Boston, 2012 Oct 3

On Wednesday, October 3, Speed Rack hit Boston for the launch of the 2012-2013 National Tour and to kickoff the first ever Boston Cocktail Summit. Featuring bartenders from some of the best establishments in Boston, the competition to determine the fastest lass in Beantown was tough.

Doors opened to the public at 6pm and guests were treated to sponsors’ punches and cocktails, as well as beer and non-alcoholic offerings served from two bars and numerous sampling stations. The Citizen, Moksa, Island Creek Oyster Bar and The Dorrance provided snacks and small bites. Host Steve Olson (aka wine geek) and DJ Dan de Oliveira kept the crowd entertained before the competition kicked off. Our competitors were supported by a strong group of barbacks including Corey Bunnewith, Chad Arnholt, David Delaney Jr., Sergio Serna, John Hendersen and Jonathan Pogash.

In front of a packed house of about 250 people, the competition began. Our prominent panel of judges included Misty Kalkofen, Colin Asare-Appiah, Simon Ford and Dale Degroff. The round began with the judges each calling out a drink for the girls to make. The contestants had to make the drinks as quickly – and as accurately – as possible. The judges then compared the girls’ drinks side by side and issued penalty seconds to the girls for any mistakes made. The girl with the lowest time was declared the winner and moved on to the next round.

Six heated battles ensued, until we were down to the final two: Naomi Levy vs. Nicole Lebedevitech. An intense final round ensued with Naomi masterfully coming back from a broken mixing glass while Nicole accidentally put the wrong ingredient in one of her cocktails. By a margin of only a few seconds, Naomi took the crown! She will be representing Boston in the finals in NYC in May.
A fun time was had by all, and most importantly, about $4,500 was raised for breast cancer research, education and prevention.