The Plough's Cocktales & Recipes

Welcome to our final Cocktale O'Clock for 2023 – Santa's Sack. And just like Santa's Sack, this cocktail has something for everyone. Thank you for your support throughout the year. We are having our annual Christmas break to recharge and look forward to seeing you in the New Year. SANTA'S SACK 45mL  Spiced Rum (Captain Morgan) 30mL  Chocolate liqueur 22.5mL  VOK Crème de Menthe Liqueur 15mL  Frangelico Shake all ingredients with North Pole ice  Strain into chilled stemless glass GARNISH:  candy cane

Welcome to this week's Cocktail O'Clock, where we enjoy a sip of history with a tale to share. Today we look at a curious, if not pedantic, case held in the Bacchus Magistrate's Court in late 1946 when the licensee of The Plough Hotel in Myrniong, Kathleen Jones, was charged with supplying liquor on a Sunday and having persons on the premises, those persons being Jack Barry and William Densley. The court heard that Kathleen's husband, Cyril Jones (barman from Bacchus Marsh's Border Inn Hotel) gave evidence that he served Jack ginger ale with bitters, and William a shandy. The Licensing Police who attended the incident considered that the drinks' foam and aroma indicated that the contents were beer, which led to the charges. Apparently, after being discovered on the premises, the lads quaffed their bevvy. The Magistrate considered this act to be that of a guilty person, deferring his final decision for four weeks due to its unusual features! Kathleen was eventu...

Welcome to this week's Cocktale O'Clock, where we enjoy a sip of history with a tale to share. Today we remember famous horses who blessed our paddocks. In particular a most celebrated racehorse in Carbine, who frequently agisted at nearby Lerderderg Park. Local Pentland Hills storeowner Percy Gorman recalls feeding carrots to Carbine as a young lad in the late 1800s, and he spent many years working at the stables. Carbine's descendants include over half of the Melbourne Cup winners from 1914 to 1978 including Rising Fast, Think Big, and fellow Lerderderg Park resident Phar Lap. Makybe Diva and Winx can also be traced to Carbine. However, today I want to talk about one of Carbine's offspring – Spearmint, born in 1903. What he lacked on the racetrack, he made up in the Stud. Apart from Carbine, his pedigree included names such as Minting, Maid of Mint, Mint Sauce, and the classic-winning full siblings Minthe & The Lambkin! This leads me to this week's Cocktail of...