Some of the world's top mixologists are due to arrive in Cognac for the International Cognac Summit, which takes place from Jan 20 -23 .

The Bureau National Interprofessionel du Cognac (BNIC) is hoping a new Cognac-based cocktail with the potential to be world class will emerge.

Some of the cocktail stars expected include: Dale DeGroff, president of the Museum of the American Cocktail; Audre y Saunders, bartender at the Carlyle Hotel, New York; consultant Simon Difford , who is also the author of Diffordsguide to Cocktails; Salim Khoury, head barman of the American Bar at the Savoy, London; Stefan Gabanyi, head barman at Schumann's Bar in Munich and Colin Field, head barman at the Hemingway Bar in the Paris Ritz hotel.

Participants will spend three days taking part in workshops run by Fernando Castellon, author of the Larousse des Cocktails book.

Participants will be asked to come up with a Cognac-based short and long drink which the BNIC hopes will be as successful for Cognac as the Mojito is for rum.