Win Tickets to Cocktail Throwndown Sept. 24th #cocktailriot

Winners so far:
Ryan Snedegar
Kay Marley-Dilworth
Chelsea Stark
Sinda
Jay Campbell

Dog friendly places named were: North by Northwest, Spiderhouse, Cuatro's, Uncle Billy's,Dog and Duck, Gueros, Opal Divine's, Scholz's, Gingerman, Draught House, Black Sheep Lodge, Drungo's Ice House, BB Rover's, Zax's Pints, The Grove, Luster Pearl Bar, Max's Wine Dive, Tiniest Bar in Texas, Waterloo Ice House, Cool River, Crown and Anchor, and Moonshine.

Heya Readers,

I have 10, yes, 10 tickets to Cocktail Throwdown this year.  To win tickets (they will be given away in pairs, 5 pairs total), you must email or @twitter me with the answer to this question.  First 5 correct replies via email OR twitter wins!  Each winner will need to provide me with his/her full name and full name of guest.  My twitter is @misohungry, and my email address is jennie@misohungrynow.com.

Are you ready?  Get set........ Go!

Name five or more official dog friendly brew pubs or bars in Austin. The rules:
1. Five or more Austin proper locations. Don't name a bar in New Jersey that is dog friendly.
2. They must be officially dog friendly (on the Austindogfriendly.com list).
3. Brew pub is a place that brews beer and serves food.
4. A bar is a place that serves alcoholic beverages.  The bar may or may not have a limited menu of food.
5. You may also name a restaurant that has an extensive bar or wine menu such as Peche or Fino.  Neither are dog friendly, so no freebies here. 

Get Started now!  I'll edit this post when I get the names of the winners.  I will be posting the winners' names here as well.

Previous post on the finalists below:

If you thought Cupcake Smackdown1.0 was a blast, here's an event that will knock your socks off.  Cocktail Throwdown is just around the corner.  After receiving tasty cocktail recipes from Austin bars, 5 finalists were chosen.  

The finals take place on Sept. 24 from 5:30-7:30 p.m on South Congress (location information will be sent to winners of the tickets).  The Cocktail Throwdown is an annual contest to name the official drink of Austin.  The winner receives a custom Gibson Guitar with their logo on it, a couple of day passes to the ACL festival, a national news release announcing their victory, and a year of promotion by our media team.

Eleisha Eagle will play a rockin’ set for the night, Frank will be providing the tasty bites, local beer will be provided for those hops and barley lovers, & Tito's will also be hand pouring their signature cocktails. Door Prizes include: an Austin gift basket, a Tito’s gift basket and the big one: two round-trip tickets on JetBlue to any of their destinations that fly nonstop to Austin.

To win tickets, stay posted for the contest.  I only have 5 sets of 2 tickets (10 tickets total) to give away.  They are sure to go fast!

Here are the cocktail throwdown finalists:

·         Mole on the Rocks, by Fino
·         The Enlightened Austin Martini, by La Condesa
·         The Lady Bird, by Stephen F’s Bar & Terrace
·         The Redbud, by Paggi House
·         Shirley Bird Tea, by Hyatt Lost Pines Resort & Spa

The Ispahan Cocktail - Best in Show at First Yelp Cocktail Throwdown

Yelp's Elite event was a cocktail throwdown, not to be confused with the upcoming Cocktail Throwdown on Sept. 24th.  For the Yelp event, Elite members were asked to submit up to 3 original cocktail recipes.  The list of cocktail names were voted upon by the members, and the top 5 were served at the event tonight.  The other cocktails were the Beer Margarita, Make Her Mojito, Bee's Knees, and Intoxicated Mojito (I think).  
 My cocktail was based off of a cupcake (surprise!) My ispahan cupcake is Amaretto Cake, brushed with rose water, filled with Lychees and Raspberries, topped with St. Germain Elderflower Liqueur Swiss Buttercream.  It won Best in Show, and with that, I won a gigantic basket of libations from Twin Liquors!  Yay! Here's the recipe.  Enjoy! Photo above by John Knox.

 
 Ispahan Cocktail

The ispahan is a signature creation of Pierre Hermé, a French pastry chef who has been dubbed the "Picasso of Pastry-making".  The combination of rose, raspberry, and lychees was first used in macaroons, but it now more common (relatively) in other pasties such as cakes and cupcakes.  The name Ispahan, also known as 'Pompon des Princes" is actually the name for pink half-opened rose that grows wild in Iran. 
 

	1/4 oz Chambord
	3 oz lychee juice (from can or fresh)
	1 oz Vodka
	2 oz club soda
	Splash St. Germain Elderflower liqueur
	Garnishes: Whole Raspberries, Whole Lychee fruit (canned or fresh), fresh rose petals (preferably edible)

Combine chambord, lychee juice, and vodka in a shaker.  Shake with ice for 10 seconds and pour into martini glass straining out the ice. Pour club soda into the glass as you pour the chambord, lychee juice, and vodka mixture.  Float a splash of St. Germain on top of the drink.  Garnish with whole raspberry, lychee fruit, and fresh rose petal. Place lychee fruit and raspberry inside the rose petal like a cradle.  Using a cocktail sword or other item, pierce through the rose petal, then fruit, then rose petal again. The fruit should be secured inside the rose petal. 

