Month: February 2013

The Spirit: Aquavit

Aquavit (or akvavit as it is known in Denmark) is one of those social spirits. It is deeply entwined with Scandinavian drinking ritual of skål, and has for hundreds of years replaced wine at their tables.

Perryn Collier working on two new Brisbane bars

It looks as though there is a bonafide boom taking place in Brisbane bars in recent months. Not only has Kal Moore left Laneway to go on to a bigger role, so too has his one-time drinks partner, Perryn Collier. He is now with the Limes Group, taking on the role of creative bar director for the group.

Book review: Drinks by Tony Conigliaro

Once in a while a book comes along that’s a real game changer and Drinks by Tony Conigliaro is one of them. If you’re a doubter then turn to the first page where Heston Blumenthal sings Conigliaro’s praises: “Tony Conigliaro is a revolutionary. He is at the forefront of a new energy in cocktail making.”

Operator Profile: Shaun Pattinson

Shaun Pattinson’s bar, Cushdy, has just celebrated 5 years of service and in that time has become the go-to bar in the burgeoning Adelaide cocktail scene. They’ve won awards – too many to mention – so we thought it high-time that we picked Pattinson’s brain about what makes Cushdy so great.

El Topo

Perhaps it was the dearth of good Mexican food for so long that led Sydney-siders to so wholeheartedly embrace its flavours. Perhaps it’s because great Mexican is about vibrant and fresh produce (of which Australia has plenty) thrown together simply and cheaply (of which bar owners like plenty). Or maybe it’s just that it goes so damn well with tequila and mezcal.

Magical Mezcal

Bartenders have long been touting mezcal as the next big spirit to take over back bars, cocktail lists and even earn a trending hashtag on Twitter. The reality is it’s got a long way to go with high entry level prices, limited availability and challenging flavour profiles meaning it’s mainly bartenders serving mezcal to other bartenders at the moment.

Australian Made: The West Winds

Not long ago a couple of cracking gins appeared on the market; lo and behold they were Australian. The West Winds gins caught the fancy of juniper-prone bartenders across the country (their stand at Bar Week Drinks Fest was as full on as the botanicals in the Cutlass gin they make), so we caught up with rabble-rouser-in-chief, Jeremy Spencer, to find out more about what they do.

Bar Profile: Lui Bar

Think Lui Bar and you’ll probably think that Skipper Josh has been at it again, or some other brave soul is testing the waters of tiki mania. But if you’re looking at the pictures on this page, you might be wondering if he’s a bit confused.