Cocktail Showdown

Toast of the Town

March 3rd, 2016

Last Sunday the Crystal Ballroom was transformed into a little slice of sin city, representing class, sass, and everything in between for the third annual Bartender’s Ball. Attendees were spotted donning their finest evening garb, leisure suits and tuxes along with a few patrons channeling the late great Hunter S. Thompson. Ladies rocked sky high heels, high hemlines, chic cocktail dresses, glitter, and evening gowns.

Blue Belle’s Burlesque greeted patrons in little more than smiles…

Bartender’s Battle: Shake Rattle and Roll

February 17th, 2016

As the sun sets on the Cocktail Showdown we soon find ourselves in the eve of the third annual Bartender’s Battle. Eight of Fargo Moorhead’s finest mixologists will be presented with a fully stocked bar with the finest and freshest ingredients. Here they mix, head to head -- tournament style in front of an audience and four judges. Think “Chopped” but live and booze infused.

The eight participants were the highest rated contenders during our cocktail showdown. During the showdown…

Bartenders to Battle!

January 27th, 2016

by J. Earl Miller

Now that the Cocktail Showdown has wrapped up this year, we needed to gather all of our scoring notes and information, to find out who will take part in this year’s Bartenders Battle. For those of you who are not familiar with the Bartenders Battle, it is a head-to-head competition, pitting one bartender against another mixing craft cocktails in a small amount of time on stage in front of all their peers.

The bartenders are supplied a full bar with an array of many of…

The ninth and final week of the seventh Annual Cocktail Showdown

December 22nd, 2015

The ninth and final week of the seventh Annual Cocktail Showdown

By Sabrina Hornung

For the ninth and final sampling during the Showdown our judges experienced Eric Johnson’s Tennessee Fiery Apple and The Swaderita at Chub’s Pub. We were then off to Sidestreet to try Mistelle Stein’s Russian Tea and Eddie Gonzalez’s Afterburner. Soon we found ourselves at Pounds where Kory Wiler introduced us to The Hoser and Peach Kuchen. The last stop in the showdown brought us to sample The…

Week eight of the Cocktail Showdown

December 12th, 2015

Week eight of the cocktail showdown brought our fearless judges to Monte’s to sample Nate Eversman’s “Guavalada” and the “Spicy maple bacon”. We were then off to Rustica to experience Kyle Berglund’s “Brandied apple” and the “Savory Spaniard”. Our last stop of the night brought us to Hennessey’s where Eric Krogh laid down the law with the “Irish tour” and the “Cider and black”.

Monte’s Downtown

Monte’s is located at 220 N Broadway and has been a…

Cocktail Showdown week seven

November 28th, 2015

Week seven of The Cocktail Showdown featured Alison Shape’s “Alison Wonderland” and Jessie Tank’s “Pepper’s Fireside Cafe” at Pepper’s Sports Cafe. Matthew Lewellen’s “Pie Cups” and “Fall Smash” were featured at The Hodo Lounge at The Hotel Donaldson downtown. Last (but not least) we sampled Tori Luck’s “James and the giant Peach” and James Hein’s “Pear Amour” at The Toasted Frog.

Pepper’s Sports Cafe

Pepper’s Sports Cafe is located at 2510…

Cocktail Showdown Week Six

November 20th, 2015

Week six of the cocktail showdown featured Stephie Basol’s “Adult Lemonade” and Jeremy Tjon’s “Mandarin Mule” at The Empire, as well as Tryoy Wall’s “Great Pumpkin” and “The Woody’s Mule” at Woody’s in south Fargo; From there, we ventured to The Cork ’n Cleaver and were presented with “Just one S’more” and “The Thriller” from Steve Dahl.

The Empire

The Empire is located at 424 N Broadway and is one of downtown Fargo’s staples. The Empire is the…

Cocktail Showdown Week 5

November 11th, 2015

Participating as a judge in the cocktail showdown has opened my eyes to a whole different bar experience. Since week one I have learned new bar vocab terms, techniques, flavor combinations, and have tasted exotic liqueurs I never knew existed. Needless to say drinking on the job has never been so rewarding...and educational.

Week Five of The Cocktail Showdown featured Kent Larsen’s “Barbacoa Coquito” and “The Ghost Rider” at Barbacoa. Molly Fontaine’s “Irish Italian” was…

Cocktail Showdown Week 4

November 5th, 2015

Cocktail Showdown Week 4

By, Sabrina Hornung

For Week Four of the Cocktail Showdown featured “The Noks Mule” and “The Blood Orange” from Cassie Hanson at Ft. Noks, “The Farmer’s Market” and “The Maduro Rustico” from Jared Winmill at Rustica, “The Blueberry Embrace” from Marcus Dennis and “The Auburn Tide” from Gennifer Christianson at The Radisson.

Fort Noks Bar of Gold

Fort Noks is located at 52 Broadway, Fargo. It is housed in a former bank building that retains…

Cocktail Showdown week three

October 30th, 2015

Week three of the cocktail showdown featured the “Sonoma Sour” and the “Chocolate Covered Cherry” from Charles Smith at Porter Creek Hardwood Grille, “The King Edward” from Brady Johnson at The District Waterhouse and Kitchen, and “The Crackle Pop” and “The ‘ol Noggin” courtesy of Josh Hajek at Fargo Billiards and Gastropub.

Porter Creek Hardwood Grille

Porter Creek Hardwood Grille is located at 1555 44th St. S in Fargo. Having opened in June of this year, it is a…