Jake Down from Sydney’s Apollonia bar has won the Bombay Sapphire Stir Creativity Cocktail Competition with a creation called ‘Symphony of Sapphire’.

The cocktail contained Bombay Sapphire Gin, young coconut, mint, faux citrus, saline and rain aroma.

One hundred hospitality members gathered to watch the four Bombay Sapphire Stir Creativity Cocktail Competition finalists prepare their creations for the judges, which the enthusiastic crowd sipped alongside a delicious dinner.

Earlier this year bartenders were asked to reframe the world around them and see the creativity in the everyday. They created a cocktail inspired by the world around them and presented it in a ‘Saw This, Made This’ format showcasing Bombay Sapphire, Bombay Sapphire Premier Cru, Bombay Citron Pressé, Bombay Bramble or Bombay Sapphire Sunset. A huge 204 Australian bartenders took part, with the resulting entries being described by Bombay Sapphire Brand Ambassador Corina
Retter as ‘spectacular”.

The Bombay Sapphire ambassador team whittled down the 204 entries to a shortlist of 21 then following a judging tour to the four finalists to Jake Down from Apollonia (Sydney), Lachlan Bentley from Gimlet at Cavendish House (Melbourne), Martin McConnell from Frog’s Hollow Saloon (Brisbane) and Pauric Kennedy from Barangaroo House (Sydney) were announced as the talent quartet.

Down’s cocktail and his eight-minute presentation impressed the judges – Sam Bygrave from Boothby Media, chef Alejandro Saravia from Farmer’s Daughters and Trish Brew from Fever-Tree – and the enthusiastic crowd.

His inspiration behind making a cocktail using sound is to create a unique experience for the senses. According to Down, sound can evoke memories, emotions, and feelings that can be translated into the flavours and ingredients of a cocktail. By listening to the sounds of shaking and stirring, one can get a sense of the rhythm, pace, and intensity of the cocktail-making process. These sounds can be used to create a sensory experience that enhances the taste and overall enjoyment of the cocktail.

Down walked away with the inaugural Bombay Sapphire Stir Creativity Cocktail Competition trophy, $3000 prize money, a pin crafted of their winning cocktail and a trip to London and the home of Bombay Sapphire – the Bombay Sapphire Laverstoke Mill.

Bombay Sapphire cocktail competition finalists announced