More Cocktails Please: Australia's Best 100 Bartenders for 2022 Have Been Revealed

Anyone can pour orange juice and vodka into a glass and call it a screwdriver. But if you're after a cocktail more sophisticated and complicated than that, that's where top-notch bartenders come in. They're the folks who mix up drinks that you definitely don't feel like you can make at home — or know you have (again, see that OJ and vodka combo) — and they're as crucial a part of hitting a bar as the menu, vibe and company.

Australia isn't short on fine folks whipping up brilliant beverages; however, if you're after the best of the best, there's now a rundown naming the country's top 100 bartenders. Consider it your next excuse to work through a boozy list, if you already started 2022 sipping the 100 best brews.

Created by global bartending competition Diageo World Class, the Top 100 Australian Bartenders for 2022 list spans every state and territory — with New South Wales particularly well-represented, and Victoria and Queensland as well. Here's another way to think of it: you now have a list of bartenders to seek out on your next few holidays.

Cantina OK!

Standouts include folks from Sydney favourites such as Maybe Sammy and Cantina OK!, Melbourne's Nick and Nora's and Black Pearl, and Brisbane's The Gresham and Agnes. This is just part one of the contest, though. From here, these 100 bartenders will compete by mixing up impressive, boundary-pushing tipples at their venues, which'll be available for patrons to sip from Monday, May 30–Monday, June 13.

Then, a top five will be announced — also on Monday, June 13 — before finals in July. The winner will be deemed the Diageo World Class Australian Bartender of the Year for 2022, and fly the flag for Aussies at the comp's global final, which is happening here for the first time, in Sydney, between Monday, September 12–Friday, September 16.

The Gresham, Millie Tang

Whoever emerges victorious will take over the title from Evan Stroeve from Sydney's no-waste bar Re, 2021's winner.

Here's 2022's full top 100 rundown:

DIEGO WORLD CLASS TOP 100 AUSTRALIAN BARTENDERS FOR 2022:

NEW SOUTH WALES:

Alex Gondzioulis, The Rover
Behzad Vaziri, The Star
Elisa Rodgrigues, Paloma Wine Bar
Hunter Gregory, Maybe Sammy
Matthew Dale, Re
Ryan Bickley, Cantina OK
Siôn Roberts, Re
Storm Evans, Cantina OK
Sanghyun Park, Will's
Wen Wang, Maybe Sammy
Albert Rust, Eileen's Bar - Four Pillars
Andrew McCorquodale, Charlie Parker's
Beaux Donelan, Charlie Parker's
Ashley Miller, Blue Kahunas
Ben Hardy, Bar Planet
Brianna Aboud, Ramblin' Rascal Tavern
Chloe Natterer, The Lobo
Claudio Bedini, Sammy Junior
Daniel Hilton, The Lobo
Eduardo Conde, NO 92 GPR
Dominic Causley-Todd, Dead Ringer
Emma Bernardi, Bar Planet
Eoin Kenny, Long Chim
Hamish Mitchell, Charlie Parker's
Harrison Kenney, Bar Planet
Helen Yu, The Lobo
James Russell, Apollonia
Jenna Hemsworth, The Gidley
Koby Harris, Dean and Nancy on 22
Krisztian Csigo, Dean and Nancy on 22
Sara Rinaldo, Dean and Nancy on 22
Sarah Proietti, Maybe Sammy
Judith Zhu, KittyHawk
Kalisha Glover, Apollonia
Kat Scibiorski, Long Chim
Kate Gale-Re, The Gidley
Michal Wowak, The Gidley
Kiaran Bryant, Earl's Juke Joint
Liam Gavin, Door Knock
Marco Rosati, Grain Bar
Samuel McWilliams, The Lobo
Thomas Opie, Births and Deaths

VICTORIA:

Aiden Rodriquez, EDV Melbourne
Alejandro Archibald, NOMAD Melbourne
Kane Smith, Nick and Nora's Melbourne
Darren Leaney, Aru
Cameron Parish, Gimlet
Elisabetta Luppi, LUI Bar
Francesca Camilli, Beneath Driver's Lane
James Armstrong, The Cloakroom Bar
Josephe Kourmouzis, Above Board
Julien Wurtlin, LUI Bar
Kayla Saito, Black Pearl
Nicola Dean, Black Pearl
Max Allison, Good Measure
Miriam Wahlhütter, LOVER
Nick Tesar, Bar Liberty
Olivia Devlin, Capitano
Tioni Naslund, LUI Bar
Taylor Matthews, Frederic
Tom McHugh, Hazel Restaurant

QUEENSLAND:

Dino Francia, Rosella's Bar
Jack Connor, Rosella's Bar
Aidan Perkins, Agnes Restaurant
Daniella Darakis, The Gresham
Edward Quartermass, Maker
Ellery Low, Maker
Jamie Fleming, Alba Bar & Deli
Jenny Wang, Sono Japanese Restaurant
Joe Steadman, Alba Bar & Deli
Kate Bartlett, Cobbler Bar
Liam Murphy, Frogs Hollow Saloon
Liam Shepherd, Bar Brutus
Martin McConnell, Frogs Hollow Saloon
Peter Hollands, Frogs Hollow Saloon

WESTERN AUSTRALIA:

Dyllan Balm, Foxtrot Unicorn
Max Guidice, Republic of Fremantle
Nicola Herbert, Foxtrot Unicorn
Shirley Yeung, Foxtrot Unicorn
Samuel Cocks, Bar Rogue

SOUTH AUSTRALIA:

Al Simmons, Maybe Mae
Alfonso Lizana, Maybe Mae
Anabel Rowe, Long Story Short
Georgia Edmonds, Maybe Mae
Grace Rawlins, Memphis Slim's House of Blues
Jack Somers, Memphis Slim's House of Blues
Talis Heggart, Memphis Slim's House of Blues
Michael Keogh, Memphis Slim's House of Blues
Lachlan Gunner, Long Story Short
Oscar Butler, Maybe Mae

TASMANIA:

Rachel Mynczywor, Rude Boy
Rohan Massie, Rude Boy Hobart
Jack Turner, Void Bar at Mona
Mateo Ortiz, The Den Salamanca

NORTHERN TERRITORY:

Anneliese Grazioli, Hanky Panky Lounge
Katerina Kosta, Hanky Panky Lounge
Matt Zarimis, Smoke and Oak Darwin

ACT:
Cameron Abercrombie, Zaab Street Food
Jack Sandeman, Zaab Street Food
Liv Kelly, Bar Rochford

For more information about Diego World Class, head to the competition's website.

Top image: Maybe Sammy, Paolo Maffietti.