22. April 2024
Graham’s Blend Series Competition 2024
Leonardo Mesmer from the Irsinn Bar has won the final of the Swiss Graham’s Blend Series Competition 2024. Mesmer will represent Switzerland at the global final of the competition in Porto at the end of May.
Creative and innovative. These are the cocktail creations of the nine finalists in the Swiss final of the Graham’s Blend Series Competition 2024. On 16 April, they competed against each other in the Tipsy Tiger Bar in Zurich to win a ticket to the global final of the competition in Porto. The participants’ task was to create a cocktail based on Graham’s Blend N°5 White Port or Blend N°12 Ruby Port and win over the expert jury. This consisted of Graham’s Port Market Manager Emiliano di Renzo, Martina Wilhelm – Winner of Marmite Youngster 2024 – Category Sommeliere and bartender Andrea Pesce, who won the national Graham’s Blend Competition last year.
This year’s winner was Leonardo Mesmer, who impressed the judges across the board with his Porta do Mundo cocktail. Mesmer explains his inspiration for the cocktail: “His cocktail is dedicated to the explorers who set sail from the harbour in Porto to discover the unknown countries of the world. And returned with ingredients from all over the world. Leonardo from the Irsinn Bar in Basel will be travelling to Porto from 19-22 May 2024 to represent Switzerland at the global final of the Graham’s Blend Competition 2024. Jael Bind from the Capitol Bar in Lucerne took second place in the Swiss competition, while Jan Titscher from the Einstein Bar in St.Gallen came third.
Winning cocktails
1st place – Cocktail «Porta do Mundo»
(Leonardo Mesmer)
- 4cl Graham’s N°12 Ruby Port
- 2cl Camus VSOP
- Maghreb syrup (pomegranate, black tea, date, ras el hanout)
- 4 barspoons rose water
- Garnish: Roasted black olive powder
2nd place – Cocktail «Graham`s Velvet»
(Jael Bind)
- 7cl Graham’s Blend N°5 White Port
- 4cl Pear Cordial
- Fill up Raphael dal Bo Proscco Extra Dry
- Garnish: Gorgonzola Foam & Pear chip
3rd place – Cocktail «Crème de la Crème»
(Jan Titscher)
- 4cl Graham’s N°12 Ruby Port
- 1,5cl Eggwhite
- 1cl Balvenie Double Wood 12yrs infused with puff pastry covered with egg yolk
- 0,5cl Vanilla yogurt
- 0,5cl Simple Syrup
- 2 dashes Balvenie
- Garnish: cured egg yolk
Graham’s Blend Series
The Graham’s Blend Series stands for a fresh and innovative interpretation of port wine. The pioneer is the Blend N5 White followed by the Blend No12 Ruby Port – the first ports to be blended specifically for blending. A modern and award-winning label design by fashion illustrator António Soares gives the Blend range a striking and versatile presence on the cocktail scene, while also being attractive to the trade. The Blend range writes a new chapter in the history of port. It helps to fuel the inspiration and creativity of mixologists and consumers and enliven every #portmoment! Regardless of the setting, the season or the occasion.
