Mixology and bartending are art just like painting or photography, and this notion is proved by the fact that global alcohol drinks brands and companies like Stella Artois, 42BELOW, Pernod Picard, Belvedere Vodka launch cups, competitions and communities to celebrate the best professionals in the field. Brown-Forman’s Finlandia Vodka brand is hosting another competition, the 14th Annual International Finlandia Vodka Cup, on February 1, 2012 to pay tribute to bartenders who reached perfection in what they do. The brand is calling the industry representatives to join the competition by submitting an application online at www.finlandia.com—the brand will shortlist 19 entrants and the global audience will choose another one, and all of them will head to Finlandia to fight for the title of the champion and win a total of $25,000.

Photo: A snapshot from the www.finlandia.com website

The submission should include a detailed recipe with description of all the ingredients and a photo featuring the finished cocktail, which should be vibrant and striking to impress the judges (Finlandia’s Master Taster Markku Raittinen and Global Mixologist Pekka Pellinen) and public. For the first time in the Cup’s history, bartenders are invited to generate buzz around their submission, generating positive feedback and votes for their cocktail. The submission period is running until next week, November 23, and the finalists will be notified on or around December 27. Users are not only able to rate the entries—three of those who support the contestants with their votes will win a trip to Finland and will be present at the grand event, where the panel of six judges will be rating the contestants from all around the globe based on how they make three cocktails, aperitif, a long drink and the ‘Quick Mix,’ all of which have Finlandia as the major ingredient.

“The Finlandia Vodka Cup is a celebration of all that is best about the creativity and skill of bartending. By bringing the winning bartenders to Finland, we also are thanking bartenders everywhere for making Finlandia the success it is around the world. This year, we are excited to give our consumers the opportunity to vote for the bartenders and drinks they love through digital tools such as Facebook. This year’s event truly connects the brand to our loyal consumers, brand ambassadors, and world-class bartenders as everyone gets a chance to participate,” shared Neil Punwani, Senior Vice-President and Managing Director of Vodka at Brown-Forman.