World Class Cocktail Week is one of our favourite parts of May at The Plus Ones. (And that’s not just because we were interviewed on the World Class website, honest.) It’s the perfect excuse to pretend winter isn’t happening, and to start exploring one of the best parts about Melbourne: our fantastic bars.
Running from 7-12 May 2017, this year sees over 100 bars across Melbourne and our northern rivals Sydney and Brisbane. Get to know new drinks, new alcohols; meet new bartenders; explore new bars. Here are five ways to do just that.
Hot Sauce
Black Pearl x Bulletin Place (Black Pearl | 7-8 May, 6pm)
When Melbourne’s best bartenders swap places with Sydney’s best bartenders, magic happens. Bulletin Place’s head honchos are flying down for two nights only. Just think: A cocktail will run you much less than a trip to Sydney. That means you can order more.
Native Plants and How to Use Them (Bad Frankie | 8 May, 7.30pm| $50 tickets)
Australia has a wealth of indigenous plants that no one else has — and we’re starting to incorporate them more and more into food and even drinks. World Class bartender Sebastian Costello and Outback Chef’s Jude Mayall will teach you about these plants while you try three different cocktails using them.
Supper on Skye (The Elysian | 12-13 May, from 4.30pm)
Use this as your perfect reason to visit Melbourne’s newest and coolest whisk(e)y bar, The Elysian. No matter how you spell it, whisky is the name of the game. And for two days, you can order a rye whiskey in a serve to be shared between two people. Try the cocktail (along a whisky-and-liver parfait) with your lover or your bestie.
Supper on Skye
Cocktails and Desserts (Dutchess | 7-13 May, 12pm)
The ultimate in decadence: a cocktail and dessert for lunch. Visit Dutchess in the CBD during World Class Cocktail Week and feast upon two pairings (or return to have them both). We have a Pampero rum-infused milkshake with brownies; or a Tanqueray gin cocktail paired with a sorbet. They’re a bargain a $25 each.
Hot Sauce World Class (Hot Sauce | 7-13 May, from 4.30pm)
Hidden in QV’s laneway is Japanese-Korean restaurant Hot Sauce. Venure down for an exclusive Japanese-style cocktail and food pairing. The ayonara Nakatomi cocktail even has cherry blossom gin (plus our fave fruit of the moment, yuzu), and is paired with an enoki mushroom yakitori.
Native Plants
No matter where you go during World Class Cocktail Week, you’re bound to experience Melbourne’s top-notch waitstaff, bartenders and mixologists, and the venues that make our city known for food and drink.
Enjoy yourselves out there as you explore all that World Class Cocktail Week has to offer. Cheers!
– Theresa
Co-founder of The Plus Ones, Theresa would go to a new bar for a new cocktail every night if she could.
World Class Cocktail Week runs 7-11 May 2017 at various venues. Some events are ticketed.
Many venues are accessible.
