
Winner of the 2024 World Final
At the World Final of the Graham's Blend Series Cocktail Competition in Porto, 16 national winners competed for the title. The finalists enjoyed exclusive experiences such as tours and luxury dinners. Five finalists emerged in the semi-finals: Lukas Palubinskas from Lithuania, Zdravko Mitev from Malta, Daniel Prokes from the Czech Republic, Jiří Malis from Estonia, and Stijn Deschacht from Belgium. For the final, they had to make a cocktail with ingredients from a mysterious 'mystery box'. In the end, Lukas Palubinskas won with his cocktail 'Olhos do Capitão', followed by Zdravko and Stijn in second and third place respectively.
Make your own Salsa Ruby at home!
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Source: Heartofagave
Luckily, Stijn Deschacht posted his original recipe for Salsa Ruby on Reddit. Here's how to make it yourself:
Ingredients
- 60 ml Graham's Blend no. 12
- 40 ml Nixta Licor de Elote
- 20 ml Ancho Reyes
- 20 ml Verjus*
- 3 drops Bittermens Xocolatl Mole Bitters.
We suggest Scrappy's Chocolate Bitters as an alternative.
*Verjus, also verjuis or verjuus is a flavour-enhancing condiment for food based on unripened grapes or other unripe sour fruit, known as far back as Roman times. It was widely used in the Middle Ages and until the 17th century. After that, it fell into disuse. Verjuice is still produced and traded on a limited scale, but this modern version tastes milder than vinegar.
Preparation
Put all ingredients in a mixing glass, add ice, stir well and pour over fresh ice.
Garnish
A rose of chilli ancho, rehydrated in a syrup of Graham's Blend No. 5 white port (ratio 1:1 sugar-port). This garnish gives a delicious sultana flavour and texture with undertones of chilli ancho.
For more information about participating or to view previous winners' creations, please visit the official website of the competition itself.
Stijn Deschacht's podcasts
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Marketing • Blogger
As a creative jack-of-all-trades in the marketing world, I also bring that imaginative flair to my drink choices. Whether on a night out, sunny vacation or social gathering with girlfriends, I'm always in my element with a refreshing cocktail in hand. Cocktails have stolen my heart because of the endless possibilities to experiment and explore. My favorite cocktail of the moment is the "Lazy Red Cheeks"! A delicious cocktail using vodka as a base. I love vodka because it mixes perfectly with non-alcoholic drinks. My favorite spirit? Rum!
