REIMAGINING THE BRANDY SPIRIT
There’s way more to brandy than the South African favourite combo, brandy and cola, and in celebration of its centennial celebrations KWV brandy put out a call to bartenders to conjure up some brandy magic in the Brandy Reimagined competition. Competitors from around the country were asked to compete for top spots in two regional competitions where their cocktails were put through rigorous judging by a panel of judges including cocktail expert Dom Walsh and lifestyle influencer Seth Shezi. Their job was to identify the top 20 bartenders and their creations.
The bartenders’ creations were judged on aroma, taste, appearance, balance, brandy pairing and presentation and after much deliberation — and a lot of brandy— the top five were selected.
The prize? A limited-release bottle of KWV Nexus valued at R24 000 and the crown, the ultimate KWV Brandy Futurist.
There was strong competition between the bartenders — and a good measure of rivalry between cities. The judges, impressed by the creativity, named the top five — three bartenders from Johannesburg, one from Cape Town and one from Durban.
The overall KWV Brandy Futurist is Maynard Booyzen from Sin + Tax, Johannesburg.