This week sees the Just One Shift initiative taking place. Starting from Monday the 8th and rolling all the way through to Sunday 14th, bartenders from Australia and all across the globe will take part in the plan to raise $250,000 USD over a one-week period…
News
The latest bar and bartender news.
There’s just six months to go till Sydney Bar Week kicks off again and the schedule is filling fast. Importantly the official after-party to the Bar Awards is sorted too and looks set to be the best yet. Put on by industry vets Rossco Charman and Andy Penney, they’re promising this year’s party will be bigger and better than ever.
One half of the Swillhouse Group, Jason Scott (Shady Pines Saloon et al) is partnering with Jamie Webb (Cabiria, Peasant) in a new saloon-style music hall in Brisbane. “It’s called Lefty’s Old Time Music Hall,” said Webb. “We are a country music hall with free music and a democratic door policy.”
Boring stuff, right? But wherever booze is there’s someone looking to make money from it, someone wanting to tax it, and someone looking to find ways they can sell more of it. Yesterday’s Sydney Morning Herald carried a story about calls from the Distilled Spirits Industry Council of Australia to change the way alcohol is taxed — which would see ciders attracting a higher tax rate than they do now.
In a sign of growing interest in bourbon and in quality spirits generally, Josh Ozersky writes in the Wall Street Journal that as demand for artisanal products has exploded, brands like Pappy Van Winkle — spurred on by ringing endorsements from celebrity chefs — are increasingly hard to find. And they are increasingly expensive.
What’s the best way to carry out $102,400 worth of stolen pre-Prohibition whiskey?
Well, in your belly might be one way…
Leading London bartender and spirits industry figure, Henry Besant, has passed away at the age of 40. Besant was well known for his passion for tequila, and he was behind the creation of the Olmeca Los Altos brand.
A select group of top bartenders and owners gathered at Gowings Bar & Grill on Tuesday night to taste through the beautiful whiskies from Woodford Reserve. Brand Ambassador Stuart Reeves led guests through an informal tasting and feast.
As Parched March 2013 heads into its third week, the good times are rolling and the Parched March cocktails are flowing at the unique Sydney charity bar odyssey’s 76 participating bars.
Legendary Mezcalero Ron Cooper — whose single village mezcals have come to be a benchmark for quality in the category — will be touring Australia this April.
The Manhattan Cocktail Classic is on again this year (May 17—21 2013); those keen on going ought to set an alarm, as tickets for the event go on sale Friday March 15th at 12pm EDT in the US (which is 3am Saturday 16th AEST).
Another in a spate of recent openings in Brisbane, this new cocktail driven bar draws upon the 1930s for a touch of old world pre-war glamour.