Announcing the Barproof Awards 2017 Winners
Russia’s Barproof Awards went international this year, expanding to include all the former countries of the USSR. Read on to find out who the big winners are for 2017.
This past September, we previewed the much-anticipated second annual Barproof Awards, held in St. Petersburg, Russia. Like the Moscow Bar Show, the Barproof Awards aim to showcase the impressive talent to be found throughout the Russian bar scene. Now, the results are in, and the 21 awards have been handed out to a very diverse group of bars.
This year, the Barproof Awards expanded their scope beyond Russia, extending the awards to all the former Soviet states. About 300 bars from the Baltic to Central Asia took part in what was an historic follow up to the inaugural Barproof Awards last year.
At the black tie gala awards ceremony, attended by the best of the Eastern European bar scene, the mood was festive. Bar owner and Barproof Awards organizer Dmitry Sokolov highlighted the importance of the awards’ international outlook. “Barproof is the first global bar awards for countries of the former USSR,” he said. “We want to develop and increase our cocktail culture and to make our bars more famous all over the world.” One of Sokolov’s colleagues at the Barproof Awards, Vyacheslav Lankin, says the awards are doing an important job. “Barproof is an award which has been needed for a long time now. We simply formulated the needs of the industry,” said Lankin.
Barproof Awards in a wonderful, historic Venue
The Variety Theater A. Raikin was a fitting venue for these trailblazing awards, since it once housed the first cocktail bar in Russia, which was opened in the early 20th century. The awards ceremony attracted international interest, with bar industry guests from as far away as Japan, Germany, and the USA in attendance.
And it wasn’t just the guests – the award winners came from countries as diverse as Estonia, Belarus, and Ukraine, as well as, of course, Russia. The biggest surprise of the night was the winner of the Best New Spirit award: Germany’s HirschRudel. The contemporary herbal liqueur proved popular in Russia, even beating out new vodka brands to take home the trophy.
The other big winner of the night was Parovoz Speak Easy in Kiev, which managed to sweep three of the biggest awards: Best Cocktail Bar, Best Bartender, and Best Bar Manager. In fact, bars from Kiev netted five trophies in total, cementing Ukraine’s reputation for a lively and creative bar scene.
To accommodate all the new entrants this year, the majority of the awards were split into a Russia-only category, and an Open category, in which bars and bartenders from across the former USSR, including Russia, competed with their peers from neighboring countries. The winners, and their respective categories, are listed below. Congratulations to everyone who participated!
The Winners of the Barproof Awards 2017
Open Categories
Best Craft Bar
Vse Tvoi Druzya, Moscow
Best Wine Bar
Golodny Zloy, Moscow
Best Hotel Bar
Bentley’s Bar, Baku
Best Club Bar
El Centro, Tbilisi
Best Restaurant Bar
Restaurant and Bar Barvy, Kiev
Best Cocktail Bar
Parovoz Speak Easy, Kiev
Best Spirits Selection
BarmanDictat, Kiev
Best Cocktail Menu
Sigmund Freud Bar, Tallinn
Best Bartender
Dmitriy Kolomiets, Parovoz Speak Easy, Kiev
Best Bar Lady
Aleksandra Abibok, Banki Butylki, Minsk
Best Bar Manager
Dmitriy Shovkoplyas, Parovoz Speak Easy, Kiev
Best Internet Resource
Bartenders School by Bacardi & Martini
Best Signless Bar
Chainaya Tea and Cocktails, Moscow
Best Themed Bar
Gin Tonic, St. Petersburg
Best Bar Design
The Fitz, Odessa
Best New Bar
Bar Kurilka, Minsk
Special Awards
Best New Spirit
Hirschrudel
Best Spirits Book
Strong Alcoholic Beverages by Erkin Tuzmuhamedov
Lifetime Achievement Awards
Panasyan Ruben Gennadievich
Silovs Yury Vikentievich
Russian Categories
Best Craft Bar
Rule Taproom, Moscow
Best Wine Bar
Vinniy Bazar na Petrovskom Bulvare, Moscow
Best Hotel Bar
Moskovsky Bar, Mosow
Best Club Bar
Cocos Bar, Sochi
Best Restaurant Bar
Fahrenheit, Moscow
Best Cocktail Bar
Public, Moscow
Best Spirits Selection
Mednye Truby, Nizhny Novgorod
Best Cocktail Menu
Orthodox Russian Bar, Saint Petersburg
Best Bartender
Maksim Gladyshkevich, Friends Bar, Novosibirsk
Best Bar Lady
Aleksandra Churilova, Noor Bar, Moscow
Best Bar Manager
Arthur Galaichuk, ReLab Cocktail Bar, Kazan
Best Brand Ambassador
Maksim Shirokov
Best Signless Bar
Kot Shrodingera, Moscow
Best Bar Tools
Best Themed Bar
Hudojestvenniy, Sochi
Best Bar Design
Antiquarny Boutique & Bar, Moscow
Best New Bar
Korobok, Moscow
