One of the greatest satisfactions for a company is always to grow together with its clients and to be able to follow their career path.
The ten years of Summer Drink&Eat Festival, among the positive notes it has offered us and the many important professional relationships established, have also allowed us this, to see a whole generation of new and very good mixologists grow before our eyes. Many of the best Italian bartenders have passed through Summer, some were actually "born" there and today are friends before they are customers.
With this event, which since its first edition has sought (and found) an autonomous space and its own style, we believe we have succeeded in telling, and hopefully also convincing, that the bartending profession is a serious and very demanding profession and that a little technique and creativity is not enough to succeed well.
With the Summer, we have brought to the knowledge of many professionals the experience and knowledge of the greatest such as Dario Comini, Simone Caporale, Daniele Dalla Pola, Oscar Quagliarini, Dom Costa, Daniele Gentili, Paolo Sanna, Luca Angeli, Diego Ferrari, and Francesco Pirineo, we have brought to the attention of many professionals the innovations regarding equipment through collaboration with some of the best companies in our sector such as Accademia Luigi Bormioli, Caffè Musetti, Ballarini Professionale, Ceado, 100% Chef, Trabo with its brands iSi, Arcos and Kisag, we anticipated trends and showed innovative techniques, we proposed the products-novations of the best beverage companies such as Velier, Martini, Compagnia dei Caraibi-but above all we had a lot of fun.
Perhaps the most important signal we managed to give is that it is not the "good bartender" jacket that makes a "good bartender."
Today this consideration may seem obvious, but 10 years ago it was not so.
The Summer Drink&Eat Festival has always been distinguished by its professional style, but in a free, informal, family context where the competition has also always been experienced as an opportunity to meet and exchange views.
We understood it a long time ago that this was the right path and we believe we have made a good contribution to the rejuvenation and innovation of our sector.
For next year, what will we come up with? We will see, we are already at work with all new ideas to create more events.
And here is a summary of the 10th edition that has just ended.
Date: June 26.
Location: the magnificent setting of Gaggiano Lake.
Theme: come out the garden in you.
Presenter: the incomparable Stefano Nincevich.
Contestants: Cristian Lodi, Giovanni David, Diego Ferrari, Davide Vergine, Jacopo Lucat, Davide Baudino, Jacopo Tioli, Marco Carcatella, Laura Dalcaldo, Filippo Laccu, Terry Monroe, Mario Esposito, Khaled Aboughaba.
Speech: Mattia Pastori of Nonsolococktails.com between the markets of Korea and the gardens of Pavia; citrus-free sours by Samuele Ambrosi of Cloakroom Cocktail Lab in Treviso; and rotary evaporator distillation told by the dynamic trio of Nottingham Forest with Tony Grimaldi, Hiran Danushka and Dario Comini.
Logistics organization: Alessandro Melis and the wonderful staff of Drinkable. Irreplaceable!
Jury: Patient and stainless were Angela Odone of 'La cucina italiana', Francesco Animobono of Compagnia dei Caraibi, food critic Allan Bay, journalist Claudio Burdi.
Winners: first runner-up Marco Carcatella of ìThe Boweryî in Parma who won the prize trip offered by Compagnia dei Caraibi to the Maison Ferrand distillery, runner-up Laura Dalcaldo of Il Gallone in Mantua, and tied for third place Filippo Laccu of Strozzi Caffè in Florence and Mario Esposito of Sheraton Four Point in Bolzano.
Special awards: to the closest friends who have always supported the Summer namely Samuele Ambrosi and Mattia Pastori as special guests of this edition, Diego Ferrari and Terry Monroe, Giorgio Tagliabue and Dario Comini, Danilo Bellucci and, of course, Alessandro Melis.
Main partner: Caribbean Company, what more can we say?
Sponsors: Accademia Luigi Bormioli, Ceado, Flo, Trabo with Kisag, Arcos and Isi.
Media Partner: Bargiornale.it.
Special thanks to the folks at Ryto for the bargnolino tasting.
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