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Talisker  - Made by the Sea

Neighbourhood Bondi

Sydney, Australia

May 3, 2018

Talisker.

One of the triumvirates of whiskies that Robert Louis Stevenson claimed to be the king of drinks.

A classic Scotch whisky distillery located on the Isle of Skye, with the H2O for their single malts being sourced directly from the springs above the distillery and their swan neck lye pipes, which make some of the alcohol condense before reaching the cooler to be distilled again.

Matured in American oak cask, which gives Talisker its idiosyncratic complex aromas and flavours are enhanced by a medium peating level.

Now,Talisker is not unknown to your humble narrator – the 18-year old variety has been one of my long-term favourite single malts, so one anticipated great things from the evening at Neighbourhood Bondi, which was going to introduce both connoisseurs and the uniniated to the range of Talisker’s offerings along with curated food pairings.

Neighbourhood Bondi, under the benign guidance of the charismatic Simon McGoram, known from having been the helm of Gardel’s Bar in Surry Hills, is a gem of a bar: Unpretentious yet with depth, stylish yet unimposing with welcoming and knowledgeable staff that makes you feel at ease.

The backyard of Neighbourhood Bondi with its retractable roof proved to be the ideal location for a night of quality drops under the stars.

Culinary delights came courtesy of Matt Ouwerkerk, who heads the Highgate food and beverage team in Canberra, and who has not only become known for his low carb yet highly flavourful and protein rich share plates but also for his credo to deliver casual dining experiences done well.

The four-course degustation - comprised of Smoked Trout, Warengo Oysters, Steamed Snapper and a Blue Cheese Bavarois – found its highlight in the outstanding Coffee Rubbed Beef, which was accompanied by the limited annual run of Talisker 18 Year Old: 

Oh, Freude schöner Götterfunken!

What a drop!

Peat.

Sweetness.

Spiciness.

Calibrated to perfection.

Butterscotch and toffee comes to mind. Honey and bacon. Smokey on the palate and an interesting emphasis on a spicy chili instead of a peppery finish.

A spectacular whisky that makes one lust for the elusive 25 and 30-year-old varieties.

Other Talisker highlights matches to the individual dinner courses included:

Talisker Skye

Skye is the more refined, sophisticated cousin of the Storm variety – the ship that has extracted itself from the stormy seas and sits in the harbour showing off its well-nuanced sweet, spicy and smoky traits. Great companion for the trout dish.

Talisker 10 Year Old

Smokey, peaty, interesting hints of saline, which being a Lagavulin aficionado pleases culminating in a black pepper explosion towards the back. If Lagavulin is a bit too much on the nose in terms of peatiness, this one is a more refined one for you. A pipette was proffered, which droplets could be poured onto the oysters for further refinement.

Talisker Storm

Now we are talking. Taking the 10 Year old up a notch or two in every aspect – richer, smokier, fruitier. Hints of vanilla and the trademark peppery flavours are enhanced by adding a couple of droplets of water. Maybe not a first choice for purists, but an intense one that lives up to its name and gave the snapper a bit of needed zing.

Talisker Distiller's edition

The Distiller’s edition rounded off the culinary part of the evening and, opened up with droplets of water, went well with the desert and the sweet and juicy fruit nuances came to the fore.

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Photos courtesy of @k.a.vv

Whisky and Cheese Tasting

Stamford Plaza Circular Quay

Sydney, Australia

April 25, 2018

Wine and cheese.

Sure.

Natural companions whose strengths of flavors cross-pollinate and complement each other.

Now, sommeliers might recoil but pairing Whisky and food pairing is on the up.

A contradiction per se?

Au contraire.

A recent Whisky & Cheese Tasting organized by the heads behind Alchemist Events proved quite the opposite.

The evening started off with a bit of education on cheese at large by international cheese expert Claudia Bowman, who framed the evening by giving an overview about the nature of the dairy product.

An MC extraordinaire, Claudia has mastered the art of engaging the participants in an entertaining yet sophisticated manner with more than superficial fun facts without getting too technical.

The myriad of ways to describe, organize and classify cheese were shed light on, including texture, milk type, place of origin, standards of identify, milk production / treatment and source, methods of coagulation and ripening.

Made from pasteurized goat’s milk, the soft, artisan Meredith Ash Goat Cheese from Victoria opened the proceedings.

What hit the palate was an ash-coated chevre that not only looked great on the plate, but also knew to convince with a mélange of crisp and creamy flavours.

Holy Goat from Castlemaine followed, a handmade one based on the traditional French soft curd style using slow lactic acid fermentation, which upped the flavour game.

Enter David Ligoff.

A man that oozes passion for all things whisky.

Founder of World of Whisky, the man owns the only specialist whisky store in Australia, as well as the curator of The Whisky Show, which in just three years has become the largest whisky show down under.

Unpretentious, knowledgeable and witty are the adjectives that come to mind if one had to describe how David, the conferencier, delved into covering the key aspects of whisky educations: The history of whisky, how whisky is made including the subtleties of production and maturation, pointing out the differences between various types, the effect of different casks and techniques for creating and enhancing flavour, and giving advice on how to best to appreciate the water of life as well as why wood and time are vitally important.

His elaborations allowed access to his insight and knowledge on how to explore whisky at a foundational level.  

After David’s introduction on whisky, we looked across the Indian Ocean with Amrut being the first drop that was introduced.

