So it’s Christmas, so I’m hoping for a little forgiveness that my 12 drinks project has fallen by the wayside as I’ve rushed to get home to New Zealand, marry the girl of my dreams and drink some pretty spectacular bottles of Champagne along the way. The Sugared plum fairy came out of the idea that you could combine… [Read more…]
December 3, 2011
An evening with Chris Hysted has to be one of the most enjoyable experiences in Australian drinking. The cheeky Melburnian brings flavour and chat in spades to any drink you’re lucky enough to tease out of his head and hands and into your gullet, as it were. These days, you can find him tucked away… [Read more…]
December 2, 2011
It would be fair to say that as a group, cocktail bloggers aren’t the hugest fans of vodka drinks. Maybe its the fact you don’t get to talk about the lignin phenols that leech vanillin as they age. Maybe its that as a group they got told to by the bar team at Pegu Club,… [Read more…]
December 1, 2011
I’m a huge fan of a nog at Christmas, but I do accept that the antipodean summer climes don’t suit raw eggs and cream heavy drinks particularly well. An alternative to the Northern nogs has been thunk up by Ed Loveday of the Passage in Darlinghurst. The Batlow cider it uses is a drier drop… [Read more…]
November 17, 2011
{EAV:639b874a889559c1} This weekend, Cockatoo Island will become my idea of a Fantasy Island. There will be drinks, talks, Julio Bermejo will be on hand making his fantastics Tommy’s Margarita. You’ll get to try some delicious cocktails like Tattoo and his lady friend are enjoying in the picture above. The Saturday has already sold out, and… [Read more…]
November 16, 2011
Everyone does Christmas, thanksgiving and Halloween drinks these days. Few of them raise as much of a chuckle as these two from Saltbox in San Diego for Movember. The one on the right is a garnished Tom Collins, called the Tom Selleck. Classic. These were both published, with the photo above on the Discover SD… [Read more…]
November 14, 2011
Sometimes, being involved in charity work means waking up early, exercise or something outside of the general terms of reference for many of whom drinking and a good night out are clear winners in the pastime stakes. Luckily, Bacardi have team up with Madame Brussells to deliver a tasty event that is all for a… [Read more…]
November 9, 2011
Many of you might think that bartenders are a bunch of moustachioed, tatooed, flat cap wearing tip hounds. You might even believe that they are allergic to sunlight and claw and hiss at you when encountered beyond the safety of three feet of wood. It’s no my place to say whether that’s true or not, but if you’d… [Read more…]
November 7, 2011
It’s taken almost a year since the global launch, but Johnnie Walker Double Black has finally tipped over to general availability on these shores. Blended whisky mavens will have spotted bottle in travel retail (duty free) for a few months now, but 7500 facebook fans now have bottle adorning their desks and lining their stomachs.… [Read more…]
October 31, 2011
With all the speakeasies, dive bars and bodegas popping up around the city, did you ever stop to wonder what the local drinking legacy was in this, the lucky country? While the rest of the world was sternly frowning through prohibition, or masking the taste of bathtub gin with lemon and cherries Sydney had its very own… [Read more…]
October 20, 2011
Tales went by a while back, but I thought I’d aggregate some content as they say in the biz and share some of the highlights with those of you, like me, unlucky enough to have have been sweating pure Sazerac on the streets of Nawlins. A great narrative on the experience given by Jacob Briars… [Read more…]
October 19, 2011
Watch out Sydney, next Monday night is the annual TimeOut Bar Awards. To celebrate the city’s bar culture, and to launch their brand new 2012 Bar Guide, the Time Out team is set to throw one helluva party at brand new Taylor Square venue, The Standard. Toast Sydney’s amazing bar culture with fine and delicious cocktails including a… [Read more…]
October 14, 2011
The 2011 limited edition bottle of Grand Marnier launched in Australia today. It is the latest in a long line of limited releases from the brand, perfect for those looking for a bottle to gift this Christmas. While the white powder coated bottle would have been the perfect way to celebrate the English victory at… [Read more…]
October 10, 2011
I’ve thought for a long time that i’d like to saw down one of Dan Ackroyd’s Crystal Skull vodka bottles and use it to serve tiki drinks in but the asking price has kept it but a dream for now. I could always get started with a doomed skull shot glass. Maybe not the same… [Read more…]
October 7, 2011
