Among festival-goers, the number of Miami bartenders, brand ambassadors, writers, and experts was significantly higher than in past years. The presence was first noticeable Wednesday night, in front of the Miami installation at the Jameson Love Thy Neighborhood Block Party, where different cities represented proudly with activations celebrating bartenders, musicians, and brewers from across the country. Neon signage included a palm tree, a flamingo, and the now-eponymous "Pursue Happiness" sign, which hangs inside Miami's Sweet Liberty.
Come Thursday, the San Francisco vs. Miami Bartender Boxing fight, in partnership with Tequila Cazadores, saw the Miami team — which included Blackbird Ordinary's Korin Tibor, Sweet Liberty's Shauna O'Neil, Purdy Lounge's Kristina Popova, 27 Restaurant and Bar's Josue Gonzalez, and Beaker & Gray's Derek Stilmann and Ben Potts — take home five out of six belts as the crowd roared "MI-A-MI."

Michelle Bernstein, whose husband David Martinez is a co-owner of Sweet Liberty, was among the crowd that marched in the jazz funeral second line commemorating John Lermayer.
Photo by Paula Echevarria
The tributes continued on Saturday at the annual Spirited Awards ceremony. The first Miami win went to the Broken Shaker for Best American Hotel Bar, which recognizes establishments that offer five-star service and well-made drinks in a comfortable setting. This is the second time the bar received the award since it opened at the Freehand in 2012.

Sweet Liberty bartenders Tatiana, Sol, and Tanya hug during John Lermayer's second line.
Photo by Paula Echevarria
About halfway through the ceremony, seemingly without warning, the lights went dark and a past interview of Lermayer appeared center stage on a large screen. In the video, he was seen talking about how he came to terms with how much he loved being the center of attention, which set him off on his career path. Then a montage of Lermayer's photos and words from his closest friends and colleagues ran across the screen, remembering his influence and larger-than-life persona.

Sweet Liberty wins Best American Bar Team during this year's Spirited Awards.
Photo by Paula Echevarria
There was even a point where Wagner had the entire theater singing the melody of "Guantanamera," changing the lyrics to "One John Lermayer / There's only one John Lermayer."
As if the night couldn't get any more emotive, Sweet Liberty was then awarded Best American Bar Team. "It's the one John would have been happiest about," Binkiewicz says.

Patrick and the Swayzees performed at the Spirited Awards after-party hosted at Santos.
Photo by Gabriel Urrutia
It's thanks to John Lermayer's influence that Miami's nightlife scene has proved itself an international powerhouse in the craft spirits world. It's how he would have wanted it: Miami as the life of the party.