By Cat Strom
Cat is the editor of totalvenue.com.au

Address: 99 Marine Pde, Redcliff Queensland
Web: monkomohotel.com.au
Phone: 07 33248 6520

Overlooking Moreton Bay with resort-style opulence and a hint of the Caribbean, is the newly completed Mon Komo Hotel. The Mon Komo Hotel is part of the greater Mon Komo development, which comprises residential living, short-stay accommodation and commercial tenancies, and the hotel completes the precinct by offering entertainment and dining options to both its residents and guests.

Brand + Slater Architects were commissioned to design the fit out of the raw building shell and the brief defined spatial planning requirements that were to include: a bistro/dining area, lounge bar, sports bar, gaming room, function rooms as well as an outdoor lounge.

With the coastline only a stones-throw away a key consideration of the venue’s design was to create a strong relationship between the interior and exterior. It would have been short-sighted to ignore the potential that capturing the ocean views offered, as well as the welcome prevailing breezes the site experiences and the opportunity to reinforce the seaside atmosphere through the Hotel’s natural surrounds. The outdoor lounge, which features on the hotel’s prominent street frontage easily takes advantage of these factors, with equal importance given to achieving a powerful connection that continues through to the internal spaces.

A double height space was conceived for the main lounge/bistro area with full height glazing and bi-folding doors opening to the outdoor lounge. The large volume and abundance of natural light, along with unobstructed views and natural breezes makes the internal space feel like an extension of the outdoors. This two-storey void provided the opportunity to install glazing to the mezzanine function rooms which in turn allows a visual connection to Moreton Bay.

The palette of materials for Mon Komo Hotel was chosen to reinforce the main themes and remained consistent throughout, unifying the interior design concept. Minor variations of application and colour were employed to create individual identification of area function, whilst keeping within the overall scheme. Subdued tones and natural materials dominate the palette with an emphasis on timber and stone. Highlights of colour were used in the upholstery selection and custom carpet design and evoke a sense of playfulness with a Caribbean undertone.

Lime-washed timber features heavily throughout the fit out, impressively spanning across the bulkhead over the main bar and servery. The bar’s timber countertop seemingly floats over a rough-finished stone front while the back bar display provides a mirrored recess that allows the stock to dominate. Large pendant lights hang from the generous void with broad, nautical ropes draped throughout the space, subtly adorning the ceiling and reinforcing the coastal motif.

Floor finishes include large-format stone tilling, custom designed carpets and weathered timber boards. The dominant feature of the Sports Bar is the 40 custom-made craypots that hang from the ceiling. A darker timber was selected for the bulkhead over the bar itself, which along with the stone countertop and stacked timber bar front suggest a more intimate ‘den’ feel.

Throughout the hotel, contemporary, comfortable furniture with clean lines was chosen, predominantly in light warm timber with colourful patterned fabrics on the chairs. Simple ottomans and wicker chairs scatter amongst the timber along with the occasional banquette, giving a varied choice of seating options. The outdoor lounge is bound by a sweeping upholstered seat, with the remaining terrace filled with resilient wicker furniture and white canvas umbrellas.

Sound Advice

JVG Sound Lighting & Visual designed and supplied the audio visual aspects of the Hotel including audio, lighting, automation, and security design for this multi-story venue. They chose quality products that could deliver reliability, were aesthetically pleasing so as to not intrude on the architectural appearance, specification and price.

“It was a very long process to make sure everything blended in with the amazing architecture,” commented Jade Golar, managing director of JVG. “We also only had three months to complete the whole installation, so it was a very tight schedule. We have installed a complete one touch automation system for the client covering all areas of human error and custom programming modules.”

There’s been some serious hardware installed at Mon Komo and the venue’s audio comprises J Audio speakers including fourteen SV6I 6 inch white speakers in the sports bar for room fill, two V12 12 inch front of house left and right speakers for the stage and two SV18 s single 18 inch sub woofers mounted under the stage.

There’s also four J Lighting JL-120 120 watt LED moving head spots and two JL-108 moving head wash lights are running off e:cue software on an Ezi control 22 inch touch panel mounted side of stage. XLR input plates are installed on stage for any band or DJ to plug in a stereo input running through the digital audio processor Bose ESP-88. Samsung commercial plasmas supply visual content in the sports bar.

Mon Komo Hotel is a ‘breath of fresh air’ for the Redcliffe community, exemplifying a new design trend and setting precedence for forthcoming hospitality projects. This fit out hopes to encourage future design and planning in the region to place a greater impetus on the physical connection Redcliffe has to Moreton Bay and the themes associated with a seaside community.

By Edward Washington

With a resurgence of popularity in Irish whiskey now more evident than ever, we’ve decided to unearth the history, the flavours and the nation itself in this three part series on Ireland & her national spirit.

The history of Irish whiskey is a long tale. Too long for now. But what’s assured is that the Irish were distilling rudimentary forms of what we’d call whiskey long before Scotland’s Registry of Public Treasury listed, “Eight bolls of malt to Friar John Cor whereeith to make aqua vitae” in 1494.

Up until the end of the 18^th century the Irish industry was extensively a domestically based one; Ireland was a landscape of individuals manning their pot-stills and making rough, fiery spirit for local consumption. Ageing spirit was neither a practice or a luxury and the spirits back then were, for lack of delicacy, virtually undrinkable by contemporary standards.

That said, these early spirits served a good purpose for Ireland’s population and Brian Townsend, author of The Lost Distilleries of Ireland, points out that a prime enthusiasm for Irish whiskey consumption was to shake off the bleak desolation that many Irish experienced as part of their daily lives. ‘Once the Irish realised the euphoria that this new spirit created, it became the duty of every Irishman to produce it’, Townsend wrote. Not a bad national agenda.

Like any industry that gleans a profit for the government the production practices of Ireland’s distillers greatly improved throughout the Victorian period. This was a time when science and technology was effecting mans’ life in numerous ways and the global distilling industry benefited from the inventions of tools like of the hydrometer and the saccharometer; both these tools allowed for far greater control and accuracy when creating commercial volumes of spirit. Other methods of standardisation, empirical practice and structure also allowed the industry to develop into what we might recognise today.

As the whisk(e)y industry in the British Isles developed there were a couple of factors that initially gave Ireland’s spirit an edge. Both the Irish and Scottish pot-stillers were in effect similar in nature and competing for the same market. Both were based in agrarian practices, with the Scot’s single-malts being primarily made at opportune times during the year when water and grain was available in surplus. To distil the Irish used larger pot stills than the Scots, they also traditionally distilled their spirit three times. These factors were to have a great impact on their product as it gave less variation in the spirits they produced, and also produced a lighter, milder distillate that was agreeable to the ever increasingly sedentary populations of England’s industrial cities.

Victorian England was wrapped with the Irish spirit and it’s said that the Queen herself once stated, ‘The only true Irish friend I have is its whiskey’. Still, despite rapid advances in industrial method the Irishman was a traditionalist by nature and was not keen to let go of his pot-still production ethos. This paved the way for more commercially entrepreneurial methods to take over in the long run and is a key point to note when considering the demise of Ireland’s whiskey industry.