Anyone who has placed at a World Class event will be well aware of the quality and prestige that come with wrapping your hands around the straps of one of Jim Meehan’s cocktail bags. It was with some interest that I clicked on a link (more pics on this link) shared by Angus Winchester with a… [Read more…]
October 6, 2011
Some of you will know that Jason Williams, exAustralian Bartender of the Year and deliverer of some very fine chat, had taken a job working for the Keystone Group, working across the venues of the group, with a remit to improve the beverage offer. Gazebo, perennial Pott’s Point wine garden and watering hole will be… [Read more…]
October 5, 2011
Is Tim Philips the best bartender in the lucky country? The answer to that question is emphatically NO. This is largely because he is in Thailand this week, drinking vintage Champagne, celebrating a wedding and using the powers bestowed on him as Bartender of the Year to perform feats of magic and intrigue, like changing people’s birthdays.… [Read more…]
October 4, 2011
Following on from the fantastic tasting of the Glenfiddich Rich Oak last week, I wanted to mention a bottle I was lucky enough to touch, if not taste. The Glenfiddich 50yr old feels like it is worth the earth, from the weight of the handblown glass, down to the sterling silver labels and closure, complete… [Read more…]
September 30, 2011
It’s an open secret that the cider market is going nuts in Australia, outstripping the market standard single figure growth stats with upwards of a 68% nudge year on year. While my own prodigious thirst can’t quite account that number, so I’m sure I can’t be the only one enjoy a cider from time to time. Keep… [Read more…]
September 29, 2011
Glenfiddich likes to think of itself as a pioneering brand. The single malt was first bought to the international market in 1963 and ever since it has owned a position as best known, highest selling and most awarded. It was with no small degree of excitement that I accepted an invitation to join Ian Millar, the brand’s… [Read more…]
September 22, 2011
Now, I’d in all likelihood shy away from a machine that makes a drink. In my experience the best ones come from human hands. I, however, couldn’t resist this typewriter. As a writer about drink I love the idea of turning words into drinks. Rate this:
September 13, 2011
This morning there were twenty, only ten eleven now remain. They are Jess Arnott, Tim Philips, Chris Hysted, Kal Moore, Luke Redington, James Connolly, Nathan Beasley, Perryn Collier, Brendan Osmers, Adam Smith & Lee Potter Cavanagh. The finals will be held from 10.30am at the BarShow at Horden Pavillion. The winner will be announced at the… [Read more…]
September 12, 2011
The weekend just gone, Australia and Italy collided on the field at the Rugby World Cup in New Zealand. The Thursday previous, Smirnoff announced that the nightlife exchange for this year will mirror the weekends match up. Essentially, Smirnoff polls it’s fans, selects act that best match the overall country from the votes and swap them for… [Read more…]
September 9, 2011
A good time has a new home in Darlinghurst. Hinky Dinks has transformed a tired cafe premisies, a stone’s throw from the famous Coke sign, into a comfortable cocktail lounge with a kitchen attached. The cocktail list is great proof that straight classics aren’t the only way to showcase spirits and deliver a fine drink… [Read more…]
September 8, 2011
Hell week kicks off next week with the Bartender Bumfight. Essentially it’s a speed and knowledge fest, where local bar teams duke it out head to head making drinks against the clock. It is sure to be a truly epic evening, I’ll be sitting at the bar, laughing my ass off and trying to… [Read more…]
August 25, 2011
Proof that the Amazon bookstore is wrong. The PDT Cocktail book has been published and is alive and well on the streets of New York. I was lucky enough to taste some of Jim’s drinks at Cocktail World Cup in New Zealand and listen to him present. Both the drinks and his chat were top… [Read more…]
August 24, 2011
The launch of the new Johnnie Walker Blue was a great opportunity to hear a few good stories about the brand. It was also a great opportunity to enjoy some delicious Pear Old Fashioneds. It sort of drove home to me that the worst fate a bottle of scotch can have is to sit at… [Read more…]
August 20, 2011
This year Diageo has decided to tell a new story with Johnnie Walker Blue. Jonathan Driver, the stately and superb ambassador for the brand will travel the world to introduce a new bottle, take the opportunity to tell the story of the brand once again to their most valued audiences and perhaps most importantly, meet… [Read more…]
December 5, 2011
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