Singaporean Jez Carreon takes world bartending sustainability crown

SINGAPORE – Singaporean bartender Jez Carreon triumphed in the Flor de Cana Sustainable Cocktail Challenge on Feb 28, beating 18 other finalists from around the globe to take the world sustainability crown. 

This was the 33-year-old’s

fourth time competing in the contest

organised by Nicaraguan premium rum brand Flor de Cana. Over the past five years, he has inched closer to the title with each successive showing. Previous attempts ended at the Singapore nationals in 2020, the regional finals in 2022, and fourth overall during his first outing to the grand finale in Nicaragua in 2024. 

In 2025, he was finally able to banish the ghosts of his past.

“I feel amazing,” says the senior bartender at Amoy Street bar Employees Only. “What once seemed like a distant dream, something I never thought possible, has now become a reality.” 

To him, this is a career-defining moment. “I’ve made my loved ones proud, and now I can finally say I am the best in the world at something.” 

Despite his years of experience, competing again in Nicaragua was “incredibly challenging”. Mr Carreon had trouble adjusting to the local time zone and battling jet lag. 

It did not help that he had the dubious honour of presenting his cocktail first in the qualifying round. “As the first presenter, you either make a strong impression and set the standard or risk falling short,” he says. 

He managed to impress the judges with his clarified milk punch made with corn, coconut and pineapple, coming in third in the first of two rounds. It earned him a spot in the final showdown, in which contestants had to craft a sustainable cocktail from local ingredients. 

“I knew I had to push myself to work harder and deliver my best presentation yet to make up the points and climb to first place in the final round.” 

He put everything he had into his final drink, a concoction of papaya juice, banana, star fruit cordial and rum he named My Last Goodbye. And it worked, with judge Danil Nevsky praising him for exemplifying the rum brand’s sustainable values with his “memorable” cocktail. 

Mr Carreon won US$10,000 (S$13,490), a sustainably made trophy and a personalised bottle of Flor de Cana 25 Year Rum. 

He has not yet decided what to do with the bulk of his prize money, but hopes to invest most of it. He intends to use the rest to fulfil a childhood dream: getting his hands on an authentic  World Wrestling Entertainment championship belt replica. 

This win, he hopes, will inspire bartenders in Singapore to persevere in the face of adversity. 

“A setback is not the end; it’s just part of the journey. Keep pushing forward, take pride in the craft and believe in yourself. We are so much more than ‘just’ bartenders.”