In 1830 Aeneas Coffee released his continuous still to the world proclaiming that it would boost production, relieve overheads and streamline business. The majority of Irish distillers however- advocating tradition - turned him down wholesale, dismissed his contraption and stuck their heads back in the sands of pot-stilling. Aeneas Coffee was an Irishman though, so why did his own kin turn up their noses to a man professing positive revolution?

Reasons abound, but Coffee was a former officer of the whiskey excise who had spent many years combating illegalities in the trade and generally putting himself in the way of loopholes (and smugglers) as they appeared. It is also said that in his time as an exciseman Coffee had done a lot of good for Irish distillers and their cause, however his previous employment was a hangman’s noose in the trade and they were not inclined to trust him.

Another factor for their rejection of his still was that they simply didn’t like the spirit that it produced. It was tasteless and lacking in character and this went completely against the philosophies of the national spirit. The technically advanced nature of the still was also said to unnerve the more traditional pot-stillers, who were largely from farming backgrounds where the simplicities and honesty of chamber-charged distilling was what they understood and trusted.

It should also be noted that the advent of the Coffee still didn’t simply bring a boon of fortune for the Scottish pot-stillers either, far from it. They were also to feel the impact of changing commercial practices and many famous single-malt names vanished from the landscape, either bought up by the large commercial companies or closed down from financial ruin. The important factor in the survival of the Scot’s pot-still industry was that their spirit formed the integral part of the blenders’ product so they would never be left to rot.

But back to the Irish, and whatever their individual reasons for rejecting Coffee were the decision left them on the side road while freeways were being paved. E.B. McGuire, author of Irish Whiskey, put it well when he said: ‘Irish pot distillers, who had traditionally dominated England and her global reaches, were too conservative to notice the changing of the whiskey landscape until the blended whiskies were firmly entrenched’.

McGuire’s words of industry traditionalism are brought to life in The Irish Whiskey Still, (pictured at top) painted in 1840 by David Wilkie. Even thought the work is now viewed as an exceptionally romantic and visually unrealistic impression the life and times of the average Irish person in the mid-19th century, the depiction of a rural Irish whiskey pot-still worked by a local family on a small scale is a window into an industry which at that very moment was stuck firmly in its ways.

Change, ’tis a comin’ lad

This changing of the whiskey landscape didn’t happen over night and it took until the end of the 19^th century for the blended market to usurp complete dominance. During this time Ireland was also beset a raft of serious troubles that would have probably hindered industry growth even if they’d accepted Coffee’s invention in the first place.

The Irish famines (1840s) virtually put the nation to a standstill. Successive failures of the humble potato crops - staple diet of the masses - put immediate pressure on the most basic of living standards. Mass emigration shed Ireland of millions. Domestic issues with imports of grain during and after the famines restricted the ability to feed the population let alone to actually distil. Increasingly Draconian alcohol taxes forced the Irish industry into a hard place and also forced the drinking public to source the cheapest tipple to sooth their woes. Gin from England’s continuous stills was often on the menu.

Between 1840-1860 around 50 per cent of Ireland’s distilleries closed and between 1830-1860 Ireland went from being the single biggest market for spirits in the British Isles to being the smallest. Increasingly vocal and politically influential temperance movements around Ireland also drew down on the consumption of hard spirits, denting market penetration on the home front. The waves of emigration did help to somewhat spread the presence of Ireland’s spirits and beer around the globe as wherever the Irish went it was asked for. However the changing economic and commercial nature of the whiskey industry would leave little room for sentimentality and Irish whiskey entered its Ice Age.

With the turn of the 20^th century things were looking bright for Europe. There was “dazzling hope” for all said Blainey is his Short History of the 20^th Century. Yet there were also, “dark, slowly shifting clouds hovered above the light.” For the Irish whiskey industry these clouds came in the form of two World Wars and a period of economic depression between them, a reduction of distillation volumes decreed by law during war time, violent political and armed conflict with England for the right of independence in the first quarter of the century and subsequent trade restrictions that booked Irish products out of the British market. There was also American prohibition.

During the First World War Britain seriously reduced its pot-still production; grains were scarce so the British Isles was hardly afforded the luxury of a dram. What favoured the column still industry was their operational capacities which produced a near pure alcohol that could be turned into cordite - a product used in explosives and artillery shells. The problem for the Irish pot-stillers (and the Scottish too) was that their industry was solely focused on production for one market - beverage consumption. The commercial continuous still firms also produced huge amounts of yeast for their operations and since regular imports of yeast (for home front necessities such as bread making) from mainland Europe were cut off they, turned this ability into more profit.

Ireland also began a serious campaign for independence (watch The wind that shakes the barley if you want an insight) in the early 1900s and by 1922 they had achieved a partitioned independent state from England. While this was victory of sorts industries subsequently found themselves blocked out of the British market making it harder to sell their goods - whiskey included. Following the First World War the USA was a Prohibition stronghold and Ireland’s spirit was no longer welcome. When the legislation was finally repealed exports once again began, however Scotch whisky had made significant inroads with savvy marketing. It was also cheaper than Ireland’s whiskey so the odds were stacked against it form the get go.

The turbulence of the next 50 years gave little opportunity for the Irish to re-enter the market in significant strength. Yet it has maintained its dignity and seems set to re-emerge in the 21^st century as a real identity in the whisk(e)y landscape. Company amalgamations, new marketing drives and up-to-date promotion campaigns have helped to keep the industry from disappearing and the story of its rebirth is very much alive today. So put the single-malt down for a minute and pick up an Irish. Whiskey that is. And let’s help pick this once whiskey giant up off the ground.

Written by Gary Regan
Drink well styled by Simon McGoram and photographed by Steve Brown

Warren Bobrow, a writer who bills himself as ‘cocktail whisperer’, wrote to introduce himself to me recently, saying that since he started writing about cocktails he has found that, “the world of bartenders and mixologists is a welcoming place with all types of personalities”.

He’s right. Bartenders tend to jump through hoops to make newcomers to the cocktailian community feel welcome, just as the best bartenders make newcomers to their bars feel at home.

I can’t remember the last time I heard mean-hearted gossip from a bartender. I’m starting to think that the men and women who hold forth from behind the stick are a breed unto themselves. Sure there are lots of big egos strutting their stuff behind bars, but that’s natural. Bartending is a look-at-me sort of a job, right?

Bartenders also tend to be good at giving credit where credit is due, so if someone puts a new twist on someone else’s drink, you can be near-as-darn-it certain that they’ll tell everyone where they got the idea. This sort of behaviour gladdens my little heart.

“I can’t remember the last time I heard mean-hearted gossip from a bartender.” Gary Regan

There’s a certain Canadian bartender, currently living in Seattle, by the name of Jamie Boudreau. Jamie and I have known each other for quite a few years. He’s known among bartender tribes as a man who knows his stuff when it comes to mixing and marrying flavours, and he’s a very creative sort, too. It’s not surprising, then, that many of his ideas get used by others. People like Brent Butler, for instance.

I’ve written about Butler, bartender at Blackbird in San Francisco. He seems to have a knack for creating drinks that tickle my fancy, and his Old Boy cocktail fits me like a Savile Row suit. It’s simple, it’s strong and it glides down the throat chanting psalms. Who could ask for more?

