Have you ever watched a chef or bartender competition and thought, Man, the taster got it wrong! Let me judge that! Well, you’re in luck, because Ocean Vodka and the Sheraton Maui Resort have devised the perfect cocktail pairing competition where your palate counts, this Saturday, April 11, at 6pm. The challenge includes three titles to be handed out–Ultimate Ocean Cocktail, Best Chef Creation and Best Food and Cocktail Pairing–and you can judge all three.
Hundreds of entries came in through a state and national search for the Ultimate Ocean Cocktail. The top six finalists–five of which are from Hawaii–will team up with Hawaii’s top celebrity chefs for a night of cocktail pairing you won’t forget. One has to create the ultimate ocean vodka cocktail, the celebrity chef has to devise the perfect dish for it.
What’s at stake? The winning mixologist of the Ultimate Ocean Cocktail will be $500 richer and receive a three-night stay at the Sheraton Maui. Winners of the Best Pairing and the Best Chef Creation will also win a three-night stay at the Sheraton. The mixologist’s winning cocktail will be featured on the menus at the Sheraton Maui for a year, and their partner nonprofit will receive a portion of that drink’s proceeds.
Here’s a tasty preview of the pairings for Saturday night, along with the cocktail recipe you can try at home.
Ross Steidel, Lahaina
Steidel’s yuzu and grapefruit Poi Dog will be paired with Brandon Lee of The Pig and the Lady in Honolulu, who will make a Maui Tomato and bread salad. Their nonprofit is Make-A-Wish Hawaii.
Poi Dog
1 ½ oz OCEAN Organic Vodka
¾ oz Thai Basil & Black Peppercorn Syrup
¾ oz Yuzu Citrus (¼ oz Yuzu Juice ½ oz Lemon Juice)
2 ½ oz Fresh Squeezed Pomelo or Grapefruit Juice
Kosher Salt and Black Pepper Rim
Rim half of Collins glass with salt and pepper. In a mixing tin, combine all ingredients and shake for 10 seconds. Strain over fresh ice into Collins glass. Garnish with one sprig of Italian Basil.
Amie Fujiwara, Honolulu
Fujiwara will be paired with Sheldon Simeon of Migrant in Wailea, who is making Ay Kudesh! Garlic Noodles (pan-fried Iwamoto saimin noodles with insanely spicy Hawaiian chili pepper sambal and garlic three ways) and Tocino Sweet Pork (Sprite-marinated Duroc pork shoulder, Hawaiian Sun guava jelly and pickled Kula onions). Fujiwara says all the ingredients in her cocktail are grown in Hawaii, making it a perfect farm-to-bar drink (The name Wai‘ona means “intoxicating spirit” in Hawaiian). Their nonprofit is the Whale Trust.
Amie Fujiwara is a stud when it comes to cocktail making. She slings mai tai’s like its nobody’s business at Duke’s in Waikiki, but she also wrote a cocktail book with fellow bartender Jesse Greenleaf called the Cocktail Handbook. Melissa Chang from Frolic Hawaii has this post about it: http://www.frolichawaii.com/blogs/urbanmixplate/hawaii-in-real-life-the-cocktail-handbook/
where you can see Amie in action.
to buy the book:
Wai‘ona
2 oz OCEAN Organic Vodka
¾ oz Hawaiian Ginger Simple Syrup
½ Fresh Lime
2 T. Local Mango From Your Neighbor’s Tree
6 Mint Leaves
3 Basil Leaves
¼ oz Coconut Crème
Muddle lime, mint, basil, and mango. Add Ocean Vodka and ginger simple syrup. Shake very well and strain into glass filled with ice. Top with a drizzle of coconut crème. Garnish with mint and basil leaves.
Allison Bellows, Waialua
Bellow’s spicy serrano-studded tropical, called Pele’s Pineapple, will be paired with Will Chen from Fresh BOX in Manoa. Chen will make braised pork belly with crispy risotto, Asian flavors and red curry. Their nonprofit is Imua Family Services.
