HK’s Cointreau Queens crowned

Hong Kong’s first ever Cointreau Queens competition saw seven female-lead teams battle it out to get through to the Asia finals in Shanghai.

The raucous finale of the Hong Kong competition with the two ‘Queens’ Christine Lam and Ana Souza

The joint winners were Ana Souza from The Pontiac ably assisted by Bryson Rivera from Flint Bar & Grill and Timothee Becqueriaux from The Continental and Christine Lam from Quinary with Eddie Sung and Wai Fung Tsang both from Paradis.

Souza created a bizarre but delicious twist on a Bloody Mary with Cointreau, homemade spice mix, tomato and lemon juice whereas Lam’s Eau de Ambre used a bartender’s favourite of Fernet Branca, coupled with Pu-erh tea and 50ml of Cointreau.

Previously held in the Chinese cities of Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou and Chengdu, the competition has expanded to include Hong Kong and Taiwan this year and all finalists will compete in Shanghai in October to be crowned the overall Cointreau Queen.

Nicolas Becker, managing director for Remy Cointreau Hong Kong credited Souza and Lam for their “creativity and ingenuity” in using Cointreau and said the bar had been raised “ever higher” in finding Asia’s best female bartender.