Brent uses a homemade syrup in the Old Boy, and he credits Jamie for giving him the idea. It seems that Jamie’s Old-Fashioned syrup, made with a bourbon or rye whiskey base, inspired Brent to make a rum syrup to use in his Old Boy.

I encourage you to actually make this rum syrup. It’s fairly easy to put together, and if you enjoy dabbling in the cocktailian craft, I’m betting that you’ll find plenty of uses for it.

The Old Boy cocktail calls for two base spirits; until recently this was fairly unusual. Brandy and rum are both featured in Between the Sheets, Tom and Jerry, and the Fish House Punch, but I think that the Old Boy is the first drink I’ve come across that calls for brandy and rye.

No doubt the concept will be mimicked. And no doubt Brent will be given credit.

Old Boy

• 45ml Brandy
• 45ml Rye whiskey
• 15ml Old-Fashioned Rum Syrup (see instructions)
• 1 orange twist as garnish

*Place brandy, whiskey and rum syrup in a mixing glass filled with thrice frozen ice cubes. Stir to dilute and strain into a crystal Old Fashioned glass brimming with ice chunks. Garnish with orange twist.

Adapted from a recipe by Brent Butler of Blackbird in San Francisco.

*Old-Fashioned Rum Syrup

In a non-reactive saucepan combine 3 1/2 ounces Angostura bitters, 7 ounces El Dorado 5-year-old or other aged rum and 2 cups light brown sugar. Stir frequently over a medium heat until the sugar dissolves. Cool to room temperature, then store in the refrigerator.

This Trend piece featured in the recent issue of Australian Bartender
By Simon McGoram

The Early Days

Natural carbonated waters have long been known by man and long too has their effervescence been believed to hold curative powers. Transporting naturally sparkling water from volcanic springs to an eager consumer base however had its limitations and much more so before the advent of the combustion engine. It was the popular demand and potential economic boon that led scientists to investigate impregnating non-fermented beverages with bubbles.

Joseph Priestley first discovered a way to infuse liquid with carbon dioxide bubbles by suspending a vessel of water over fermenting mash in 1767. It wasn’t until a German-born, naturalised Swiss watchmaker and tinkering scientist by the name of Jacob Schweppes gave it a crack that commercial applications became possible. Schweppes took Priestley’s learnings and invented a device to artificially carbonate water then founded the Schweppes Company in Geneva in 1783.

There were carbonated beverages around before Schweppes. Darcy O’Neil author of Fix the Pumps and The Art of Drink website tells us: “Before devices were created to artificially carbonate water, people realized they could duplicate the tingling sensation, though poorly, by combining sodium bicarbonate and tartaric acid in water. This resulted in a glass of fizzy saltwater similar to Alka-Seltzer.”

A real leap forward in the distribution of artificially carbonated waters was the invention of the soda siphon in 1813 by Charles Plinth. A pressurised bottle affixed with a valve meant that seltzers could be dispensed a glass at a time - a huge improvement from the cork.

Over the next two decades it even became viable for local pharmacists and street vendors to make soda water. A design by John Mathews in 1832 consisting of a lead lined tank where sulphuric acid and powdered marble (calcium carbonate) were mixed to produce carbon dioxide revolutionised the business. By 1836 there were estimated to be 670 soda draught fountains in New York City alone.

Quackery and the Rise of the Soda Fiend

The popularity of the soda fountain rose dramatically throughout the 19^th century. Carbonated waters were associated with health benefits and initially championed by the Temperance movement. Families, women and children could enter a drug store which traded during daylight hours - seemly the complete opposite of seedy saloon. But competition was fierce - prices needed to be kept low and your fountain’s range of flavours had to meet with the fad of the week. Soon all sorts of syrups, synthetic flavours and even grade-A narcotics where being added to the mix.

By the late 1870s American sodas fountains were being sold into Australian stores. The Maitland Mercury & Hunter River General Advertiser ran an interview with an un-named “prominent down-town druggist” who was asked about the syrups added to the artificially carbonated waters coming from fountains:

“In most cases they are unfit for drink, positively injurious, and very often made from an inferior quality of drugs. The so-called pure fruit syrups, in nine cases out of ten, do not contain a smell of the fruit they are supposed to be made of, but they are concocted with such skill as to deceive the sensitive taste.”

Druggists didn’t stop with artificial flavours. In the 19^th century most medicines came in liquid form so the soda fountain proved to be a great vehicle for the prescription side of their business.

“Drinking these medicines straight-up was probably a nasty experience,” explains O’Neil in his e-book Fix the Pumps, “but diluted with sweetened soda, these patent medicines were probably quite acceptable, even pleasurable”

It must be noted that at the time most medicines contained as much alcohol as any shot of whiskey with mixtures known as ‘nervines’ containing cocaine, strychnine, cannabis, morphine, opium, heroin, and other neurochemicals. Coca-Cola originally may have contained between 5mg to 10mg of cocaine per glass. To top it all off medicinal alcohol was tax free - so an imbiber could get his fix at a drug store for the fraction of the price found at the bar.

It’s also no small wonder that these flavoured sodas were highly addictive - in New York ‘brain workers’ - lawyers, accountants and brokers etc. - would come into a drugstore for a pick-me-up half a dozen times a day before clocking off work to load up on cocktails. These habitual soda drinkers became known as ’soda fiends’.

The Soda Jerk and the Decline of the Soda Fountain

In 1906, America’s Pure Food and Drug Act was implemented and saw the medical profession start to clean its act up. It put a dent in the soda business for pharmacists, but carbonated beverages were still in high enough demand that  most drugstores had to employ a ’soda jerk’ to dispense these beverages. Before Prohibition most of these soda jerks were young teenagers often called ’squirts’ after all the syrups they squirted into their sodas. When Prohibition hit in 1920 the country’s barkeeps were all made redundant in one foul swoop. Those that didn’t expatriate themselves or work in a speakeasy could often be found at a soda fountain - they were mostly more mature, more skilled and more charming than teenage soda jerks. They also had the ability to stay cool under pressure and maintain control of crowds and were much more appealing to the female clientele than spotty teenagers.

The soda fountain became such an important part of American culture that soda jerks developed their own code language to captivate the crowds. It’s during this time that terms still in used in the bar like ‘86′ for something that’s run out (or someone ‘cut- off’) and ‘in the weeds’ were invented.

By the end of Prohibition as punters headed back to the bar we start to see the decline of the traditional soda fountain. Women are now readily accepted into bars, pharmacists start to focus on prescribing medicine and pre-mixed sodas are available in myriad flavours from vending machines or straight from the local store. Soda culture still survives to some degree with re-usable soda siphons being used in many homes and the oft imitated 1950s American diner burns a small flame for the traditional soda fountain of old.

Soda Jerk Code

You want to talk like soda jerk? Try these on for size:

“One on the House”

Glass of water

“Go For a Walk”

Take-out

“Fix the Pumps”

See the girl with the large breasts

“Eighty-Seven and a Half”

Girl at table with legs conspicuously crossed or otherwise attractive

“Dining Room Lumber”

Toothpick

“Hold the Hail”

Soda without ice

“One Up”

Glass of beer

“Shake One in the Hay”

Strawberry milk shake

“White Bread”

Manager or boss

The Siphon Returns

In the ’80s and ’90s even the soda siphon fell by the wayside. Sure a few homes were lucky enough to have a Soda Stream, but by in large the device which got the whole soda business on the road in the first place almost disappeared.

