March, in April
Some weekend reading for you. In March we published a new interview, The Ten and a creative piece on rice wine - and in April we have our second live event!
Welcome to our March round up newsletter, in April. It’s Anna here, devouring pastries from Toklas’ #bakeforukraine event - and catching up on work after travelling a lot for work, hence why this newsletter is so late! Sorry!
Currently Chloe is in California seeing family for the first time since pandemic - her instagram stories are wonderful, beach, snacks, bakes, more snacks. Zac is enjoying excellent coffee in Louisville, before he’s off on holiday.
And, we have some wonderful things to share with you from March, and news on our next event!
This month was a wild one for me, I got to travel to Copenhagen on assignment to interview the folks at Empirical Spirits, then was in France for a holiday before going to Seychelles to interview the Takamaka rum team. This has made me really think about flavour, how we understand and how we value flavour. Steve, the head blender at Takamaka, talked about how he knows when a blend hits ‘the sweet spot’ when it reminds him of his mother and grandmother’s cooking - its instinctive, but also reflective of his understanding of being Seychellois and créole flavours. (He has one of the best palate I have come across!). Which brings me to…
Monday 11 April: Show and Tell with Sourced & E5
Our second event at E5 Bakehouse will be with global bar-owner extraordinaire Ryan Chetiyawardana (aka Mr Lyan) and founder of Cocktail Lovers magazine, Sandrae Lawrence.
We will be exploring the idea of flavour. Both Ryan and Sandra are experts in the bar world, with a deep understanding of the industry in a global sense, and will be exploring how tastes have evolved and what regional nuances look like and how we understand flavour in drinks.
Tickets include a welcome drink of Ryan’s Fierfield Birch Highball and a light dinner of soup and snack, and E5’s amazing bread! Tickets here.
Anna spoke to Jason Williams, from Creative Proof, where they spoke about the idea of flavour, how to create successful bars and the new(ish) concept ecoSPIRITS, which allows booze brands to get their products to customers, cutting down on packaging and carbon footprint.
Anna says “I found this such an interesting conversation! So wide ranging, but looking at how we can build ethical businesses. We also chatted about the location of Singapore, and how that affects the bar world - both in the country and globally. It’s important to have conversations about business when we discuss sourcing and sustainability”
Tuak dan ambai // Tuak and ambai, the lovers
Multidisciplinary artist Kulleh Grasi wrote a creative piece about rice wine, exploring how it fits into the ritual and the everyday. This piece was translated into English by Pauline Fan.
Founder and manager of Roots Store in Brussels tells us how her location allows her to support the idea of an ethical food system.
March newsletter: Guest Edition
Our March newsletter was a special one, and we thought we share with you all! It features a guest essay from drinks and travel writer Yolanda Evans on 'The Art of Libation' along with a guest recipe for an alcohol-free Mint Julep from Sourced's own Zac Jones-Gomez.