Patrón Perfectionists 2024 UK finalists

Nathan Price

Nathan started bartending while studying music at LIPA and playing in many bands over many places. Working in hospitality opened him up to the beauty of incredible service, thriving the possibility of giving guests a unique experience. After several years covering different roles, Nathan began working with his best friend Mike at Burnt Milk Hotel. This is where he discovered an insatiable passion for cocktails and drink design. He then began entering cocktail competitions which led him to Patrón Perfectionists, winning the title of global finalist for the UK.

Entry Challenge cocktail inspiration
Nathan's cocktail is inspired by Lisbon. Countless memories, including some of the best food and drinks of his life, have been experienced there. Two of the most iconic products of the city are featured in Nathan's Patrón Paloma twist: Pasteis de Nata and Ginjinha. Double cream, a key ingredient in the custard of Pasteis de Nata, and Morello cherries, the main element of Ginjinha, make up the home-made cordial alongside grapefruit. The result is a delicious blend of creamy, sweet, sour and bitter flavours that are well balanced but do not stray too far from the classic cocktail flavour. Lisbon and Mexico in a glass.

Nathan Price's Ulyssippo
Bar: Burnt Milk Hotel, London
- 40 ml Patrón Reposado
- 50 ml Clarified morello, cream and grapefruit cordial*
- 100 ml Soda
Garnish: Morello Cherry Jelly
Method: Build in the glass, Patrón Reposado first, then the clarified morello cream & grapefruit cordial, and finally soda water. Stir to mix the ingredients together and then garnish with a morello jelly sitting on top of a Collins spear ice block.

*To make Clarified morello, cream and grapefruit cordial:
Cook down, muddle and simmer 400g of pitted Morello cherries in a small amount of water. Add 300ml of 4:3 simple syrup (water to sugar), simmer for a short while and then strain off. In a pan add double cream, Morello syrup and whole milk at a ratio of 3:3:2. Heat this up on a medium heat and lightly simmer. Pour the contents of the pan into a separate vessel, then pour freshly squeezed pink grapefruit juice into the Morello cream mixture, ensuring that the grapefruit juice pours under the cream liquid. The ratio of juice to Morello cream mixture should be 4:1. Allow this to curdle for ten minutes, stirring after this time and then strain this off through a coffee filter. After 20 minutes pour the strained liquid back into the filter and then allow the mixture to strain fully. The strained liquid is the clarified Morello cream mixture. To create the cordial, add a grapefruit oleo saccharum at a ratio of 2:1 Morello cream to oleo. For the oleo peel six pink grapefruits, remove the pith and vac pack with equal parts sugar to grapefruit peel. Allow this to sit for 24 hours as the sugar extracts the oils. Lactic acid can then be added to the cordial at 1% of the total volume. This is the Clarified Morello cream & grapefruit oleo cordial.

Other finalists

Blane McNab's Fly Away
Bar: Joxer, Bangor, Northern Ireland
- 50 ml Patrón Reposado
- 50 ml Tropical Gold cordial*
- 100 ml Soda water
Garnish: Salted pineapple crisp, micro coriander, hibiscus and li hing mui gel, viola flower
Method: In a cocktail shaker, add your very cold Patrón Reposado and tropical gold cordial together. Mix this with a bar spoon to incorporate. Add your ice to your glass. Add your patron mixture and 3/4 of your soda water to your glass. Give this a brief mix with a bar spoon. Finally top with the last of your soda water and garnish.

*To make Tropical Gold cordial:
Cut a pineapple into 1-inch cubes removing any skin and core. Add 30 pink peppercorns and muddle together. Add equal weight of hot water and equal weight of agave (1 part pineapple: 1 part agave: 1-part hot water). Let this sit in your fridge overnight. In a zip lock bag, peel/zest a white grapefruit and add an equal weight of sugar. Let this sit overnight, massaging the sugar and zest together every so often. Scoop out your passionfruit pulp and strain it through a fine mesh strainer. Add an equal amount of sugar. Mix together and let this sit overnight. The next day, strain your pineapple mixture through a fine mesh strainer and keep the pulp in a separate container. Strain your white grapefruit oleo with a fine mesh strainer and keep the zest in a separate container. Add 3% of the weight of citric acid (ie.100g oleo + 3 grams citric acid) and mix to dissolve. Strain your passionfruit oleo through a fine mesh strainer. You should now have 3 syrups/oleo and 2 containers of pulp. Mix the 2 pulps together for garnish. In a saucepan, add 2 part red grapefruit juice, 1 part pineapple-pepper syrup, 2 part white grapefruit oleo, 1 part passionfruit oleo. Mix this on a low heat to make sure all the sugars have dissolved. Add a pinch of salt to your liking. Fine strain one final time and bottle for up to 2 weeks.

