Edible Communities and St-Germain Liqueur Announce Partnership

St-Germain, the world’s first artisanal liqueur handcrafted from fresh elderflowers, is launching a new advertising campaign and cocktail competition for professional bartenders with Edible Communities, the leading network of magazines dedicated to local, seasonal and artisanal food and drink. This partnership between two previous winners of Bon Appétit Magazine’s Hot 10 Award comes at a time when people are more discerning than ever about what they eat and drink and where it comes from.

“When we introduced St-Germain in 2007 we realized that many people were not aware of the differences in quality between all-natural, artisanally produced liqueurs, like St- Germain, and the mass produced, highly processed products that they had been mixing in their drinks for years,“ says Robert Cooper, President, The Cooper Spirits Company. “Joining forces with Edible Communities is a truly exciting way to celebrate craft spirits and the importance of working with fresh, seasonal ingredients.”

The St-Germain print advertisements will begin running in spring issues of 37 Edible Communities publications across the country. The two-page spread includes a detailed account of St-Germain’s production process and tasting notes, along with a perforated insert including two postcards featuring vintage French photography, cocktail making tips and drink recipes.

St-Germain and Edible Communities are also thrilled to be collaborating on a cocktail competition for professional bartenders. A yearly tradition for St-Germain, The Can-Can Classic Cocktail Competition will now have a new twist to better reflect the brand’s ethos and the mission of Edible Communities. Professional bartenders will be asked to develop an original cocktail recipe with St-Germain utilizing seasonal ingredients from their local region. “Our publishers are very excited to be expanding our award-winning coverage on the local foods movement into the area of artisanal, handcrafted cocktails. We are really pleased to have the opportunity to partner with St-Germain and work with them to support creativity in the bartending community,” says Tracey Ryder, Co- Founder, Edible Communities.

The editorial staff at Edible, along with St-Germain’s creator, Robert Cooper, will select one winner in each market where participating Edible magazines are printed (see full list below). Winners will be selected based on the following criteria:
• Flavor profile / balance of the cocktail
• Resourcefulness and creativity incorporating seasonal, local ingredients; Special consideration will be given to entrants who focus on local fruits, vegetables, spices, herbs or other indigenous products from their region (note: it is not required that the other spirits be locally produced)

Each winner will receive an Edible Communities editorial profile as well as a Yarai (Japanese) Cocktail Mixing Glass from Cocktail Kingdom. Each regional winner will then be eligible to win a $10,000 cash prize and be heralded as the national winner of the 4th Annual Can-Can Classic Cocktail Competition.

The Can-Can Classic is part of the L’Équipe St-Germain brand initiative designed to support community building and the exchange of ideas amongst the world’s top bartenders. L’Équipe St-Germain provides various opportunities for St-Germain to give back to the important bartenders who have embraced and supported the brand since its introduction in 2007. L’Équipe St-Germain includes a bar course scholarship, a bartender exchange program, an educational grant and a cocktail competition. For more information, visit: www.stgermain.fr/lequipe

The following Edible Publications will be participating in the 4th Annual Can-Can Classic Cocktail Competition: Allegheny, Aspen, Austin, Blue Ridge, Boston, Brooklyn, Buffalo, Cape Cod, Chicago, Columbus, Dallas & Ft. Worth, East Bay, East End, Finger Lakes, Front Range (Denver/Boulder), Grande Traverse, Hawaiian Islands, Hudson Valley, Iowa River Valley, Jersey, Los Angeles, Louisville, Madison, Manhattan, Marin & Wine Country, Memphis, New Orleans, Nutmeg (CT), Ohio Valley, Ojai/Ventura County (CA), Orlando, Phoenix, Piedmont (Raleigh-Durham, NC), Portland, Queens, Reno-Tahoe, Rhody (RI), Sacramento, San Diego, San Francisco, Santa Barbara, Santa Fe, Sarasota, Seattle, South Florida (Miami), Toronto, Vancouver, WOW (Detroit)

*If there is not an Edible magazine in a bartender’s region he or she can submit their cocktail to the magazine that is in closest proximity to his or her location. Submissions will be accepted until 8/31/2011.

To learn more about The 4th Annual Can-Can Classic Cocktail Competition, visit: http://www.stgermain.fr/cancanclassic

About St-Germain
St-Germain is the world’s first liqueur produced in the artisanal French style from freshly handpicked elderflower blossoms. Made with unparalleled care and integrity, St-Germain’s handcrafted production process takes place once a year in the late spring, when the delicate and wild elderflowers are at their peak level of flavor and aroma. With subtle yet complex tasting notes reminiscent of tropical fruits, grapefruit, pear and a hint of honeysuckle, St-Germain is remarkably versatile and mixes well with a variety of base spirits, wine and Champagne. The liqueur adds a fresh, captivating character to cocktails, especially variations of classics and new expressions.

St-Germain has won numerous awards and accolades, including the 2009 Bon Appetit Hot 10 Award, Monde Selection Grand Gold Award (2010), Ultimate Beverage Challenge Chairman’s Trophy (2010), Adams Growth Brand Award (2009) and Best in Show (2007) and Double Gold (2008) at the annual San Francisco World Spirits Competition. The St-Germain Cocktail, the brand’s signature drink, has been lauded by The New York Times (December 30, 2009) as one of the most significant mixology trends of the decade.

St-Germain was the first product introduced by Robert Cooper of The Cooper Spirits Company. Named Wine Enthusiast’s 2010 Distiller of the Year and one of Food & Wine’s “40 Big Thinkers 40 and Under,” Cooper is a third-generation distiller whose mission is to inspire individuals to embrace higher quality spirits and cocktails by developing well-crafted, integrity driven products. St-Germain is 20% Alc/Vol (40 proof) and imported exclusively by Maison 6ème Arr. For more information, visit www.stgermain.fr.

About Edible Communities
Edible Communities is the leading network of magazines dedicated to the local food movement. Edible Ojai, launched in 2002 by Tracey Ryder and Carole Topalian, was lauded by Saveur magazine in 2004 as the model for what a regional food magazine should be. That recognition led them to found Edible Communities, Inc. to help other local publishers explore the foods farmed, raised, tended and produced on family farms and by small growers throughout North America. Edible Communities now licenses over 65 locally owned and operated titles across the continent. Information about Edible Communities and its publications is at www.ediblecommunities.com.