Spring Libations on the Gold Coast

There’s something in the air…the weather is warming up and we’re looking forward to going out on the weekend.

The Gold Coast thrives in Spring with many of our favourite events taking centre stage including Le Diner en Blanc, Melbourne Cup and the Gold Coast 600.

Indoors at Stingray Lounge, Spring is also taking hold with new cocktails on offer, a new food menu about to launch and new inspiration from Bar Manager, Jared Thibault.

For those faithful Stingray followers, Jared is a face you’ll recognise. In fact, he’s been with QT Hotels and Resorts since its inception in 2012.

Hailing from Rhode Island in the North East of the United States, Jared was exported to the sunny shores of Australia to oversee the cocktail menus for the QT Hotels and Resorts group.

He is tasked with creating unique seasonal libations to satisfy even the most discerning beverage aficionado. Now, that’s a job you’d want!

Having previously worked out of QT HQ in Sydney, Jared has curated cocktail lists for a number of QT’s newly opened hotel restaurants and bars at Falls Creek, Sydney, Canberra, Melbourne, Queenstown and Wellington. And now he’s a permanent fixture at the first and original Stingray Lounge, QT Gold Coast.

“I’ve written Stingray cocktail menus for the past five years, so it’s great to finally be based on the Gold Coast”.

“We regularly reinvent our cocktail menu to reflect seasonal produce, on-trend ingredients and a touch of Gold Coast personality”, says Jared.

“One of our new libations this month is the Honey Dew Mule. It’s a blend of Tito’s Vodka, local Tambourine Mountain Honey Dew Liqueur, fresh lime, Capri Ginger Beer, fresh mint and a melon ball”.

“It’s refreshing without being too sweet or fruity, making it popular with the blokes”.

“The Surfers Sour continues to be a popular cocktail with the ladies and the QT G&T is an all round crowd pleaser too”.

“For many of our cocktails, we utilise fresh produce picked fresh from our kitchen garden including mint, basil, rosemary and edible flowers. So it’s always fun experimenting with new seasonal ingredients”.

“In September we’ll be teaming up with Bacardi to offer Mojito Crates to group bookings at Stingray Lounge. It a great refreshing drink as the weather starts to warm up and will be the perfect opportunity to shout your mates the first-round (on us)”!

words by kobi facto