Tripleseat’s Sip-Sational Cocktail Contest

Vote for a cocktail at EventCamp after the Sip-Sational Contest demonstration! Take your marble and put it into the martini glass for the cocktail of your choice. Introducing the three finalists:

The Bathtub

Created by: Gregory Innocent
Submitted by: Logan Larroque
Company name: The Bassment
Location: Chicago, IL

Ingredients:
Sneaky Fox Vodka
Lemon
Cucumber
Jalapeño
St. Germain
Lemon foam

What makes this your venue’s signature cocktail?
The Bassment is Chicago’s premier live music cocktail lounge with a unique speakeasy twist, themed after the 1960’s British Invasion movement, when artists across the pond took the country by storm! The Bathtub harkens back to prohibition, when alcohol was illegal—where there’s a will, there’s a way, and people would secretly craft cocktails in their bathtubs! The Bathtub cocktail is served in a porcelain bathtub, garnished with a tangy jalapeño-cucumber foam, and topped with a rubber ducky!

Besos Picosos

Created by: Abraham Flota
Submitted by: Eloy Garcia
Company name: Prospect Restaurant
Location: San Francisco, CA

Ingredients:
400 Conejos Mezcal
Pomegranate
Blood Orange Liqueur
Lime
Ancho Chile Syrup

What makes this your venue’s signature cocktail?
Since its introduction to our cocktail menu, it has consistently been our number-one seller. Everyone loves this cocktail! Our bar director, Abraham, wanted to create a cocktail highlighting mezcal that is balanced and refreshing.

Feria De Las Flores

Created by: Sebastian Arango Builes
Submitted by: Trish Ellis
Company name: The Painted Burro- Harvard Square
Location: Cambridge, MA

Ingredients:
Butterfly pea-infused rum
Elderflower liqueur
Lavender
Topped with Prosecco

What makes this your venue’s signature cocktail?
To first understand this drink, you have to understand that we are a Mexican tequila restaurant that loves to exceed our guest’s expectations as it relates to traditional Mexican food and drinks! This cocktail was created by our very own Beverage Manager, Sebastian Arango Builes, who was inspired to create a specialty cocktail for the popular Mexican holiday Dia De Los Muertos, which translates as “Day of the Death.”

This holiday falls on November 1st, and according to tradition, the gates of heaven are opened at Midnight on October 31st, and the spirits of children can rejoin their families for 24 hours. The spirit of adults can do the same on November 2nd. Traditionally, on Dia De Los Muertos, flowers, favorite foods, and other offers are left at the gravesites of the deceased or even dedicated altars are built in family homes.

Flowers are a huge part of how people say goodbye to the dearly departed, so the invention of “Feria De Las Flores” — translated to “Flowers Parade” — was created. Sebastian said, “The idea was to create a cocktail that makes our guests feel warm and loved on any day, even if it is the day of the death!” He also said he wanted to incorporate rum instead of tequila as his grandfather, who raised him and passed away, occasionally enjoyed rum and wanted to pay homage to him, being that it was, in fact, “Dia De Los Muertos.”

Other than the fact that it is beautifully presented and delicious, we encourage our team to share this story when guests order this cocktail or are looking for a recommendation! The cocktail was only supposed to be a featured cocktail for 4 days to celebrate the days leading up to the day of the death, but it quickly became popular and earned its spot as one of our specialty cocktails!

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Calling all cocktail enthusiasts at restaurants, bars, hotels, and unique venues! We welcome you to join us for Tripleseat’s third annual Sip-Sational Cocktail Contest brought to you by EventCamp 2024. If you have participated previously, you will remember the creamy holiday season recipes and the sweetly refreshing summer recipes of the contest’s past. Competition was fierce and creative. This time around, we are bringing a new theme and new stakes to the competition.

Drum roll, please. For this year’s Sip-Sational Cocktail Contest, the theme is “Your Venue’s Signature Cocktail.” We want you to nominate the recipe for the cocktail your restaurant, bar, or venue is most well-known for to fit this theme. This cocktail could be the clear star on your menu that your regulars know and love, or maybe it’s the sneaky late addition cocktail that unexpectedly is ordered most often. Perhaps it’s the cocktail that blew up on TikTok, and now every group comes in eager to try this cocktail. Either direction within reason of fitting the theme of “Your Venue’s Signature Cocktail” works for the contest.

