Giffard, a fifth-generation liqueur maker, has opened the 2024 Giffard West Cup for entries. For this, the 27th anniversary of this bartenders' cocktail competition, the theme is The Art of Balance.
Bartenders are challenged to create a cocktail that reflects what makes their life as balanced as their cocktail creation, a creative endeavour pursuing the perfect harmony of flavours, textures, and scents, with each element complementing the other without dominating it. Giffard says, "While balancing professional and personal life, preserving your well-being and feeding your creativity is at stake for every bartender."
Hence, Giffard invites bartenders to celebrate and reflect on these dualities, believing that true artistry lies not only in the final drink but also in the journey to get there: Amazing job & Refreshing life!
National winners win a trip to the home of Giffard to learn about how liqueurs are made, meet like-minded bartenders from around the world, and take their place in the Grand Final to make their cocktail in front of a live audience to be assessed by a panel of respected judges from around the world (including yours truly).
Giffard will bring the winner outside the bar to balance his/her life! The global winner's prize is return flight tickets for two (€1,500 budget) and accommodation (€1,000 budget) to a destination of your choosing (within a list provided by Giffard) to discover and explore another cocktail culture.
UK entries closed Sunday 31st of March 2024
If in USA enter here
If you work in one of the other countries listed below, then please contact Giffard directly or speak to your local importer.
1. Create a cocktail inspired by a link with a hobby, sport or passion outside of bartending, which helps make your life more balanced.
2. Show the person behind the bartender through an activity contributing to your mental and physical well-being.
3. Your cocktail must comprise of at least 30ml of Giffard liqueur, or liqueurs. (e.g. 10ml each of 3 different Giffard liqueurs.)
4. One entry per person
5. Recipes entered must be the original creation of the competitor, and if a competitor is thought to have plagiarised a known, existing cocktail, they will be disqualified.
6. Recipes entered must be expressed in millilitres (or oz if in the USA), and the use of 'dashes' and/or 'drops' is limited to bitters, hot pepper sauce, and the like. Fruit juice quantities must also be stipulated; e.g., "squeeze of lime" is unacceptable.
7. Cocktails must not contain more than six ingredients, including fruit juices, syrups, drops, or dashes. Solid garnishes are not considered ingredients. Use of edible fruits, herbs, leaves and spices may include sprigs, peels, barks, fruit shells, etc. Any flowers and petals used must be of an edible variety. Non-edible garnishes and accessories are allowed if safe and general common-sense aspects apply.
8. No prebatching allowed.
9. Any syrups used should prioritise the Giffard range available in your area.
Bartenders in the following markets will be invited to participate:
- Asia Pacific (including Australia, Indonesia, Malaysia, Hong Kong, Philippines, Thailand, Taiwan, Singapore, South Korea, Vietnam)
- Canada
- Croatia
- Czech republic
- France
- Germany
- Greece
- Ireland
- Italy
- Japan
- Middle East & Africa (Ghana, Morocco, UAE, Lebanon)
- Portugal
- Scandinavia (Sweden, Denmark, Norway)
- Spain
- UK
- USA
From March to June 2024, a series of competitions in participating countries will decide the national finalists who will compete for a place in the Grand Final, which will be held in September 2024 at the home of Giffard in Angers, France.
To quote Edith Giffard, from the family company which makes this liqueur, it's a subtle blend of an infusion of fresh pineapples ripened under the Caribbean
A fruit crème made from concentrated passion fruit juice by Giffard & Cie, a fourth generation family-owned and run liqueur producer in France's Loire
This liqueur by the family firm of Giffard in France's Loire Valley is made from the distillation of tangerine peels.
Made in Anjou, Loire Valley since 1885, Menthe-Pastille is France's leading brand of white crème de menthe. It continues to be made in the same town by
Part of Giffard's 'Premium' liqueur range, this banana liqueur is made by the slow maceration of Brazilian banana puree (to optimize contact with alcohol
A traditional crème de mûre made from blackberry extracts and blackberry juice by Giffard & Cie, a fourth generation family-owned and run producer in
This crème de pêche is distinguished by the French term 'de Vigne' – literally meaning 'of bush' this refers to its being made from peaches cultivated
Part of Giffard's 'Premium' liqueur range, this apricot liqueur is made by the slow maceration of 'Rouge du Roussillon' apricots in neutral alcohol.
All editorial and photography on this website is copyright protected
© Odd Firm of Sin 2025