Drunk on art

Ray Bradbury famously said that ‘you must stay drunk (on your art) so reality cannot destroy you’. To be honest, when you’re drinking freshly twizzled cocktails, admiring art by Andy Warhol and Louise Borgeois, and being plied with New York style pizza slices, reality seems like a pretty good place to be – drunk or otherwise.

Stepping into the launch of the Absolut Art Collection at the Ray Hughes Gallery in Surry Hills, you would be forgiven for wondering if you had taken a ride on a ‘Back to the Future’ hovercraft and found yourself in downtown New York circa 1980s. Silver armchairs, Mario Bros pinball machines and colourful artworks recreate the street style made famous by Andy Warhol’s factory. The fact that the artwork descriptions can only be accessed by flashing your iphone QR reader at the wall (which provided us with hours of novelty factor entertainment) is one of the few hints that it is, in fact, 2011.

Read more about the launch and details in my post on behalf of Ms Darlinghurst at Eat Drink Play.

An apple a day...

They say an apple a day keeps the doctor away. But the humble apple has faced tough competition in recent years, with trendy “super foods” like goji berries, wheat grass, and pomegranates hogging the limelight through slick marketing campaigns.

Luckily for our health (and our tastebuds), two Bondi locals have partnered with Batlow Apples to create Batlow Premium Cider. Handcrafted from a blend of 100% Australian-grown apples, brothers Rich and Sam Coombes are helping us fend off the doctors by creating a far more exciting way to fill our daily apple quotas.

When a health scare led Rich to quit his high-pressure job in the corporate world, he decided it was time to revive an old dream to create his own product – “it struck me that life was too short and precious to be doing something I didn’t love”. Enjoying drinks with mates on Bondi’s grassy knoll one summer afternoon, he realised that there was no cider equivalent of a Coopers beer – locally made and premium quality.

He and Sam contacted Batlow Apples, and so began the journey to create what has the potential to become an iconic Australian cider (watch this space!).

Read my interview with Rich Coombes on Eat Drink Play & find out how you can get your daily fix!

Love at first twist

In the same way that the 2009 liquor licensing laws changed the face of Sydney’s watering holes, frozen yoghurt has knocked ice cream off its summer pedestal and is fast becoming our dessert of choice – whether we’re at the beach, taking a post dinner stroll in Darlinghurst or craving a cheeky afternoon snack.

With Wow Cow in Darlinghurst first introducing us to the concept of breakfast for dessert, Bondi's Twisted creates a new experience for frozen yoghurt aficionados with its focus on organic, natural and sustainable products.

Check out my adventures with Twisted Froyo on behalf of Ms Darlinghurst’s Eat Drink Play.