A meal isn’t usually paired with bourbon across each of its five-dishes. That was the challenge for Society bar manager Jaryd Bryant, tasked with designing the drinks menu for Spectacle for the Senses – a one-night-only event curated by Broadsheet featuring a special dinner culminating in a tasting of an exclusive $3000 bottle of Woodford Reserve Baccarat Edition.
“It was something we really had to think about,” says Bryant. “[But] we’ve got a killer team of sommeliers here, so I went to them for help.”
The result is a suite of creative cocktails not traditionally possible at Society. “With a dinner like this I’m only making 50-60 drinks,” says Bryant. “So I can go a bit more in-depth and intricate than with the 3000 cocktails I have to pull off each [other] week . I’ve had a bit of fun with this.”
The exclusive dinner on Thursday May 19 will feature a drinks’ menu designed to directly elevate the dishes being prepared, and vice versa.
On arrival guests will receive a highball spritzing Woodford Reserve with a quince, sage, cacao and wattle seed soda, before a first course of the same bourbon served neat with cheese and dark chocolate truffles.
The second course - quail with hazelnut and parsnip matched with a miso butter-infused gimlet - tells the story of how Bryant approaches the pairings. “We picked the quail because it’s gamey and rich,” he says. “The Woodford Reserve we’re using with this cocktail is Woodford Rye - it’s spicy and sharp, which is going to cut through that richness.”
The main meal presents a more classic duo - whiskey and steak. Here wagyu beef and smoked onions sits alongside a savoury, luxurious take on the Boulevardier. “We did a fig and beet distillate with a touch of leatherwood honey in there,” says Bryant. “It’s funky, earthy, herbaceous. Then on top there’s a mushroom vermouth and a black truffle Campari.” The meal is rounded out by a dessert of honey and milk tart, and strawberry with native lime and soba cha, paired with Woodford Reserve’s Master Collection.
The evening culminates with Woodford Reserve brand ambassador Linus Schaxmann leading diners through the rare Baccarat edition alongside some artfully-selected cheeses. Schaxmann will also be on hand to introduce the evening and offer tastings across the night, blending education with sensorial excitement.
Besides the obvious attraction of the premium Baccarat edition, Bryant is hoping the night can turn people on to the possibilities of bourbon and cocktails in a culinary setting. “Cocktail pairing with a bit of thought can work well,” says Bryant. “And with the support of our sommelier team behind me it’s going to be really interesting.”
This article is produced by Broadsheet in partnership with Woodford Reserve.
