Kilderkin Gin Ballarat

https://kilderkindistillery.com.au/

Wine tastings, I've been to dozens.  But gin tastings?  Who knew?

I was impressed last night to attend a gin tasting featuring a small Ballarat distillery named Kilderkin who walked me through their various offerings.

Things I learned:

Chocolate Cherry Brownie Recipe*

*with mint and Toblerone variations

Brownies are very easy to make, can be whipped up for a nearly instant dessert, and – with a bit of innovation – you can turn them into your own flavour laboratory.

Find below a quite successful brownie I recently made with an adult twist; a special ingredient not for children.  That’s right – cherry brandy and glacé cherries!  Rich and tasty (like you)!

Recipe below:

Turning Japanese

Is Smith St Fitzroy Becoming Melbourne’s New Little Tokyo?

Konnichiwa!

OK. Obviously this headline is ridiculous. Anyone who’s ever been to Japan knows Tokyo is built up, high tech, far out, domo argiato, and more, whereas Smith St is a kind of down-at-heel Melbourne version of a mini-Brooklyn.

That said, there has been a noticeable decline in French food in my neighbourhood over the last several years, and a big uptake in Japanese restaurants coming through (not to mention every other nationality, including Korean, but we all know you're not allowed to confuse Korean and Japanese!!).

With the growth of the Japanese presence on Smith St in mind, find here a list of new (and not so new) Japanese restaurants in my hood – listed by order of my preference – which might make you feel like you’re Turning Japanese!!

(p.s. you might like to listen to the Vapors play their eighties classic, Turning Japanese, while you read this…)