Marie Brizard Announces Toast to HERStory Overall Winner

Marie Brizard announces the winner of the 2021 Toast to HERStory Competition.

After a competitive virtual final, judges Julie Reiner and Dale DeGroff had their work cut out for them choosing an overall winner with so many fantastic cocktails and stories.

“This is the second year for the Marie Brizard Toast to HERStory Challenge and it has been emotionally charged for some of the participants. It has opened doors to memories for many of the bartenders of the women who have inspired them in their careers or supported them on a personal level. For the judges, it has been a different kind of a challenge. Judging not only the quality of the drinks created, but the journey the bartenders embarked on to get to the intersection of mixology and memory and arrive at a good story,”
– judges Julie Reiner and Dale DeGroff

Congratulations to Bar Manager at Spoon and Stable, Jessi Pollak, whose Artemis’ Flip cocktail won the hearts and tastebuds of the two judges. Inspired by American spy Virginia Hall, the Artemis’ Flip was a perfect encapsulation of both inspirational women and the versatility and spirit of Marie Brizard.

Jessie not only won $1,000 but the chance to attend the 2022 Marie Brizard Global Challenge with a trip to Bordeaux, France.

Check out her Cocktail and full inspiration story below.

Artemis’ Flip

Recipe by Jessi Pollak, Bar Manager at Spoon and Stable

@Cocktail_Mouse

Ingredients:

• 1 oz. Marie Brizard Chocolat Royal
  
• 1 oz. La Luna Cupreata Mezcal
• 1/2 oz. Marie Brizard Banana
• 1 Whole Egg
• 1 dash Loon Liquor Hot Pepper Tincture

Preparation: Combine all ingredients in a cocktail shaker. Dry shake until well combined. Add several large chunks of ice and shake to dilution. Strain into a chilled lowball glass. Garnish with freshly grated nutmeg. Garnish with grated nutmeg.

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“The old woman is hunched as she slowly crosses the German train platform. The combination of her long skirts and a heavy bag on her right shoulder help to hide her noticeable limp. Her gray hair is slipping from its loose bun as she passes right by the Gestapo agent, who barely registers her presence; he’s scanning the crowd for threats to the Vichy French regime and one dangerous spy in particular: “Artemis.” The Nazis have been searching for the American spy code-named Artemis for three years now, and although she is a plain-looking woman in her thirties, she can be distinguished by her prosthetic left leg. Many hours and many kilometers pass before the old woman is finally able to relax. Once she has safely locked herself in the attic of a French resistance fighter’s house, she finally begins to undress, wash away her carefully constructed fake wrinkles and gray hair paint, and remove her wooden leg. American-born spy Virginia Hall has made it back into occupied France, where she will become one of the greatest foreign leaders of the French Resistance in World War II and one of the most successful American spies of all time.

Artemis’ Flip is an homage to Virginia Hall, her love of France, and her commitment to freedom. Like Virginia, this cocktail is nuanced, intense, and cosmopolitan. Bittersweet chocolate, ripe banana, creamy vanilla, smoky yet confectionary mezcal, and a subtle touch of habanero combine to make a libation that is rich and complex without being overly sweet.”