The Mixology Throwdown Winning Cocktail and the Bartender Who Brought it to Life
The 2022 Mixology Throwdown competition was held at the 4th annual Taste of Local Festival, hosted by field-to-fork experts Totally Local VC. The Mixology Throwdown provided the perfect platform for Ventura County bartenders and bar/restaurant owners to showcase their cocktail artistry.
A Very Spirited Competition
Seven local Mixologists competed for the Grand Prize at this year’s Taste of Local Festival. They were each challenged to craft a signature cocktail made from locally produced and grown, farm-fresh ingredients and hand-crafted spirits from Ventura Spirits.
It was a fun filled competition with each of the contestants throwing down some incredibly tasty and eye-catching cocktails. Drinks were judged on their use of Ventura Spirits products and locally sourced ingredients as well as originality, creativity, skill level and presentation. The winning cocktail creation will be featured at area bars and restaurants throughout Ventura County and titled The Venturan.
Festival attendees sampled the cocktails and cast their votes for their favorite drinks. Professional Judges, a panel of industry and media experts, also sampled the competitors’ entries and cast their votes. The Professional Judges totals were tallied and combined with the People’s Choice totals to determine the Grand Prize winner.
The results are in!
The 2022 Mixology Throwdown Grand Prize-winning cocktail was awarded to Graham Harris, the owner, chef and mixology creator at Decker Kitchen in Thousand Oaks, CA. The Southern California native truly has a passion for sourcing local and in creating a warm and comfortable vibe in everything he creates including his cocktails.
It was a blast to participate in Totally Local VC’s first Mixology Throwdown competition. And, to win among some great competitors is an honor. The challenge was perfect for us at Decker Kitchen because we focus on using local products for all of our food and drinks. So, being able to showcase what Ventura has to offer for ingredients, while also using the great products from Ventura Spirits, made us feel right at home. We can't wait to participate next year.
Graham Harris, the owner, chef and mixology creator at Decker Kitchen in Thousand Oaks, CA, serves his award winning cocktail, The Venturan.
Here is Graham Harris’ Grand Prize-winning cocktail recipe:
The Award-winning Venturan
Ask for it at your local restaurant or bar or grab some Ventura Spirits and mix one up at home.
1 oz Ventura Spirits Wilder Gin
1 oz Saint Germain
1 oz fresh locally squeezed lemon juice
.5 oz Ventura Spirits Angeleno Amaro
.5 oz triple sec
Shake well and strain into coupe glass. Garnish with an edible flower.
(Preferably zinnias from Ventura County!)
The Farm-to-Table offerings at Decker Kitchen rotate seasonally based on the local ingredients sourced from area farms. Their cocktail offerings utilize unique ingredients and refined spirits to create dazzling cocktails. They truly do take farm to fork and glass very seriously and you can tell in each bite and sip. Decker Kitchen is located at 3731 E Thousand Oaks Blvd, Thousand Oaks, CA 91362, (805) 418-7746, https://www.deckerkitchen.com, info@deckerkitchen.com.
The 2022 Mixology Throwdown was hosted by Totally Local VC and Edible Magazine at this year’s Taste of Local Festival and held on the beautiful lawns of Ventura County Credit Union’s corporate offices in Ventura, CA. Totally Local VC and Edible Magazine are committed to supporting not only locally sourced products and ingredients but also the adult beverage community by celebrating the ideas and innovations that continue to move it forward.
Watch TotallyLocalVC.com for a list of area bars and restaurants who will be offering the Grand Prize winning Venturan on their menu.
