Espresso Martini Showdown

Espresso Martini Showdown 2023

By: Gabriella Celona

Mr. Martinis is a company where three men from Weymouth, MA go to different restaurants, bars, and interesting locations in and around the Boston area to rate espresso martinis. Not a bad gig if you can get it! Liam Torney, Alec Silowan, and Joey Long had a vision, and together they made it happen.

This year was the second annual Espresso Martini Showdown– unbelievably even more spectacular than last year's event. One could say they totally went overboard when planning this event. Located at the Sir Winston yacht in the heart of Boston- these three boys gathered ten of the best rated espresso martinis from all over New England and an enthusiastic crowd gathered to vote for whose is the best.

Who was involved? (In no particular order)

• 2Twenty2

• The Daily Catch

• L’Osteria

• 1928 Beacon Hill

• Publico

• Wicked Craft Co.

• Joia Lounge

• Rock & Rye

• Estella

• Eva– Newbury Street

Process and planning

The journey is always the best part of reaching one’s destination. Liam Torney and I met when I was hosting InBoston Magazine’s Winter issue launch party last year. We got to talking, he shared that he loved what I do, and just like that; I have a work husband.

I then got to meet the other boys, who welcomed me to the team with open arms. I started going around to different locations with them, trying different espresso martinis at the venues who wanted to be a part of this year's event, and as a result made lifelong friendships along the way.

Dwight Brown, another new connection, and owner of Unruly Creatives, was our marketing and photog for all of the promotional videos, interviews, and content. The five of us spent a lot of time together leading up to the event; Dwight, Liam, Alec, Joey and I. Oh my God, the amount of inside jokes we all have now is insane. Working with people so closely for a period of time allows a connection that you can’t get any other way. It kind of reminds me of dance; seeing each other almost every day and fostering those connections to people who have a similar passion as you do makes the journey so much more enjoyable. Brown posted on social media in regards to the event… “Imagine if all of these talented members took the time to come together, play off of each other's strengths to dominate a space? Don’t think too hard, it's already in the works…” He gets it, we do create a presence in the room, one that is not as significant when we are standing alone. I like it!

Loving your work is one thing, but loving the people you work with can take your job to a whole other level of happiness. As cheesy as it may sound, I genuinely feel like I am working with a second family. Call it fate, or destiny; whatever the case is, this lucky lady started a journey into her adult life and found a safe place to dock for a while.

Showdown Day: August 17th, 2023

Waking up, the first thing I do is go and text the boys.

8:31am: a link to a motivational video called “how bad do you want it?” “ITS TIME.”

Received from Liam Torney, ‘Martini Crew’ group chat

8:36am: “HAPPY SHOWDOWN DAY!!!”

Sent to Martini Crew

Today was the day. The moment we were literally all waiting for is actually here. Now, although we have done so much work up until this moment, there is still so much more to be done. I wake up, get ready, and go to the venue. We have a sold out event, people start to show up, and not even halfway through the event there is a line wrapped around the corner and down the street. The outcome was unbelievable.

Crowds of people intertwining between the three different floors on the boat. Half of the people that I knew were coming, I didn't even get a chance to see them; that’s how crowded it was.

The bartenders and restaurant owners were in the weeds and on their game! Now it was my turn to be on my game. Dwight grabbed his camera, and we went around interviewing people about each booth, what they liked, what they didn’t. As for the interviews with the bartenders midst competition– you can feel the intensity through the videos we captured. I can tell you this much, the vibes were definitely present.

The winner of this year's Espresso Martini Showdown was Wicked Craft Co. and it was well deserved. Head bartender Caterina Januzzi (also known as Cati or CJ) creates all of the recipes for the Wicked Crafts menu, she is an incredible mixologist. She worked tirelessly to perfect her recipe, enduring sleepless nights taste testing many new espressos and editing the recipe by half an ounce here and there days before the event, which doesn’t sound like a lot to a novice drink maker like me but apparently it is because it paid off! The win seems to have been willed by the owner of Wicked Crafts, Steve Bisson. He said as much in his promotion video interview. Bisson said, and I quote, “This year we are ready to win; and I can promise you we are going to win this year.” It was a very well deserved win and a night to remember for all! Can’t wait to see what concoctions are made for next year’s competition. Until then my friends.

The Future of Mr. Martinis

Mr. Martini's company prides themselves on giving the most authentic reviews for their viewers to get a true sense of what is worth spending your money on, and what is not. I could not be more proud to be part of a team as I am of this one. Oh, and if you didn't know yet, I now hold the title as Princess Martinis. I’m officially part of the crew now and loving it!

The hope for Mr. Martinis is to expand all over the country. “Mr.Martinis will be a global force for good, bringing together amazing people from all over the world who share a love of the greatest cocktail on planet earth. The Espresso Martini.” -Liam Torney

Unfortunately for you, You Missed The Boat. Fortunately, this is just the beginning.