Bartending trends have turned back to the basic, but mixologist Jennifer Contraveos, is thinking spring. first prize in the Shake It Up Battle of the Mixologists March 6 at The Show in Las Vegas, an annual convention and trade show for the nightlife and hospitality industry. She scored a spot in the national competition to battle against 23 other bartenders by submitting her original drink recipe for the Citrine: English cucumber and tangerine segments muddled with hand-squeezed lime juice, a half ounce of Grand Marnier, and one ounce of Belvedere vodka shaken and served up with a candied orange zest garnish.
“You really have to put your heart and soul into a drink and make it with fresh ingredients,” she explains. It must be working: Contraveos, an assistant manager at River North's Graze, just took home
In the finals, Contraveos had to think on her feet Iron Chef-style to create an original concoction using a mystery ingredient—the thick Banana Rum Pineapple Jam.
“If I can use a jam, I can use anything,” Contraveos says. While the Banana Rum Pineapple Jam cocktail's not on the menu, you can try the dynamic, complex flavors of the Citrine ($10) on the the newly launched spring cocktail menu at Graze.