Carrie Smith's Holy Moly Paloma
Bar: Hoot The Redeemer, Edinburgh
- 45 ml Patrón Reposado
- 55 ml Spiced pickled mango chutney*
- 100 ml Soda water
Garnish: Grapefruit zest, Pompadom, Garam masala coloured powder.
Method: All ingredients poured into the glass topped with soda.

*To make pickled mango:
Pickled mango (pickled in white wine vinegar, sugar, salt, cumin, curry leaves, coriander, pink peppercorns) blended and strained. Indian tea blend syrup- Coriander, saffron, cumin, clove and cardamom. Homemade mango and grapefruit olio. Adding the olio to tea blend.
Then 2:1. Syrup: Pickled Mango. Add 1.25% Citric Acid, 0.625% Malic Acid.

Martha May Markham's Late Night in Hanoi
Bar: Hawksmoor, Liverpool
- 40 ml Patrón Reposado
- 40 ml Vietnamese coffee cordial*
- 40 ml Soda water
Garnish: Honey roasted cashew crumb with cardamom and black pepper
Method: Add gomme lightly to outside of glass and sprinkle crumb onto it. Build in glass and stir to mix ingredients. Place column ice cube and spritz with a grapefruit disc.

*To make Vietnamese coffee cordial:
Juice 160ml grapefruit, juice 40ml lime juice and combine. Add 1.5g Malic acid and 1.5g Vitamin C to the juice mix. Crush 15 cardamom pods lightly and chop 4 tonka beans roughly and add to 100ml pre boiled water (from a kettle) in a pan. Bring to simmer. Once simmering add 75g sugar and mix in until dissolved and then turn up heat and boil for a minute then take off the heat. Add the cardamom and tonka syrup to the grapefruit mix. Add 65ml SOLO cold brew. In a separate tub mix thoroughly 75ml condensed milk and 75ml whole milk. Pour the grapefruit mix into the milk mix and allow to sit for 30 minutes. After 30 minutes pour mixture through a coffee filter/chinois until clear.

Silvia Lacopi's Medusa
Bar: Liquor Studio, Leeds
- 50 ml Patrón Reposado
- 70 ml Grapefruit & Fresh Fennel Cordial*
- 80 ml Soda water
Garnish: Fennel Flowers, Flaky Sea Salt & Fennel Dust
Method: Shake and double strain over cubed ice into the salt rimmed high-ball glass, top with soda, stir, garnish and serve.

*To make Grapefruit & Fresh Fennel Cordial:
200 ml Grapefruit extraction
200 ml Fennel extraction
200 ml 1:1 agave syrup
15 g Fennel flowers
20 g Citric acid (taste to adjust depending on citrus acidity)
50 g Grapefruit zest
50 g Caster sugar
Wash your fruits and vegetables well, peel your grapefruit and make sure you save 50g of zest. Combine the zest with equal amounts of caster sugar and leave it overnight at room temperature to extract oleo saccharum. Use your extractor to juice 200ml of grapefruit juice and 200ml of fresh fennel juice. Create a 1:1 agave nectar syrup by adding 100g of agave nectar and 100ml of water into a saucepan, simmer to combine then remove from heat and add the 15g of fennel flowers to infuse. Once syrup is cold add the 2 juices, 20g of citric acid (remember always to taste acidity), whisk gently till the powder is dissolved then leave in the fridge overnight. The next day come back to your cordial, don't forget to add your oleo saccharum into it for an extra grapefruit taste and fine strain into a clean bottle. Keep your cordial always refrigerated and it should last about 2 weeks but always taste before shift. Shake well before use.

Ibra Guenne's Heiwa Tower
Bar: 8 at The Londoner, London
- 45 ml Patrón Reposado
- 30 ml Grapefruit Yuzu Ponzu Cordial*
- 70 ml Soda
Garnish: kyogi paper and grapefruit discard
Method: Assemble all the ingredients into an ice filled highball , top up with soda water and garnish with kyogi paper.

