Words by Simon Difford
Peter F. Heering, producers of the famous Cherry Heering liqueur are celebrating the Singapore Sling’s 100th anniversary with the 2015 Sling Award – an annual bartender’s cocktail competition and ‘Here’s to the Tiger’ – both a competition and charitable promotion in support of the few remaining wild tigers.
The global final was held in New York on 22 September and the winners have been chosen!
To compete in the 2015 Sling Award, each bartender presented a Sling menu consisting of three different Slings. In New York on 22 September 2015 the global final was held, where the overall winner as well as four runners-up were chosen. They win a trip to Singapore and the legendary Raffles Hotel where the Singapore Sling was born. Their winning drinks will also be featured here on Difford's Guide.
The overall winner is Christoffer Johansson from Sweden, with his Chris Cross Bitter Sling.
The four runners-up who also win a trip to Singapore are:
China Hungie Fong, Origin, with Tiger Tiger Plum
Ireland Richard Grimsey, Classic Restaurant, with Limavady Tiger Lilly
Australia Matthias Aso, Sydney Hilton Zeta Bar, with The Cupcake Sling
France Jeremy Lafrance, Le Calbar, with 100 of a Tiger
As well, one bartender from each of the following bars will join the group in Singapore. Their bars raised the largest sum of money for 'Here's to the Tiger' element of the competition.
Elexir, San Fransisco
Peppercrab, Grand Hyatt Dubai
The Envoy,Hong Kong
The Oakland Art Novelty Company, Ferndale
The fantastic four will join the five bartenders in Singapore to celebrate the Singapore Sling's 100th anniversary.
Congratulations to all the winners!
We'd also like to congratulate the other global finalists, selected from over 2,000 entries...
Great Britain Francesco Lombardi, Rivington Grill Shoreditch
India Guru Prashanth, High Ultra Lounge
Luxembourg Dawid Guzik, Octans Spirited Bar
Netherlands Timo Janse, Door 74
Taiwan Max Ciou, Above Piano Bar
UAE Brendan Shorrock Peppercrab, Grand Hyatt Dubai
USA Matthew Farley, The Joy Luck
...and the other national finalists who beat off stiff competition in their national heats:
Belgium Karim Britel, B'artist
Canada Taoufike Zrafi, Mamakas
Germany Kersten Wruck ,Chapel Berlin
Japan Ryuta Nakamura, Bar Redrose
New Zealand Campbell Bond, The Ginger Minx
Russia Olga Markevich, freelance
Singapore Aiken Cabagui, Maison Ikkoku
Switzerland Andreas Walsh, Hotel Schweizerhof Bern
Cocktail history was made in Singapore in 1915, when Ngiam Tong Boon (嚴崇文), bartender at Raffles Hotel's legendary Long Bar created the Singapore Sling, his recipe included a slug of Cherry Heering.
Sadly Raffles Hotel has been the scene of destruction as well as creation. In the late 1800s it was commonplace for workers on rubber plantations of Singapore to be killed or mulled by the many Malayan tigers that prowled the island. Bounties were set on tiger's heads an attempt to rid the island of them. Legend has it that the last Singaporean tiger was killed in 1902 at the Raffles Hotel. Truth is that tigers were hunted to extension in Singapore and the one killed at Raffles had escaped from a circus and was trapped under the billiards room.
This year, 2015, the Singapore Sling celebrates its 100th birthday and in celebration of this Peter F. Heering has launched a global charitable campaign 'Here's To The Tiger'. Promoted as part of Peter F. Heering's Sling Awards, a global competition challenging bartenders from around the world to create their own contemporary interpretation of the classic Sling cocktail. The objective is to raise money to support the Panthera Organization which works to save the world's tigers and other wild cats through "scientific leadership and global conservation action."
Nine global winners of the competition will win a trip to Singapore, including a stay at the luxurious Raffles Hotel and the chance to see tigers, live and up close.
The competition is now closed for entries.
The winner of the 2014 Peter F. Heering Sling Award was Nick Kobbernagel Hovind, Denmark with his 'The Sloe Sling'. The competition attracted several thousand entries with the top 44 National Winners announced in June 2014. These were whittled down to the top 17 for the semi-final in August with five competitors going forward to compete in the final held on 7th October 2014 in Berlin.
The winning drink: The Sloe Sling
Glass: Palais
Garnish: Mint sprig
Method: SHAKE first 7 ingredients with ice and fine strain into chilled glass. TOP with soda.