With its nose of nuts, honeycomb, fruit and oak, I found it to be a great companion for the more firm textured cheeses of the evening, e.g. Ptengana Cloth Bound Cheddar from Tasmania, with its aromas of herbs and honey.

A 12-year-old oak and sherry cask matured Aberlour, with a body that balanced hints of sweet raisings and cherry, found its cheese equivalent in the creamy Camembert AOC, from the Normandie and the melt-in-the-mouth Stilton from Shropshire in the UK with the trademark pale yellow interior and blue-green veins, cultivated by the addition of the penicilium rogueforti.

Now, I for one love a peaty whisky and having a decade old Laphroaig is never not a joyful occasion. Needless to say that it lends itself perfectly well to go alongside a smokey cheese as it brings an added edge.

However, after adding a couple of droplets of water via employing the services of a pipette, and thereby activate more flavours, I found it to go well with most of the cheesy bits on offer.

An educational and inspiring evening that offered something for both – connoisseurs as well as the uninitiated, which the before and after chatter with confirmed as feedback indicated that no one left the soiree without having discovered something – be in it liquid or dairy form – they would like to try more of in the future.

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Photos by @k.a.vv

Portugal. The Man

Enmore Theatre

Sydney, Australia

May 1, 2018

Portugal. The Man

Psychedelic glam rock.

Bombastic self-indulgent EDM brats?

One hit wonder?

Could a band care less about your futile attempt at labeling?

Going by Portugal. The Man’s live incarnation at Sydney’s Enmore Theatre, the band seems to be clearly know where it stands, embraces what fame brought them without diluting the DNA that forms the core of why they set out to play music in the first place.

Yup, they are commercially successful via a hybrid of Pharrell’s patented pop hymn and a more than obvious homage to the Marvelettes, i.e. “Feel it still”, and decidedly went on to fry bigger fishes than the alternative rock crowd, yet has retained an edge.

What makes a band like PTM interesting is that they seem to have an intrinsically instilled sense of resistance pervading every note, which they somehow marry adequately to the need to partay, no matter how much their defiance of boundaries is being defied by the mainstream.

In a live environment, Portugal. The Man is one hell of a tight band that is both musically adept and fun to watch.

A myriad of references, homages and cover versions are weaved into the set, which demonstrates not only a band that has its tongue firmly placed in cheek, but also shows awareness of their roots and an astute sense of localizing their place in the canon of rock music.

The set flows along a stream-of-consciousness, seamlessly transitioning between heavier tunes and groovy crowd pleasers as well as what seems to be improvised parts and delivering the goods to the willing masses.

A band that is firmly in touch with who they are, and more importantly what they despise and do not want to be.

Framed by an animated backdrop of psychedelic projections, strobe lights and a kaleidoscopic mélange of colours, the band also created a visually appealing aesthetic that enhanced their musical emissions.

Yes, this is a recommendation to go see them live whenever they come near your neck of the woods.

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Photos by @k.a.vv

Hit The Road

Vans, Nomads and Roadside Adventures

Gestalten Verlag

Wanderlust.

Getaways. Roadtrips.

Traveling.

Everyday can be a journey.

Your own.

No nomadic traits needed.

Trails, streets, roads and the vehicles that traverse them along – from sports cars via 4x4s and campervans to Bullis - with portraits of their proud navigators are featured in this beautifully illustrated coffee table book.

A romantic ode to the life on the road and an advocacy for pursuing the path off the beaten track in book form.

The motivation and stories behind the nomads that are portrayed are what makes Hit the Road: How they planned their trips, the detours and complications hat lead them to discoveries, how they prepped their vehicles culminating in detailed depictions of the stops and destinations.

Opulent photography frames the stories and sets them in scene, geographically as a diverse as it can get, i.e. from the South of Europe to the deserts of Africa to the plateaus of Mongolia and everything in between.

Anyone with a bit of love for distant and uncharted places would not want to do without this beauty and for the ones not infatuated with travel yet, can find the necessary inspiration: The quintessential of Hit the Road is that at the end of the day, all you need is the plan, a map and the courage to press on to your destination and enjoy the ride and everything that comes with it.

Francis Bacon: Studies for a Portrait 

Michael Peppiatt

YUP

Francis Bacon was one hell of a complex artist.

Contradictions.

Enigmas.

Affairs.

Debauchery.

The works.

Then there was his art.

Grand.

Deep.

Evocative.

Studies for a Portrait was penned by the man who not only was responsible for Bacon’s biography, but one that could call himself both, an art connoisseur and close associate of Bacon’s. Given the access the author Michael Peppiatt enjoyed, the book offers intimate and at times entertaining insights on the inner sanctum of Bacon’s oeuvre.

What Peppiatt accomplishes is that he takes a holistic approach and does not merely focus on specific singular facts of Francis Bacon’s emissions. He paints a portrait with subtle lines that strikes the balance between intricacy and clarity.

You could say that I am a Bacon aficionado and own quite a few books on the man. However, this tome with its collection of interviews and essays spanning from 1963 until long after Bacon shuffled off this mortal coil, offers new angles: Be it Bacon’s affliction with some painters, his techniques, approach to painting, his views on the art world, religious beliefs and his relationships.

The array of Bacon-centric elaborations is peppered with at times amusing anecdotes and little known facts about the trials and tribulations and most importantly the personality of one of the greats.

A must-have for anyone who would like to gain another level of access to the intriguing art of Francis Bacon.