We also mentioned new stakes, and we are here to elaborate. This year, there will be three cocktail contest finalists. All three finalists will be invited to attend Tripleseat’s EventCamp on May 15 in Boston, where they will each have the opportunity to make one serving of their cocktail on stage in front of the EventCamp audience while talking about the background of the cocktail and their business. As in previous years, the cocktails will be batched by the bar staff at the EventCamp venue, Big Night Live. Concluding the presentations, EventCamp attendees will have the chance to sip each cocktail and vote on one favorite during the final “Sip Off.” The “Sip Off” will determine one grand winner who will receive the winning prize.

Now, let’s talk about contest rules, judging criteria, and timelines for the 2024 Sip-Sational Cocktail Contest by Tripleseat.

Who can enter?

Any restaurant, hotel, unique venue, event space, or hospitality industry business with a liquor license can enter the contest. You do not need to be a Tripleseat customer to enter the contest.

How does the contest work?

Join the contest by submitting your venue’s signature cocktail recipe here by midnight PST on Friday, March 8.

The submission form will ask for the cocktail name, recipe, the person credited for creating the cocktail, the story behind the cocktail, and a photo of the cocktail.

Once all cocktails are submitted, a team of Tripleseat cocktail enthusiasts will vote and narrow down the contestant list to 12 semifinalists. The judges will vote based on the cocktail recipe, description in the context of the theme, and presentation. From there, the voting lies in the hands of the public.

The Tripleseat team will provide all semifinalists with promotional materials that they can share on their own social media and with their colleagues and customers in order to encourage voting. Public voting will begin in mid-March. The top three finalists with the most votes after the voting period closes will be notified. Upon accepting their finalist spots, finalists will be invited to join us at Tripleseat’s EventCamp on Wednesday, May 15, in Boston, where they will participate in the “Sip Off” to determine one grand winner.

Please note: In order for the cocktail demonstration at EventCamp to work, by accepting your finalist spot, you will be committing to joining us at EventCamp in order to present your cocktail recipe on stage. If the cocktail credits belong to two people or you, as the event manager are submitting on behalf of the bartender and the bartender would be the one presenting, both parties will be invited to join. If you are unable to attend, we will invite the next most highly-voted cocktail to EventCamp, while still giving an honorable mention to your top three placements!

Are there any cocktail recipe regulations?

We want to know your venue’s signature cocktail recipe exactly as it is! Due to liquor laws in the state of Massachusetts, the finalist cocktails in the Sip Off served to the EventCamp attendees will be made by the on-site bar staff at EventCamp. The ingredient list will be provided to the venue ahead of time to source the proper ingredients. If the venue is unable to find an exact type of ingredient, they will find the closest substitute. With that being said, no pre-made cocktails will be allowed as submissions.

What is the grand prize?

No contest is complete without a grand prize! The three finalists will receive one free ticket to EventCamp each. This covers the cost of the ticket itself to attend the Welcome Party, full day of EventCamp, and Tripleseat University at EventCamp on May 14. Any travel costs will be the responsibility of the finalist.

The winner (one contestant) of the Sip Off at EventCamp will receive the grand prize of $500 to enjoy with their team. We know it will be a team effort with your bar team to get here, and we want all parties to celebrate!

What important contest dates should I remember?

Friday, March 8: Cocktails must be submitted to the form HERE by midnight PST.
Mid-March: Twelve semifinalists will be announced after internal voting takes place
Mid-March: Voting opens to the public
Start of April: Three finalists will be contacted and invited to EventCamp
Wednesday, May 15: Three finalists will attend EventCamp in Boston for the final “Sip Off” to determine one grand prize winner.

If you have any further questions about the contest, reach out to Rachel Calkins at rachelc@tripleseat.com.

Terms and Conditions

For terms and conditions on Tripleseat’s Sip-Sational Cocktail Contest, please visit this page.