Orange County Bartender Wins National Cocktail Competition

RANCHO SANTA MARGARITA, CA —A Rancho Santa Margarita bartender took first place in a craft cocktail competition in the first year the event was open nationwide. Josh Davey, a bartender at The Blind Pig, was named the 2021 Bourbon Brawl Bartender of the Year.

He took home $10,000 in cash, a single, 15-gallon barrel for his own personal consumption, and earned a spot as a judge in next year’s competition.

The Bourbon Brawl is an annual competition created by Garrison Brothers in 2019 to connect and cultivate community within the hospitality industry. Another goal is to reward and amplify the exposure of talented creatives within the craft cocktails world.

Davey expressed gratitude for being recognized as the bartender with the most innovative cocktail.

“I feel so blessed to be a part of this competition and words can't describe how great it feels to win the 2021 Bourbon Brawl,” Davey said in a press release, adding that he will use the money to pay for school, a vacation and investments.

The cash prize was provided by Good Bourbon for a Good Cause, a nonprofit founded by the Garrison Family and its staff in 2018.

How the Competition Worked

This was the first year that the competition was open to anyone outside of Texas. The finals were held in Austin in late July. Bartenders from cities such as Oakland, Chicago, Tampa and New York City competed.

They were required to use Garrison Brothers’ Small Batch in their cocktail recipe. Paying
homage to the distillery’s roots in the Texas Hill Country, Davey named his cocktail the Texas
Rose. The concoction is made using Garrison Brothers Small Batch, Amaro Montenegro, blackberry lemon cordial, lemon juice, and bergamot bitters.

There were three phases. The first was online, where bartenders submitted their cocktail recipes via ShakeStir hosted by competition partner Cocktail Courier. The submission window was open for six weeks, and bartenders were given a set of parameters to work within.

The next semi-final phase was influencer scouting, in which five bartenders from each market advanced. Influencers from each market acted as the judges. The bartenders met the influencer at a specified location for the influencer to taste their cocktail and hear their story.

The finals aired on Texas Monthly on July 29. Bourbon aficionados also got a chance to weigh in and vote that same evening

Where to Find the Texas Rose

Locals can give their palates a taste of it, as the Texas Rose is now featured on The Blind Pig cocktail menu. It’s also available to buy in a kit through August 12, thanks to Cocktail Courier.