We are excited to introduce the distinguished jurors for the Spirits Hunters Best Confinement Tuto finals Competition!
For the last three months; Spirits Hunters and the IBA, have been working together on the CONFINEMENT BARTENDER CONTEST competition to help bartenders out of work around the world that due to the Covid-19 pandemic have found difficulties earning a salary.
Bartenders around the world have sent over 300 videos, 58 bartenders have won 170 dollars each, and in total Spirits Hunters has given 17.000 dollars to the community.
We will continue to help the bartenders around the world !
Jose Luis Santizo – Guatemala – Winner of Week #2 of the contest
I want to thank Spirits Hunters for the prize that I received today, because in Guatemala we are going through difficult times. I am a bartender suspended from my duties until the new order. This money is a great help for my family and I am very grateful, may GOD BLESS YOU.
Interview with Bruno Santos, IBA Secretary
1. What is the IBA and its Purpose?
The International Bartenders Association is a worldwide non-profit authority in the professional bartending industry. Our mission is to engage and educate bartenders all over the world to a high professional standard so that they can showcase their skills, creativity and promote good drinking habits.
With the creation of our Bartender’s Community we enabled our members to exchange experiences, news, trends, ideas of mixology and drinking culture.
Since our establishment our main purpose has been to promote and represent the best bartenders in the world.
Also, by developing training programs we made the art & craft of bartending accessible to everyone by the standardizations of mixing drinks & cocktails.
Furthermore, IBA helped brands increase their worldwide awareness among the bartender community, expand their reach and visibility in the on-trade. In return, bartenders throughout the world have used our Associate Members brands to create amazing cocktails.
This brand engagement has led many bartenders to become the best ambassadors to give global reach to many smaller industry players.
2. In how many countries is the IBA present?
The IBA was founded at a historic conference held in the saloon of the Grand Hotel, Torquay, England, on the 24th of February 1951. This date is still celebrated today by bartender’s around the world as the “International Bartenders Day”. Currently the International Bartenders Association consists of bartender guilds from 62 countries. Thanks to steady interest from around the globe, the IBA continues to grow.
3. How do you help bartenders around the world? -besides helping Spirits Hunters for the competition!
For the IBA, strength lies in the wealth of professional experience of tens of thousands of bartenders internationally, by the establishment of Bar Cultures for Guilds and New Economies we were able to encourage commercial initiatives to benefit how individuals run their businesses with the objective of maintaining the highest level of service and assistance in raising professional certified qualifications for bartenders.
As reference IBA created the first ever bartender’s competition in 1955 (7-8 October) Amsterdam, Netherlands. Since then we have been organizing events worldwide yearly to promote and acknowledge all passionate bar professionals.
Confinement Bartender Contest Final “Best Confinement Tuto” jurors
For the final of the CONFINEMENT BARTENDER CONTEST -Best Confinement Tuto-, Spirits Hunters is happy to count on the expertise and broad knowledge of 11 IBA members from different countries of the world.
After viewing the videos sent by bartenders during the six weeks of the competition until the 8th of July, the juror will select the most outstanding video cocktail tuto.
Spirits Hunters will reward a grand winner with a 2.000 euros prize on July 12th.
René Delvincourt – France – Association des Barmen de France – Fédération des Métiers du Bar President
René Delvincourt is the president of the bartender’s association of France and of the federation of bar professions. In the past, Delvincourt was head bartender of the Hotel de Crillon in Paris, and throughout the years he contributed to the development of the bartending profession in France.
2018 : President of the ABF
2013: Knight of the Order of Agricultural Merit
1995-2018: Disneyland Paris
1996: Creation of the Disneyland Paris Shaker Challenge
1995: Joined Disneyland Paris
1992 : Creation of De Viris
Confederation of Hotel and Catering Professions
1990 : Creation of Entreprise Dilection (l’Amour du travail bien fait)
Consulting in CBHR
1986: World record for the largest cocktail party
1976: Head Barman of the Hotel de Crillon – Paris
Margit Kikas – Estonia – IBA Vice-President
Margit started working at the bar “Bonnie and Clyde” in 1993 in the hotel Olümpia, in one of the first discos in Estonia. EBA was founded on the 26th of May in 1994 and she became a member of the organization a year later, in 1995. Margit was a member of the EBA board from 1996 and in 2012 she was elected as the President of EBA. Her highlight during the presidency was the IBA World Cocktail Championship 2018 in Tallinn – one of the biggest cocktail events in the world. Margit is the IBA Board Member and one of most experienced technical and tasting judges in international cocktail competitions all over the world.
