by Shaun Layton | The Barate Kid strikes back! This year the Karate Kid hybrid cocktail competition is kicking it up a notch with regional heats: five in Vancouver, one in Kelowna, and one in Victoria with the top two competitors from each going on to the finals.

I competed in the last two tournaments (read about part 2 here), so this year it was time to hang up the gloves and join the judging panel. With me for the first leg earlier this month at The Keefer Bar in Chinatown were two other former Van Mag Bartenders of the year, Jay Jones (Canucks’ barkeep extraordinaire) and the man known only as “H” (Notturno). Great company.

The rules are pretty simple. Bartenders are invited, they show up, and they bartend. That’s it. Well, not really. It’s a bracket-style, one on one battle, making classic drinks in a duel of speed, taste, and “Barate skill”. In each round, two bartenders are given the same chit (that’s a piece of paper with drink orders on it) and they’re off to the races. The drinks are known classics – think Old Fashioneds, Margaritas, Last Words, and so on. The three judges have red and white flags for each category that correspond to the red and white headbands worn by the competitors. Speed is easy: the first one finished gets the point. But speed isn’t winning, as Chili Palmer (John Travolta) in Be Cool says, “If you’re important, people will wait”. If your drinks taste like shit, you’re back to a tie ballgame. Then it’s down to “Barate skills”, this is a combination of cleanliness, showmanship, engagement with the crowd, et cetera. So it’s really a competition about straight-up bartender skills, no fairy-dusted glasses, no sous vide live cooking demonstrations, and no poetry recitations.

Competing in the first leg of the competition were Buck Friend (Clough Club), Robyn Gray (Prohibition), Thor Paulson (The Diamond), Kelsey Ramage (The Oakwood), Lauren Mote (Uva), Gian Jesus (Wildebeest), Trevor Kallies (Donnelly Group), and free agent Alfred Sui (formerly Uva, The Distillery Bar). The first round competitors had to bang out three cocktails; the second round five; and the third round seven.

We saw a good mix of old dogs and young pups here, and if I’d stuck to the favourites I’d be out some dough! Two huge first round upsets! Alfred Sui, who’s only been mixing for close to a couple years took down his old boss, Lauren Mote, while Gian Jesus, a Kiwi newcomer to the city, took out the giant, Trevor Kallies. Gian went “Wilde-BEAST mode”, stunning the judges with his speed and precision. Thor and Robyn also prevailed.

The semis saw two great matches: first, Robyn Gray showed that style and technique can get it done as he narrowly took down the speedy Thor. The second semi saw Alfred “where’d this kid come from” Sui masterfully bang out five cocktails like he’d been doing this for the better part of a decade. Though Gian was up to speed, he cut himself. He carried on wounded, but just couldn’t catch up.

The final match had Robyn vs Alfred — Old Dog, vs Young Gun. Seven classics in seven minutes with Eye Of The Tiger blaring on the speakers. What a final round! It was down to the wire, and it came down to Barate skills. The man with no current fixed bar address “swept the leg” of Prohibition’s heavy hitter. Us judges were in total awe. Alfred was poised and confident throughout, and every move he made was with a purpose. It was as if Josh Pape – the first Barate Kid champ – was his Mr. Miyagi.

The Keefer Bar and their crew put on a great show for everyone and the place was packed with vested and tatted up O.D.B’s hanging from the rafters. Beers and cocktails were being sold and the drinks from the competition were being raffled off with the proceeds going to Aprons For Gloves.

To keep up with all the action to come follow @baratekid on Twitter and IG. I’ll be reporting on via @ShaunLayton as usual. The grand championship location and date is TBD, but it will be fierce and the winner will walk away with a boatload of cash.

Competition founder Keenan Hood (Bar Manager at The Keefer) and Gez McAlpine (Keefer Barkeep and the Barate Kid’s reigning champ) have brought in NDB Creative (Guy Roland, Dave Hamilton, and crew) to help promote and film the event. They took the shots you see above.

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Shaun Layton has helped to maintain a top notch bar scene in Vancouver for ten years, and since day one at Gastown’s L’Abattoir, where he is the Bar Manager. He also runs his own consulting company, designing bar programs and training staff locally and as far away as St.John’s, NFLD. Layton has competed and travelled throughout the USA and Europe, touring distilleries, breweries and bars. He was recognized in 2010 as the Bartender of The Year by Vancouver Magazine.

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