20 ml Cherry Heering
15 ml Sloe gin
40 ml Aalborg Taffel Aquavit
3 dashes Peychaud Bitters
30 ml Freshly squeezed lemon juice
10 ml Simple syrup
1 small dash egg white
Top with 30 ml Soda
Apart from the honour and media exposure, Nick also received €500 and a Danish silver Stelton shaker. The other four finalists were:
• Canada: Taoufike Zrafi
• Denmark: Nick Kobbernagel Hovind
• Estonia: Sigrid Sarv
• Singapore: Aron Christian Lobrino Manzanillo
• USA: Jon Kraus
See these and all the other semi-finalists recipes below.
Judging the final in Berlin were David Wondrich (cocktail historian), David Rosengarten (Forbes Magazine), Heinfried Tacke (Drinks Magazine), Réne Riis (Four Magazine), Nikolaj Brøndsted (Good Spirits, Mash Group & Umami)and Fredrik Tilander (owner of Peter F. Heering). There was also a "peoples vote" with attendees of the Bar Convent Berlin show given the opportunity to taste the five finalist's drinks.
We hosted the Semi-final of Cherry Heering's Sling Awards on 26th Aug 2014 in our Cabinet Room bar here in London. I (Simon Difford) acted as both bartender and judge, along with fellow judges Luca Cordiglieri (UKBG), Simon Webster (BarlifeUK) and Luisa Hallen (Marussia Beverages). I was helped in my efforts to reproduce the 17 semi-finalists recipes as faithfully as possible by Enrico Gaddoni. A video of each competitor making and talking about their recipe was played as I reproduced their recipe.
The competition saw a bewildering array of ingredients with the base spirits used by competitors ranging from Japanese single malt to aquavit, with mezcal and a vast range of different gins. The definition of what a sling actually is was stretched to breaking point by some competitors in their quest to stand out while others stuck to a recognisable riff on a Singapore Sling but with unexpected flavours such as tea, celery and rhubarb. Mixing and then sampling these very individual 17 drinks made for a most interesting day with Cherry Heering rightfully shining through in the best entries.
Our day of mixing and judging resulted in the following five finalists who will go on to compete at the Berlin Bar Show in October for the Peter F Heering Sling Award 2014.
Canada: Taoufike Zrafi
Denmark: Nick Kobbernagel Hovind
Estonia: Sigrid Sarv
Singapore: Aron Christian Lobrino Manzanillo
USA: Jon Kraus
Follows the recipes for all 17 semi-finalist's cocktails:
Canadian semi-finalist: Taoufike Zrafi
Cocktail: The Bittered Sling
Glass: Collins
Garnish: Lime wedge and mint sprig
Method: SHAKE first 5 ingredients with ice. Add other ingredients, SHAKE with ice and strain into ice-filled glass. TOP with ginger ale.
30 ml Cherry Heering
30 ml Tanqueray gin
15 ml Fernet Branca
15 ml Orgeat syrup
15 ml Freshly squeezed lemon juice
45 ml Ginger ale
USA semi-finalist: Jon Kraus
Cocktail: Pepito's Slingshot
Glass: Collins
Garnish: Speared pineapple wedge & cherry
Method: MUDDLE pineapple with salt in base of shaker. Add next 6 ingredients, SHAKE with ice and fine strain into ice-filled glass. TOP with soda and lightly stir.
2 fresh Pineapple chunks (approx 1 inch sq.)
1 pinch Salt
1 oz Ilegal Joven Mezcal
½ oz Cherry Heering
½ oz Barolo Chinato
½ oz Yellow Chartreuse
¼ oz Ancho Reyes
¾ oz Freshly squeezed lime juice
1 oz Soda water (club soda)
Estonian semi-finalist: Sigrid Sarv
O' Polo Sling
Glass: Old-fashioned glass
Garnish: Rub rim of glass with orange peel & "garnish with anything you like".
Method: Ice glass and set aside to cool. SHAKE all ingredients with ice. Discard ice chilling old-fashioned glass and add 3 pieces of fresh paprika and two ice cubes into glass. STRAIN shaken drink into chilled and prepared glass.