The siphon though has for the last couple of years made a real return to the bar-room. Jason Williams, Bartender magazine’s Bartender of the Year 2010 and Keystone’s Group Cocktail Manager reckons it’s another way for modern bartenders and cocktail programs to show off their creativity and gourmet approach while showcasing their knowledge of old world bar room techniques.

“There is also a great element of theatre” adds Williams. “Bartenders and cocktail enthusiasts might be familiar with soda siphons, but the general consumer might not have ever seen one in use and it gets people talking when there is a siphon on the table or used in preparation of one’s cocktail.”

Soda siphons are used at Sydney’s theloft to serve ‘Soda Pop Punches’ - basically a litre of punch served from the siphon.

“It’s a balance between the alcohol, sugar and acid but the light carbonation is there and guests are loving it” explains Williams.

Williams sights better quality of flavoured soda - ginger being a sterling example - as a real benefit of using a siphon though he adds the caveat that; “why would you need to make a tonic when there are such good bottled products out there?”

Some great gadgets are now available overseas too like the Perlini that allows you to carbonate beverages with its patent shaker design.

“A few bars in the states have gas tanks in the bar and use them to carbonate all their drinks,” comments Williams. “Lot 308 in Nashville have a fully rigged up bar with each station having a holster with a gun connected to a bank of CO2 tanks out the back. They simply make syrups, add to a plastic bottle, fizz with the gun shake up then pour out the drink.”

Fix the Pumps

Fix the Pumps by Darcy O’Neil is the authoritative work on soda available today. Buy a copy online at artofdrink.com to find out how to make goodies like phosphate sodas, lacarts and more.

This Bar Profile feature appeared in the recent April issue of Australian Bartender
By Edward Washington

Address: 1 Malthouse Lane, Melbourne
Web: eaudevie.com.au
Phone: 0412 825 441

“We believe that cocktails can be better matched for food than both beer and wine, albeit being far more complicated to orchestrate.” Greg Sanderson, co-owner EDV Melbourne

EDV’s flow on effect

There’s safety in numbers right? Well for multi-venue operator Sven Almenning that’s a phrase he’s certainly tempting having recently opened two new venues, EDV in Melbourne and The Roosevelt in Sydney. Off the back of Eau de Vie’s (Sydney) successes the same formula has shifted south to what has long been pegged as Australia’s cocktail state; and by all accounts the new venue is doing well.

Sven Almenning is the founder and director of Behind Bars and was the driving force behind the first Eau de Vie concept: which won Best Cocktail Bar in 2011 at the Australian Bar Awards and Best Cocktail Bar in the World at Tales of the Cocktail in the same year. For the second round of his ‘water of life’ styled bar Almenning has partnered with well known Melbourne identity Greg Sanderson, a stalwart industry figure who’s been on the scene for over a decade as both bartender extraordinaire and bar trainer.

Spruiking a new bar in Melbourne’s red hot bar scene is sure to be an ever present challenge, even for the like of these guys so what are they bringing to the table apart from cracking cocktails and a veritable wealth of product knowledge?

“Our aim is to offer fantastic service in a comfortable environment,” says Sanderson. “World class drinks, amazing food and dinning experiences with a booze selection that hurts your neck to look at.”

Ok. Sounds like the same recipe for success that’s got Sydney’s venue into the headlines, but is there anything new to the mix? “We are doing everything that the Sydney venue is doing with the added bonus of an excellent kitchen,” Sanderson adds. So that’s it then, food glorious food! So what’s on the menu?

“We’re offering a full tapas menu and we serve food all the way up to closing time at 1am,” Sanderson explains. “Of course we also offer our degustation dinner on the degustation table - the table seats up to 18 guests in one sitting and everyone eats the same food and drinks the same drinks.”

For the team behind EDV there’s more to the name than a trendy catch phrase, these guys really believe in the words (or the letters in this case). Eau de vie is a French term, as any bartender worth their mixing spoon should know, for ‘water of life’ - the moniker for distilled spirits - and it is something that Sanderson takes very seriously.

“As we’re a spirits and cocktail bar we believe not only in the healing benefits of good booze, but also that this name represents our craft and our purpose,” says Sanderson. This strongly held belief also translates into the style and quality of the drinks service. Cocktails are lovingly concocted with an air of respect, and drinks are poured and stirred as though their very molecular structure may disintegrate if heavy hands are carelessly used.

In a city that backs itself on its cocktails, what have these guys got that gives them some weight? What’s the difference between their place and the next best venue down the road? Sanderson explains: “EDV’s main point of difference is, we believe, its vision and the commitment we have to providing great service and offering exceptional drinking experiences to our customers.”

“The [EDV concept] is not about being cool, it’s not about interior design, it’s all about the drinks we serve and the experiences our guests have when enjoying them.” How do they go about giving this ‘experience’? “Amongst other things we use vintage cocktail shakers and serving vessels. We’ve had custom made liquid nitrogen taps installed at the bar and use only the best quality ice and ingredients.”

On those custom made nitro taps Sanderson admits that they did cost a small fortune and might have been a touch extravagant, “no bar really needs liquid nitrogen on tap,” he says with his tongue in his cheek. However, get him started and he can’t talk them up enough. “God damn [it's] cool - you can’t argue with the theatre it creates and a the taste of a super chilled nitro punch is rocking!”

Still on the differences that’ll give EDV an edge in such a competitive market, Sanderson talks more about the food they’re offering. “Our five course Cocktail Degustation is another unique offering which sets us apart from other bars and restaurants in the area. We believe that cocktails can be better matched for food than both beer and wine, albeit also far more complicated to orchestrate.

From the outset the Almenning’s vision for the Eau de Vie brand was to be more about making a statement and less about ‘being a business’, according to Sanderson. “Eau-de-Vie was all about creating a venue where people walk away talking about the amazing drinking experiences they had rather than about the music, the crowd or the design.”

The time between finding a site in Melbourne and pouring the first well-crafted Martini took about five months, testament perhaps to the emphasis on drinks and food quality and not spending excessive time on complicated aesthetics, “bars unfortunately tend to focus on most things but the drinks,” laments Sanderson.

It is a truth that often enough a new bar’s impressive design belies its ability to offer tasty and ‘on-trend’ treats. Justin Hemmes (winner of the 2011 Bartender Magazine Most Influential List) once said, “you could open a room with black walls and no windows - but put a fantastic bartender in there and it’ll be a happening place.”

Not that EDV is drab - far from it with fine touches of artwork and well thought out decorative pieces - but the focus for the team is the food and drinks they serve and the way they serve them.

“Cocktails are king at EDV,” Sanderson proudly states. “We have an extensive cocktail list of signature drinks and a huge range of spirits with a whisky focus.” Mixing up the drinks is a pretty solid line-up too, including: Jamie Chesher (ex- Seamstress and The New Market), Josh Crawford (ex-Golden Monkey, and Cookie), Kash Wall (ex-Golden Monkey) and Claire Wong (ex-Spice market).

