Austinite Mindy Kucan might as well add "award-winning mixologist" as a prefix to her name. She took the top prize in a Bombay Sapphire drink contest held last Friday during a luncheon at Imperia. Her winning cocktail was called "Card and Lilly." The contest was judged by Bombay Brand Ambassador Milo Rodriguez, Brandon Jacobs of Barcardi USA, and Tanya of Cazadores Tequila.

Card and Lilly
1 1/2 oz Bombay Sapphire Gin
1/2 oz Paula's Texas Lemon
Top with 2 oz Q Tonic
1/4 tsp ground cardamom
Roll back and forth with ice between two shaker tins, strain over ice into an Old Fashioned glass.
Garnish with lemon wedge rolled in cardamom sugar.

(According to Milo, and unbeknownst to Mindy, oris root is one of the ingredients in Bombay Sapphire, and it is the root of the lilly. Cosmic...)

The awards were hosted by Six Lounge on Sunday night. Justin from Six Lounge took second place, while Kyle from Cedar Street tied with Ben Craven from Starlite for third place. For taking the top prize, Mindy will get to travel to Las Vegas and will appear in a cocktail feature in GQ magazine, and will have a chance to compete again in a national contest.

Mindy won the Hilton Hotel's Top Bar Chef competition in 2007.

Mindy has won a number of competitions and is founding the Austin chapter of the United States Bartenders Guild, which was approved last month by the national association. The first membership meeting will be held in September, with more information to come.