Diageo Reserve World Class Bartender of the Year Returns Kicking Off With Its World Class Studios UK

Diageo Reserve’s world-renowned bartender competition, World Class, is set to return, launching with its UK-wide studios tour in February and March. The competition will comprise all-new content with community at its heart, as well as exciting new challenges, promising to be bigger and better than ever before.

World Class Studios 2019 aims to widen the search for this year’s World Class champion by extending its reach to an even bigger pool of bartenders. The series of training sessions are created to push boundaries, educate and inspire bartenders around the world, preparing them for the hotly anticipated World Class competition set to launch in March. In the UK, the bespoke training will be delivered by a number of Diageo Reserve Brand Ambassadors including Jack Sotti, Jason Clark, Ali Reynolds, Kate Jackson, Jenna Ba, Joe Tivey, a collection of the world’s best bartenders, drinks professionals and creatives. There will be three hero sessions in London, Glasgow and Manchester, with smaller satellite activations also scheduled for Edinburgh, Liverpool, Leeds and Birmingham.

This year, the World Class studios sessions are each centred around a different spirit in the Diageo Reserve portfolio and are inspired by the spirit’s production, history or ethos. The studio seminars are designed to bring to life modern cocktail trends to inspire and teach bartenders and grow the World Class community. Modules for the year’s national training drive include ‘Tech Tonics’, ‘Science of Smoke’, ‘Single Ingredients’ and ‘Tartan Tiki’, with two modules specifically tailored to this year’s World Class competition entry challenge, due to open in March with in-bar judging in May.

The ‘Science of Smoke’ module requires competitors to grasp and demonstrate the delicate skill of creating the perfect blend by ensuring liquids work together in harmony. ‘Tech Tonics’ is a module which draws on inspiration from Tanqueray No. TEN and Tonic – a much-loved recipe which highlights the ground-breaking technology behind the spirit’s production process and botanical combinations. The session will explore how best to create your own mixers and unlock unique flavours.

The ‘Single Ingredients’ module focuses on Ketel One Vodka and getting the most out of ingredients to minimise wastage and make better, more responsible choices in the bar and at home. The fourth module, ‘Tartan Tiki’ is inspired by Talisker’s brand platform, Made By The Sea. It explores specific whisky flavour profiles and showcases the versatility of Single Malt Scotch Whisky by mixing malts in a cocktail context better known for its rum credentials.

Diageo Reserve World Class Brand Ambassador Jack Sotti commented: “2019 marks a step change in the World Class programme. Now in its 11th year, we’ve seen an array of personalities share their talent whilst participating in the competitions and have watched the competition develop year by year, each time tapping into today’s trends and cocktail culture.

“The World Class studios are an amazing way for us to get out there and work incredibly closely with both new and established talent nationwide to help build new skills, grow our World Class community and share a wealth of knowledge and insight. We can’t wait to hit the road to start recruiting and spreading the word for yet another exciting World Class year, this year kicking the competition off with a series of challenges encompassing everything which makes up todays bartending scene.”

Each of the sessions will be held at Revolution venues across the country. Click on the website to find out further details. To sign up for the World Class studio sessions, bartenders should visit https://Worldclassgb.events.idloom.com