Queenstown bartenders are leading the Southern pack bound for what has been described as the biggest bartender competition in New Zealand history, with 370 entries.
A total of 10 bartenders from the Wakatipu, plus eight counterparts from Dunedin and five from Invercargill submitted their entries online to compete in the New Zealand Beam Bar Legend competition.
The winner will be crowned New Zealand's very first "Beam Bar Legend" and walk away with a prize pack valued at more than $25,000.
The prize pack includes a trip to a distillery, with all expenses paid.
Locations of distilleries include Kentucky, Canada, the Caribbean, France and Scotland, and the winner can choose which to visit.
There will also be an expenses card valued at up to $10,000, or $200 a week, in the pack; and a $5000 staff party for the winner's bar.
Beam New Zealand selected 200 bartenders to go through to the next round where they completed an online bar exam - 45 questions testing not only their general bar skills, but their etiquette and portfolio knowledge.
Beam marketing director Rene Bros, of Auckland, said "charisma and ability to create a fantastic atmosphere" in the workplace set a bartender apart from others.
"[It's] not just who can make the best cocktail," she said.
Judges were looking for "the whole package".
"We are overwhelmed at the amount of entries we have received over the past few weeks and it will be an interesting next few days for us."
The 200 bartenders selected had until last Friday to complete the exam. Those with the top 30 scores will go through to the next stage.
The semfinalists will be contacted on Thursday and semifinals will be held in September in three different regions across the country.
The selected eight finalists will then be invited to participate in the grand final, to be held in Auckland in early October.