Pele’s Pineapple
1 ½ oz OCEAN Organic Vodka
½ oz Combier l’Orange
2 Lime Wedges
3 oz Coconut Water
1 oz Pineapple Juice
⅓ Serrano Pepper
Handful of Cilantro
2-3 Cubes of Fresh Pineapple
Muddle Serrano pepper with the leaves from three stems of cilantro and fresh pineapple cubes. Add Ocean Vodka, Combier l’Orange, juice from two lime wedges, coconut water and pineapple juice. Shake and strain over ice. Garnish with cilantro sprig and fresh pineapple.
Victor Mendoza, Lahaina
Mendoza’s watermelon and Napili Flo Lilikoi creation, called the Napili Tini, will be paired with Shawn Gavin of the St. Regis Princeville on Kauai. Gavin’s pairing dish is Ahi tuna Napili poke with basil compressed watermelon, lilikoi and soy reduction and yuzu tobiko. Their nonprofit is Grow Some Good.
Napili Tini
2 oz OCEAN Organic Vodka
3 oz Muddled Watermelon
½ Napili Flo Lilikoi
3 oz Coconut Water
Splash of Soda Water
Garnish:
Fresh Coconut Simple Syrup
Roasted Coconut
2 Lime Wheels
Muddle and strain local watermelon, add lilikoi, coconut water, Ocean Vodka into a tumbler. Add ice. Shake and strain into a martini glass that’s rimmed with fresh coconut simple syrup and toasted coconut shavings. Finish with a splash of soda water for carbonation and two lime wheels inside glass for citrus.
James Shoemaker, Kihei
Shoemaker’s basil, lemon and honey-infused drink The Pineapple Express will be paired with Hank Adaniya of Hank’s Haute Dogs in Kaka‘ako. Adaniya is making Hank’s lobster sausage–sautéed in clarified butter and garnished with relish garlic aioli, lettuce, tomato and takuan radish. Their nonprofit is Hui O Wa‘a.
Hank’s Haute Dogs also has an outlet at Sheraton Maui
The Pineapple Express
2 oz OCEAN Organic Vodka
¾ oz Fresh Lemon Juice
¾ oz Upcountry Honey
Maui Farm Fresh Thai Basil
Maui Gold Pineapple
Gossling’s Ginger Beer
In a pint glass, muddle pineapple and basil. Add ice, vodka, lemon and honey. Shake vigorously. Strain contents over fresh ice into glass. Finish with ginger beer. Easy stir and garnish with a basil flower.
Daniel Vincent, Austin, Texas
Vincent’s Cucumber Cooler has some tricks, like cinnamon, Chinese five spice, and cilantro. His drink will be paired with Chef Lee Anne Wong of Koko Head Café in Kaimuki. Wong will be busting out her Niihau Lamb Laab. Their nonprofit is Women Helping Women.
For more on Lee Ann Wong and Koko Head Cafe visit her site at http://kokoheadcafe.com/chef-lee-anne-wong/
Perhaps this is a sneak peak at what she is serving posted on her twitter account.
Cucumber Cooler
2 oz OCEAN Organic Vodka
1 inch of Cucumber Diced
1 inch of Pineapple Diced
1 oz Pineapple Juice
1 oz Agave
Pinch of Chinese Five Spice
Pinch of Cinnamon
6 Leaves of Cilantro
Seltzer
Squeeze of Lime Wedge
Ice
Muddle all ingredients from vodka to cilantro. Add ice and shake till mixed/cooled. Fill chilled cocktail glass with ice. Pour shaker contents over ice. Top off with seltzer and squeeze lime over top. Garnish with cucumber wave skewered and mint.
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Sheraton Maui Resort & Spa and OCEAN Vodka present
Ultimate OCEAN Cocktail Showdown
Saturday, April 11, 2015
6:00 pm to 9:00 pm
Sheraton Maui Resort & Spa’s Ocean Lawn
Tickets on sale for $40 per person, $45 the day of and may be purchased online at OceanVodka.com or by calling 808-550-8457, $25 dollars of that ticket price goes to one of the non-profit partners. You can also get VIP tables at $1,000 for a table of 10, with $500 to be donated to a designated nonprofit. Jimi Canha will start the evenings entertainment, followed by Crazy Fingers. Your tickets will be good for free entry to the After-Party at Black Rock Lounge.
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