Interviews Following the Moutai Enter the Dragon Cocktail Competition
Dan Zhao, Brand and Marketing Manager of Moutai Australia and competition winner, Ed Quatermass of Brisbane’s Cuatro Group (Antico, Dr Gimlette and Death & Taxes) join us for interviews following the Moutai Enter The Dragon national cocktail competition final in Sydney, Australia.
Moutai, China’s iconic national spirit, celebrated innovation and craftsmanship at the Sydney Opera House by crowning the winner of its ‘Enter The Dragon 3’ cocktail competition, Edward Quatermass – representing The Cuatro Group (Antico, Dr Gimlette and Death & Taxes). After a two-day final showcasing the talents of ten elite bartenders, Quatermass secured victory with his inventive cocktail, Beautiful Punch.
The competition challenged finalists to create cocktails featuring Moutai and was judged by a panel of industry experts – Pasan Wijesena (Owner of Earls Juke Joint), Mike Enright (Director and Co-Founder, Barrelhouse Group) and Barney Toy (Groups Bar Manager, Harbour City Hospitality).
Quatermass impressed with his bold fusion of Australian flavours and intelligent techniques and earned a $10,000 cash prize for his efforts.
The competition not only spotlighted Moutai’s unique flavour profile but also highlighted its growing influence on the Australian cocktail scene. This year’s event attracted a record number of entries, demonstrating the rising enthusiasm among bartenders to innovate with the Chinese spirit. Behind the success of the competition lies Moutai’s commitment to fostering creativity and building a community of passionate professionals who appreciate the rich complexity of baijiu.
To delve deeper into the brand’s vision, we spoke with Dan Zhao, Moutai’s Brand and Marketing Manager, about the strategy driving Moutai’s presence in Australia and perceptions of baijiu globally. Following this, Ed Quatermass shared insights into his creative process behind Beautiful Punch and the perception of baijiu in the Australian bartending community.
Interview with Dan Zhao, Moutai
Moutai’s longstanding cultural heritage spans over 2,000 years. What do you think allows such a traditional brand to continuously capture the interest of bartenders and stay relevant?
The key lies in its craftsmanship and rarity, characteristics shared by all cultural heritages that resonate with those who appreciate the finer things in life. For two millennia, Moutai has provided a unique experience defined by cultural charisma, perfection, and humble beginnings, appealing not only to the best bartenders but to all who value authenticity and craftsmanship.
The competition saw unique ingredients like Milo and shiitake mushroom tincture paired with Moutai (the winning drink). How important is cross-cultural experimentation in promoting Moutai outside of China and what implications does this have for cocktail culture?
As a cultural icon, Moutai must connect with non-Chinese audiences, allowing them to appreciate the spirit on their own terms. Australia’s diverse culture makes it an ideal market for Moutai, as the community embraces fusion food and drink. Presenting Moutai in cocktails highlights the balance of flavours, creativity, and craftsmanship, serving as a platform where East meets West – not just in ingredients, but in people as well.
Baijiu is often compared to whisky for its prestige. What economic or cultural factors are behind the growing interest in baijiu among Western audiences?
Similar to boutique whisky brands, Moutai is highly collectible due to its complex production involving numerous steps, labour, and craftsmanship that modern technology cannot replicate. Restricted to a mere 15 km² area – significantly smaller than the smallest cognac cru – Moutai has pioneered trendy production concepts like biodynamics and minimal intervention. Unlike whisky, Moutai’s quality improves with age; the older it is, the more valuable it becomes, making it an attractive investment. Understanding Moutai from a whisky perspective makes it more approachable for Western audiences, highlighting its uniqueness and allure.
Contestants had only five minutes to present their creations to judges. What does this challenge reveal about the creativity and adaptability required in modern bartending and how does it push innovation?
This time constraint emphasises the need for contestants to deeply understand the drink and the brand beyond that brief slot. Presenting confidently requires a profound connection with both the product and the brand. This is why our team has conducted tastings nationwide before the competition. We’ve witnessed numerous innovations in the top ten cocktails. Moutai serves as a unique inspiration for contestants, introducing an unexplored dimension to the global spirits landscape.
