Del Maguey Cocktail Competition

2015 marks the 20th anniversary of Del Maguey Single Village Mezcal...

It's been 20 years since Ron Cooper, internationally renowned artist and Mezcal visionary, started Del Maguey Single Village Mezcal with the hope of bringing this liquid art to the world.

The Original Four villages that Ron brought into the U.S. in 1995 and named for the Zapotec villages where they are produced (Chichcapa, San Luis Del Rio, Minero, and Santo Domingo Albarradas) are all made from Espadín (a.angustifolia) and are all, to this day, made from organic, sustainably-raised, naturally harvested magueys (Maguey is the native word for the agave...Del Maguey, meaning "from the maguey"). They are then roasted over heated stones in an underground horno (a conical pit in the ground), then ground to a mash using horse-pulled stone mills or handheld wooden bats. From there, the liquid is fermented slowly with ambient yeasts in open top wooden vats and distilled by hand, to proof, in minuscule batches by native American, Zapotec palenqueros, each of whom are the finest distillers in their individual villages. No water is ever added to any Del Maguey Mezcal.

Ron taught us the concept of terroir by showing us the differences between these four villages, as unique and different from one another as a Highland malt is from an Islay malt. And yet, they are made from the same species of maguey by similar ancestral processes, handed down from generation to generation. Ron has always referred to these often subtle differences as being "the hand of the maker," and he considers them liquid art. The mission of Del Maguey Single Village Mezcal is to protect this culture, to preserve this process, and to make it possible for these people to continue to create their art for all of the world to enjoy.

In honour of 20 years of positive social impact and artistic beauty, and since this year is all about celebrating the time Del Maguey has dedicated to helping us all to better understand and appreciate hundreds of years of tradition and art, Del Maguey in partnership with Amathus Drinks is launching the first ever Del Maguey UK Cocktail Competition in search of the official 20th anniversary cocktail.

The competition is open to any bartender currently working at a bar in the United Kingdom. The finalists will compete in a live mix-off during which they will demonstrate and present their submission to a distinguished panel of judges and a live audience.

The winning cocktail will be chosen as the official 20th anniversary Del Maguey cocktail for the UK. The victor will earn a trip to Oaxaca that will be truly life changing, as it has been for the bartenders globally who have pilgrimaged there. The winner will visit the palenques of Del Maguey and meet the palenqueros who create the magical libations with none other than Ron Cooper himself and Steve Olson, aka maguey geek, not to mention that he or she will gain entry into the brother- and sister-hood of maguey fanatics around the world who have experienced the magic first hand.

For more information or to submit your own Del Maguey cocktail, visit http://delmaguey.com/uk-cocktail-competition