Edinburgh bartender wins UK World Class 2009

Ryan Chetiyawardana from Bramble​ in Edinburgh has been crowned the best bartender in the UK in the final of World Class 2009​.

Held at Kent House in Knightsbridge, the final of World Class 2009 was the culmination of a year-long series of regional category heats, and saw fifteen of the UK’s best bartenders showcase their mixology skills in front of a panel of judges headed up by Marco Pierre White.

Each contestant was whittled away until Chetiyawardana was faced with a head-to-head signature cocktail final against Zuma’s​ Andreas Tsanos, but ultimately his Three Storm Flip cocktail, including Pampero Aniversario, Velvet Falrnum, egg and nutmeg won Chetiyawardana the title.

Chetiyawardana said the win was ‘unbelievable,’ and that he was eager to show off the UK’s bartending talent at the international final later this month.

“This was far and away the most challenging and nerve-wracking competition that I’ve ever been in and I’m absolutely thrilled to have won,” he said. “I was up against the best bartenders in the country – lots of whom I know and admire personally – and performing in front of judges of this calibre has been the highlight of my career so far.”

Head judge White was ‘blown away’ by the skill displayed in the competition, and said that Chetiyawardana’s skill was ‘phenomenal’.

“To make a great drink takes a lot of hard work, a lot of understanding; it’s not just about putting alcohol into a shaker,” he said. “What I wanted to see was someone who could engage me, give me something I’d never had before and that was exactly what Ryan did.”

Chetiyawardana will now go up against finalists from around the world, including Australia, Singapore, China, Brazil and Greece in the international World Class 2009 final for the chance to be the face of a global campaign to raise the profile of the industry,