*To make Grapefruit Yuzu Ponzu Cordial:
100 gr Patrón Silver
50 gr water
25 gr yuzu ponzu
25 gr grapefruit peel
75 gr caster sugar
2 gr Sakura tea
Reduction of all these ingredients then add:
250 gr grapefruit juice
100 gr caster sugar
5 gr citric acid
3.5 gr malic acid
2 gr ascorbic
Do a reduction with Patrón Silver, water, sugar and grapefruit peel. Combine all the ingredients together in a sous vide bag, put in sous vide at 42 degrees for 15 minutes.

Jeanne Mathieu's Mantoncillo
Bar: Hide Below, London
- 60 ml Patrón Reposado
- 40 ml Feria de Abril Cordial*
- 30 ml Soda water
Garnish: Mint salt rim
Method: Cuban roll.

*To make Feria de Abril Cordial:
11.2 gr grapefruit peel
60 ml grapefruit juice
15 gr lime peel
80 ml lime juice
90 ml fino
175 gr tomato
260 gr filtred water
3.38 gr malic acid
6.56 gr citric acid
172.7 gr sugar
Put everything in a blender for 5 minutes at high speed.

Lorenzo Piscitello's ZyZ
Bar: Artesian, London
- 50 ml Patrón Reposado
- 40 ml Deep Cordial*
- 50 ml Soda
Garnish: Oyster leaf and a delicate jelly made from the remaining cordial.
Method: Stir all ingredients.

*To make Deep cordial:
1 part of grapefruit juice, 1 part of yogurt and oyster leaf. Blended and clarified in a centrifuge and then add sugar, citric acid, lactic acid.
944 gr juice and yogurt blended 1:1
25 gr oyster leaf
Add sugar 2:1
875 gr final syrup add 20 gr citric acid
5 gr lactic acid

Kate Rouse's Saburo
Bar: Couch, Birmingham
- 45 ml Patrón Reposado
- 40 ml Grapefruit Ponzu Cordial
- 40 ml Soda
Garnish: Grapefruit & Kombu Pastille*
Method: Built into a highball glass with column ice, use a bar spoon to mix ingredients together and taste to serve.

*To make Grapefruit & Kombu Pastille:
800 g grapefruit juice and rind leftovers
900 g caster sugar
15 g fruit pectin
Another 35 g sugar
185 g liquid glucose
15 g lemon juice
Add grapefruit juice, glucose syrup, caster sugar, and bring to the boil, mix the pectin with the extra sugar, add that to boiling liquid. Take the liquid to 108 degrees for 3-4 minutes. Pour into mould. Refrigerate to set overnight. Dip in caster sugar, acid blend and blended kombu powder.

Courtney Francis' Venice of the North
Bar: Couch, Birmingham
- 30 ml Patrón Reposado
- 40 ml Bab Cordial*
- 50 ml Soda
Garnish: Brummie Disco Dust
Method: Place Patrón Reposado in the freezer to cool and soda within the fridge to allow both ingredients to reach correct temperature for the serve. Prepare glassware with dusts and salt, add your ice block and place in the freezer at -14 degrees until you are ready to use. Build all ingredients into your prepared frozen glass and then quickly stir to mix all ingredients together whilst keeping the drink at the correct temperature

*To make Bab cordial:
500 grams of 10% Apple tea
500 grams of Caster sugar
70% White grapefruit meat
1% Dried fig leaves
Measure out 500g of boiling water, add in 10% Apple tea and allow to brew for 6 minutes. Once brewed, strain the teas through a coffee filter. Then add an equal weight of caster sugar to the tea. Stir to dissolve the sugar, strain into a sous vide bag and add 1% fig leaves and 70% White Grapefruit meat (peel cut off and put aside for the Digbeth Disco Dust). Seal the sous vide bag‚squash the grapefruit in the bag to release juice etc.
Sous Vide at 60 degrees for 1.5hrs. Squeeze the grapefruit to ensure all the juice is extracted. Strain through a coffee filter. Add Acids and Seasoning (see below), bottle and label for 2 weeks - store in the fridge.
Acids and seasonings:
0.5% of Ascorbic
1% of Malic
1% of Citric
5% of Apple Eau De Vie
2 dashes of 20% Saline solution per 10ml of liquid.

As for the name, Bab is an inclusive greeting term used between all Brummies.