Wine dining, Friday drinks and Seven Deadly Gins
Upcoming food and drink happenings in South Australia, including Applewood’s Seven Deadly Gins at Thrift Shop Bar, Fridays at 5 at Home Ground, Caledonian Hotel wine dinners, and anti-waste punks Trash Tiki at Maybe Mae.
Seven Deadly Gins: Applewood Gin tasting – February 23
CBD bar Thrift Shop will host Applewood Distillery for a tasting event showcasing the Gumeracha distillery’s limited-edition Seven Deadly Gins. Tickets are $60 per person and, along with the spirits, punters will be treated to antipasto and cheeseboards, and live music from local gypsy jazz band Monsieur Swing. For more information, see the event page.
Caledonian wine dinners – February 21 and 28, March 1 and 8
The Caledonian Hotel in North Adelaide has four wine dinners scheduled over the coming weeks, starting tonight with an event featuring Tasmanian wine label Josef Chromy and New Zealand’s Rockburn Wines, and including a Cellar Reserve Wine Dinner (February 28), Chateau Tanunda Wine Dinner (March 1) and Barolo and Barbaresco Wine Dinner (March 8). This feature by InDaily contributor Nigel Hopkins offers more insight into how the hotel’s wine dinners work, and for details of all upcoming events, see the Caledonian Facebook page.
Fridays at 5 at Home Ground – February 23
To count down to the return of Cellar Door Fest in 2018, the event’s organisers are holding Friday knock-off gatherings at Home Ground on the Riverbank Promenade, where a spotlight will be shone on two chosen producers. Salena Estate and Alpha Box and Dice are up this week, with two hours of complimentary tastings from 5pm until 7pm. For more information, see here.
Bondar x The Pot Last Friday Lunch – February 23
Last Friday lunches are back at The Pot on King William Road in Hyde Park, and this week the restaurant has invited in Bondar Wines for the occasion. Chef Emma McCaskill’s kitchen will provide diners with a four-course long lunch, paired with Bondar wines. Tickets are $95 per person and seats are limited; book via The Pot’s website.
Trash Tiki at Maybe Mae – February 23
Minimal waste, maximum taste is the slogan of travelling “anti-waste punk pop-up” Trash Tiki. Bartenders Kelsey Ramage and Iain Griffiths will stop by Maybe Mae and demonstrate how easily sustainable practices can be brought into the hospitality world, by making good use of “would-be waste ingredients, stuff from kitchens, bars, coffee shops, and commercial business”. Those attending will be treated to a selection of four cocktails paired with small dishes, prepared by the Shōbōsho kitchen. Tickets are $87.41 per person, and available here.
The Duke of Brunswick’s 160th Birthday – February 23
Celebrating its 160th birthday this year is the Duke of Brunswick on Gilbert Street. For the momentous milestone, the venue will kick off what will hopefully become an annual tradition – The 1858 Dinner. In this inaugural event, happening on Friday from 6.30pm, it will serve a three-course meal paired with wine in an environment harking back to the pub’s 19th-century origins. Tickets are $174 per person and can be purchased here.
Meet the Maker: Poppy the Frenchie – February 24
Goodwood wine bar Two Sisters Food and Wine is giving fans of wine label Poppy the Frenchie the chance to meet the makers behind the drop. The event will see the mum-and-daughter duo, whose 2017 Grenache Rosé recently placed in the Hot 100 Wines, chat about their process and offer a free tasting. It kicks off at 4pm. For more information, see the event page.
Dining with Spirits – February 27
Dining with Spirits offers an insight into the art of whisky paring. The event will be hosted at Red October, the sister restaurant to one of Adelaide’s broadest whisky collections, downstairs bar Suzie Wong. For more information and to purchase tickets, see here.
Post Dining Bite Sized – March 1-4
Post Dining, the much-loved experimental food curators, will host a bite-sized event this Fringe, in which native flavours will be paired with curated sounds at Raj House Fringe hub “Rajopolis”. It promises to be “another immersive experience you won’t forget”. For tickets and further information, see here. And for information about other Fringe food events and offerings, see this InDaily Forager story.
Cellar Door Fest 2018 – March 2-4
Cellar Door Fest is back and bringing another roster of South Australian producers from across the state to the Adelaide Convention Centre. Over the three days, there will be masterclasses, DIY workshops, long-table lunches and dinners, plus a bunch of local producers to meet, chat to, sample from, and support via your wallet. For more information, see the event page.
Long Lunches on the Palais – March 4-12
One of last year’s Palais long lunches. Photo: Adelaide Festival
The Adelaide Festival is presenting a second series of long, lazy lunches aboard the Riverbank Palais across five dates from March 4 to 12. Curated by Gill Minervini (Dark MOFO Winter Feast), the 2018 program features guest chefs O Tama Carey, Jared Ingersoll, Alex Herbert, Jordan Theodoros and Janet Jeffs (you can read more about them on the festival program here). The cost is $169 for a long-table meal which explores SA’s food heritage and also provides an insight into each chef’s food story; matched wine by Penfolds and beer by Coopers will be available for purchase.
Cheese-A-Holics Cheese Festival – March 17
This twilight festival at the old Mitsubishi plant in Tonsley will feature cheeses from a range of SA producers including Woodside Cheese Wrights, B.-d. Farm Paris Creek, Barossa Cheese Company and, of course, Cheese-A-Holics. There will also be food stalls, drinks and other gourmet goodies. It’s a ticketed event; check the Facebook page for details.
St Patrick’s Day at 55ml – March 17
Gouger-adjacent red-brick small bar 55ml will be taking over Mill Street for a celebratory St Patrick’s Day event. Café Troppo will provide the eats, a roster of musicians will provide Irish tunes, and Guinness will flow from behind the bar. Best St Patrick’s Day dress will win a bottle of Jamieson’s. The event is free; for more information see the event page.
East End Wine Down – March 24
The East End Wine Down is back for its 15th year in 2018, and with it comes a collection of 100 South Australian wines to try, as well as street food and DJs setting the mood all afternoon. Among the 50 wineries will be a contingency of “minimum interventionists, the eccentric and the rebels”, as well as a roster of beer, cider and spirits. The event will run from 12pm until 5pm on Saturday, March 24. Tickets can be purchased here.
The Festival at Basket Range – April 7
Celebrate another harvest season with a batch of the Adelaide Hills’ most interesting and eclectic winemakers at The Festival at Basket Range. Many of the producers from the 2017 event at Basket Range Oval will be in tow, along with some newcomers. There will be live music, great food, interactive activities for the kids, and very good wine. For more information, keep an eye on the event page.
Tasting Australia – April 13-22
The program for this year’s Tasting Australia features more than 140 events across 10 days in April, including workshops, master-classes, degustation dinners, foraging adventures and underground feasts. The festival will open with a Surrealist Ball at the new d’Arenberg Cube in McLaren Vale, with other special events this year including “Tasting Australia Airlines” – a full-day luxury experience to SA culinary regions such as Kangaroo Island, Coffin Bay and the Limestone Coast – and the inaugural TA National Spirit Awards (more about that here). See the full program online.
News, tips and information?
Please send details of any upcoming food and/or drink events to: [email protected].
