On Sept. 10, Lucas Bols announced Jacob Pepin as the Canadian winner of the 2026 BOLS Cocktail Battle for his original cocktail, Elder Lady. Pepin will represent Canada at Cocktail Fever, a global bartender experience hosted by BOLS in Amsterdam.
Inspired by this year’s “Neon Nights” theme, the competition invited bartenders to create original, visually striking cocktails featuring BOLS Liqueurs and inspired by an iconic party decade. Entries were evaluated by an expert panel based on flavour, originality, technical execution, visual presentation and storytelling. Pepin’s Elder Lady earned the competition’s highest Canadian honor by combining BOLS Melon and BOLS Elderflower liqueurs with golden honey, acid-adjusted pineapple and a float of Empress 1908 Gin.
At just 23 years old, Pepin has already developed a thoughtful and technically-driven approach to bartending. After spending much of his early hospitality career in kitchens, he moved behind the bar approximately three years ago.
Elder Lady was the first original cocktail recipe Pepin committed to paper. He spent approximately 18 months refining the drink, balancing its ingredients and experimenting with acid-adjusted pineapple juice to create brightness without relying on additional citrus. Pepin was particularly drawn to BOLS Elderflower for the balance between its sweet and floral notes and to BOLS Melon for delivering fresh fruit character without becoming overwhelming. He had already begun incorporating more BOLS products into his bar program before entering the competition.
