Eight women bartenders will climb to the 19th floor of Merchant + Trade this Sunday for the 6th Annual Battle of the Babes Cocktail Competition, each pouring an original cocktail in front of a crowd, with 250 people registered and the event expected to be its biggest yet. The event runs from 5 p.m. to 9 p.m. on September 27, according to Queen City News, spotlighting some of the city's top women bartenders and industry leaders.
This marks the third year running that the competition has landed at Merchant + Trade, located at 303 S Church Street, according to wearehoco.com. As WCCB Charlotte reports, the sixth annual edition returns to Uptown with a fresh lineup of competitors ready to show off their skills. The rooftop venue's four zones — an indoor bar, an outdoor terrace, a private terrace and a lawn — give the evening room to spread out, per a post from the Hospitality Coalition on LinkedIn.
Eight Competitors, Eight Cocktails
Eight competitors will bring eight original cocktails to the glass this year, a format also seen in 2022. A new class of eight competitors is stepping behind the bar this year. That same outlet notes every ticket covers entry, tastes of all eight competition cocktails, heavy hors d'oeuvres, a swag bag and a full night of entertainment — a detail also confirmed in the Hospitality Coalition's LinkedIn post.
Merchant + Trade's own bar program leans into North Carolina spirits, house-made mixers and locally sourced produce, as reported by Merchant + Trade, giving the competing bartenders a shared toolkit even as their individual cocktails diverge. The venue has hosted the event for three consecutive years, according to wearehoco.com.
Last Year's Winners Set A High Bar
Sunday's competition follows a memorable 2025 edition, when guests filled the deck at Merchant + Trade on September 28 and sampled all eight competition cocktails. Eight female bartenders competed that year. A first-time competitor named Alley walked away with first place that night, an outcome wearehoco.com pointed to as evidence that newcomers can still upset the field.
Marcus Hammond was a judge at last year's competition.
The competition's eight-bartender, eight-cocktail format appeared in a 2022 event listing from Scoop Charlotte and is also part of Sunday's sixth annual showdown. For Charlotte's hospitality scene, the recurring rooftop battle has become a fixture worth returning to, celebrating what the Hospitality Coalition calls the craft of women behind the bar.