Given that Moutai’s production area is confined to a specific region, how does the brand address sustainability and production scalability? Are there specific initiatives to ensure Moutai’s unique qualities are preserved for future generations?
Moutai is committed to ESG (Environmental, Social, and Governance) principles, with a major strategy called Green Moutai. The brand recognises the importance of maintaining the ecosystem within and outside its region. For decades, the distillery has implemented the Chishui River Protection Program, fostering cooperative relationships with grain growers to ensure quality while sharing profits fairly. In Australia, we are seeking projects to support green organisations – not only for branding purposes but also to enhance awareness of sustainability.
Interview with Edward Quatermass, The Cuatro Group
Your winning cocktail, Beautiful Punch, brought together bold flavours with Moutai’s unique profile. How did you approach the challenge of balancing such distinct ingredients and what inspired the combination of flavours?
Moutai has such a unique, rigorous and meticulous production process to create some with huge flavour, but I was taken with the earthy, savoury choc malt, toasted mushroom flavour that the unique Moutai “Qu” creates. It reminded me of milo, something I consumed by the heaped tablespoon growing up.
As the competition was named for cocktail combat inspired by the movie Enter the Dragon with Bruce Lee. I drew parallels between the meticulous production and Bruce’s commitment to his craft. I played on the notion that he was known for his love of the arts and went to US college to study this, but still settled on Punching someone in the face as his purest expression of art – so, Choc-mushroom milo milk punch was born!
Beautiful Punch by Edward Quatermass
- 30ml Moutai Prince
- 10ml Massenez Dark Cacao
- 10ml Mr Black Coffee Liqueur
- 10ml Licor 43
- 5ml Shiitake Mushroom Tincture
- Dried, sliced shiitake mushrooms (available at most Asian grocers) toasted in oven till golden brown (approximately 5 minutes at 180 degrees, fan forced), steeped in Moutai Prince for 1 week. 50g mushroom per 100ml Moutai.
- 30ml Shiitake Mushroom “Milo” Milk
- Same toasted mushrooms blended into fine powder with Cocoa Powder added. 100g mushroom to 20g cocoa for 500ml Full Cream milk.
- 2.85ml 10% concentration Lactic acid to split and ‘Punch’ (3% of total volume)
- Garnished with Shiitake, choc-malt truffle with Gold Leaf
Competitions like Enter the Dragon require quick thinking under pressure. Talk me through your creative process and how your previous experiences with cocktail competitions have shaped your approach to this one.
I was lucky enough to be in a few cocktail competitions early in my bartending career and definitely made a lot of mistakes in them. I feel I never really quite put all my knowledge and experience together to ever win a national final in the past. I probably hadn’t done one for a year or two before covid hit and that obviously put a halt to competitions for a while and I never quite got back on the horse for about 5 years.
It was probably nice to have a break and come back at it with fresh eyes. I realised the best chance you ever have is to prepare well and be genuine to your own style and strengths. In the past I had tried to maybe play a more extroverted role I wasn’t comfortable in and trying to use ingredients to impress people. For Enter The Dragon this year, I attended the training session and built the drink from the concept and story up – trying to stay genuine to the spirit and the style of drink I like to make too. I then tried to deliver a quiet, personal, ‘sitting-at-the-bar-in-a-small-bar-having-conversation’ feel. I think the little Aussie lick of milo with the savoury mushroom in a playful format got my nose over the line against some seriously tough competition.
Knowing and having friends in the competition from other states I had met over my bartending years definitely helped to have a great time and settle the nerves – and everyone new I met were absolute legends as well. One of the best comp vibes I have been part of with some hilarious characters and banter.
What potential to you see in the broader use of baijiu in Australian cocktails?
People should definitely get around Moutai when they can. It’s a luxurious and celebratory spirit so sometimes can only be drunk on special occasions. I know every bartender at the competition loved the challenge of creating a cocktail with a unique spirit vs another gin or whisky cocktail. It really forced everyone to think a bit more out of the box and stay in line with Moutai’s flavour profile.
Hopefully we see more of it around and some cool events. They are currently partnering with Sydney Symphony Orchestra for various events and getting the pleasure to see the talent of those performers as part of the competition was crazy – I can only hope to have a quarter in the skill in something that they possess.
This interview has been edited for clarity and consistency.
