Cranberry and blood orange liqueur brand, Cranes, names Danilo Sassanelli (pictured above) of Soho based bar, Graphic Bar as the winner of their first cocktail competition.
Competitors were challenged to create innovative cocktails that will ‘Paint the Town Red’, with the only specification that they included 20ml of Cranes Cranberry & Blood Orange Liqueur.
Danilo of Graphic Bar, London, triumphed over two other competitors in the final of the competition, which took place at the Prince of Wales, Brixton on 11th September.
The contest was judged by Tom Arnold, who also judged the WFA Flair Bartending World Championship; Sean Cambridge, mixologist and Cocktail bar manager; and twin brothers and co-founders of the Cranes brand, Benjamin and Daniel Ritsema.
Danilo was awarded a cash prize, a years supply of Cranes liqueur for the bar he’s employed by and also the title of Cranes Brand Ambassador.
The other finalists were Sammy from First Aid Box and Louis from The Shrub and Shutter, who both created exquisite cocktails;
(Left; Sammy’s entry ‘Crazy Leg Cranes’, Right; Louis with his ‘Double Vision’)
- 25ml Cranes
- 30ml Calvados
- 5ml Aperol
- 25ml Lime juice
- 5ml cider vinegar
- Bergamot bitters
- Egg white
“It was extremely gratifying to see these amazing bartenders making such exotic cocktails with our Liqueur. They all tasted superb. It was an extremely close competition with Danilo creeping out in front. We had a huge range of people attend the event from influencers to investors, it was a huge success and looking forward to work with Graphic Bar and Danilo in the future.” – Ben Ritsema, Co-founder of Cranes.
(left to right; Benjamin Ritsema, Daniel Ritsema, Danilo Sassanelli, Sean Cambridge, Tom Arnold)
All Images credited to: Fordtography