Ron Cooper, the founder of Del Maguey Single Village Mezcal, has kick-started his agave educational tour of Australia and last night Sydney bartenders were lucky enough to catch up with Ron on his first ever trip down under. Eight expressions of Del Maguey were sampled including the Tobala which is distilled from only wild maguey from the highest altitude canyons along with the Pechuga that involves suspending a chicken breast (yes, folks) in the atmosphere of the still!
In 1898 the streets of New York were ripe with vice; Gotham was in the grip of a burgeoning trade in brothels. A letter that year to The New York Times described hotels “where rustic beaus are fleeced and rustic belles debauched,” and a casual walk to church could see a man “accosted by a leering drunken woman.”
Kansei Beverages are bringing to Australia these organic artisan-made tequilas from 3R Tequila. Both the aged varieties, a Reposado and an Anejo, are aged a little longer than the average — their Repo is aged for 10 months, the Anejo for two years.
Sydney pub group J & J O’Brien — who operate the iconic Jacksons on George, along with The Watershed Hotel, Cohibar, and the Belvedere Hotel — have gone into receivership, sources have told Australian Bartender. ANZ has appointed receivers and have taken on oversight of the venues, they said.
No one really knows who invented the Martinez. Big shock there. Some say it’s named for a guy called Martinez who whipped together some gin and vermouth. Others credit it to the Granddaddy of all things bartending, the Professor Jerry Thomas who created it for a fella who travelled to Martinez, California every day.
Industry stalwart and cocktail educator, Mr Ben Davidson This month in Drinks With we catch…
One thing that is inescapable in Adelaide is wine. It’s everywhere, and it’s little wonder given the rich, plentiful supply they have in them there Hills surrounding the city. So the advent of a new wine bar might be a little pedestrian; does Adealide need another wine bar? Well Cantina Sociale does things a little differently.
The folks at Posi Pour are inviting bars to get creative and submit a signature cocktail using their range of 1883 Gourmet French Syrups. The winning signature cocktail will be showcased in Australian Bartender’s Staffies page along with the bartender’s name and venue. The winning bar will pick up a dozen 1883 Gourmet French Syrups of their choice while the bartender who came up with the drink will receive a gift bag of assorted bar utensils.
Reading through the pages of most cocktail books written before the second world war can get to be a pretty dull read pretty quickly — particularly if there isn’t a well-stocked bar at one’s disposal or the hour is unsociably early. Yet Charles H. Baker Jr’s prose stands apart from the pack.
The world of rum is a diverse one. And, thanks to there being no unifying authority, the types of products that are called rum vary widely in their flavour profiles. There are, loosely speaking, a few different styles of rum that drinkers can identify. They’re based on old geographical and cultural roots and it is remarkable how these styles have come down the ages.
The April issue of Australian Bartender has gone live in the App Store. It’s a cracking issue — we’ve taken an old school approach to the drinks with old-fashioned illustrations, a How To on shrub and a masterclass in punch. We’ve also debuted our new Blind Tastings section — this month our panel sniffed, sipped and scored 28 of the country’s best craft beers.
After 15 big years, countless bottles of tequila, and more hangovers than anyone cares to remember, Sydney institution Cafe Pacifico will close its doors this month. Problems renegotiating the lease and leaky ceilings left owner, Phil Bayly with no choice but to move on.