Stamford Cocktail Competition Showcases Real McCoy Rum

Constellation Brands hosted a cocktail competition featuring The Real McCoy Rum at Flinders Lane Kitchen & Bar in Stamford on July 18. Six bartenders squared off in friendly competition to create their best cocktails featuring The Real McCoy Rum as a base spirit. The first-place winner was Amanda Kenny, Bartender, Viron Rondo Osteria, with her cocktail, R.R.F., Resting Rum Face, a blend of The Real McCoy Rum, maraschino liqueur, citrus cinnamon oleo, sheep milk yogurt and lime. Khalid Williams, The Barrel Age, took home second place with the people’s choice vote. Williams’ cocktail, Arethusa’s Oi-l!, combined The Real McCoy 5 Year Rum, Island Time Falernum, Spoon Barjan Bitters and coconut fat-washed lime. The award-winning suite of The Real McCoy Rum, distributed in Connecticut by Brescome Barton, is small-batch and artisan-crafted 100% unadulterated Barbados rum. Its 3, 5 and 12 Year Rums are named after Bill McCoy, the pioneer rumrunner of the Prohibition era. Stonington resident Bailey Pryor, a six-time Emmy award-winning documentary producer, was inspired to start The Real McCoy Rum while producing a film about rumrunner Bill McCoy for PBS. Constellation Brands later acquired the brand, with Pryor remaining at the helm.

: Constellation Brands hosted a cocktail competition featuring The Real McCoy Rum at Flinders Lane Kitchen & Bar in Stamford on July 18.

: Christen LaRochelle, Field Sales Manager, Constellation Brands; Bailey Pryor, Founder and CEO, The Real McCoy Rum; Ross Silver, Bar Manager, Flinders Lane Kitchen & Bar; and Chris McPherson, Co-owner, Flinders Lane Kitchen & Bar.

: Winning Bartender Amanda Kenny, Viron Rondo Osteria.

: Kenny’s winning cocktail, R.R.F., Resting Rum Face, a blend of The Real McCoy Rum, maraschino liqueur, citrus cinnamon oleo, sheep milk yogurt and lime.

: Competitor Khalid Williams, The Barrel Age.

: Williams’ cocktail, Arethusa’s Oi-l!: The Real McCoy 5 Year Rum, Island Time Falernum, Spoon Barjan Bitters and coconut fat-washed lime.

: Competitor Brendan Demond, Bartender, Flinders Lane Kitchen & Bar.

: Demond’s cocktail, Banana Candy, a blend of The Real McCoy 5 Year Rum, banana liqueur, Demerara and lime.

: Competitor Geoff Smith, Birch Hill Tavern.

: Smith’s cocktail, Bobby Bonilla Day: The Real McCoy 5 Year Rum, Averna, Tempus Fugit Crème de Banane, Tempus Fugit Crème de Cacao and orange bitters.

: Competitor Ross Silver, Bar Manager, Flinders Lane Kitchen & Bar.

: Silver’s cocktail, Ol’ Wooden Ship, a blend of The Real McCoy 5 Year Rum, maraschino liqueur, Amaro, lime and grapefruit.

: Competitor Brendan Savoy, OSA.

: Savoy’s cocktail, Pitchfork, a blend of The Real McCoy 5 Year Rum, smoked mango, Mauby Orgeat, Coco de Agua, lime and a scotch bonnet tincture.

: Bailey Pryor, Founder and CEO, The Real McCoy Rum; Brendan Savoy, OSA; Khalid Williams, The Barrel Age; Amanda Kenny, Bartender, Viron Rondo Osteria; Ross Silver, Bar Manager, Flinders Lane Kitchen & Bar; Christen LaRochelle, Field Sales Manager, Constellation Brands; Geoff Smith, Bar Manager, Birch Hill Tavern; and Brendan Demond, Bartender, Flinders Lane Kitchen & Bar.

: Christen LaRochelle, Field Sales Manager, Constellation Brands; Brendon Savoy, OSA; Geoff Smith, Bar Manager, Birch Hill Tavern; and Khalid Williams, The Barrel Age.