For Aussies, inching towards the end of the year means your social life is about to shine brighter than the sun. When the rising mercury meets the end of year wind down, the onslaught of long brunches, breezy afternoon BBQs, and balmy dinners fill the calendar. It’s called silly season for a reason.
To ensure those summer feasts feel like genuine celebrations, it’s essential to bring some vibrancy to your events. Show off your cocktail-making skills, debut an interesting recipe, and think of new and exciting ways to host your guests. Remember, any successful summer feast requires the right drinks, the right food, and the right gear.
Fortunately, Laphroaig Single Malt Scotch Whisky toured Australia this year, working alongside pioneering fire chefs with a trail of one-off experiences, combining the label’s legendary whiskies with some of Australia’s most delicious food. And the inspiration coming off the back of that series has resulted in some banging recipes led by fire chef partner Jake Kellie that’ll help you channel some of his peaty, salty and firey know-how for your own summer feasts.
To help give you some ideas on how to take your summer hosting to the next level, you’re going to need that one cocktail recipe that’ll make all the difference, coupled with that one food recipe and one element so your mates know exactly who the host with the most is.
That One Cocktail
The most successful hosts always have that one cocktail recipe up their sleeve that no one else expects. Unlike your typical summer soirees, yours always brings something new to the table. And to keep that reputation going, you’re going to need a high-impact signature serve.
Kellie’s open-flame Adelaide restaurant, arkhé, is renowned for using smoky flavours to create something new and exciting. And that’s exactly what arkhé has done with the Laphroaig “Claim to Flame” highball, reshaping the classic whisky cocktail as something fun and summer-appropriate with preserved nectarines, lemon, fizz, and some of that unbeatable Laphroaig 10-Year-Old.
Claim To Flame Recipe
Ingredients
- 45ml Laphroaig 10 Year Old Malt Whisky
- 20ml freshly squeezed lemon juice
- 15g pickled nectarine slices (prepared using a 3/2/1 recipe)
- Good quality soda water
- Good quality ice cubes
- Cara Cara orange slice
- Burnt rosemary sprig
Method
- Ensure you have pickled nectarines ready by using a 3/2/1 pickling recipe which is three parts vinegar, two parts water and one part sugar. Pickle these for as long as you can, a matter of days or weeks.
- In a cocktail shaker, combine 2 ounces of Laphroaig 10 Year Old Malt Whisky, 1 ounce of freshly squeezed lemon juice and the pickled nectarine slices.
- Add ice to your shaker and vigorously shake the ingredients for about 10-15 seconds. This chills and dilutes the cocktail slightly.
- Using a strainer, carefully pour the cocktail mixture over ice in your glass.
- Top off your cocktail with good quality soda water. Add enough to your desired level of dilution.
- Light your rosemary sprig with a lighter and blow it out to give it a smouldering effect and aroma. Drop the Cara Cara orange slice into cocktail and balance the lightly burnt rosemary mint sprig on the rim of the glass.
Your Laphroaig highball with preserved nectarines, lemon & fizz is ready to be served. Sip slowly and savour the complex flavours of this unique serve.
That One Dish
Scrub the snags and kill the kebabs, this summer is all about lamb. For that, you’ll need to take charge of a wood-fired barbecue and give that “Claim to Flame” highball something equally compelling to match with.
Kellie’s lamb ribs with burnt honey soy glaze and fried saltbush served with the smoked flavour of Laphroaig 10-Year-Old, is that one recipe that’ll ensure your guests go to bed dreaming about your dish, hours after consuming as many ribs as possible.
Kellie’s Lamb Ribs Recipe
Ingredients
- 1pkt Margra lamb ribs (2 ribs per packet)
- ½ bunch saltbush
- 400g soy sauce
- 600g mirin
- 100g shallots
- 2 sprigs of rosemary
- 10g garlic cloves, thinly sliced
- Honey
- Brown sugar
Method
- Preheat your oven to 165 degrees Celsius.
- Start by lighting the wood-fired barbecue. Burn the timber until you have a bed of glowing embers. This will provide the right heat for caramelisation without cooking directly over flames.
- Open the lamb ribs and pat them dry using a kitchen or paper towels. Trim away any excess fat to ensure even cooking.
- Carefully place the lamb ribs over the glowing embers of the barbecue. Grill the ribs evenly on both sides. Due to the high fat content in lamb, be sure to turn them frequently to prevent flare-ups when fat drips onto the fire, which can affect the taste.
- Continue grilling until you achieve a nice caramelisation and have rendered down most of the fat. This will enhance the flavour of the ribs. Once done, set the ribs aside.
- In a pot, combine mirin, soy sauce, chopped shallot and minced garlic. Reduce this mixture until it reaches a sauce-like consistency. Add honey and brown sugar to taste. Continue to reduce the mixture further. Infuse the glaze with fresh rosemary to impart additional flavour.
- Place parchment paper on a clear surface. Lay the grilled lamb ribs on the parchment paper. Drizzle the prepared glaze over the ribs. Carefully wrap the ribs in the parchment paper, followed by aluminium foil. Ensure they are sealed tightly to lock in flavour and steam the ribs in their juices.
- Place the wrapped ribs into the oven and slow roast for 3 hours. This will allow the flavours to meld and the meat to become tender.
- Carefully unwrap the ribs from the parchment paper and foil. Spoon some of the glaze over the top of the ribs. Sprinkle with fried saltbush for added flavour and garnish.
Enjoy these lamb ribs with burnt honey soy glaze and fried saltbush with a Laphroaig 10 Year Old Malt Whisky Neat Serve.
That One Element
There are plenty of moving parts when it comes to what separates a standard summer feast from an unforgettable blowout. And getting the aesthetic right means your feast has a bit of personality to push it from good to great.
Sure, you could go Italian and bust out a White Lotus theme for your well-worn La Dolce Vita aesthetic. But forget about the Mediterranean for now and fly north to the coast of Islay to channel some of that bucolic Scottish charm.
After all, Kellie’s recipes were inspired by the natural setting that makes Laphroaig such a storied whisky, thriving on the building blocks of peat, salt and fire — the trifecta behind Laphroaig’s distinctive flavours.
Colours are the easiest way to suck your guests into another world. Make sure you’ve got some dark blues and forest greens in your space, coupled with an oaky brown, grey, and amber. These are the colours you’ll typically find throughout Scotland’s natural environment.
As for how to get some of those colours into your summer festivities? Tablecloths, chairs, plates, and even napkins. Think about those small details and you’ll make your feast that much more memorable.
As for glassware, it shouldn’t be forgotten. You’re serving highballs after all so think about a vessel specifically designed to express such a classic cocktail. If price is of no concern, think elevated and go for Baccarat’s clear crystal Harmonie highball glass for a trim, neat silhouette. But if you need something affordable, these slim Riedel highball glasses will do the trick.
Now that you’ve got your one cocktail, one dish and one element sorted, it’s time to start prepping the best damn summer feast of 2023.
To learn more about how Laphroaig will elevate your summer feasts, head to laphroaig.com
This article is sponsored by Laphroaig Whisky. Thank you for supporting the brands that support Boss Hunting.
