Melbourne – Roger Holmes

The cool southerly blast of weather was a gentle reminder of the extreme elements Melbourne are faced with due to the city straddling the southern ocean and arid Australian desert. My third trip to Melbourne was for very different reasons than my first. It did not include demanding days spending my student loan on clothes with a girlfriend, nor did it comprise of any cultural arts. This was a business trip in the sense of spreading the gospel of STOLEN Rum to our neighbours, folks who know a hell of a lot more about rum and thievery than us – it wasn’t a hard sell to our convict cousins.

Melbourne is one of the great Victorian cities and its architecture rates alongside that of London, New York, Manchester and Chicago. This is mainly due to the Victorian Gold Rush that fuelled the cities wealth in the 1850’s. With its leafy inner city boulevards, you feel like you could be in Paris whilst the bohemian quarter of Fitzroy with its vibrant street art oozes east London or Berlin. If you throw the heritage trams into the mix, you have one of the most charming cities I have visited outside of the continent.

Melbourne’s bar scene is thriving and easily takes the prize for the most innovative and diverse selection of bars Australia has to offer. This is mainly due to Melburnians having more of an appreciation for sophisticated drinks, and the relaxed on premise licensing laws which has provided the city with a myriad of urbane bars.  Coupled with the love of food and the array of eateries, it is no wonder that the rest of Australia looks to Melbourne as being the cultural trendsetter.

Over the few days that we visited, we were lucky enough to get tables at Marmasita in the city, Colonel Tans in Prahran and Huxtable in Collingwood. The contemporary Mexican, Thai and European flavours gave testament to how diverse the cuisine can be across the city. The evening meals were then followed by innovative cocktails and warm hospitality at various chic bars. Stef of Der Raum in Richmond introduced us to a divine hot/cold pina colada and a STOLEN El Presidente. The guys at the acclaimed Black Pearl of Fitzroy welcomed us into their moody bar with more traditional rum cocktails made by their resident guru’s Chris and Greg. Our NZ friend Dan of Berlin made us feel at home in the laneway bar which is a mix of opulence and communism – try the delicious cocktail Cabaret No.2 the next time you’re passing by.

Melbourne – see you again soon.