“The hair of the dog”, a saying I loosely throw around often at hung-over friends I’m trying to persuade into backing up the next day. Only last night did someone actually clarify where this saying comes from. Apparently it originates as far back as Shakespeare days with a popular belief that a few hairs of the dog that bit you applied to the wound will prevent evil consequences. This then turned into a metaphor for alcohol meaning if you overindulge the night before take a glass of the same drink within 24hours for the perfect hangover treatment.
Ask anyone nowadays and they’ll no doubt say the perfect cure is a Bloody Mary. Alas, the thought of drinking tomato juice and vodka at 10am the morning after has always made me feel a whole lot worse. So it was with hesitation that I accepted an invitation to Chiswick Restaurant for the Australian launch of Belvedere Bloody Mary. Ticking Matt Moran’s hot new restaurant off my to-do list was satisfying, as was my first experience with the newly created spirit.
I was expecting colour but the vodka is crystal clear. You’d never know it was flavoured until you smelt or tasted the spirit. Creator Claire Smith, Belvedere Head of Spirit Creation and Mixology had flown over from the UK to launch her new drink. No stranger to enhancing Polish vodka Claire is also responsible for Belvedere Pink Grapefruit and Belvedere Black Raspberry.
Like all flavoured Belvedere spirits the Bloody Mary uses all natural ingredients. That includes real tomatoes, black pepper, horseradish, bell pepper, chilli pepper, vinegar distillate and lemon. These ingredients are then combined with the finest, premium Polish vodka to create a smooth tasting Bloody Mary. It smells amazing and taste even better straight or used as a base for creative cocktails.
We tried 5 unique cocktails matched with deliciously fresh dishes. As someone who doesn’t usually enjoy Bloody Mary’s I absolutely loved the Belvedere Bloody Mary. You’ll see it popping up in bars in the next few months so keep an eye out. If you fancy a bit of shaking and stirring grab yourself a bottle and try making a few of these amazing concoctions. My favourites were the Belvedere Bloody French (Belvedere Bloody Mary, peach liqueur, sparkling wine and a dash of lemon) and Belvedere Cucumber Fix.
CHISWICK
65 Ocean Street, Woollahra
(02) 8388 8688
Open Tues-Sat (Lunch 12-3pm, Dinner 6-11pm) Sun (Lunch 12-3pm, Dinner 6-10pm)