*Lychees can be found canned at any local Asian market or event specialty stores such as Whole Foods or Central Market. The liquid from the canned lychees can be used as the lychee juice.

The cupcakes.

More cupcake please.

St. Germain Elderflower

My prize!

Cocktail Throwndown Finalist Announced! Sept. 24th #cocktailriot

If you thought Cupcake Smackdown1.0 was a blast, here's an event that will knock your socks off.  Cocktail Throwdown is just around the corner.  After receiving tasty cocktail recipes from Austin bars, 5 finalists were chosen.  

The finals take place on Sept. 24 from 5:30-7:30 p.m on South Congress (location information will be sent to winners of the tickets).  The Cocktail Throwdown is an annual contest to name the official drink of Austin.  The winner receives a custom Gibson Guitar with their logo on it, a couple of day passes to the ACL festival, a national news release announcing their victory, and a year of promotion by our media team.

Eleisha Eagle will play a rockin’ set for the night, Frank will be providing the tasty bites, local beer will be provided for those hops and barley lovers, & Tito's will also be hand pouring their signature cocktails. Door Prizes include: an Austin gift basket, a Tito’s gift basket and the big one: two round-trip tickets on JetBlue to any of their destinations that fly nonstop to Austin.

To win tickets, stay posted for the contest.  I only have 5 sets of 2 tickets (10 tickets total) to give away.  They are sure to go fast!

Here are the cocktail throwdown finalists:

·         Mole on the Rocks, by Fino
·         The Enlightened Austin Martini, by La Condesa
·         The Lady Bird, by Stephen F’s Bar & Terrace
·         The Redbud, by Paggi House
·         Shirley Bird Tea, by Hyatt Lost Pines Resort & Spa

Photos and recipes coming to this post soon.....

Cocktail Throwndown Sept. 24th #cocktailriot

via Beth Krauss....

The Austin Cocktail Throwdown is back! Here’s the call for entries – we’d love your help in passing this along to any/all mixologists and bar/restaurant folks you know who a) serve Tito’s and b) are feeling the need to prove their mixological prowess.

If you’ve been to the contest before, you’ll notice some changes this year. When the finals come around, contestants won’t “present” their recipes for only the judges to taste. Instead, each finalist will do a tasting table, and all attendees will be able to sample each cocktail and vote for their favorite. This should encourage serious mixologists to participate and ensure that we have some killer drinks to represent the city.

Shake it, Stir it, Love it. It’s Austin.

Mixologists, this is your shot. The Austin Cocktail Throwdown returns for its sixth annual contest on Thursday, Sept. 24 at the Gibson Guitar Showroom. The winning cocktail will be named “official drink of Austin” and promoted as such by the City of Austin’s official marketing organization (Austin CVB) for one year following the contest.

HOW TO ENTER

Use Tito’s Handmade Vodka to craft an original cocktail – martini, shot, tea, anything goes – that you think captures the essence of Austin. Name it something clever, and email your recipe to Beth Krauss, bkrauss@austintexas.org, by 5 p.m. on Thursday, Sept. 3.

Five finalists will be selected by a panel of hospitality folks and food media – they’ll be judging on creativity, menu appeal and incorporation of local flavors/ingredients. Finalists will be announced on Friday, Sept. 11, and will serve their entries at the Throwdown on Sept. 24.

One big change from last year – finalists will not be required to do special presentations at the event. Instead, finalists will set up tasting stations for all attendees to sample each cocktail and vote.

THE RULES

• · Contest is open to any establishment in the Austin metro area that serves Tito’s Handmade Vodka. Tito’s must be included in the recipe.
• · Entry must be a new, original drink – something not already available on your menu (renaming an existing drink doesn’t make it new).
• · Potentially offensive submissions will be disqualified in the first round.
• · Recipes submitted after the deadline will not be submitted to judges (hospitality community leaders, food media). First round is blind judging – judges will not know whose recipe is whose.
• · No changes can be made to recipes once they’re submitted.
• · By submitting a recipe, you confirm that your establishment has at least two (2) staff available to serve the cocktail at the event on Sept. 24.
• · If you are named a finalist, you will be responsible for bringing all ingredients except vodka, and any special glasses/garnishes needed to present the drink, to the finals on Sept. 24. Tito’s will provide vodka and basic plastic cups.
• · If you win, you agree that Austin CVB can re-create your recipe at various events throughout 2009-2010. You will always be given credit, even if you’re not present to serve.

THE WINNER RECEIVES…

· National news release announcing your victory and exclusive rights to serving the “Official Drink of Austin” for one year

· Two one-day passes/media wristbands to the ACL Music Festival (for Sunday, Oct. 4), where you’ll serve your drink in the press lounge (and, presumably, rock out)

· Local media coverage from the Austin American-Statesman, Edible Austin, KGSR-FM and more

· Inclusion on itinerary for Austin CVB spring press tour and individual press trips

· Your drink served and establishment represented at Austin CVB events throughout the year:

o “Austin Music, Vol. 9” CD Release Party

o Media reception with the Mayor at City Hall during the SXSW Music Festival

o Austin Film Commission party during the Austin Film Festival

o National Music Bloggers panel during Fun Fun Fun Fest