Top Canberra Cocktails to Try this Autumn

As we press on into March and the greens morph to golden browns, the days shorten and the air becomes crisper and comfortable. However, since we remain thirsty post-summer, we thought we’d better look at some Canberra cocktails that will keep your spirits warm this autumn.

Rosemary Paloma At Hippo Co

This Hippo regular is the delectable culmination of tequila, lime, grapefruit, rhubarb and rosemary. As you lay eyes on this sultry little number, the pink and green colour palette grabs your attention and drags you closer. Once served, the wisps of smoke stripteasing off the rosemary make it impossible to resist taking the first sip. Resistance is futile.

Where: 1/17 Garema Place

Panamania at Akiba

Akiba is raucous in the best kind of way and the Panamania is in stark contrast to that vibe. It’s classy, sophisticated, settled, and sits quietly while giving you a wink and smirk from across the way.

It’s a sturdy mix of Ron Abuelo maple syrup Benedictine, chilli liqueur, bitters and dark chocolate and it proclaims, “I’m part the Rat Pack and I can dance to the song you put on”.

Where: 40 Bunda Street

Anything in a highball

This Havana-themed haunt is a shout out to an airline service that was established to fly ‘thirsty’ Americans to Cuba during the prohibition era. The story goes, passengers were offered cocktails served in highball glasses, which eventually led to the route being dubbed ‘The Highball Express‘.

The strong backstory is backed up with a feisty range of cocktails. So, in honour of the long since gone passengers, try them all.

Where: 82 Alinga Street

Corpse Reviver at Lucky’s

This elegant speakeasy is known to many but somehow retains its underground vibe. It’s clear that the cocktail list at Lucky’s has had plenty of thought put into it, and plenty of “testing” to get the ingredients just right.

Throughout autumn you’re going to want to sip something that lets you know that the end of summer is far from being the end of the world. Something with a slight kick, like a tiny, friendly defibrillator. And for that, we recommend the rambunctious Funk Rum Swizzle, a mixture of Bacardi 8, Tio Pepe Dry Sherry infused with pineapple, fresh orange and passionfruit; or the aptly named Corpse Reviver, a combination of Tanqueray 10 Gin, Cointreau, Lillet Blanc, fresh lemon and a dash of Absinthe.

Where: QT Canberra, 1 London Circuit

words by niall roeder