From extract and juice to soda, beer, and syrup, ginger is one of the most underrated ingredients behind the bar. It’s the foundational element in classic cocktails including the Moscow Mule and the Ginger Rogers, but it comes at a price, often fetching close to $30 per kilogram depending on the time of year. With that said, it’s an ingredient worth splurging on.
Hospitality speaks to Matt Whiley from Olympus in Sydney and Pawaan Engineer from Melbourne’s Mill Place Merchants about showcasing ginger, paying homage to foundational drinks, and why ginger-centric options are resonating with guests in a major way.
Olympus opened in Sydney late last year to much fanfare — it’s now one of the hardest-to-book restaurants in the city, which is no mean feat in such a competitive landscape. The venue is the latest addition to Jonathan Barthelmess and Sam Christie’s hospitality group, which is best known for The Apollo in Potts Point.
Like its sibling, Olympus is Greek by nature, but showcases taverna-style dishes instead. Bartender Matt Whiley was brought on board to design the cocktail program at the Wunderlich Lane restaurant which was inspired by the Greek way of drinking. “The restaurant is based on a taverna, so it was about making drinks that talk to Greek culture but also making it super fun and engaging at the same time,” he says.
The Malaka Mule is a riff on a Moscow Mule, and was a last-minute addition to the drinks menu after inspiration struck mid-commute. “It came up pretty late in the piece and came to me when I was driving to work,” says Whiley. “Generally, drinks that have been around for so long are good and people like them. First and foremost, it’s about respecting the history of cocktail culture and then figuring out how to bring new elements into it.”
The cocktail is made with Four Pillars Rare dry gin, vodka, aquavit, ginger syrup, olive brine, lime juice, and sparkling wine — a combination that reflects the fresh, vibrant makeup of the food menu. “We already had quite a few lemon drinks on the menu, so we looked at bringing in another citrus element,” says Whiley. “You feel like you’re outside at Olympus because of the roof and [these drinks] ultimately work well with the food.”
Whiley chose to use both vodka and gin in the cocktail, as both play different roles. “Vodka gives enough spirit profile and alcohol content without compromising the structure of the drink or overpowering the other flavours,” he says. “If I made it with just gin, it would overpower everything, so we put vodka in for balance.”
The aforementioned components of the drink are combined together before they’re carbonated “so it’s consistently fizzy every time”. The bar team then fill a glass with ice, pour, and garnish the drink with olives “to bring out all the saltiness from the olive brine”. It’s been a popular order with guests so far, which is no wonder given its commanding name…
The Ginger Rogers was created by Bartender Marcovaldo Dionysos in 1995, who named the drink after the iconic American actress, singer, and dancer. Dionysos was inspired by the “Favourite Cocktail” from Jacques Straub’s 1914 book Drinks. It is one of the original tomes for bartenders and lists more than 700 recipes. Co-Owner of Mill Place Merchants Pawaan Engineer is a big fan of preserving the classics and didn’t hesitate to add the Ginger Rogers to the menu of the Melbourne bar.
The Ginger Rogers draws parallels to a Moscow Mule, and is made with gin, lime juice, fresh ginger, mint, and ginger ale. Engineer has traded out lime for lemon and ginger ale for ginger syrup to achieve a more impactful flavour profile. “Ginger ale can be a bit synthetic in nature,” he says. Making the syrup is costly due to the price of fresh ginger but is ultimately non-negotiable. “Ginger is not cheap these days, it’s incredibly expensive, but our bar is focused on the foundations and going back to basics. We make drinks that are the same as how the original recipes were written.”
Fresh ginger is first boiled down and combined with sugar to create a syrup which forms the base of the cocktail. Like most Prohibition drinks, gin is the spirit of choice in the Ginger Rogers. Engineer selected Widges Dry London gin, which is made in England, for its versatile profile. “It has a very clean, simple flavour that works easily in cocktails,” he says. Fresh mint is then added to a Collins glass followed by sugar syrup, small ice cubes, lemon juice, and soda.
Even if Engineer wanted to switch up the drink, he couldn’t — it’s the second best-seller at the bar. “It has the bite of ginger and a good balance of sweet and sourness from the sugar and the lemon,” says the bartender. “It gives you that warm, light burning sensation which people really enjoy. There are certain drinks we never change and it wouldn’t make sense to take them off because people enjoy them so much.” As they say, you have to give the people what they want, and judging from the reception at both Olympus and Mill Place Merchants — it’s ginger cocktails
