draft masters descend on New York City Thursday

[Banjo]

On Thursday, Oct. 29, draught masters from 32 countries will descend upon New York City to compete for the 2009 Stella Artois World Draught Master title, commemorating the 10th anniversary of Stella Artois being available in the United States. We’ve created a live stream broadcast, so visitors to your site can join the Belgian beer experience. In addition, viewers will have the opportunity to do more than just watch, they will have the opportunity to vote for a Fans’ Choice that will be crowned at the end of the event as a special online winner.
The competition recognizes the best bartenders from across the globe for their ability to perform the Stella Artois Belgian Pouring Ritual. This year’s champion will embark on a global quest during which he/she will visit more than 20 different countries as a Stella Artois brand ambassador and share his/her passion and dedication to the craft of the perfect pour.



This is the first time the Stella Artois World Draught Master Competition will be held in the U.S., after being hosted in Leuven, Belgium for the past 12 years. The timed competition will take place in front of an esteemed panel of judges including Food & Wine magazine’s Ray Isle, Bon Appétit magazine’s Andrew Knowlton, Yankee Brew News editor Gregg Glaser and Stella Artois Draught Master, Cian Hickey.
Below are two links to live stream broadcasts of the competition and a logo is attached. The broadcast starts at 5:00 p.m. Eastern on Thursday, Oct. 29.
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/Stella#/Stella?v=app_160720853700
An alternate link to watch within the Ustream platform: http://www.ustream.tv/channel/stella-artois-world-draught-master-finals

[Banjo]

A STAR IS BORN AS STELLA ARTOIS® CROWNS AVRIL MAXWELL OF NEW ZEALAND ITS 2009 WORLD DRAUGHT MASTER

After Year-long Global Search, Maxwell Begins Mission of Passion to Teach Bartenders the World Over the Art of the Perfect Pour

October 30, 2009 – Now in its 13th year, the annual Stella Artois® World Draught Master competition epitomizes Stella Artois®’ dedication to delivering superior beer experiences the world over. On Thursday Oct. 29, this year’s competition saw contestants from 26 countries across the globe converge in New York to compete for the coveted title and complete the brand’s time-honored 9-step pouring ritual of perfection.

After a tense semi-final round, which saw the contestants and three competition winner wildcard entries whittled down to a final 10, an enthusiastic audience of Stella Artois® connoisseurs joined the discerning Jury panel to select only those who could demonstrate true passion and dedication to perfection in pouring in a dramatic “Passion test.” A tense head-to-head pouring finale followed, before Avril Maxwell was announced the winner and returned to the stage to claim the coveted title. Maxwell, hailing from New Zealand now begins a global journey to more than 20 different countries across the globe as an ambassador for Stella Artois® and her own quest to ensure every chalice of Stella Artois® is preciously poured and perfectly served the world over.

Maxwell was awarded a unique trophy created by New York fashion designer Tim Hamilton as part of a pioneering design collaboration with Stella Artois®, successfully bringing to life his signature style and dedication to quality and craftsmanship within an entirely new design medium. Hamilton, who introduced his apparel line at the event, also created a limited-edition iconic Stella Artois® Chalice glass in celebration of World Draught Master 2009.

Alexander Lambrecht, Global Marketing manager for Stella Artois®, comments: “The World Draught Master competition is integral to our ongoing quest to deliver superior beer experiences the world over, ensuring that Stella Artois® is served with the same care, consideration and craftsmanship as has gone into more than 600 years of brewing. We are extremely proud to welcome not only finalists from around the globe to compete in New York, but also Stella Artois® connoisseurs and pioneering partners, such as Tim Hamilton, who share our ongoing quest for perfection.”

Runners up in the competition were Joe Oppedisano of Canada (2nd) and Alexey Shtukarev of Russia (3rd). Remaining contestants came from: Argentina, Australia, Azerbaijan, Belgium, Brazil,China, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Dubai, Finland, France, Greece, Hong Kong, India, Israel, Japan, Montenegro, Paraguay, Serbia, Singapore, UK, Ukraine and the United States.

In addition, the Stella Artois Online Fans’ Choice went to Oppedisano who was selected by consumers watching the competition streamed live to their computers.

Lambrecht added, “We wanted to create a global conversation about the Stella Artois World Draught Master competition by inviting people into the event via live streaming and providing an opportunity for them to decide on what competitor embodied perfection. “