Back-to-back belle of the Bartender's Ball
Silver Corner Bar co-owner Jocelyn Bachman and celebrity bartender Siobhan Curet shake up some "Apple & Eve" drinks at Saturday's Bartender's Ball in Coeur d'Alene. The Silver Corner would go on to take the overall prize at the event.
Photo by CHANSE WATSON
Old School Liquor Bar bartender Chris Ursich takes a drink ticket from an attendee after serving up a maple bourbon smash.
Bartender's Ball attendees pack into the decorated hallways of the The Resort Plaza Shops in downtown Coeur d’Alene Saturday night. The sold out event had more than 350 people show up to support Help Every Little Paw.
COEUR d'ALENE — Competition is the spice of life, but it can also serve as motivation to support a great cause.
That's what organizers of the 10th Annual Bartender's Ball saw last Saturday, as more than 350 attendees showed up to raise funds for "Help Every Little Paw" and partake in some of the best mixed drinks that the Panhandle has to offer.
Held at The Resort Plaza Shops on Sherman Avenue in downtown Coeur d’Alene, 12 different bars (and six restaurants) went head-to-head with each other to determine who has the best cocktail or entree in North Idaho — all while supporting a good cause.
Help Every Little Paw is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization dedicated to the health and happiness of all pets. They achieve their goal by helping companion animals with emergency medical attention, spaying and neutering, socialization rehabilitation and food through raising necessary funds.
Event organizer Holly Hansen was incredibly pleased with not only the turnout of the sold out event, but the amount of money raised as well.
“Preliminary numbers are over $30,000,” she said, “which when we did this the year before last, 2020, I think we raised a total of $22,000.”
Thankful that the event did so well, Hansen explained that due to the COVID-19 pandemic, last year's event was canceled, which put a strain on the groups funds.
“We went completely dry for the emergency medical attention (fund) for the animals, so this is helping out a lot.”
As far as the competition side of things, the Silver Corner Bar from Wallace took home the top overall prize of the night after snagging first in the people’s choice category and second in the judge’s choice.
“It was a good time! We love supporting Help Every Little Paw,” Silver Corner Bar owner Jocelyn Bachman said. “The competition was stout this year, but we won!”
Catapulting them to their second and back-to-back overall win at the Ball, Bachman entered what she calls an “Apple & Eve,” crafted with house made apple shrubs, Maker's Mark 46, organic lemonade, and Fee Brothers black walnut bitters.
“It is kinda sweet, tart, nutty and fun!” she said.
Participating in their third ball, Bachman was thankful to the many hometown faces that she saw.
“It was nice to see the Silver Valley show up! At least 20-30 people from Wallace showed up to support the event and us!”
Bartender’s Ball awards are broken down by judges' decisions, people’s choice and an overall winner. The five judges were specially chosen for their refined pallets and graded both the drinks and hors d'oeuvre on qualities such as taste, appearance, creativity and originality. Attendees were able to vote for their favorite food and drink item by giving their coveted white ticket over to their booth of choice. The overall winner is decided by weighing the rankings of both categories.
Winners of the judges drink and food categories included the Old School Liquor Bar’s maple bourbon smash and Westwood Brewing Company’s slow braised pork tostada. Westwood also took the people’s food choice category as well.
To Old School Liquor Bar manager Billy Bonnett, the drink they brought to the event had quite a bit of symbolism.
“I put this drink together in honor of Bill Gagnon, who was our Jim Bean rep that passed away in an ATV accident about a year ago. He turned me onto the orange flavor, which I now use for old fashions at our bar.”
The specialty smash is made of fresh lemon juice and fresh mint muddled together with 100% maple syrup and Jim Bean Orange.
John Westwood with Westwood Brewing explained that the credit for their tostada goes to their chef Shane, who specializes in a lot of Latin/Mexican dishes.
With the 10th iteration of the event in the books, Hansen is already looking forward to next year and was incredibly thankful for all of those who played a part in putting on the ball.
“While the event is awesome and without the participants — the bars and caterers — it wouldn’t be possible, there was a committee of 12 that for the last four months have worked their tails off and 35 volunteers, including the committee, at the event to make sure things went smoothly.”
For more information on Help Every Little Paw, visit its website at Helpeverylittlepaw.org.
