Mixologists will gather in Queenstown today for a week of mixing madness, competing for the title of the world's best cocktail maker.
In what has become known as one of the most extreme contests of its kind - the 42Below World Cocktail Making Championships will begin by throwing contenders off a cable swing suspended 134 metres above an icy river.
Now in it's eighth year, teams of tenders from the US, UK, Italy, Australia and New Zealand will clash in the Lab Experiment-themed event. A multi-national Wild Card team will also participate and, for the first time, a hand-picked international team of pros - dubbed the Startenders - will shake things up.
"The Startenders team is going to add an extra level of spice, bringing back those bartenders with a proven track record, throwing them together and seeing if lightening can strike twice," said chief judge and 42Below vodka professor, Jacob Briars.
Joining Briars on the team of taste testers is former international bartender of the year, Briton Tony Conigliaro, Australian bartender Marco Faraone and Miami mixologist and former 42Below World Cocktail Champs winner, John Lermayer.
