DTB Mai Tai contest

I noticed one of the banner ads on this web site is for a 2nd annual Don the Beachcomber Mai Tai Festival in Hawaii. I'll skip the debate on whether DtB should be promoting a festival surrounding a drink invented by Trader Vic's - and instead call your attention to the mai tai drink mixing contest:

Battle for the World's Best Mai Tai & $10,000 Cash Prize Begins
Enjoy the musings of MC Joey Gottesman as he walks us through a fast-paced and exciting mix-off featuring 30 of the world's best mixologists. Watch as judges, Sam Choy (Celebrity Chef), William Ramos (Head Distiller for Bacardi Rum), Chris Teves (Publisher of Hawaii Beverage Guide), and Beachbum Berry (World-famous Rum and Mai Tai Expert) make the hard decision of whose Mai Tai reigns supreme.

Does anyone know what the criteria will be for this mix-off? First of all, Bacardi is a sponsor and the company's head distiller is a judge so would you get lower marks if you didn't use a Bacardi rum? And then I began wondering if one would do a version of a Don Beach mai tai or a traditional Trader Vic mai tai or the version probably better known by Hawaiians with pineapple juice. Having the Bum as one of the judges brings some legitimacy to the contest, but with so many mai tai knockoff versions floating around, I wonder if this contest isn't more of a "best cocktail" contest than a "best mai tai" one. Hmmmmm.....

"I am Lono!" -- Hale Ka'a Tiki Lounge

[ Edited by: arriano 2010-06-18 13:42 ]

Here's Jeff Berry's recap from last years contest ~ COCKTAIL COMBAT, HAWAIIAN-STYLE.

Sounds like it was fun.

Not sure about the type of drinks that were competing. I remember that the winner was a smoke infused mai tai.

I would just throw out a word of caution for anyone who is seriously considering traveling to Hawaii to compete for this contest. I know someone who competed and did very well, but told me the whole contest was pretty shady. He had said that the guy who won had no real experience or interest in mai tais, and was actually given the recipe by Joey Gottesman. So, it sounds like Gottesman organized the contest, was one of the judges, and provided the wining drink recipe. So who knows what actually happened to the $10,000.

I don't have any info to back this up - just passing on what a good friend had told me in case someone is thinking of traveling from the mainland....

The fact is that there is a big gap between our perfect little Lemon Hart/ Grog Log/ 1934 Zombie world and the real world out there. Bacardi IS the biggest, richest rum producer in the world. They are getting in on the Tiki world now, with not so different tactics than they applied to take over the rum consumer market in the recent decades. Example: The wonderful Mahiki in London now pours Bacardi exclusively, and has gotten rid of most of their rum selection (this is hear-say) They simply make you an offer so good you can't refuse. They can afford it.

The Bum voted for another Mai Tai recipe, as he stated in his Tiki Magazine article. But that's all one can do. I have not heard of anything shady going on (but of course such things are never mentioned in public). You can only take these events seriously to a certain degree, and then let it go. I mean, just look at all those ridiculous food channel cooking competition shows....

wait a minute,
your saying that Bacardi still makes "rum"
shocking.
:wink:

Jeff(btd)