So with all this talent behind the bar and an open determination to serve the best cocktail experience money can buy who’s breaking down the doors for a night on the inside? “The clientele demographic is very broad ranging” Sanderson states. “It ranges from the cocktail enthusiast to someone wanting to try our cocktails even if they don’t know much about them, but just want a great experience.”

All in all EDV’s offering is going to suit you whether you’re a veteran cocktail know-it-all, or a novice. What’s even more assured is that the team, headed by Sanderson, will strive to give you an unforgettable experience - and that’s what a good night out is all about.

By Edward Washington

Voted ‘Most likely be popular 2012′ - onward

It’s no secret that at present the cider market is experiencing the giddy heights of popularity, but just how giddy?

Well take a look at some of these numbers courtesy of the 2011 Nielsen Cider Report: national cider sales increased 34.7% in value terms and 23.2% in volume terms over in 12 months, this was set against an annual decrease of 0.5% that the liquor market is experiencing. The cider category on a whole is also growing rapidly, with some 45+ new cider brands emerging into the Australian market over the last 12-14 months.

Cider, according to many industry experts, is transforming the drinking landscape. Its popularity transcends gender and age profiles that might be used to target sales and marketing; plus it is also experiencing a large amount of positive public attention (through social media) generated outside of the control of  those responsible for marketing it. So the brands’ various messages are getting through and convincing others to pass them on.

“Cider’s growth reflects a significant shake up of the Australian drinking landscape; one that is perhaps reflective of a new generation of ‘Aussie drinker’ coming into the market.”

So what is driving cider’s popularity?

Well, opportunities to drink lower alcohol products are now becoming more and more important to the consumer (on average cider will be a touch lower in abv than beer); important health concerns - with cider being made from apples, pears and other various fruits - are addressed; cultural experiences are driving consumer trends (many people now travel to Europe where cider is popular and sociable); developing consumption trends (people are often now choosing specific drinks for different occasions) gave cider an opportunity to develop a strong market presence at time when people were looking for new options; and finally the flood of social media and the constant, referencing of cider - not brand specific-but category specific - in the ‘twitterfacebookgooglesphere’ helps to support the image and growth of the category in general - if it’s on twitter it must be cool right?

There’s also the notion that at the moment cider drinkers are not showing a great deal of ‘brand loyalty’, and this helps too. People are still making up their minds about which ones they like, what they’ve tried, how to drink it and just what this new category is all about - so it’s an opportune time  for a company to get their cider in front of as many people as possible. The cider companies (national or international, big or small) that capitalise on this highly inquisitive nature of Australia’s cider drinkers will certainly come out doing well.

What will be interesting to see over the next five to ten years is how cider producers react to the boom of growth and product popularity. At the moment the popularity of cider is a hugely significant factor for the Australian market - evidenced by the rapid addition of multiple new brands to the market - and the brands with solid distribution outlets, market savvy and promotional ability will reap the rewards of consumer thirst.

However as consumer category knowledge grows will they demand and hunt out more variation, range and complexity with what’s offered? The growth of the craft beer category set against the slight decline of the commercial beer category is surely a case where gradual consumer education finally impacted on the market. However small.

Similarly, as drinking trends develop and evolve, will larger market players continue to dominate volume figures and will well-executed, professional marketing pitches drive consumer choice? Or will larger volume companies make significant moves into the ‘craft’ cider market (as has happened with the beer market) and consumer generated promotion and publicity do a lot of the selling for them?

Large companies moving into the ‘craft’ category brings with it both product variation and wide distribution capabilities, and that’s a consumer win. As for the product’s marketing: the category’s current growth reflects a significant shake up of the Australian drinking landscape, one that is perhaps reflective of a new generation of ‘Aussie drinker’ coming into the market.

If this new generation claims cider as ‘theirs’, it might be a case of consumer generated social media, and smart placement on behalf of the various cider brands into this sphere, that is the most effective sales device and one that matches Gen Y to a tee.

Rekorderlig  Swedish Cider

Tapping into the new generation of drinker is the aim of Rekorderlig’s latest ‘Beutifully Swedish’ campaign where they blend the tradition of the Sweden’s cider history with the dynamic cool of the new age blogger. The brand was launched in 1999 and has been available in Australia through Red Island Marketing for the last 18 months.

Novel ways to serve it in your bar might be to jazz it up in a cocktail, or to simply serve tall over ice and garnish with various fruits and citrus - similar to your traditional ‘Cobbler’ style cocktail. Rekorderlig offers a wide range of flavours: Strawberry & lime, Wild Berry, Winter Cider, Mango & Raspberry (*new) as well as the more traditional apple and pear styles.

*With winter around us well before it’s time, perhaps a good dose of the Winter Cider slightly warmed will help combat the chill. A touch of Grand Marnier or Cointreau with some cloves and cinnamon might be an admirable addition.

Magners Original Irish Cider

Suntory’s Magners is traditionally well known for its heritage Irish style and classic apple and pear ciders. Recently however they have showed that even the most established companies can move with the times by releasing their Magners Selections - original apple and pear cider expertly blended with rich, natural flavours including ginger, honey, orange peel, berries and peach.

The base for Magners apple cider comes from 17 different varieties of apples, which are juiced and fermented in oak vats and left for up to two years to age and develop complexity. This long-standing and fastidious practice dates back to the 1930s when a young and talented William Magners, from Tipperary, Ireland, began making the cider that would one day bear his name.

*Need refreshment? Why not muddle some fresh peaches, dark berries, a little sugar and some vodka. Give it a shake, pour over ice and top with a good dash of Magners Berries & Peach Selections. Garnish with ripe peach of course!

Kopparberg Swedish Cider

Cider is a Swedish tradition; indeed some think that the whole category grew from this part of the world. Kopparberg has a long history dating back to 1882 when a group of locals from the town of Kopparberg amalgamated to form the brewery that still runs today and produces Koppaberg.

One of the main reasons the region being such a prominent producer of cider is their most valued resource: a constant stream of ’soft’ water which runs underground. We’re all familiar now with what ’soft’ water is - water that’s devoid of impurities and a low mineral content - and how fantastic it is for use in brewing and distilling. From its humble beginnings over 100 years ago Kopparberg cider are now available around the world and the company produces, pear cider, apple cider as well as a various mix of fruit ciders, with lime and elderflower additions too.

*If you’re planning on serving the Kopparberg pear cider tall over some crushed ice then perhaps a small splash of sours and some slices of ripe pear will finish it off nicely. If you’ve got the time, why not carimalise the pears in some brown sugar?

This article featured in the recent March issue of Australian Bartender
By Philip Duff

Big drinks brands are managed in a boringly safe way. The reason is that everyone in a big firm who is not an oxygen thief wants the top job, plus the jingling sack of gold and reverential deference accorded the leader.

Lacking innovation. No creativity? Then apply here.

To get there, you have to be known as a likeable, positive person. Nothing else will do. Competence at your job is not an important factor. Cultivating this likeable, sunny-side-up world view includes never being the boy who cries wolf when a terrible idea is presented, especially when it’s presented by your boss. That’s why shit stuff gets made.

