Miami Beach, FL – June 27, 2011 – South Florida’s most renowned bartenders gathered at the Mondrian‘s Sunset Lounge for the first ever “Emperor’s Challenge” hosted by Mandarine Napoléon cocktails as they watched the bartenders take on a number of unexpected challenges. The winning team, Gaston Cabrera, Marco Balza, & Nick Nistico, each went home with the famed Jim Meehan bartending kit and a bottle of the very limited Mandarine Napoléon XO — of which only 900 were produced world wide.  The prizes were valued together at well over $1,000.

Vitale Derosa, George Strom, & Alex Andrade

Michael Parish

Nick Nistico, Marco Balza, & Gaston Cabrera

Daniela Vrillaud & Solvig van Bilderbeek

Jourdan Binder, Marc De Kuyper, & Ezra Pattek

Gaston Cabrera, Marco Balza, & Nick Nistico

Gaston Cabrera, Jourdan Binder, Marco Balza, & Nick Nistico

Cricket Nelson & Susanne Birbragher

Ezra Pattek

Roxana Garciga, Jamie Bresnahan, Steve Milechman, Marc De Kuyper, Gabriella Fioravanti, & Viviane De Kuyper

Marc De Kuyper, Jourdan Binder, & Michael Parish

Marc De Kuyper, Gaston Cabrera, Marco Balza, & Nick Nistico

Marc De Kuyper, Gaston Cabrera, Nick Nistico, & Marco Balza

Marc De Kuyper

Michael Parrish & Ezra Pattek

Cricket Nelson, Mary Connolly, & Vivianne De Kuyper

Nick Nistico, Gaston Cabrera, & Marco Balza

Alex Andrade, George Strom, & Vitale Derosa

Harry Sianis, Fred Wright, Brian Winters, & Brian Gastaldi

Viviane & Marc De Kuyper