DIAGEO RESERVE WORLD CLASS Bartender of the Year 2010 Competition Begins in
Athens

ATHENS, July 14 /CNW/ -

- With photo

From around the globe, 24 of the most talented bartenders have gathered in Athens for the final stage of their quest to become DIAGEO RESERVE WORLD CLASS Bartender of the Year 2010.

Over 9,000 bartenders set out on this year long programme to educate and inspire bartenders to create exceptional cocktails and experiences in the best bars around the world. It is the largest global stage for the craft of bartending.

In Greece, home of last year's winner Aristotelis Papadopoulos, the finalists' craft is being tested by the gods of the bartending world - Dale DeGroff, Salvatore Calabrese, Peter Dorelli, Gary Regan, Alberto Soria, and Hidetsugu Ueno - in six challenges, including Ritual & Theatre of Drinks, Speed & Taste and Cocktail Mastery.

Master distillers and blenders are on hand to impart their knowledge of the exceptional brands within the Diageo Reserve portfolio - Ketel One(R) vodka, Ciroc(R) vodka, Tanqueray(R) No.TEN(TM) gin, Don Julio(R) tequila, Zacapa(R) rum, Johnnie Walker(R) Gold Label(TM) and Blue Label(TM) Blended Scotch Whisky.

"WORLD CLASS is a truly international celebration of the flair, creativity and skill of the bartender and the appreciation of great spirit brands." says Andrew Fell, Commercial Director, Diageo Reserve.

Follow the competition at http://www.weareworldclass.com, Global World Class Finals on Facebook or WorldClass2010 on Twitter.

    
    GLOBAL FINALISTS

    AUSTRALIA      Adam Brewer         Sling Lounge, Brisbane
    AUSTRIA        Heinz Kaiser        Dino's American Bar, Vienna
    BELGIUM        Noach Van Damme     L'Apereau, Blankenberge
    BRAZIL         Rafael Pizanti      Bar do Copo, Rio de Janeiro
    COLOMBIA       Felipe Navarro      Club El Nogal, Bogota
    COSTA RICA     Esteban Delgado     T.G.I. Friday's, San Jose
                    Badilla
    DOMINICAN      Richard Gonzalez    CavaBar Lounge & Martini Lab,
     REPUBLIC                           Santo Domingo
    DUBAI          Tomas Dundulis      Okku, The Monarch Dubai
    FRANCE         Maxime Hoerth       Four Seasons Hotel George V Paris
    GERMANY        Torsten Spuhn       Modern Masters, Erfurt
    GREECE         Ilias Marinakis     Baba Au Rum, Athens
    IRELAND        Max La Rocca        Sheen Falls Lodge, Kenmare
    JAPAN          Takumi Watanabe     The Sailing Bar, Kibi
    KOREA          Do-Hwan Eom         The Ritz Bar, Seoul
    MALAYSIA       Amanda Wan          Vintage Bank, Kuala Lumpur
    MEXICO         Jose Luis           Leon Martinez Hotel Distrito Capital,
                                        Santa Fe
    NETHERLANDS    Timo Janse          Door 74, Amsterdam
    PUERTO RICO    Arnaldo Hernandez   InterContinental San Juan Resort &
                                        Casino
    SINGAPORE      Richard Gillam      New Asia, Swisshotel The Stamford
    SPAIN Jordi    Otero Mandarin      Oriental, Barcelona
    SWITZERLAND    Thomas Huhn         Les Trois Rois, Basel
    TAIWAN         Angus Zou           Marquee, Taipei
    UK             Erik Lorincz        The Connaught, London
    VENEZUELA      Rina Fermin         Suria, Valencia
    

ABOUT DIAGEO

Diageo is the world's leading premium drinks business with an outstanding collection of beverage alcohol brands across spirits, wines, and beer categories. These brands include Johnnie Walker, Guinness, Smirnoff, J&B, Baileys, Cuervo, Tanqueray, Captain Morgan, Crown Royal, Beaulieu Vineyard and Sterling Vineyards wines.

Diageo is a global company, trading in more than 180 countries around the world. The company is listed on both the New York Stock Exchange (DEO) and the London Stock Exchange (DGE). For more information about Diageo, its people, brands, and performance, visit us at Diageo.com. For our global resource that promotes responsible drinking through the sharing of best practice tools, information and initiatives, visit DRINKiQ.com.

Celebrating life, every day, everywhere.

Note to Editors:

A picture accompanying this release is available through the PA Photowire. It can be downloaded from http://www.pa-mediapoint.press.net or viewed at http://www.mediapoint.press.net or http://www.prnewswire.co.uk.

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For further information: about Diageo, its people, brands and performance, visit http://www.diageo.com or contact Dominic McCarthy, Neville McCarthy Associates, [phone], [email protected]; Photography is available at: http://diffordsguide.thirdlight.com/libraryhome.tlx - select 'World Class 2010' folder - password D1ageo# (please note this is case sensitive)