Large firms are unable to innovate, so instead they outsource not only the concept of R&D, but also the entrepreneurial spirit of an innovator, to agencies or to the Mergers & Acquisitions department, buying anything that’s made waves in the drinks media as soon as it tops 100,000 9-liter case equivalents,

So, a fantastic opportunity for nimble small, entrepreneurial brands to do cool stuff in lieu of having a big-boys Advertising & Promotion budget, right? Well, yes, but you need a plan, and daring is all. As a small brand, you have nothing to lose - like a teenager, you’ve never known real pain, so just as pubescent skater boys attempt 720s above a concrete deck, you are able to risk all.

You do not need to worry about being sued and made an example of by a government agency or even by a consumer; you don’t care if you are threatened with a boycott that may lose you 100,000 customers, because you don’t have any customers to lose. You have nothing to lose. It is your only strength.

A problem I’ve seen lately is that such brands are already anticipating being bought by big firms and have an only slightly daring take on things. They are like secretaries ordering Cosmopolitans instead of Fuzzy Navels and thinking themselves cutting-edge fashionistas. I recently evaluated a new whiskey brand for a potential client. It had an attractive, colourful, different appearance and layers upon layers of detail, but not one thing stood out.

The label imagery looked like a cross between the album cover for Appetite for Destruction and a David LaChappelle photoshoot. There was no back story. It was only interesting - not fascinating. They were hoping, my prospective client (a small start-up) continued, that the esoteric mildly-titillating imagery would appeal to the gay and lesbian community. I looked at it again. Nope. Time to kick it up a notch.

I suggested they call it Anal Sex Whiskey. Now, granted, this will not challenge Jim Beam’s case sales anytime soon. And I can imagine a thousand or so gay people being outraged. But as a brand you’d be on CNN and BBC within days, wouldn’t you? Every media outlet on the planet would report it. People would firebomb your office. CNN and BBC would film that too. Markets would clamour for it.

Doubtless the more confidently gay people would order it, in order to ?own? it, as would the influential early-adopters of both genders, plus those in-between. You would polarise opinion, but the attention for your brand would be enormous. There is literally no end to the advertising slogans a half-competent chimp could come up with if the brand was that iconoclastic. (I just had a brainwave for a bottle-shot advert with the headline “Anal Sex Whiskey - Stings A Bit At First!“, with body text that goes on to explain the delicious-yet-challenging bite of the whiskey’s rye and other small grains. Genius!).

One or two years later you’d sell ASW to one of the Big Four, and cash in on all that notoriety. The brand would then be handed to an MBA graduate who would tame it down, make all the advertising compliant not only with the laws but with the Big Four company’s internal marketing code (sometimes referred to as the Dear God Please Don’t Sue Us department) and all the notoriety would fade.

At first the sales would appear to be stable, because the Big Company would push it out through its vast and submissive distribution network, but little by little, month by month, both sales of and attention for the brand would dwindle, and no-one would rejuvenate it. This is because if anyone at the company knew how to rejuvenate such a brand, or were allowed to, the company wouldn’t have had to buy a brand like that in the first place. Four years on it would be re-branded as AS Whiskey and begin a slow, helpless slide into competing on price alone.

If you’re going to be a bear, be a grizzly. Go on, Anal Sex Whiskey. You know it make sense. At the very least you’ll have a few laughs. OK then, one last ad: photo of the bottle next to a shotglass full of the whiskey, next to a cold, sweating glass of amber beer - a boilermaker, if you will. Headline: “Anal Sex Goes Better With A Little Lubrication“. Thanks, I’m here all week. Try the fish!

This article featured in the recent March issue of Australian Bartender

By Edward Washington

The most valuable thing I learned while teaching was if you’re not getting the right answers, then you’re probably asking the wrong questions. So if you’re asking guests what wine they’d like to drink and the frustratingly reoccurring answer is still Savvy B - then it’s time you rephrased.

Sure customer choice will ultimately guide the decision but there’s no harm in showcasing something that educates and adds to their experience in your venue. Some research recently published in Wine Australia: Directions to 2025 highlighted a few good points that could be handy if you’re trying to work out what to sell in 2012 and how to sell it.

Marketers noted 1) Consumers are increasingly interested in experimentation and experiences when buying alcohol. 2) These same consumers are also making noticeable moves toward trying new and interesting varietals and there’s growth in the wine market coming from aromatic styles of light wines. 3) Women are noted for being more involved in the decision making process, as well as making more ultimate decisions when it comes to what’s served.

So what does this tell us? First up it suggests that customers are probably more receptive to staff suggestions than you might think. It also hints that consumers’ palates are appreciating food-friendly wine styles and that they’re putting thought into their selections based on their experiences.

Finally, it suggests you should give the wine list to women, or at least pose your question about ‘what would you like to drink’ to them. Men are pretty dull, predictable creatures on the whole and will often choose the obvious. Women are often more open to something new and exciting.

“I believe Grüner Veltliner has a terrific future in Australia,” Marc Dobson - winemaker Hahndorf Hill.

Of course you’ll need to preface any sale by introducing this great new wine you have on hand tonight - say a Grüner Veltliner - and explain that its dry, yes dry, and not at all sweet (unless it is), and that its well balanced and it’s from a this family winery…etc. etc., but if you give a guest confidence in a wine0 through your confidence you’ll sell it and they’ll walk away with that venue experience we all hope they will.

What the hell should people drink in 2012?

First up. Riesling. Just push it (be Machiavellian if need be). A nation of Riesling drinkers will be happier, more productive, better in bed, more economically astute and down right more satisfied with life. Riesling is the ‘trade-wine’ that sommeliers love to sell to people who would never choose it, although consumer awareness is peaking because of international movements like the Summer of Riesling (just wrapped up in February). Good examples abound our shores but the single vineyard Rieslings from Frankland Estate in Western Australia piqued my interest recently while drinking at Love Tilly Devine in Sydney - they’re also making a lot of other people sit up and take notice too so keep them in mind. Take the challenge this year and sell more Riesling.

2011 Frankland Estate ‘Netley Road Vineyard’ Riesling
Frankland River, Western Australia 12% abv

Second. Grüner Veltliner. An Austrian stalwart, but making inroads in Australia, this wine thrives where Riesling flourishes. One name to watch is Hahndorf Hill in the Adelaide Hills and Hahndorf’s winemaker, Marc Dobson, is confident the variety has what it takes to progress. “I believe Grüner Veltliner has a terrific future in Australia,” Dobson stated. “The Adelaide Hills’ unique combination of cool climate and high diurnal variation provides perfect growing conditions for this grape.”

2011 Hahndorf Hill ‘GRU’ Grüner Veltliner
Adelaide Hills, South Australia 12% abv

The variety has a particular reputation as a food-friendly wine and Dobson insists that it’s a great option by the glass. “It’s particularly good with Asian-inspired cuisine and adding Grüner to a wine list will allow the [venue] to introduce their customers to a new, cutting-edge variety.” There are certainly some top-notch Austrian examples doing the rounds, but try to hunt down a local one. You’ll get that warm fuzzy feeling from selling something Australian Made.

