STARBACK 2023 COMPETITION

In February of 2023 we partnered with Tequila Don Julio to crown the 2023 StarBack winner! The competition took place in Miami, Las Vegas, NYC, Austin, LA, and Chicago, and then one victor from each of those local events competed once more in NYC to crown the overall winner!

For the first round of competition each consisted of a speed round where each person had to create three drinks...a Don Julio Blanco Margarita, Don Julio Reposado Paloma, and a Don Julio Añejo Old-Fashioned. For the second round, each competitor had to make their best and most creative margarita, and then for the final round, they were allowed to make their most creative drink! The scores were tallied up, and a winner was announced (with each receiving a custom StarBack jacket and a custom cocktail kit!)

Our local winners included Gustavo Rodriguez from Miami; Joe Arakawa from Las Vegas; James DeFoor from New York City; Veronica Flores from Austin; Crystal Mendoza from LA; and Tia Barrett from Chicago. These talented bartenders then all flew to NYC to compete at Sweetbriar at the Park South Hotel for the finals! The competitors had to wow the judges with three additional cocktails. Their best Paloma, an original cocktail, and a “Red Carpet”-worthy cocktail! The judges included Jackie Foley from BARTENDER® Magazine, Charles Joly and New York Educator, Jonathan Lind from Enthuse Marketing.

After each competitor created their drinks, it was time to crown a winner. Master Educator Rasmus Just (who also judged the local Miami competition) announced the winner of the competition, Tia Barrett from Chicago! Tia worked with Charles Joly and team to create thousands of incredible Don Julio cocktails at the big red-carpet event in LA.

Cheers to all who competed, and we look forward to partnering with this competition in the future! Check out our Instagram (@bartendermagazine) to see photos from the events and learn more about our competitors and judges.

Special thanks to Lisa Petrella, Adrienne Smith, Justin Noel, Brynn Laurash, Laura Briar, and the other local judges who helped bring these events to life.