Absolut Invite 23-24 of may 2014, in its fourth year running, invites top, European-based bartenders to go head-to-head with the ultimate goal of transforming and driving the industry to new heights. All competing bartenders are carefully chosen and some of the best players in the industry. This year’s winner will be awarded with a trip to Tales of the Cocktail, New Orleans this summer. The competition has been crafted to include knowledge, creativity, sensory and interpersonal skills and all categories are put to the test in both challenging and playful ways.

The winner of this year’s Absolut Invite is a German gent by name Andreas Künster. He is a headbartender at the Bar Bijou, hotelbar at Monbijou Hotel in Berlin Mitte, Area Hackescher Markt. I contacted him for a winners interview.

INTERVIEW WITH ANDREAS KÜNSTER

Congratulations Andreas! Why did you decide to compete in Absolut Invite and what does the competion mean to you?

 – Like the name of the competition says “invite” there is not really a choice to compete. The local ambassadors or distributers invite the bartenders on there lists or search for upcoming talents. Also the barmanager or headbartender of the bar in the local final is in automaticly and part of the competition. So my local distributer told me she wants me to be in and if I am okay with that. Of course I agreed. After the competition I realised that “Invite” brings some of the best bartenders together to compete and have a great time. Share inspirations, creativity, experiences, passion and crazyness for their job. I really have to thank Absolut for doing this. It will be always a part of me.

I have read that you only been bartedning for three years, why are you in the industry?

 – Yes it’s true. After working nearly 10 years in advertising as a creativ art-director i decided to make a break from work and ended up in a pub/restaurant of friends of mine in Stuttgart. After one year I moved to Berlin where my aunt lives and started to work in a club where I met Berlin Bar legend Matthias Reeder. He teached me most of the stuff I know today. Now I feel more as a bartender then someone that sits in a office and works with photoshop. I have changed completely, but I appreciate making tiny concepts in a glass and getting an immediate respond. Not just after half a year like it was in the older days.

What do you think of Absolut Invite as a competiton?

 – I guess the fact that “Invite” is something really special because you got handpicked from your markets to compete is a win for everyone of us. That shows how important and close we have been to the brand in our past. It’s an honour when someone tells you that they want you to be one of the bartenders to represent their market. Usually we all speak about other competitions from different companys. I think Absolut Invite deserves to get a lot more attention. I don’t know how it is in other countrys but we in Germany have a local and a german final. So it is together with the final round a tough and stressful competition. You have to get prepared in every detail to win this sensory, presentation, knowledge and creativity part. You will be checked in every field, which is tough enough. Also that you don’t mix in front of the judges is an interesting fact that I never thought about. Cause in a kind of a “theatre serve” you can point with personality and entertainment. Here, first of all is the drink and what you thought is behind it.

What was the hardest part in the competition?

 – For me the hardest part next to cocktail history was dealing with my nervs and the preassure I put on myself to win this. In the end it can block your head when you cannot get along with it. It was my first over all competition so I was really nervous, especially when I knew that some people read cocktail books on their flights to Stockholm to practice more. For me it was up and down those two days. I felt quite comfortable after the drink but went nerveous again after knowledge. When I finished sensory I thought I was out of it. But surprisingly it became another story.

You scored the highest point in the sensorytest, how did you become som good?

 – Yes, together with Pavel from Latvia I scored 9 out of 10 points. Which was also a surprise for me. Usually I score around 80% when I test myself. But sometimes you put yourself in pressure situations and your body just works. Like I said I was also surprised and thought I completely messed it up. Steffen Zimmermann (my barmanager and former competitor in Absolut Invite) always tells me that I have to feel confident in tasting to score high. We have a stock of round about 400 spirits in our Bar Bijou. So the initial position is pretty good to train your own nose. And I am really happy and thankfull for that we have such a big stock and usually there is not a problem to get a liquor or spirit here in Germany. So I have even more respect for what Pavel did in the competition because I know how hard it can be buying spirits in other countries. Daily practice means for me; every time I recommend or sell something from our backboard I also smell it to explain or answer to the customer.

Your cocktail, Elyx Warhol Martini, how did you come up with the idea?

 – I tried to find something that perfectly fits Absolut Elyx and my personality. Also one of the final questions in the Berlin local competition was to find a tool for a Martini Cocktail. Lots of collegues thought more on a tool to use. I thought more on a tool to sell. And because rumors say that Mr. Andy Warhol was using Absolut as a perfume back in the 80s i came up with the Elyx Parfume. I asked my self the question why this perfume never came up. And because I needed two drinks for the german round i kept on working on this idea. I liked it because there are more then just one connections between Andy Warhol and Andy Künster.

What was your first reaction when you heard your name being called as the winner?

 – Wow, a moment I cannot describe. I am happy that I shared it with friends I found during these days. Especially Ciro, Tom and Timo (the dutch crew), Axel Klubescheidt, the german brand ambassador and of course my girlfriend which inspired me to do this and kept on believing in me. I felt before that I maybe have a chance to win this so when I heard the word “perfume” I knew it’s me winning this. l rested my head on the table for a few seconds cause everything that I experienced during the competition went before my eyes, then I took a deep breath and stood up to celebrate and walk the stairs. I felt like I was in a tunnel. I just can remember that everything happened really fast and that I was shaking and been overwhelmed by the feelings and the thoughts I had in my head.

What are your plans now?

 – First of all I still need to realise what just happend. Of course I need to go to my daily shift in the lovely Bar Bijou and then I will just have a look what will come up next. I am really excited about going to Tales of the Cocktail in New Orleans and I hope I can fulfill the role as the best I can be as the current Absolut Invite winner.

What do you drink when nobodys watching?

 – Every bartender has his favourite drinks or spirits. I am usually stuck to rum but i like nearly everything which is based on easy sweet sour-mixes.

Favorite ingredient?

– Pretty easy question but maybe a too simple answer. It’s Lime. I love limes. You can get them everywhere and I appreciate the daily stuff.

In your bar, whitch is the most popular cocktail?

– It’s the “Harlem Cucumber Shake” a drink based on Absolut Vodka, fresh cucumber juice, an eggwhite, lemon and sugar and a bit coloured sea salt as a topping.  

What trends do you see in the barworld in Germany?

 – Last year we had the trend of barrel aging quite big. But at the moment accept of the ongoing Gin trend I see more trends in drink concepts. People come up with theme bars like Prinzipal in Kreuzberg Berlin, which is a pretty nice styled Bourlesque Bar. An absolut must see at the moment here!

Andreas Künsters winner cocktail – Elyx Warhol Martini

6 cl Absolut Elyx
0,5 cl Belsazar Dry German Vermouth infused with Pandan Leafs
1 dash Dr. Adam Elmegirab’s Aphrodite Bitters

Stirred in a mixing glas and served as a classic Martini without any garnish accept of the smell
of the Elyx Warhol perfume. The basic ingredients are: Indian patchouli, amber and fresh grass.

Foto: William Leach Absolut Invite

Instagram: @absolutinvite

Hashtag: #absolutinvite

Read about all the contestants and the competition