And by "we", I mean Bill Norris and all of the people in Austin who care about craft cocktails.

Tonight was the 42 Below Cocktail World Cup finals party. A dozen or so bartenders competed for the honor of representing this region at the Cocktail World Cup later this year in New Zealand. Going in to the event we had our sights set on Bill, because he was the only one of the contenders that we had heard of. Boy did we see a diverse representation from the mixology community tonight! We saw everything from fire breathing and simulated topless dancers (Henry Acosta of the Yellow Rose) to dry ice and a "Below Freeze" served in hollowed out & peeled kiwis (Duc Dinh of 219 West) to the tantalizingly titled "Sorority Bubble Bath" (Cassandra DeBakery of Lucky Lounge).

The competition kicked off with Justin Stidham of Pangaea, who mixed up his "Morning Glory" cocktail which featured a fascinating mixture of not one but three different vodkas: 42 Below, of course, but also Charbay Green Tea and Grey Goose le Citron; to that he added Honest Tea Green Tea and a lightly shaken egg white. He served the cocktail glass on a plate of fresh fruit with a packet of Advil tablets (Duh! It's a morning cocktail!)

Jason Spurgeon of Cuba Libre shook things up with his "Kiwi Lime Martini", served up in a cocktail glass rimmed with graham cracker crumbs. This innovative cocktail seemed inspired by the Key Lime Martini (also made with Keke key lime liqueur and a graham cracker rim) that was on the Ruth's Chris Steakhouse menu in the early 2000's--with a pedigree like that, I thought, he can't go wrong. He did not, and captured the third place finish in this evening's competition.

Phil Vuong from Six Lounge took second place with "Twigs & Berries"--I must have been in one of the drink lines b/c I missed this performance, but we want to congratulate him on his strong finish.

The last bartender to compete tonight was Bill Norris, the classicist from FINO. Norris took the stage in a suit and tie--no cowboy hat, no wifebeater, and no backup dancers. No blenders, no dry ice, and no BS. His bag of tricks consisted merely of three bottles of liquor, his shaker, a pepper mill, and his skilled hands. I was a bit concerned that the crowd would not respond well to this minimalist approach, given the tremendous zeal with which they had received the flashier presentations. But I was wrong. By the time Norris was pouring his drink, many in the crowd were chanting his name. (I should note that I think he was the only bartender tonight who chilled his cocktail glasses, an important detail that I think the judges noticed. I know the emcee noticed because she seemed surprised that he was dumping out the glasses). When the announcers called the first place winner and it was Bill Norris, I felt like justice had been delivered. Tipsy claims that I was crying but I think he was full of BS (and 42 Below).

The only problem with Bill taking the top prize is that I'll never get a damn seat at that tiny FINO bar again. But on behalf of the entire staff of tipsytexan I want to congratulate Bill Norris for representing us like a true pro--THANK YOU!