Think you have what it takes to complete the WFA Blue grading level? It all starts at Yellow as most of you know, followed by Orange, Green and then Blue. Yellow gives you a good basic understanding of how to use flair bartending during service and as you progress through the grades your understanding and skill level will get better. The Blue Grade is the highest and therefore hardest WFA Grade, you need skill, expertise and dedication to clear this grade. So if you see someone on the WFA website sporting a Blue level, know that this bartender is beyond bad ass..
A lot of you will have come across the WFA Grading System by now. Established to provide a predefined structure for bartenders to improve their flair bartending and cocktail making skills, thousands of bartenders around the world have completed one or more levels of the WFA Gradings. Starting with Yellow Grade, the WFA Grading system gets progressively more challenging as you progress from Yellow, to Orange, Green, and then Blue.
It doesn’t all stop after you have conquered the WFA Grading system however, the Purple and Black Grades and accompanying shakers can only be won by placing 4th-6th in a WFA Grand Slam (for Purple) or 1st-3rd (for Black). Beyond this you can really assert yourself as one of the flair bartending greats of all time by getting your hands on a Bronze, Silver or Gold Shaker. This Gold grade is only awarded to the Winner of the WFA Grand Slam Tournament, Silver to the runner up in 2nd and Bronze to the runner up in 3rd.
Having received a lot of feedback on the WFA Grading System we have introduced a new curriculum for each of the grading levels in the last year, all of the new grades and videos are now ready. As a result of the new curriculum, new routines, new moves and new tests have been developed to ensure that the WFA Grading system can add value to the skill set of any bartender, new or experienced.
You may notice we have upgraded the free pour test, included more current and classic cocktails to the speed round and made sure the flair round encompasses all aspects of flair bartending. A certain percentage is scored for each section of the test with a benchmark percentage given overall as the pass mark. Score high enough on each of the tests for the grade and you will be awarded your WFA Grading Level, which can live proudly on your CV forever more. As well as your coloured shaker you will also get a certificate and a cool badge to show off on your WFA profile on here! These WFA Grading shakers are not for sale, so there is only one way to get your hands on them, hard work and skill.
WFA Blue Grading level takes the difficulty of flair bartending to its highest level, some say it is impossible. We say nothing is impossible…