Murphy mixes winner as tipple shakes judges

IT wasn’t just the drink that was stirred yesterday as the final of the inaugural Southern Comfort Irish Open Cocktail Championship got under way.

Many of the 30 contenders looked like they could do with a stiff drink themselves as they waited to see who was going to be the first ever Irish champion mixer.

The honour went to James Murphy, 37, manager of Bowe's Lounge in Fleet Street, Dublin, as he mixed himself into the record books with a concoction of Southern Comfort, banana liqueur, passion fruit syrup and pineapple juice, all topped with a sinful measure of fresh cream and poured over ice.