Sheena Cullan – Australia – President ABG
Sheena Cullan has been a bartender and manager of such superb establishments as the Bondi Hotel, World Bar, Wentworth, Aurora Bar & Lounge, Cruise Bar and Goldfish Kings Cross. In her early days, Sheena participated in numerous local cocktail contests and in 2011 she was a finalist for the AHA Bartender of the Year Awards and won the C.INC Employee of the Year award for Cruise Bar, Coogee Bay Hotel, The Crest, Key Largo and The Bourbon. She is currently President of the Australian Bartenders Guild (ABG). She was an official technical judge at the 2019 IBA World Cocktail Championship (WCC) in Chengdu, China alongside Margit Kikas and Joaquim Lopes.
Giorgio Fadda – Italy – IBA Vice-President
Giorgio Fadda is undoubtedly one of the most important figures in national and international bartending. He develops training programmes and organises events in which international organisations in the sector participate. Fadda also collaborates with Aibes, of which he was president. He is currently Vice President of the IBA.
Ricardo Guerrero Ojeda – Chile – President ACEBACH
Ricardo Guerrero is a bartender who started his career at the bar of Chris Carpentier’s now vanished Restaurant C. He is currently president of the Asociación Central de Bartenders de Chile (Acebach) and director of his own school, Bar Academy, located in the center of Santiago, Chile.
José Raúl Aponte – Puerto Rico – President PRBA
Currently president of the ASOCIACIÓN DE BARTENDERS DE PUERTO RICO (PRBA).
Graduated in Culinary Art in 2001 UNE
Graduated in Bartender 2005 PRBA
IBA Train the Trainer – Uruguay 2013
BA un Accounting in CUS 2013
Tasting Judge IBA Certified 2018 Estonia
Joaquim Lopes – Portugal – President ABP
He was an official technical judge at the 2019 IBA World Cocktail Championship (WCC) in Chengdu, China alongside Margit Kikas and Sheena Cullan.
He is currently President of the Associação Barmen de Portugal (ABP).
Salvatore Damiano – U.K. – President UKBG
Salvatore Damiano was Brand Ambassador at Pedrino Spritz. He is now both a director at Bottled consulting ltd and President of the UKBG (United Kingdom Bartenders Guild).
Steven Chen – Singapore – President ABSS
Steven Chen is an accomplished Food & Beverage specialist in both the luxury and commercial sectors, including the Fullerton Hotel, Equinox Complex, Westin Stamford & Westin Plaza, Ritz-Carlton Millennia, Marina Bay Sands and Capella Singapore.He also won the Bartender of the Year Cocktail Competition and second place at the Millennium Cocktail in the research category.
He was also awarded the title of Officier de l’Ordre des Coteaux de Champagne. He is currently President of the ABSS (Association Bartenders & Sommeliers Singapore).
Kyle McHugh – United States – United States Bartenders’ Guild
Kyle McHugh is one of the preeminent beer, wine, and spirits experts working in the beverage industry today. In 2007, Kyle formed his beverage consulting, education & events company “The Boozehound” as a means of making quality beer, wine, spirits and bartending accessible to industry professionals and the public alike. Kyle is currently National President & Chairman of the Board of the United States Bartenders’ Guild, where he is a Certified Spirits Professional and has been a member since 2007.
Bruno Santos – Macau – IBA Secretary
Bruno Santos was Bar Manager of the Westin Hotels&Resorts in Macau between 2012 and 2014. He was President of UBCM (União de Bartenders e Cocktails de Macau) between 2012 and 2019 and founded the Macau Bar Concept in June 2011.
He is currently Secretary of the IBA (International Bartenders Association).
Don’t drink and drive. Enjoy responsibly.