Tasmanian VIP Party for Taste of Melbourne feat. Lark Whisky (13 November 2013)

This evening we had the pleasure of attending the Tasmanian Pavilion VIP Party for the Taste of Melbourne, which will take place between 14 to 17 November 2013 at Albert Park. 

Tasmania?

Tasmania is an apple shaped island that lies off the southeastern tip of Australia. It was once home to the now extinct Tasmanian tiger and now the endangered Tasmanian devil, and it has for as long as I can remember been the Australian heartland of oysters, salmon and brie. The VIP event this evening was designed to show off what Tasmania has to offer.

The VIP event?

The VIP event this evening showcased produce from Tasmania, a pristine part of the world which I have seen for myself having worked in both Launceston and Hobart - just imagine crisp, fresh, lush, green and clean! With that territory comes some delicious produce, and this evening we mingled with a number of business owners and tasted the delights of Tasmania – oysters (natural, tempura etc), salmon, white wine and red wine (pinot noir), sparkling wine, beer, wagyu, beef tartare, lamb belly, apple and pear cider and, of course, Tasmanian single malt whisky. The island even produces whisky cured Tasmanian salmon, which is marinated in Lark whisky for two days - it is packed with flavour with sweet zing and a salty kick. 

Lark Whisky

Chatting with Bill Lark at the VIP launch event

Bill Lark is hailed as the "godfather of Australian whisky", having started the Lark distillery in 1992. Apart from being the trailblazer of the Australian whisky renaissance (and a very friendly person!), Bill is extremely knowledgeable and passionate about whisky. He is keen to give the world the finest quality Tasmanian whisky. That's TASMANIAN whisky. Sure, Scotch whisky is sublime when made correctly but the Tasmanian barley and unique climate of Tasmania offers something distinctly, well, Tasmanian! From what I tasted on the evening, the Lark distillery is certainly hitting the mark with its 46% ABV (Cask No 393, Port Matured) single malt whisky - big rich fruit cake notes with dark cherries, chocolate and heavy in port on the nose, lashing the palate with the distinct whip of Tasmanian barley (I will not review this whisky here as I was chatting while tasting it, but the character of the whisky was beautiful!).   

Thank you to all who made this possible! We had a wonderful evening.