2010 Philip Shaw ‘The Dreamer’ Viognier
Orange, New South Wales 10.2% abv

Lastly. Viognier. Most wine drinkers would have had it (blended into Shiraz in varying proportions) however not many people would reach for it by the bottle. But why not? It’s a cracker wine, lovely with foods and has some terrific flavour characteristics like, apricot, ginger, lychees, pear and it should be fresh, clean and floral. Depending on what the winemaker wants, you’ll find it’s either fermented completely in stainless steel and the bottled, or it might see some oak and lees treatment to give it more complexity.

Different Aussie regions and vintages will showcase variation in style so it’d be best to grab a few and match them off against each other. If you’re looking off-shore and want something top notch hunt down some Viognier from Condrieu. It’s a tiny Viognier appellation in the Rhone Valley, France. Chateau-Grillet is an even smaller Viognier AOC within Condrieu and all 9.4 acres is owned by the one winery.

This Editor’s Page appeared in the February issue of Australian Bartender
By David Spanton

Another iconic Aussie company gets taken over…

Throw another shrimp on the barbie! Yes that hugely successful 80s TV commercial, made famous by big time bogan Paul Hogan, conjures up the image of a bunch of Aussie blokes and sheilas drinking Foster’s and wielding tongs on a hot summer’s day. The reason I bring it up is that Fosters is as much of an internationally recognisable icon as ‘The Hoges’ is and the Fosters portfolio of beer brands has a long and successful history that dates back to 1832 when the Cascade Brewery was founded in Tasmania. In 1854 their premier beer, VB, was first brewed in Victoria and not long after flagship beer Foster’s (that no Aussies actually drink, mind you) was first brewed by two yanks in 1888.

Fosters has been in the news a bit lately and not for positive reasons. It is upsetting to see yet another historic Australian-owned liquor company gobbled up by an international brewery in a hostile takeover. I just think it’s a travesty that poor management by Foster’s has lead to us losing control of yet another iconic Australian company.

The reality is that for the past decade at least they have been a company not knowing if they were coming or going with catastrophic investments into wine and multi-platform selling into venues plus their complete failure to make any in-roads into the fast growing craft beer segment. Let’s not forget Fosters trying to compete with the experienced spirit suppliers too, which didn’t seem to go anywhere unless you liked the idea of bottom of the barrel brands in your bar.

Add to the fact that in 10 plus years Bartender magazine has never worked with any brands from Fosters tells me that there was little interest in seriously connecting with, and educating, their biggest sales force - Australian bartenders. All of this screams to me ‘too big and no idea’ and unfortunately they, and Australia, have paid the price for their poor management.

“The reality is that for the past decade at least they have been a company not knowing if they were coming or going with catastrophic investments into wine and multi-platform selling into venues plus their complete failure to make any in-roads into the fast growing craft beer segment.” David Spanton

You see Australians take their beer seriously and while I’m sure most of the Foster’s brands will stay in the market and not much will change, we also like the idea that something is owned by Australians and when the profits stay in the country. When something with so much history and connection to Australian culture loses it way and gets taken over I, like many Australians, see that as a real shame even though I’m sure new owner SAB Miller (the worlds second largest Brewery after InterBev) will do a much better job running the business based on their success around the world.

It’s worth highlighting that South Australia’s Coopers Brewery can now lay claim to being Australia’s largest ‘Australian made & owned’ brewer even if they were less than 1/10 of the size of Foster’s before it was sold. That being said Coopers makes great beers and after Lion Nathan’s recent failed hostel takeover I’m told they have infrastructure in place that makes them virtually impervious to other takeover bids.

That is unless your Rupert Murdoch who I’m sure could find and a way to still get it!

By David & Amy Spanton

The way I see it is that Bali is Asia’s version of Ibiza but a little more chaotic. It is actually a third world country too so things like traffic and pollution can be a little bit confronting for many first time visitors. In saying that there is no doubting that Bali (if you take away Kuta) is a beautiful island with much to see and much to do and that is why Bali can lay claim to being the party destination of south west Asia.

Bali is truly an international destination. It attracts visitors from all over the world including huge numbers of Japanese, Russians, Dutch, and French and of course Australians - unfortunately the latter don’t have the best reputation due to their well-deserved trouble making ways (at least try saying you’re a Kiwi if your having trouble getting into a club). Think planeloads of bogan Bathurst 100 supporters and Jim Beam & Cola Can drinkers all wearing Bintang shirts and braded hair running amuck. That’s our typical Aussie visitor.

Bogans aside Amy and I are lucky enough to frequent the island regularly and we like to keep up with the latest bars and restaurants. The following is our review of what’s new in the land of the gods.

Mama San
Seminyak

At the time of writing this Mama San was only a few weeks old but it was already the hottest new place in town and you needed to book a week in advance to get a table. That’s not surprising as Mama San (the name given to a madam of authority in an Asian gentleman’s club) is the brain child of Chef Will Merrick who also owns another one of Bali’s leading restaurant bars called Sarong (profiled in last year’s Bali round up). The hard working Merrick was also the head chef who helped launch Jimmy Licks back in Sydney many years ago.

With its retro vintage design Mama San is split over two levels and the casual restaurant dinning downstairs serves classic eat treats from an array of Asian countries.  Upstairs was designed to feel like a bourgeois gentleman’s club. I must say they have done a fantastic job and it’s a very different offering for Bali. The cocktail selection of sweetly driven drinks is popular for the climate, and has a focus on ‘old classics with a twist’.  It even has a page dedicated to frozen Daiquiris! I don’t care how hot it gets it’s never time for a frozen strawberry Daiquiri.

Blenders aside this place is a must visit just remember to make a reservation before you arrive.

Word of Mouth
Seminyak

My cynicism always bubbles up when a bar is described as ‘part designer store’. And Word of Mouth is just that. Add to the mix that it recently won the title of best new bar by a popular local fashion and travel magazine I began to wonder if, maybe, such a synergy could actually work? Well the short answer is no no no. And let me tell you why.

Even if the fashion store showcases ’sexy and cool stuff’ as they bestow online they have no idea about running a bar and it shows with the poor set up and lack of staff (yes, a bar needs a full time bartender not store consultants!). There was nothing good to say about this place to be honest so I can only assume its owner is getting shagged by the magazine publisher who awarded them best new bar, or they advertise a hell of a lot, as it makes as much sense as a DJ’s food court winning a best restaurant award.

You might like to check it out and see for yourself but my suggestion is save your money and get back on your bike and head directly to Mama San.

Red Carpet Champagne Bar
Seminyak

This place opened just over 12 months ago and ever since then we have been puzzled by the crowds. Expats we know, even my brother who lived here for many years, said that this place was hot. Now in all honesty it looks like a dog’s breakfast. It’s a strange red and white Champagne bar in busy Seminyak with girls dressed like raunched up tobacco-tray ladies of last century. There is also one of these in Singapore so maybe that explains the crowds. Anyway, after much reluctance we decided to give it a whirl. It has a massive Champagne selection yet there’s only Moet Brut by the glass, there are a few half bottles too to be fair, but it’s pretty slim pickings.