15 ml Fresh Lemon Juice
15 ml Cherry Heering Liqueur
30 ml Miyagikyo Single Malt 10 Whiskey
15 ml Martini Rosato
30 ml D.O.M Benedictine Liqueur
15 ml Cointreau
80 ml Sweet berry tea*
20 ml Pineapple Juice
1 Bar Spoon of Grenadine Syrup
2 Dash of Fee Brothers Plum Bitters
* Sweet berry tea: pour 100ml of boiling water over 10g loose leaf sweet berry tea and leave to stand for 5 minutes. Strain and allow to cool.
Singaporean semi-finalist: Aron Christian Lobrino Manzanillo
Cocktail: Fables of the East
Glass: Tulip glass
Garnish: Celery stick
Method: MUDDLE cherries and celery in base of shaker. Add next 7 ingredients, SHAKE with ice and strain ice-filled glass. TOP with soda.
3 fresh Amarena cherries
3 thick Slices of celery
20 ml Peter Heering
15 ml Tanquerey 10 Gin
10 ml Aperol
1 dash of Angostura Aromatic Bitters
15 ml Lemon Juice
10 ml Simple Syrup
35 ml Pineapple Juice
Splash of soda water
Danish semi-finalist: Nick Kobbernagel Hovind
Cocktail: The Sloe Sling
Glass: Palais
Garnish: Mint sprig
Method: SHAKE first 7 ingredients with ice and fine strain into chilled glass. TOP with soda.
20 ml Cherry Heering
15 ml Sloe gin
40 ml Aalborg Taffel Aquavit
3 dashes Peychaud Bitters
30 ml Freshly squeezed lemon juice
10 ml Simple syrup
1 small dash egg white
Top with 30 ml Soda
Armenian semi-finalist: Garnik Sahakyan
Cocktail: Sling's Era
Glass: Sling
Garnish: Dried pineapple wheel, strawberry, mint and powdered sugar
Method: SHAKE all ingredients with ice and strain into ice-filled glass.
30 ml Hendricks Gin
20 ml Cherry Heering
10 ml Mechitharine halbitter liqueur
10 ml Picon club
20 ml Freshly squeezed lime juice
15 ml Grenadine syrup monin
1 dash Fee Brothers Rhubarb bitter
60 ml Pineapple juice
Belgium semi-finalist: Asgeir Bergmann Pétursson
Cocktail: The Sling Sling
Glass: Vase-like tumbler
Garnish: Press 5-6 cherries on top and rub rim with piece of rhubarb
Method: MUDDLE rhubarb, half of gin and cinnamon. Add other liquids apart from the soda and fresh cherries. SHAKE next 6 ingredients [not soda] with ice and strain into ice-filled glass.
4.5cm x 3cm Chunk of ripe rhubarb (chopped)
Knife tip of powdered cinnamon
20ml Martin Millers Gin
20ml 6 Moments Gin
20ml Cherry Herring
15ml Dom Benedictine
10ml Freshly squeezed blood orange juice
10ml Pineapple juice
5ml Grenadine
20ml Soda
Hong Kong semi-finalist: Poon Ching Wan
Cocktail: Maroon Sling
Glass: Sling
Garnish: Pomelo skin & cherries
Method: SHAKE all ingredients with ice and strain into ice-filled glass.
30 ml Hendricks Gin
20 ml Cherry Heering
7.5 ml Cointreau liqueur
15 ml Lychee liqueur
15 ml Cabernet Sauvignon wine
65 ml Pineapple juice
30 ml Cranberry juice
25 ml Freshly squeezed lemon juice
2 dash Bitters [sic]
Slice Pomelo twisted
Polish semi-finalist: Stanislaw Zachariasz
Cocktail: Julep Sling
Glass: Julep cup
Garnish: Mint sprig
Method: Gently bruise mint leaves in base of julep cup. Half fill julep cup with crushed ice. Add next 5 ingredients [not Cherry Heering] and SWIZZLE. Fill with more crushed ice and add Cherry Heering
fresh Mint leaves
30 ml Tanqureay
30 ml Drambuie
20 ml Freshly squeezed lime juice
60 ml Ginger ale
1 dash Angostura Aromatic Bitters
30 ml Cherry Heering
Italian semi-finalist: Walter Gosso
Julep Slingsake
Glass: Julep cup
Garnish: Lemon Peel and mint sprig
Method: Gently MUDDLE mint in julep cup. Add other ingredients and SWIZZLE with crushed ice.
