On November 28, the first edition of the Caketail competition, organized by Rémy Cointreau Gastronomie in collaboration with the Belgian pastry chef and chocolatier Patrick Aubrion, took place at the Rosval Demonstration Center in Antwerp. The competition, open to chefs and sommeliers/bartenders from the countries that make up Benelux (Belgium, the Netherlands, and Luxembourg), proposed as a challenge to prepare “caketails” (a contraction of the words cake and cocktail) and create a new tasting experience in the style of a gourmet coffee or an afternoon tea.

Of the 18 teams registered at the end of October, six were pre-selected to participate in the final and present two pairings based on Rémy Martin® 1738 Cognac and Cointreau® Original: cocktails combined with finger food.

The jury awarded first place to Anouck Fransolet (sommelier) and Corentin Lonnoy (chef), from Restaurant Le Comptoir De l’Eau Vive (Erpent, Belgium) for a caketail that combined a short drink known as “Epicure” featuring iodine notes and Cointreau, Pisco Italia, kiwi and lime juice, and decorated with samphire powder, which was paired with a fresh cucumber and crab cannelloni, and mayonnaise flavored with Cointreau and ginger, green apple and samphire. For the sweet version, the team started from the dessert to then devise the cocktail. The dessert consisted of a sweet tuile, a light chestnut mousse flavored with Rémy Martin Cognac, a plum ice cream and fresh mandarin gel to add bitterness, freshness, and texture. Their Horacio cocktail, named after their favorite cigar brand (a passion shared by the team), was constructed around Rémy Martin 1738 Cognac and Ruffus sparkling white wine, topped with a Mirabelle plum and mandarin foam. As winners, Fransolet and Lonnoy will be welcomed in France at La Richardière, the Cointreau family home, and will have the opportunity to tour their distillery in Angers.

Second place went to the pair formed by chef Igor Snyders (Maison Snyders in Oupeye, Belgium) and bartender Idris Bicak (Bar Volga in Liège, Belgium), and third place to the duo formed by Yorre Adriaenssens (Restaurant Casello in Schilde, Belgium) and Koen Van der Cammen.