Wine is super expensive in Bali - ludicrously so - so we usually stick to the beers. Being a Champagne bar however we couldn’t resist sampling a half bottle of the Billecart
Salmon Rose which is one of our favourites. Touted on the menu as the best Champagne in the world we thought it had to be a nice bit of an indulgence. On the first smell, then the taste, the bubbles were disappointingly sour and mouldy. So, we sent it back. It was as if this had never happened before and the staff seemed baffled about what to do. First the bartender tastes it and then the glass disappears and the snooty French manager/owner returns to the table and starts regaling us on the finer points of the Billecart-Salmon house style… blah blah blah.

The upshot of his tirade was that he will not be cracking open another bottle for us, nor will he be taking this bottle off the bill. To add insult, the much-sipped glass (valued at about $40) was left on the table for us to finish. Now, I know the old wine return situation can be a little bit sticky, especially when you’re dealing with expensive wine. But rather than belittling your guests, perhaps he could have said: “Listen, I think this bottle is a fine example and given the expense I’d prefer not to open another one of the same as I think it would taste the same, perhaps you’d like to try something else from our menu, maybe even a couple of beers!??”

So, completely turned off, we left our revolting Champagne sweltering on the table, paid our $130 and declared never to return. Life is too short to drink bad Champagne.

Karma Beach

Batu Belig Beach, Batu Belig

Now, before I start, I have to admit a little bias for this place. Not that we know anyone involved or anything like that but simply because it’s on the beach, just a short walk from our villa. When we built our villa Batu Belig beach was a wasteland, now there are restaurants stretching along the sand and this one is the newest. Slated to open on NYE, the poor management team had to contend with a huge week of thunderstorms and torrential rain and many of their opening parties were cancelled.

I tend to have low expectations of fancy places in Bali and so I was really pleasantly surprised with this one. Trying to bring a bit of the Mediterranean seaside life to Bali, it certainly stacks up in the charm department. Yeah, the name sucks (this is not the 90s) but it’s pretty comfy, they have nice staff, the food’s good (we had a capricciosa pizza and some calamari), the music is awesome (classic old school tunes and a guy backing it up with live trumpet) and it’s one of the better places to sip on a Cuba Libra (smoke a cigar, if you’re Dave) and watch the sun go down.

On the downside January and February are the rainiest times of year in Bali so when the heavens open this place is pretty ill-equipped, and its thatched roofing offers little protection from the rain. I bet come August (which is considered Bali’s summer and is also the busiest month for tourism) this place will be absolutely pumping and bookings will be a must. Definitely give this one try!

La Barca

Batu Belig Beach, Batu Belig

Most Bali beaches outside Kuta have been quiet locations with maybe a few small warongs (local eat houses) for surfers and off-the-track travellers. Not so for Batu Belig which has been transforming drastically over the past 18 months with a host of beach bars opening up as the area booms with luxury villas and its prestigious new beach neighbour the W Hotel.

One such addition is La Barca which that opened its doors (if it had any) recently in August 2011. Since then it has been making an impression on locals and tourists alike offering good service, fresh food and a more than acceptable drinks selection. What has really given this place an edge is their rustic nautical design. If you’re walking along the beach you would swear it’s an old rusted ship wreak that they have converted into a bar. It is very cool and on a balmy night or even for sunset drinks this place is unbeatable.

Add to the fact I give it the vote for the ‘coldest Bintang in Bali’ (and only $2) and trust me this is a big deal. There’s nothing worse than a warm lager especially in the tropics! If you’re with a few bartender friends why not bunker down and order something by the bottle say Jack Daniels Single Barrel for only 1,500M (say $120AUD)? This is a steal if you consider how hard it is to get spirits in Bali and the fact in Duty Free it will also set you back close to $90. Don’t do Bali without a night at La Barca.

Naught Nuris

Batu Belig

The original first opened a few hours inland in yoga loving Ubud (just follow the smell of incense and you will find it) back in 1996 and now a sister establishment has been opened in Batu Belig. Naughty Nuris has been attracting a cult like following for their BBQ pork ribs and would you believe their Martinis.

I have tried both and can claim hand on heart that they are the best ribs in Bali and well worth ordering. However having recently travelled around middle American in 2011 I can say that while they’re great for Bali they don’t come close to what the yanks dish up.  Put that aside it’s still a darn fine rack and much appreciated if you want a change from ‘Indo-style’ food.

The second point about their Martinis is that the well-respected traveller Mr Anthony Bourdain was supposedly quoted as saying it was the ‘best Martini outside New York’. Wow! All I can say is Anthony you need to stick to what is on the plate as their Martinis and cocktails in general are fucking terrible and I come here often enough to feel that I didn’t miss the shift that Dick Bradsell must have done for you to say such a thing.

Nevertheless, that one quote has more than doubled their business and good luck to them to capitalise on it if he did actually say it.  Martinis and ribs aside this place is fantastic for atmosphere and good simple food even if it’s a bit touristy. You can also thank Mr Bourdain for the constant selling of Martinis. You will no doubt be told several times how amazing they are by your waiter!

Potato Head Beach Club

Petitenget

Opening in late 2011 no other Bali bar created so such hype and excitement than Potato Head. I know what you’re thinking. Yes the name is terrible but it kind of grows on you I think and when you see the set up of the place you understand that the name counts for little. It’s the design and layout of this place that blows you away. I would say it’s bigger than many resorts on the island yet without accommodation.

It’s kind of like the Ivy (Sydney) of Bali with a host of bars and restaurants dotted around the stunning amphitheatre which focuses on the beach and the spectacular sunsets that Bali’s west coast is famous for. Now that is a few positives about Potato Head but unfortunately there are way too many negatives about this place for me to want to spend much time there, other than to show visiting guests a bar with an almighty wow factor. Unfortunately this place, more than most, gets filled with trashy bogans many of which are Australian and their lack of a door policy is scaring away the more discerning drinkers who are not looking to cause trouble. Add to the mix the large number of families and their kids who attend and cram the pool bar screaming and carrying on. It just screams Club Med!

What I will say is that the cocktail list is the best on the island at the moment and that’s all thanks to internationally renowned Dre Massa who designed a smart mix of drinks that doesn’t shy away from pushing the dark spirits. This is a welcome change from the super sweet drinks that so many bars in Bali focus on. My final gripe is by the time we found a bar to get a drink we were asked three times if we had a reservation. Reservation for what? To get into the bar? Walk over the lawn or pass by the minimum spend day beds? Compare this with Ku De Ta - the bar that has been the top destination for over a decade until Potato Head arrived - in that when you arrive you get a welcome and a smile from gracious hosts. My suggestion is that you have to visit this place just for its design alone. But other than that, better service and bogan-free crowds can be found at many other bars in beautiful Bali.

Babi Guling Warong’s

There’s nothing new about Babi Guling but I just had to include it as they are everywhere in Bali and for good reason - they service nothing but heavenly suckling pig. Babi guling translates to ‘baby pig’ in Balinese and these little warongs (Balinese for eating house) let nothing go to waste serving up pieces of pork belly, fried ears, typical offal and of course the must-have crackling that is rolled up in the window just teasing you to try and drive past without a bite!

I would guess that most visitors on their first trip would avoid eating in this kind of place simply based on how basic the set up normally is. But don’t be fooled because they know what they are doing and it’s fresh. So drop in and ask for a mixed plate and Bintang or fresh squeezed juice (set you back about $4) and enjoy. Watch out the soups are always rocking spicy!