Callum Palmer, of Nottingham's Tilt Bar, produced the serve of the day in a hotly contested final.

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And, what a turn up for the books… 3 of the four that made it through were made up by the on trade! Yes, it seems our revered bar folk really do know their apples.

Each entrant used the celebrated Canadian Corn Core Whiskey as one of a total 5 ingredients, the 5 other ingredients taking inspiration from the word MOOSE (five letters) which graces the distinctive red label of That Boutique-y Whisky Company's Canadian Corn Whisky.

Hosted at Couch, Stirchley (Voted one of the best 20 bars in the world by The Telegraph), the judging panel was made up of Katie Rouse, founder of Couch, Dave Worthington, Whisky ambassador for Master of Malt, Stefan Turner, partner manager at Maverick Drinks and Adrian Lugg, head of marketing at Atom Brands. With marks awarded for name, story of the serve, ingredients and garnish, as well as drinkability, Callum’s serve, titled ‘Comrades Stick Together’, took the top spot.

“The inspiration for the cocktail came from sticky toffee pudding and its roots to the import of British and Canadian history.” Callum explains. “I wanted to showcase all of the amazing notes within the whisky and showcase how we can elevate the drinking experience of cocktails using this ingredient. The toffee ice cream flavours in whisky being a direct flavour link inside the cocktail, boosting the flavour I needed. Following up with sherried berries adding a deep complexity.

The addition of the egg is to amplify the flavours and richness of the cocktail. Making sure to have that silky mouthfeel to help round out that punchy 45.8% whisky but also carry through the flavours we expect from sticky toffee pudding.”

Callum and his winning serve

The judges were impressed with not only the serve, but also Callum's creativity and engaging presentation which not only covered the history of the sticky toffee (who knew it originated in Canada?!) but also knowledge on what would balance the notes of the Canadian Corn.

Callum will now work with Canadian whisky whisperer and Blender of the Year, Dr Whisky himself Sam Simmons to bottle his own whisky. Choosing a whisky cask, help in designing the label and receiving bottle number one of his own TBWC limited edition which will be available for sale on Master of Malt.

The four other finalist were:

David Marklew & Debbie Burgess (@Ginstaberg) from The Inn At Home

George Bryan from the Fox & Chance

Junjun Xiang from The Mayan

Michael Waller from Mooncat (unfortunately unwell and absent on the day)