30 ml Sakè Akashi-tai junmai daiginjio
20 ml Cherry Heering
10 ml Briottet figes liqueur
20 ml Pineapple juice
15 ml Freshly squeezed red grapefruit juice
15 ml Monin Lavander syrup
1 dash Dale de Groff's Pimento Dram
7 leaves Fresh mint
Indonesian semi-finalist: Rhys Wilson
Cocktail: Shennong Sling
Glass: Highball
Garnish: Top with a little crushed ice & rhubarb ribbon
Method: MUDDLE Jahe Merah Jahe in base of shaker. Add other ingredients, SHAKE with ice and fine strain glass filled with ice and rhubarb ribbon.
5 gram Jahe Merah Indonesian red ginger
25 ml Cheery Heering
25 ml Four Roses Small Batch Bourbon
10 ml Fernet Branca
15 ml Rhubarb Extract
15 ml Lemon Juice
5 ml Simple Syrup
30 ml Apple Juice
3 dash Regan's Orange Bitters
Brazil semi-finalist: Rafael Mariachi
Cocktail: The Peter's Dream
Glass: Vintage wine glass
Garnish: Two blueberries & fresh mint
Method: MUDDLE pineapple. Add other ingredients and SHAKE with ice and strain into ice-filled glass.
3 pieces Pineapple
30 ml Gin Beefeater 24
10 ml Tequila Centenario Rosangel
20 ml Cherry Heering Liqueur
10 ml Kirsch
05 ml Yellow Chartreuse
20 ml Grenadine Monin
10 ml Freshly squeezed lemon juice
3 drops Bittermens Burlesque
English semi-finalist: David Hoggan
Cocktail: Sling Your Hook!
Glass: Highball
Garnish: Pineapple leaf, dried pineapple quarter slice & maraschino cherry soaked in Heering on a stick
Method: DRY SHAKE all ingredients with ice. SHAKE again with ice and strain into ice-filled glass.
30 ml Hoxton Gin
25 ml Heering Cherry liqueur
20 ml Antica Formula
20 ml Freshly squeezed lemon juice
10 ml Orgeat syrup
10 ml Mandarine Napoleon liqueur
2 dash Angostura Bitters
2 dash Orange Bitters
25 ml Cranberry juice
100 ml Pineapple juice
1 grind Black pepper
German semi-finalist: Monika Katarina Peric
Cocktail: Shum Haw Sling
Glass: Coupette
Garnish: Rosemary sprig and orange peel
Method: MUDDLE rosemary and mezcal in base of shaker. Add other ingredients, SHAKE with ice and fine strain into chilled glass.
1 Rosemary sprig
35 ml Mezcal San Cosme
20 ml Cherry Heering
15 ml Benedictine D.O.M. liqueur
25 ml Freshly squeezed lime juice
50 ml Pineapple juice
2 dash The Bitter Truth Peach bitters
2 dash The Bitter Truth Creole bitters
5 ml Grenadine syrup
Norwegian semi-finalist: Erik Danilo Wistner Rafto
Cocktail: Rooftop Romance
Glass: Bulbous tumbler
Garnish: Grapefruit slice (served with pineapple slices dusted with black pepper)
Method: MUDDLE kumquat in base of shaker. Add other ingredients, SHAKE with ice and strain into ice-filled glass.
½ fresh Kumquat
30 ml Lysholm Linie Aquavit
20 ml Cherry Heering
15 ml Averna amaro
15 ml Aperol
20 ml Freshly squeezed lemon juice
30 ml Pressed pineapple juice
1 spoon Apricot marmalade
New Zeeland semi-finalist: Venetia Tiarks
Cocktail: The Merchants Daughter
Glass: Martini
Garnish: Edible flower
Method: MIST glass with Lagavulin. SHAKE all other ingredients with ice and fine strain into chilled and Lagavulin misted glass.
Mist glass with Lagavulin 16 year old Islay single malt whisky
30ml London Dry Gin
15ml Cherry Heering
15ml Yellow Chartruse
10ml Creme de Mure
25ml fresh squeezed lemon juice
Australian semi-finalist: Taka Shino
Cocktail: Bamboo Orchid
Glass: Coupette
Garnish: Edible flowers
Method: SHAKE all ingredients with ice and strain into ice-filled glass.
30ml Heering Cherry Liqueur
30ml London dry gin
30ml Fresh Rockmelon juice
2 drops Orange Blossom Water
1 dash Peychaud's Bitters
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